Hot and cold therapies are invaluable for the conscientious horse owner: not using an effective and safe treatment on an injury immediately can cause long-term damage. It is sound advice to always have a hot/cold treatment to hand.

Horse Injuries
Many people who keep horses will know the thrills involved in competing with their mounts in endurance or in the show jumping, dressage or eventing arena. Anyone who is involved with competition horses at any level will have at one time or another experienced the frustrations of having their horse suffer from lameness or other debilitating injury.

Understanding the nature of sports injuries requires the rider to appreciate the forces that can be involved when a fit horse weighing up to 600Kg performs the technical and athletic activities we demand. The power involved in the take-off and the forces of landing during show jumping or the tremendous energy involved in the collected paces of dressage are good examples. The animal's conformation and action, in addition to the course terrain, can all play a part in determining the concussion that has to be absorbed.

Joint Sprains
Soft tissue injuries to the lining can result in painful tense swellings within equine joints. The most susceptible joints are the coffin and fetlock joints of the front limbs but other joints, such as the large mobile joint of the hock, can also be affected. The swelling frequently appears very rapidly following strenuous exercise. First aid for such injuries involves wrapping the affected joint with a cold compress bandage for 30 - 60 minutes before applying a snug well padded stable bandage.

Tendon Injuries
There are four main tendinous structures in the lower limb of the horse that are frequently injured. The superficial digital flexor tendon is the most commonly damaged structure because during normal fast work it is functioning close to its maximum strength. The other structures that can be damaged are the deep digital flexor tendon, the inferior check ligament which is located just below the back of the knee and the suspensory ligament. Tendinous structures are more prone to injury during high speed training but can occur at other times during schooling or competition. When a tendon becomes injured, the leg will feel thickened and have an increased surface temperature around the area of damage.

Up to 50% of the damage in a strained tendon occurs after the injury and is the result of the inflammation which develops during the first 12 hours in response to the strain. A cold bandage wrapped around the area helps stop the inflammation and helps to reduce any further damage without causing any harm to the horse.

Veterinary attention should be sought immediately if a tendon injury is suspected because it is vital that the inflammatory process within the tendon is suppressed.