Strengthening your horse's tendons: training, surfaces and nutrition

Let’s start with the most uncomfortable truth about tendons: once they are injured, healing takes six to twelve months – sometimes longer. That is why everything you do beforehand is vastly more valuable than any treatment afterwards. The good news is that three of the most important factors are in your own hands: training, surfaces and nutrition. That is exactly what we will cover here.

We – Katja and Andrés – have seen both in our over 20 years at the yard: the months of walking rehab, and the horse that moves soundly and remains resilient well into old age. The difference is rarely down to luck. It lies in prevention.

How tendons work – and why they are so sensitive

Imagine a tendon as a strong, elastic rope made of collagen fibres arranged in waves. This wavy structure allows it to stretch under load and snap back like a rubber band. Tendons connect muscle to bone, while ligaments connect bone to bone and stabilise the joints.

The crucial weak point: tendon tissue naturally has poor blood supply and a slow metabolism. It repairs itself extremely slowly. But as long as everything is intact, you can actively help to shape its resilience – through the physical stimuli you provide and the building blocks you supply. A tendon that is evenly challenged and well-nourished can handle more than one that is sometimes underused and suddenly overloaded.

Factor 1: Training and warming up

The most common avoidable mistake happens right at the start of every session: warming up too briefly. Tendons and joint fluid need at least 15–20 minutes of active walking to reach operating temperature and develop their full elasticity. A cold tendon is prone to injury – if you go straight into trot or canter, you are working against your own horse.

Just as important is how you build up training over time. Fitness builds in weeks; tendons need months. Increase intensity gradually, schedule rest days and avoid two hard days in a row. Tendons adapt to load – but only if there is enough time between workouts to allow for adaptation.

Factor 2: Surfaces and hooves

The ground surface is the most underestimated risk factor. Deep, heavy or uneven ground forces the tendons to make uncontrolled compensatory movements. If you have no control over the arena surface, a simple rule applies: adapt your training intensity to the conditions, not the other way around.

Then there is hoof balance. Underrun heels or overly long toes shift the axis of tension on the flexor tendons and significantly increase the constant strain – often without being immediately visible in the horse. Regular visits from the farrier every six to eight weeks are therefore not cosmetic, but active tendon protection.

Factor 3: Nutrition from the inside

Training and surfaces determine the load – nutrition determines whether the body has the building materials for ongoing repair and adaptation. Because even a healthy tendon is a permanent construction site: everyday micro-damage must be constantly repaired. If the building blocks are missing, this micro-damage accumulates.

Four nutrients work together here, each with its own role:

• Collagen is the direct building block of the tendon fibres, providing tensile strength and elasticity.
• MSM (organic sulphur) securely cross-links the collagen fibres – without enough sulphur, the connective tissue loses its strength.
• Glucosamine supports the cartilage and the surrounding matrix.
• Hyaluronic acid keeps the structures supple and is the main component of joint fluid.

The key lies in the combination, not in extreme individual doses. The substances target different parts of the same system and reinforce each other. We review what the studies say about these active ingredients – and where their limits lie – in our overview on joint supplements for horses.

One issue that often sabotages prevention: a lack of transparency. EU feed regulations allow for rough quantities instead of exact milligrams. But with a preventative supplement that you feed for months, you should know exactly what your horse is taking in daily – otherwise, you might mostly be paying for fillers.

Why prevention at the feed bowl so often fails

The best theory is useless if the horse refuses to cooperate. And this is exactly where everyday prevention falls apart: you mix a high-quality powder into the feed, your horse turns its nose up at it – MSM in particular has a strong taste – and expertly sorts it out. With an acutely injured horse, the pressure is high enough that you will find ways to trick them and mix it in. With pure prevention, however, consistency quickly fades. Anything that is a daily hassle and gets left in the bowl is the first thing to be dropped in the stressful daily routine at the yard. Prevention only works when it is effortless.

That is why we developed nuvallo move Snacks to be easily fed straight from your hand. For a 500 kg horse, 6 snacks (approx. 30 g) deliver a transparent daily dose of 1,500 mg glucosamine, 2,550 mg collagen, 2,250 mg MSM and 150 mg hyaluronic acid – lighter horses receive 4–5, heavier ones 7–8, and ponies 3–4. No weighing, no dust, and your horse experiences the supplement as a reward rather than medicine. The basis of linseed cake and rice bran is free from wheat and corn, making it gentle on the stomach. The snacks are ADMR-compliant and safe for competition with no withdrawal period. If, contrary to expectations, your horse does not like them, you can get your money back with our 30-day satisfaction guarantee.

So, if you want to strengthen tendons, you don't start with the most expensive active ingredient. You start with what works reliably every day: warming up well, keeping an eye on the surfaces, regular visits from the farrier – and supplying exactly what the tissue needs for its daily work from the inside.