WHY USE TOPLINE FOR HORSES?

Since a horse has 51-58 vertebrae, many muscles of all sizes and shapes exist to support this long spine. Just think of the forces on your horse's spine, with and without the necessary tack. Because of the length of the spine, the muscles necessary to support these vertebrae involve large front and back quarter muscles as well as neck and back muscles. In addition, these muscles provide support while your horse is at rest and through a wide range of motion and energy use. 

As you observe the types, sizes, shapes, and positions of the various types of vertebrae, imagine your horse in a full gate run. I like to think of this as Majesty in Motion. Now imagine the physics and physiology of the muscles it takes to support this movement and power, as well as a rider and full tack.

The term for this set of muscles is Topline. As you can imagine, this muscle set needs vital nutrients to maintain healthy muscle tissue. Exercise will condition the muscles that are present, but working alone does not build or maintain muscle. A balanced and targeted amino acid profile, specifically high-quality proteins, vitamins, and minerals, must be present to repair, build and recover topline muscles. Amino acids are building blocks of proteins in building muscle in horses and giving your horse the power to perform.

As I said when we discussed the function of Synovial fluid to cushion your horses' joints, these proteins and targeted amino acids are required for a fast and healthy Topline muscle recovery.

We spend a lot of time and attention observing everything about our precious horses, which deserve it. We must be cautious about maintaining the importance of healthy muscle tissue. Sometimes poor Topline is blamed on lack of exercise, saddle fit, genetics, and age-related decline. Unless your horse has the appropriate nutrient balance for these Topline muscles, you may be mistaken about what is wrong. I have repeatedly said that we ask a lot of our animals and owe it to them to give them the best care we can.

Thank You for being a Caring Horse Owner.