This week’s forecasted weather has me reminiscing about sleepy summer sessions. 💕
I am opening up a couple of Friday spots for sessions since the rest of the month is full! Let me know if you want to snag a spot or look at December for you!
11/15- FULL
11/22
***Nationally Board Certified, State Licensed, & Insured Large Animal Massage Practitioner. Certified Veterinary Thermographer.***
Relying on the crossties to hold her head up… Miss Espy has been loving the addition of PEMF therapy to her sessions. 💤
Before & After from yesterday:
From “nervy” and sensitive to soft and comfortable. It took some playing around to get to the bottom of things and then came together at the end. 💕
Could you imagine saddling up a horse with sensitivity like this? I bet it wouldn’t be a fun ride!
***Nationally Board Certified, State Licensed, & Insured Large Animal Massage Practitioner. Certified Veterinary Thermographer.***
I love my job and when they come running for their sessions. 💕
***Nationally Board Certified, State Licensed, & Insured Large Animal Massage Practitioner. Certified Veterinary Thermographer.***
Little snippets of lately. 💕
I have been incredibly busy between my regulars, new clients, travel all over the state, and continuing education that I sometimes need to take a step back and breathe.
This weekend has been much needed away from communication with clients (mostly- I’m awful and hate to keep you waiting!), paperwork, reports, etc. I took the rest of the week/end off to relax and decompress, work on house projects, sneak my horses into my schedule, take my daughter on her very first trail ride, and spend time with family.
This week I will be back in full swing and pumping out reports for my most recent travel day over to Ellensburg for horses.
I have some fun case studies to share or ones that I’ve started, products I’m testing, new ideologies to delve into, and so much hope for this year.
I am always reminded of how incredibly grateful I am to my clients who keep me busy, trust me with their horses, and most importantly are in it for the horse. This job can be a puzzle but so rewarding day after day.
***Nationally Board Certified, Stare Licensed, & Insured Large Animal Massage Practitioner. Certified Veterinary Thermographer.***
#stableequinetherapies #equinethermography #horsetherapy #equinemassagepractitioner #holistichealth #equinemassagetherapy #equinebodyworker #equinemassageandbodywork #equinemassage #equinebodywork #equinemassagetherapist #horsetherapyisthebesttherapy #thermalimaging #equinethermographer #equinebusiness
Did you know you can use balance pads (foam stability trainers) with your horses?
I wish it was a more normalized practice to help our horses build their stabilizing muscles, increase proprioception, and maintain balance.
Balance pads are also a huge help for horses suffering from limb or hoof discomfort when it comes to stretching or farrier work!
Small sessions on the pads as well as other basic exercises and stretches can help your horse in so many fantastic ways…
SI pain due to an unstable pelvis?
Weak thoracic sling muscles?
Trouble lifting through the back and onto the hindquarters?
Asymmetrical shoulders or pelvis?
Balance pads can help!
Done correctly, short frequent sessions (about 10-20 minutes, a few times a week) are enough to see a big difference in your horse’s posture and balance.
In the video, this mare utilized a pair of balance pads in several different positions throughout her session. I let her guide placement and she was pretty happy about it!
***Nationally Board Certified, State Licensed, & Insured Large Animal Massage Practitioner. Certified Veterinary Thermographer.***
Modality Spotlight: Manual Ligament Therapy
I LOVE talking about this technique, so be prepared to stay awhile!
Manual Ligament Therapy, like most animal therapies, was based on a human technique and then adapted for animals. It is inspired by the Logan Basic Technique, which utilizes directional pressure on the sacrotuberous ligament to reduce tone in the muscles along the spine, which are not necessarily connected to the ligament in any way! It is a technique still used today to help patients suffering from back pain, specifically scoliosis.
Until recently, ligaments were thought to only provide an attachment between bones (stabilization of joints). Recent studies show that ligaments do so much more! Ligaments send direct signals to the central nervous system (CNS) regarding the health of the ligament and tissues. The CNS uses ligaments to deliver and monitor proprioceptive information and influence muscle tonicity based on influences such as stresses or injury.
Basically, the ligament contains special receptors that tell the brain that an injury has occurred and the response is to create a hypertonic (tight) muscle to guard the injury. These injuries can either be acute with rapid onset or be the consequence of repetitive stress on the area. An inflammatory process is triggered and the muscle that is affected shortens and becomes hypertonic. This creates a lack of circulation and therefore forms a trigger point and causes joint dysfunction and pain. Once the injury has healed, there is a potential for continued pain signals being sent to the brain due to the lack of nutrient circulation within the ligament caused by the trigger point. These signals to the CNS prevent the muscles from lengthening or relaxing in anticipation of an injury that is no longer present. The hypertonic muscles remain, as does the pain from the added stress to the area.
Manual Ligament Therapy applies gentle pressure to trigger points of the affected ligaments to reduce muscle ton
And just like that, 2023 is over!
This last year has been a huge growth year for me in many ways and I can’t wait to see what 2024 has in store. Thank you to all of my wonderful clients for allowing me to work so closely with you and your horses.
Because of you, I have been able to travel all over WA State to work with horses, learned new modalities, opened doors for horses that were a “lost cause”, educate our youth, and so much more. It is truly a gift.
I wish the next year holds growth, happiness, and good health for you and your equine partners.
On a side note, what would you like to see added to my business in 2024 to better serve your horses?!
***Nationally Board Certified, State Licensed, & Insured Large Animal Massage Practitioner. Certified Veterinary Thermographer.***
#stableequinetherapies #equinemassage #equinebodywork #equinethermography
