What is an Equine Compression suit?

What is an Equine Compression suit? 

Compression suits aren’t a new thing in the horse community. We have been seeing horses strutting around in them for a few years now, even some of our famous race horses have been known to throw one on. But how do they work and what benefits do they seem to have. 

To be honest they really are no different to the one’s human athletes wear only bigger and a little harder to get on. They work on the same principles, just adapted to fit the equine athlete.  

Some of the potential benefits and features to the compression suits. 

• Enhance blood flow, helping improve overall circulation. 

• Supply of increased oxygen to muscles. 

• Improves the ability to flush waste from the system. 

• Reduce muscle vibration. 

• Helps reduce fluid buildup in lower limbs. 

• Maintain muscle temperature which can help prevent injuries. 

• Reduced muscle fatigue due to enhanced blood flow. 

• Help prevent the onset of muscle soreness post work.   

• Lower lactic acid build up in muscles. 

Questions you may have  

• How hard is the suit to get on your horse? –the suits can be a bit tricky the first time you try to fit the suit to your horse, but it does get easier as you get used to how it fits.  

• Does it make the horse sweat? – The fabric is designed in a way as to not heat the horse, however common sense should be used especially in extreme weather conditions such as high temperatures. 

• When to use it? – Can be used before and after work, or even during travel. Using the suit before may help to calm your horse and make them more relaxed, post work to help with recovery. 

The basic principle of the suit is to increase blood flow especially in the lower limbs, thus providing more oxygenated blood to the muscles and helping remove the buildup of lactic acid. Improving circulation helps muscles recover quicker from the stresses of work or travel. The added bonus is the suits have been known to have a calming effect on some horses, which may be beneficial for those horses that suffer from levels of anxiety post competition. The suits are available in different designs which can target specific areas such as the head and legs, if you don’t feel you need a full suit.