by Anne Gage

Handing your horse's feet regularly is necessary for his health and wellbeing. But did you know that how well your horse behaves about having his feet handled is also a sign of how much he trusts you?

It takes a huge amount of trust for your horse to be relaxed while having a foot held. As a flight animal your horse's natural instinct is to resist having his feet restricted in any way.

If your horse won't let you handle his feet or behaves badly when you try, it is not only frustrating it can also be dangerous.

Follow these tips if you are nervous about handling your horse's feet or if your horse has any of these or similar behaviours:

• refuses to lift his foot
• slams his foot down as soon as you pick it up
• leans his weight on you when you pick up his foot
• rears, strikes or kicks when you try to pick up a foot or touch his leg

Read more: Horse Training: 7 Essential Steps for Safely Handling Your Horse's Feet

by Katja Bredlau-Morich

Kinesiology taping was developed by the Japanese chiropractor Dr. Kenzo Kase for use on the human body to support his chiropractic treatments. The exact date of development varies, somewhere between 1969, 1973, and 1979 depending on different sources. It obviously took some time from Kase’s first conception—through the prototype to the final production—which is probably why there are various dates of development.

But it was certainly developed sometime in the mid-1970s. It was at the end of the 1980s that Japanese and Chinese athletes were first seen wearing these colorful tapes at athletic competition. During the 2008 Olympic Games, the use of kinesiology tape grew and athletes from other nations used it as well. Four years later, at the 2012 London Olympic Games, kinesiology taping was almost a common standard for athletes.

Read more: Kinesiology Taping for Horses—It’s a Thing!