The Poll Says It All

The Horse’s Quandary

The Poll Says It All

The poll and it’s various components is the centre through which all nerves run

Is your horse head shy? Are you having trouble with lateral flexions? Keeping his nose at or in front of the vertical position? Does your horse feel like he is stiffer on one rein? Not coming through? Stopping at jumps?

The poll and it’s various components is the center through which all nerves run, therefore the origin of poll tension and pain can correspondingly be caused by issues elsewhere in the body. It is also why I treat the entire horse each session.

The causes are varied; the type of work the horse does, a rider stronger on one rein than the other, riding from front to back, a tight long back muscle, (longissimus dorsi), asymmetry of the horse, trauma or excessive poll pressure from bridles and equipment not adjusted properly to name a few. Dental issues and misalignments can similarly be culprits.

Where are they located?

There is a group of capitis muscles, which are short thick muscles, found just outside the nuchal ligament and about three inches down. The occipital bone, first and second vertebrae are connected by the rectus capitis muscles and the obliquus capitis group. They are responsible for turning and rotating the head, and moving the head up, out in extension and down toward the chest. This group can become very tight and restricted resulting in numerous issues.

I was called out to a barn to do sports therapy on a jumper that was beginning to refuse and was falling in badly to the right. His head and neck were consistently bent and flexed left when travelling on the right rein. After watching the horse under saddle and performing a full body assessment I determined the horse was very tight in the hamstring muscle group, and especially tense in the left poll. The tightness of the left poll was restricting right flexion.

During jumping in preparation for the landing phase the head and neck stretch out to balance the horse. If we think about that from the perspective of the horse it makes sense for him to refuse the jump when tightness in the poll restricts him from stretching his head and neck out prior to landing.

Upon further investigation I also observed the right hamstring muscles were very contracted and discovered numerous trigger points. It must be noted that tight hamstrings and gluteal muscles can actually cause tightness up in the poll area, (See ‘THE IMPORTANCE OF THE HAMSTRING GROUP’ in my last posting) as was the case with this horse.

Restoring the range of motion

First, I released the tightness in the poll area with Trigger Point therapy followed by poll massage, lateral, forward and downward flexions.

The tension in the right hamstrings was first released with Trigger Point therapy followed by massaging the semi-membranous muscle toward the inside and lightly massaging the semi-tendinosus muscle toward the outside. I prefer to use Trigger Point therapy initially if trigger points are present before I apply other techniques.

What can you do?

A flexion exercise for the rider to execute when mounted is asking for flexion to the right – only enough to see the eye and nostril to the inside – then to the left. THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH BENDING THE NECK LATERALLY nor is it meant to cause the horse to swing his head left and right.

Hold one rein (as the outside rein) to keep the neck straight. With the other ask for the flexion in a gentle upward motion. The bit should act in the corner of the mouth, not on the bars. DO NOT PULL. When done  

properly the flexion is created at the poll. It can also be done from the ground. Stand in front of the horse with the reins over his head. Keep enough tension on one rein to keep the neck straight. With the other rein apply a gentle upward pressure to create the flexion. Ask a knowledgeable person to help you if you are not familiar with flexions.

It is also important during his training that the horse is allowed to stretch his neck and relax his long back muscle keeping in mind this muscle connects the horse from front to back. In the hindquarters it attaches at the sacrum and ilium area and extends all the way to the neck at C7. From there it continues to the poll in diverging components.

From an anatomical viewpoint it becomes apparent how problems in the poll can have many sources, which affect performance and/or behaviour.

Restrictions accumulate over time, even years, and eventually result in poor performance, acting out and eventually the horse breaking down mechanically.

The next time you encounter behaviour or performance concerns stop for a moment and ask this question: “Is there a restriction in my horse's body which could be causing the issue?”