What is a prophet’s thumbprint?

If you’ve been in the horse world long enough, you’ve likely seen a horse with a Prophet’s Thumbprint. The folklore surrounding them is an interesting narrative in the horse world.

• You may have heard that a Prophet's Thumbprint is a lucky sign that your horse was touched by God himself.

• Maybe you've heard that if your horse has one, they descent from the Prophet Mohammed's trustworthy and reliable broodmares who returned to him when called instead of seeking water after being withheld from water for 5 days.

• Perhaps you've heard that a Prophet's Thumbprint is a residual indentation from where a baby's hoof pushed against the muscle en-utero, causing a muscle malformation.

• Some say that as an owner, if your thumb fits perfectly into your horse’s indent, you are the horses one true owner.

The fact of the matter is that no matter how the Prophet's Thumbprint came to be on your horse... it is a display of scar tissue, likely from some sort of injury or trauma.

Scar tissue = damaged tissue.

Damaged tissue = compromised tissue.

Compromised tissue = an area of weakness in the muscle.

The scar tissue itself is very strong, but that isn’t necessarily a good thing. It creates a knotted effect on the muscle, strengthening the area of trauma but weakening the surrounding support. Imagine it like a rubber band that has been tied in a knot, with enough strain put on the rubber band, where will it break? At the knot or next to it?

A muscle with scar tissue is no different. The tissue surrounding the scar tissue is weaker and more easily damaged or strained.

You cannot un-damage tissue, but you can support the surrounding tissue to prevent further damage or compensation in the muscle.

Some of my favorite ways to support horses with scar tissue is through massage, taping, stretching and gua sha.