“We are not trying to adjust a 1,200-pound horse but just one four- or five-pound bone,” he said. “Chiropractic is simply using a high-velocity, low-amplitude force on a specific motion unit or joint.”

Wagner started as a general-practice veterinarian more than 20 years ago and then began to specialize in equine care. His practice does general medicine and surgery, with an emphasis on lameness, as well as dentistry and reproductive work.

Even as he was treating horses, he wondered if there might be a way to prevent some of the problems he was seeing.

“In my practice, there were times when I noticed that something was missing from the care,” he said. “My thirst to find out what it was eventually led me toward chiropractic.”

Although the concept of animal chiropractic may sound modern, it has been around at least as long as its human counterpart. D.D. Palmer, considered the founder of human chiropractic, also taught animal chiropractic as long ago as 1895, Wagner said.

The practice went dormant for a number of years before being revived in England in the 1970s. It has been growing in popularity in the United States over the past two decades.

“We consider chiropractic to be a complementary therapy,” said Sally Baker, director of public relations for the American Association of Equine Practitioners in Lexington, Ky., the world’s largest association for equine veterinarians. “It’s still a specialized niche, but it definitely is growing in popularity.”

Twenty percent of the association’s members practice complementary or alternative services for their clients, according to a 2008 survey. Of that 20 percent, 49 percent of the veterinarians said they provide chiropractic treatment.

Just as with human chiropractic, the objective is to create balance and harmony in the body. That is especially important in horses, where four lower legs roughly the size of human legs support an animal weighing hundreds of pounds.

“When joints are not moving normally, the horse compensates in the motion of other joints,” Wagner said. “Chiropractic corrects that.”

After contracting with an outside provider for several years, Wagner took advantage of a slow time in his practice to become certified himself. The school he attended, Options for Animals College of Animal Chiropractic in Wellsville, Kan., is one of only three such schools in the United States.

“One of the big reasons why I decided to go through the course was that my practice had slowed down because of the economy, and I had more down time to take the courses,” he said. “I felt that the training would benefit me when the economy does turn around.”

Students must be practicing veterinarians or chiropractors, or a veterinary or chiropractic student. Wagner attended classes for four or five days a month over a six-month period to qualify for certification. He believes chiropractic and traditional veterinary medicine go hand in hand.

“The general difference between the two is that chiropractic is more preventive, and medical is more for after we have seen the early clinical signs, such as joint inflammation or graded lameness, that are beyond the scope of chiropractic,” he said.

Clients such as Marina Woodhead, owner of Hidden Oaks Horses in Pleasant Hill, have seen the benefits of chiropractic. The stable trains dressage horses, some of which compete in world-class events.

“I was skeptical at first, but now I can really see the benefits,” she said. “The biggest value to me is being able not only to help my competitive horses stay at their peak performance but also correct some lameness issues.”

Woodhead has been working with two horses whose owners said couldn’t be ridden because they were too wild.

“Ninety-nine percent of the time that happens, there is a physical reason,” she said. “The first thing I do in that situation is have Dr. Wagner look them over for physical problems. He used chiropractic treatment on them for a couple of weeks, and they went from ‘No, I won’t be ridden’ to being compliant. There really have been some amazing results.”

Woodhead keeps her competitive horses on regular treatment programs. “I have him check my stallion once a month,” she said. “Just as with any athlete at the top of their game, horses require regular support and maintenance to do their best work.”

In the short time he has been certified, Wagner has seen good results for his clients — and for his business.

“The overall response has been good,” he said. “Just as with human chiropractic, I have some clients who are skeptical and don’t want to do it, and I have other clients who totally believe in it and have seen positive effects.”