Canyon Mist Ranch LLC

01/01/2024

HAPPY 2024 AND THANK YOU ALL!
I want to wish everyone a Happy New Year and share a few of my resolutions. First and foremost I want to thank all of you for supporting me in my book endeavor this year. Everyone who followed me, shared a post or email, held a book launch, gave me words of encouragement or took the time out of their precious day to read a post here or on Substack - I thank you from the bottom of my heart and I appreciate you all so much.

As for this year I have chosen to walk away from the frenetic pace that 2023 brought my way. I will resolve unfinished business and move forward with very positive energy and a greater appreciation of everyday we are given and the people I surround myself with. I will strive to be positive in all circumstances and to support those who supported me so much. My love of researching and writing will continue with more focus since the inbox has been cleaned out and activities that aren't necessary have been weeded out. I hope to get the story of the glider pilots and the glider pilot infantry spread even wider through a variety of mediums. This is my year to truly launch Su***de Jockeys: The Making of the WWII Combat Glider Pilot and to share reports I have of other glider pilots with their relatives. Another book or two are forming in the back of my mind once this first book is on solid ground and I have figured out the marketing (!) - that's a subject in itself!!!

So in closing I wish you all the best on this first day of 2024 - may this year give you many God grant you many blessings and strength for any trials that come your way. Think positive, slow down and smell the roses and do something nice for someone else - even if you don't want to.

~ Cheers - Monique
#2024

02/08/2023

I have been recovering from a small car accident and completely recovered and back to massaging my clients wonderful horses shortly. In the meantime I am putting together class offerings for horse owners to learn to do maintenance massages between visits. More to come shortly!

16/04/2023

Rehoming some lovely roosters. PM for details. Silkies and Satins. Sweet and not aggressive. Just now starting to crow.

26/03/2023

Openings for Equine Massages in April. I have also introduced Essential Oils into some of my massages. The oils act in a number of ways both topically and through inhalation. Each horse, just like humans, is particular to certain oils. They will inhale deeply with one or sometimes both nostrils individually from those they enjoy and will turn away from oils they do not care for. They make their preferences clearly known and those preferences are to be respected. Each oil has a series of properties that make them appropriate or inappropriate for certain conditions. Essential oils are extremely potent and caution must always be used to apply a minimal amount for maximum effect. Even more interesting is when a horse will accept an oil one time and reject it the next. Often, but not always it accompanies the area the oil was used on no longer holding tension.

03/03/2023

Another mountain snowstorm is forecast for tomorrow. Get prepared now, there are a lot of people still stuck in their homes in the mountain area. Horses need food to generate heat, move your hay, and plenty of it, near the horses so you can access it. Fill as many buckets with water as you can. I grew up in New England and we used to out something that floats in the bucket so we could break the surface easier with an ax handle. If you can, get straw. Surround the buckets with straw to help reduce the cold. If the horses are cold or wet pile leaves, straw, or hay under a blanket to help them dry and trap the warmth. You can use a blanket from the house and lay it over the horses back if you’re out there. Give them plenty of bedding to lay down in. We are at a lower elevation but lost power here for 5 days- preparing now in the event it happens again. Stay strong and prep now!

02/03/2023

Well we had so much rain and snow that a small part of my arena fence fell when the ground around it washed down the hill. Not major damage which is lucky. Into freezing temperatures at night so bulking straw under my wet horses blankets! Ahhhh, the horse life - right now all work and little riding!

23/02/2023

03/02/2023

So I've been working away on a basic massage course to offer via Patreon to help owners help their horses with massage techniques. I then thought why not offer a course here with my horses for locals as well so I could help with hands on technique. So Ive decided to gauge the local interest. If this is of interest to you pm me and let me know what you would like to learn.

15/11/2022

It's been a crazy busy Fall so far. Between giving massages I attended an Advanced Equine Anatomy Class in Texas as well as two other out of state trips. Currently, I am working on extending services for my equine massage services as well. Add ons will include essential oil therapy included with the massages which any of you who have seen the horses react to the oil I currently use will see the benefit of. Specifically, I am looking at providing Equine Raindrop Therapy but more on that to come.

This weekend I am attending the Bemer Equine Horse Blanket Certification Academy for two and a half days. I am considering adding it to services as well and will have a lot more information on that very soon as well

Finally, In January Canyon Mist Ranch LLC will have a Patreon page! Super exciting and a lot of hard work. It will provide massage techniques, some training tips and DIY I have used for years. When that comes out I will be sure to post it.

Meanwhile November and December are booking rapidly for massages around the holidays so send me a FB message or text me to reserve your space!

For those of you I won't see I wish you a wonderful busy Thanksgiving full of love, laughter, great food and company!!!

02/10/2022

Whenever I work on a horse I always keep my focus on where the horses source of energy is coming from. It should be coming from the hind hooves through the hind legs, hips, back, shoulders, neck and then and only then to the head. This is how collection works, That energy is not held when it reaches the head it makes a light contact with the riders hands which are always allowing it to move forward.

My second focus is if and if so, where that energy has been blocked. Is it muscles tightness that reduces the range of motion? Is it uneveness? Is it not able to move through the saddle area because of poor tack fit? Is the energy blocked by tight riders legs or a girth that is so tight it is restrictive? Is it never generated because when the rider asks the horse to go forward they are pulling back?

The third thing I focus on is where is the energy escaping, if at all, instead of making it through the entire system. Is the horse bracing on one side? Is the rider a heavy rider on one side? Is the horse lame or uncomfortable on one side? Is the horses shoulder overdeveloped on one side?

All of these things are clues to help me give your horse an informed massage and address issues before they become a major problem.

20/09/2022

Finally making my way home after 5 days of intense training in Advanced Equine Anatomy. Lots of great chances to view bones of the entire skeleton of multiple horses. Go in depth into the nervous system and go in depth on muscles, tendons, organs and testing methods on horses. Lots to digest and share!

18/09/2022

Half way through Advanced Equine Anatomy Course in Texas. Lots and lots of additional knowledge and practice to bring back!

07/09/2022

How often should you have your horse massaged? That is a question I am often asked. The answer is it depends. The ultimate goal for a horse that is very tight is to continue to work on releasing and relaxing the muscles anywhere from every two to 4 weeks - usually four - towards the end goal of maintenance massages every 6 to 8 weeks. At that point the muscles are very supple and I can feel the smallest tightness and the horse does not demonstrate any soreness when I work on him. What works for a specific horse is not so easy to generalize. So much depends on suppleness of the horse when I begin, how often and how they are being ridden, and the biggest and least favorite issue the tack and tack fit. Tack that does not fit correctly, that your horse has grown out of because of muscular development and/or very tight bridles can cause the same issues when it comes to massage again and again. Most horses benefit greatly from massages every 4- 6 weeks or between chiropractic treatments, especially those in hard or advanced work. Signs your horse is in need of a massage quickly are a reluctance to move forward, bracing of the head or neck, reacting when the saddle or girth are put on, reluctance to hooves for cleaning or trimming, not wanting to be brushed or a very limited toleration for it, not tracking up or shuffling along instead of working out as well as a reluctance to jump. It's easy to draw the conclusion that it is a training issue but once those muscles are tight the horse cannot revert without some help and the tightness will only increase with time.

29/08/2022

We have new You Tube videos up at canyonmistranch! There are three short videos of me working Arthur and in the last video working Prometheus after Arthur. It had to be split in three because Bob (for those that don't know he is my fantastic supportive husband) and I were getting tangled up as he tried to get a good shot.

After we sort out those issues I am starting a sneak peak series on the effects of tack to include halters etc. on the horses muscles and how I work a horse, regardless of what terrain I have available to build the muscles, rehabilitate issues and relax tight muscles. It will be geared for the average horse owner. My target for offering this in depth series is late Fall or next Spring on Patreon. You Tube works well and I will keep that channel for clips but it also has issues as a platform.

Heads up! I have had clients who subscribe to my channel ask if I will receive money from the ads that are run on my channel if they click on them. I do not and even if I did I would not ask anyone to do that. I have no choice as to what ads are shown either so please don't click on anything unless you want to. But more on all that later.
Here is my channel site and and the equine superstar in my pic is Goldie! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJEeggX2WFpvU0Khnk7uEHw

Join me while I share my knowledge of equine massage, equine bodymechanics and horse training and horse care tips for horses and ponies and riders of all lev...

29/08/2022

Update on Waylon! If you recall Waylon was experiencing back spasms that made him unrideable since his back would tend to collapse under a riders weight. Lorraine at Stonebrooke Equestrian, also the owner of Joleen, goes to great lengths to care for her horses and called me. Together we started a massage/rehab program with him and to our utter delight Lorraine was able to get on him ba****ck and walk him around the arena. Now we will focus on strengthening his back by having a balanced rider on him for short periods of time. I love a success story and owner's who care so much for their horses!!! Look for more updates in the future!

29/08/2022

Meet Joleen - this pony has charmed me beyond belief! I generally love all ponies and Joleen is the walking example of why! Her owner spotted some issues that we have been working out over a series of sessions. Joleen is a trooper and this time when I arrived I think she was actually looking forward to her massage! We have been able to allow some muscle issues in her hind end to resolve that were caused by overly tight muscles, correct one shoulder that was being held higher than the over which can cause a horse to be a bit crooked and free up her shoulders. This pony gives it ALL to her child riders - a heart of gold and an athlete and an half!! My wish for every horse lover is that they can experience a Joleen one time in their life! I love to hear about people's horses and ponies so don't hold back - introduce them to everyone on this page!

20/08/2022

Goldie and I practicing our yoga moves. Namaste

03/08/2022

Nelida the goat watched me closely as I massaged Arthur. She felt they deserve the same massage the horses get. She was a very happy goat afterwards!! The dogs are next since they now throw themselves down in dangers way when I am massaging the horses on the wash rack. I have started putting them in the quad while I massage which works for all of 3 minutes. I guess they are next.

03/08/2022

Just posted a new video on the Canyon Mist Ranch You Tube channel with more tips on using Lavender Essential Oil on horses. Subscribe to the channel to receive the latest videos.