Professional and Educated
We want you to feel that your horse is safe in our care. We work closely with our local veterinary community and practice biosecurity for all horses, regardless of the service you select.
REHABILITATION
As horse owners ourselves, we recognize that receiving the news that your horse has an injury is taxing on many levels. The initial heart dropping sadness and disappointment, followed by the glimmer of hope illuminated by the rehabilitation plan your veterinarian has laid out for you. Following the initial healing period, you start to do the recommended exercises, and suddenly the rehabilitation plan that seemed so clear can lead to so many questions and doubts.
How long do I do this exercise for? When do I increase the difficulty? Are we doing this exercise properly, my horse seems unhappy? My horse looks a little bit off today, did I do too much yesterday? Are we getting anywhere?
SUBLIME REHAB SERVICES
AT A GLANCE
EXERCISE & REHABILITATION EQUIPMENT
MANUAL THERAPIES
THERMAL MODALITIES
ELECTRO- THERAPY MODALITIES
THE BEST OF SCIENCE BASED TECHNOLOGIES AND REHAB PRACTICES
WE HAVE GATHERED
To achieve optimal results we prefer to use a multimodal approach to rehabilitation and conditioning. By combining manual therapies, electrotherapeutic modalities, and exercise, we can better restore functional movement, accelerate recovery, and promote correct muscular and postural development.
This approach has proven to be more effective than stand alone therapies providing the best experience and outcomes possible for each individual. Whatever your discipline or focus, we have something to offer.
We are offering Mobile Services
We are offering a range of mobile services while we continue to build our state of the art facility. Contact us below if you would like to take advantage of our mobile services.
EXERCISE AND REHAB EQUIPMENT
These pieces of equipment can be used as part of a conditioning program to build strength, endurance, and fitness in preparation for the upcoming season. They will also be incorporated into the next stage of rehabilitation once your horse is cleared for activity post injury/surgery.
FEATURES
Select from Hydrotherapy, the VitaFloor Vibration Plate or EuroXciser.
BEST FOR
These can be a stand alone or add to any package.
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Hydrotherapy has many benefits to our equine athletes and can be a wonderful addition to a conditioning program. At Sublime Rehab & Equine Fitness Centre, we use one of the most unique and effective water treadmills on the market, the Aqua Icelander Water Trainer. This water treadmill can be used to reduce strain on joints & tendons via buoyancy effects of the water. An increase in hydrostatic pressure on the skin stimulates mechanoreceptors, leading to improved circulation and reduced pain. Water resistance not only increases strength and endurance, but also increases sensory awareness. With the addition of up to a 10% incline on the training belt, there is increased workload on forward moving muscles by up to 27% and an overall increase in cardiovascular effort. Water treadmill exercise is also one of our favorites for developing core strength and top line musculature. A strength training program with a water treadmill provides better balance of muscle groups working against increased resistance while maintaining a symmetrical gait.
Horses who are recovering from tendon/ligament injuries need to wait at least 45-60 days post injury and will need permission from their Veterinarian before having access to the water treadmill.
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We are excited to have Alberta’s first vibration floor with an airlift tilt mechanism! The VM2 is Vitafloor’s most sought after built-in models which are designed to fit perfectly in a stall. The airlift tilt mechanism enables the floor to tilt a few inches at time in different directions and intervals, increasing the performance of the vibrational therapy by more than 30%. Each time the floor raises, it requires the horse to activate a different set of muscles comparable to muscle isolation training in humans.
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Our 72’ EuroXciser will accommodate 6 horses at once. Horses are free to walk, unencumbered by any kind of tether, in a large circle. The speed can be set to walk or trot and can be run both clockwise and counterclockwise. Suitable horses will be paired together at an appropriate speed/gait for their level of fitness. This form of exercise provides free movement in a secure area on good footing in all seasons.
MANUAL THERAPIES
Manual therapy is defined as a collection of techniques in which hand movements are skillfully applied to mobilize joints and soft tissues. These techniques may be used to alleviate pain, improve motion, induce relaxation, reduce edema, and improve musculoskeletal function.
FEATURES
Select from massage, bodywork, Kinesiotaping, Stretching and/or Joint mobilizations/spinal manipulations.
BEST FOR
These can be a stand alone or add to any package.
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Promotes circulation, decreases muscle spasm, aids in lymphatic drainage, and can be used to mobilize adhesions and scar tissue. Included are various techniques including myofascial release and soft tissue mobilization
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Kinesiology tape is widely used for human athletes and has become a staple in equine therapy as well. We use various applications to affect the nervous system of the horse. The tape is applied to specific areas in order to facilitate or inhibit muscle activation, aid in body awareness/proprioception, facilitate lymphatic drainage, provide pain relief, and release fascial restrictions. It is also a favorite to add to the owner’s toolbox so that applications can be repeated as needed at home
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Provides pain relief from tight muscles and connective tissue, restores normal muscle length, and decreases stiffness related to work or inactivity.
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Joint mobilizations range on a scale from grade I - V. The grade chosen depends on the intended effect on the joint/tissue. Generally, the lower grade mobilizations are used for pain relief and edema reduction. The higher grades, including grade V “manipulations” are primarily used to restore normal joint biomechanics and nerve function. This will lead to improved muscle function as well.
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We believe in using correct terminology when describing manual therapies. As such, we do not refer to anything that our therapists do as “Chiropractic Adjustments”. We do work closely with both human Doctors of Chiropractic as well as Veterinarians who are certified through the AVCA (American Veterinary Chiropractic Association) in animal chiropractic and Veterinary Spinal Manipulation Therapy (VSMT). We are happy to facilitate appointments with these professionals as needed.
THERMAL MODALITIES
These tools are often used in the recovery phase of an injury, but can also used supportively as your horse begins their journey back into work.
FEATURES
Select from heat or cold therapies, as well as our amazing INDIBA machine.
BEST FOR
These can be a stand alone or add to any package.
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Heat increases metabolic activity, creates muscle relaxation, decreases stiffness, and provides pain relief. For superficial tissue, this can be accomplished with a simple hot pack, warm water, or radiant heat from our Solarium. Our preferred method of delivering heat to deeper tissues is through the use of diathermy using our INDIBA® radiofrequency-based therapeutic modality
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Cold decreases metabolic activity in the target tissues and constricts capillaries resulting in reduced swelling, inflammation, and pain transmission. It is typically used for acute inflammation. Ice water, ice massage, and cold hosing are our main methods of delivery
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INDIBA® radiofrequency-based therapeutic application bases its effect on increasing the heat of the treated tissues (diathermy). This technology also generates unique and scientifically proven effects on cell structure at the 448kHz frequency, which stimulates and accelerates tissue repair mechanisms. INDIBA® technology treats the injury using cell bio-stimulation generated by the electrical effect, or by combining bio-stimulation with heat generation in the tissues.
ELECTROTHERAPY MODALITIES
Electrotherapy modalities used at Sublime include therapeutic devices that use some sort of electrical +/- magnetic current, or light energy to either naturally relieve pain or stimulate healing though their biologic effects on tissue.
FEATURES
Select from heat or cold therapies, as well as our amazing INDIBA machine.
BEST FOR
These can be a stand alone or add to any package.
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This modality uses a pulsed electromagnetic signal to improve blood flow, cellular function, and is clinically proven to improve bone healing. At Sublime Rehab & Fitness Centre we have chosen to use a BEMER Horse Set (Bioenergetic Magnetic Energy Regulation) for our horses. The uniqueness of BEMER lies in its signal and its configuration. The signal leads to scientifically grounded stimulation of the smallest vessels (microcirculation) supporting the circulatory system as a whole.
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Photobiomodulation Therapy (Low Level Laser Therapy) is a widely used modality to modulate pain, reduce inflammation, and acceleration healing. We use the MR5 ActiVet Pro, and ActiVet Pro LaserShower from Multi Radiance Medical. Multi Radiance Medical uses three clinically proven wavelengths: 465 nm, 660 nm, 875 nm, and 905 nm to cover the entire spectrum therapeutic window of light for deeper penetration and enhanced absorption of light. These super pulsed lasers are safe and effective and are also approved at FEI events
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INDIBA® uses radiofrequency electrical stimulation at 448 Hz to have a biological affect on tissue. This technology can be used for heating tissue or in a low power capacity to activate cellular metabolism. The benefit of the lower non-thermal setting is that it can be used in acute conditions (hematoma, acute ligament injury, muscle strain, etc).
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NMES stimulates larger muscle contraction and is used for prevention of muscle atrophy related to denervation or for improvement of muscle function. It can also have a pain relieving effect through the decrease of muscle spasm.
TENS (Transcutaneous Electric Nerve Stimulation) is primarily used for pain relief.