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HORSE THERMOGRAPHY

Your horse is showing problems while working with you or might even be lame already? Maybe it doesn’t like to be touched anymore and suddenly seems aggressive towards you? Maybe you already have the feeling, that something isn’t right or that your saddle still doesn’t fit properly despite a saddle fitter having been there recently?

Horse thermography can help find the cause for many problems!

Horses are flight animals – it’s vital for their survival to compensate and hide pain. If they wouldn’t do this, they’d be easy prey in the wild.

So it’s up to us to learn and interpret their subtle signs and to search for the cause if we have the feeling something is wrong. Even if we do notice that something is amiss and the horse isn’t doing so well it still can’t tell us exactly where the pain is located in most cases.

LOCATE PROBLEMS FASTER WITH THE HELP OF THERMOGRAPHY

With only one screening, all causes for discomfort or pain can be localized!

FIND PROBLEMS

All causes of discomfort can be found in only one screening!

POSSIBLE ON SITE

The examination can take place in the environment the horse feels safe in.

ABSOLUTELY STRESS-FREE

The horse does not have to be sedated for a screening. It is completely stress- and pain-free for the horse!

THE THERMOGRAPHY

Horse thermography is a comprehensive, informative method. It is a noninvasive, safe, and cost effective diagnostic imaging modality that is a valuable tool when it comes to equine health care.

Infrared thermography can detect metabolic changes related to active inflammation, blood flow, and nerve conduction. It can help find symptoms and disorders like kissing spines, tendon/ligament problems, soreness from poorly fitted saddles, arthritis or hoof abnormalities.

The thermographic camera detects infrared waves on the body’s surface that are invisible to the human eye and transforms them into an image we can see and interpret.

Horse thermography can be used in lots of areas such as saddle fitting evaluation, prepurchase evaluation, lameness localization, before and after an acupuncture- or a massage-treatment for example, as an assessment of the healing process of soft tissue, and much more.

I take pictures of every angle of the horses body in detail, according to a standardized procedure. When interpreting images, symmetry is the key. We have to compare the right side to the left and vice versa – the patient serves as his own control. This is why I have to evaluate them on my laptop at home with the help of a special software in order to make them comparable.

The horses body is displayed in rainbow colors that range from blue (cold areas), green, yellow and red, to white, which indicates particularly warm areas.

THE ADVATAGES

Horse thermography offers various possibilities and advantages compared to other imaging techniques:

  • cost-effective compared to other imaging methods
  • results are verifiable
  • it can help veterinarians, physiotherapists etc. direct their treatment in the right direction
  • with only one examination, all causes for discomfort can be made visible
  • whether a saddle fits (in movement) can be precisely determined
  • this also works with other equipment like longe girth’s for example
  • with a thermal image saddle fitters have the opportunity to adapt the saddle to the horse so that pressure peaks etc. can be avoided
  • inflammation processes can be detected early on
  • causes of unclear lameness can be found
  • tension, nerve blockages and paralyses can be made visible
  • changes in the tissues become visible before clinical symptoms occur

In Addition thermography offers several advantages for the horse itself:

  • a thermographic exam is completely contact-free and therefore stress- and pain-free for the horse
  • the examination can take place in the horses familiar environment
  • the horse does not have to be sedated or put under anaesthesia

THE PROCESS OF A HORSE THERMOGRAPHY

Once I arrive at your given destination, I start with a detailed anamnesis, before I start taking the thermal images of your horse. A complete thermography consists of about 50-60 images.

A saddle thermography consists of about 10 images. When doing a saddle thermography I also do a detailed anamnesis of the rider before taking a close look at the saddle, it’s position on your horses back and your horse. After taking the first images of your horses back I draw on it with a chalk pencil in order to visually make it easier for you to understand where the saddle should go. Naturally, you can ask questions at any time!

Then you start riding. It’s important to me, that you warm your horse up properly despite our appointment. After about 15-20 minutes at trot and canter, I take more pictures and then your part is finished. At home I evaluate all the pictures taken during the appointment and you will receive the results in a detailed report, including all the images that show thermographic abnormalities, via email.

„LET THE COLOR GUIDE YOU!“

PRICES

Prices are composed of the work on site and the evaluation from my home-office. 

* travel costs for each service amount to 0,3€/km.

CONTACT ME

As a certified equine thermographer I offer my services in California, Texas, Massachusetts and Germany. 

Feel free to contact me for a first conversation!