Monday, September 19, 2011 at 6:00 p.m.
By Amanda Hersey
The Team USPA program kicked off the season in Aiken, S.C. with its fall Team USPA lecture series. Shelly Onderdonk, DVM invited the group of 10 young polo players to New Haven Farm for the second of her two-part lecture where she shared secrets of how she cares for husband Adam Snow’s string of top polo ponies.
Dr. Onderdonk reviewed what she covered in her first lecture last spring, including her top four priorities when caring for the equine athlete: conditioning and nutrition, the concept of individualized care for each horse in a string, the importance of farriery and short term versus long term thinking.
Jorge Estrada, Nick Snow, Shelley Onderdonk, Samara Warnland, Will Tankard, Neil Osburg, Cristina Fernandez, Danielle Travis, Allison Manderiota
After a quick review of her top priorities when caring for the equine athlete, Dr. Onderdonk shifted focus on holistic versus conventional therapies including equine acupuncture, which she specializes in. Other topics included: homeopathy/herbs, allopathic medicines and chiropractic care stressing the need for it to be supplemented with acupuncture and deep massage to help the soft tissue recover from trauma.
Since these concepts were new to several audience members, Dr. Onderdonk opened up the discussion to answer all the participants’ questions. She introduced additional ideas such as using an over-the-counter probiotic to replace the “good bacteria” after treating a horse with an antibiotic. She also recommended using herbs and homeopathic remedies when deemed appropriate since they have no side effects and she supplied the group with informational resources on treating horses with herbal and homeopathic remedies. Dr. Onderdonk admitted that she initially didn’t consider homeopathy to be effective until she experienced the form of alternative medicine first hand in her mid-twenties when she stumbled across a remedy that worked on her.
To view a video of Dr. Onderdonk’s lecture, go to www.poloskilz.com.
Team USPA continues to be instrumental in encouraging USPA programs and events that will recruit, train and develop American players and teams to the fullest measure of excellence. This includes advancing young players to compete in international events on behalf of the U.S., participation in national and circuit USPA tournaments and working to improve the level of play for competitors at every stage of experience.
The U.S. Polo Association was organized and exists for the purposes of promoting the game of polo; coordinating the activities of its member clubs and registered players; arranging and supervising polo tournaments, competitions and games; and providing rules, handicaps and conditions for those tournaments, competitions and games, including the safety and welfare of participants and mounts. For more information, please visit www.uspolo.org or email