News Notes

Is Chiropractic Helpful for Horses?

By Adam Marcus

Does chiropractic manipulation help horses? Or are the benefits more in the eyes of the practitioner than the patient?

A new study might add a little to the plus side of the ledger for chiropractic in equine settings. The randomized, double-blind trial found healthy hunter/jumper horses that received the manual therapy appeared, to their riders, at least, to benefit from the intervention. However, measures of stride and heart rate did not differ among the animals that were treated with chiropractic manipulations and those that received a placebo treatment—suggesting the gains, if real, are difficult to quantify.

“This study clearly shows that horses perform better for their riders after chiropractic manipulations,” said Olivia Lorello, VMD, PhD, an assistant professor of clinical equine field service at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine in Philadelphia, who led the research. “While we did not find objective evidence to support this using a tracker, there were many variables that we could not control such as type of ride—although we tried to standardize footing and weather [parameters]. It’s possible if we continue to look we may be able to find something measurable.”

Chiropractic therapy [https://ceh.vetmed.ucdavis.edu/news/chiropractic-care-horses] has gained a following among owners for horses with a variety of musculoskeletal issues, from stiffness and poor performance to skewed tails and even behavior changes.

For the study, Dr. Lorello and her colleagues enrolled 38 horses (mean age, 11 years), of which 11 dropped out before data could be collected or analyzed. The 27 horses remaining in the trial received either chiropractic manipulation from a veterinarian trained in the procedure or a sham intervention, after which they were ridden as usual, and their performance monitored using sensors. The groups then switched, and those in the sham group received chiropractic therapy and vice versa.

“Each horse was evaluated individually and had manipulations done based on palpation findings. This means that no 2 horses got the same treatment, which is a common complication of study design for alternative medicine,” she said.

Sensor data failed to find an effect on the horses, whose stride rate, trotting, galloping and other objective measures did not seem to change after chiropractic manipulation. However, riders overwhelmingly felt the animals performed better after the intervention, with 15 of 18 offering a positive assessment of the therapy, compared with 2 of 18 after the sham manipulations, according to the researchers.

“Most horses really enjoy chiropractic, but there are some who do not. The horses in this study all had positive experiences,” Dr. Lorello said. “I have the impression that some of the manipulations are momentarily painful, similar to a deep tissue massage, but when it’s over they have a release of endorphins that is worth the momentary discomfort.”

Horses that undergo chiropractic therapy at New Bolton Center, where Dr. Lorello practices, must tolerate the treatment without sedation, she said. “This means that the veterinarian is able to see how the horse tolerates each manipulation and would never push to the point of too much pain or injury,” she added. MeV

For more information:
Lorello O, Rule E, Haughan J, et al. Chiropractic effects on stride parameters and heart rate during exercise in sport horses. Equine Vet J. 2025;57(1):69-75. https://beva.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/evj.14043