When several European countries announced that they would no longer allow polo wraps, a.k.a. bandages, on competition grounds, I begin to do some research of my own, as well as digging through online sites to see what I could find.

If you don’t want to keep reading, here’s a basic summary:

“In conclusion the authors stated: “Convection cooling is impaired by boots and wraps during exercise such that even in a moderate intensity exercise bout in moderate ambient conditions, a booted or wrapped limb may reach damaging temperatures.”  https://equimanagement.com/research-medical/effects-of-boots-and-wraps-on-equine-leg-surface-temperature/

Please note first that I am not a veterinarian nor am I horse physiologist. I’m the “end user” of equine products and their development.

Here is a very brief summary of what I found.

First, from Equus magazine:

“The main problem is that under bandages, the temperature of the legs [gets] high, which has a detrimental effect on elasticity of tendon tissue. It is sometimes compared to boiling an egg. The structure of the tendon fibers changes, which can damage them. It doesn’t help if you cool down your legs immediately after riding. “That’s like setting your house on fire first and then putting it out. The damage has already been done”.”

They also cited the fact that wraps did not prevent over flexion of those tendons in numerous tests when compared to a horse without a wrap.

You can find the full article here:

https://equusmagazine.com/news/dutch-national-federation-bans-bandages-in-competition

The following study was NOT comprehensive but is interesting nonetheless.

https://horsesport.com/magazine/equine-ownership/boots-wraps-put-tendons-heat-risk-study-confirms/

The TLDR of the above article is: unwrap ASAP after a workout, no matter the bandage/boot type, and do a quick cool hose after a ride, whether you’ve had wraps/boots on or not. Evaporative cooling is fabulous – though, this is obviously weather dependent.

The consensus (in every study I found – though, I’m very sure I did not find EVERY study) seems to be that wraps don’t support tendons, but do help mitigate injury from blunt force (hooves, fences etc). But without taking precautions in the type of wrap, you still run the risk of tendon damage.

I tend to not put boots or wraps on my horses very often, but I’m also no longer a jumper. And I recognize that when I’m teaching new skills in any discipline, my horse may need some protection on his/her legs as they figure out where their hooves need to go.

Interestingly enough, just before I hit PUBLISH on this, USDF Connection came in the mail with a solid summary of much of what I talked about here.

The basics from that article are as follows:

1. Polo wraps do not help with overflexion and they DO overheat tendons. A person can do damage by wrapping too tightly or by wrapping not tightly enough. They’re likely the least effective thing we can put on our horse’s legs. (Studies on “cooling” polo wraps show them being slightly better).
2. Leg protection is not helping tendons, it is ONLY helping with protection against bumps by hooves, legs, debris, or obstacles. The best boots will have some type of protective shell. Anything claiming “tendon support” is likely false.
3. External cooling – ice boots, cool hose, etc post workout is the best way to keep your horse’s leg tendons healthy.

So, what am I changing?

No more black. I live in a very hot and dry place, and black really does make a giant difference. If black is all I have, I’ll likely mist the outside with water before riding. (Again, hot and dry climate – at least for a fair chunk of the year).

I will be buying white boots for my horse from now on. And so much Dawn dish soap to keep them clean…

Everything I look for in terms of horse leg protection is going to say airflow or cooling, etc. I’ll be looking for boots with hard shells and remember that the protection is for bumps and bangs, not tendon/muscle health.

I will continue to use only overreach boots/bell boots in the trailer. If I feel standing wraps are appropriate, I’ll likely do some type of poultice to draw heat and moisture away from the horse’s leg. I’ll likely do the same type of wrap after a clinic or show day.

Final thoughts:

I put thick fleecy wraps on my horses for ages. I jumped into the neoprene boot trend when they came out. I loved playing with colored polo wraps – even when I saw that my horse’s legs were sweaty underneath those wraps when I finished. I’d been a dancer – warm legs were good!

Research has shown me otherwise. The hope is that when we know better, we do better.

The saddle that I used in the 1990s, I would never put on a horse today. We’ve learned more about how much clearance a horse needs around their spine and those saddles had notoriously thin channels.

The very pretty polo wraps that I bought because they were my favorite colors, are going to end up in the trash or in the bin of “standing wraps”.

I’ll wait to see how long it takes some of my favorite tack manufacturers to create tendon/brushing boots in all sorts of different (light) colors rather than basic white and black……

Thankfully, that trend has already begun.

For those of us who love them, our matching sets will live on.

~ Jolene