Both treatment methods use fine needles. But that’s pretty much where the comparison ends. Dry needling is used to relax muscle knots, while acupuncture is a holistic treatment that works on the body’s energy pathways.

Dry Needling: Muscle Knots and Trigger Points

Dry needling is a treatment usually performed by a physiotherapist—both for people and animals. In dry needling, a thin needle is inserted into a muscle knot. This knot is a central point in a tense, blocked muscle where stiffness has developed. This often leads to limited movement, and the stiffness tends to radiate from this point. The therapist searches for the so-called “trigger point”—the specific spot that needs to be stimulated to reset the locked muscle, essentially the heart of the muscle knot. By moving the needle within this trigger point, the muscle knot is “released.” This leads to immediate relaxation of the muscle and often the whole horse as well. Initially, the horse (or human) feels little from the treatment, but a few hours later, a heavy feeling or muscle soreness may occur. However, the muscle’s movement is much freer than before, which is very beneficial. Dry needling is widely used in people for neck and shoulder tension, for example, in office workers. In horses, this technique is often applied to the back or shoulders as part of a complete physiotherapy treatment. It helps the horse release tight muscles more quickly, making it easier for the physiotherapist to proceed with further treatment. However, it’s important to ensure a proper diagnosis, as dry needling is not the best solution for every type of movement issue.

Acupuncture: Energy Flows Throughout the Entire Body

Acupuncture is a 3,000-year-old Chinese treatment method used to treat the entire animal (or human). In acupuncture, the needles are placed very superficially in the skin and do not penetrate deep into the muscles, as they do in dry needling. The acupuncture needles are placed at strategic points along the meridians—the energy channels that, according to Chinese medicine, run throughout the body. The acupuncture points are seen as collection points for energy. By leaving the strategically placed needles in for a while, the energy flow through the meridians is balanced again, and blockages are removed. Since the energy pathways are connected to all body parts and organs, acupuncture can be used to treat various conditions—whether targeting specific organs, body regions, or addressing stress and anxiety. Many horses become very calm during an acupuncture session. Thanks to its holistic effects, acupuncture can support many different illnesses and is often used for pain management in chronic conditions. Scientific research has shown that regular acupuncture treatments can, for example, support horses suffering from laminitis or help reduce lameness.