Horse Massage for Horse Owners E-Book

Sue Palmer

• Herausgeber: J A Allen
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2017

Beschreibung

This book is a must for anyone who would like to improve the health, wellbeing or performance of their horse. Practical, educational and easy to follow, the author shares with you the knowledge and skills you need to massage your own horse. Learn about equine anatomy, massage techniques, and how to combine the moves to develop a complete massage routine. With the emphasis on how you can work with your own horse, Sue offers an insight into how to reduce pain and stiffness in your horse as well as improve performance. Massaging your horse gives something back in return for all he does for you, and will help you and your horse to truly enjoy the time that you spend together.

Leseprobe

HORSE MASSAGE

FOR HORSE OWNERS

Improve Your Horse’s Health and Wellbeing

SUE PALMER

CHARTERED VETERINARY PHYSIOTHERAPIST

J. A. ALLEN

First published in Great Britain in 2012 by J.A. Allen, an imprint of

The Crowood Press, Ramsbury, Marlborough, Wiltshire, SN8 2HR

www.crowood.com

This impression 2017

This e-book first published in 2017

© Sue Palmer 2012

All rights reserved. This e-book is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights, and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 978 1 90880 966 7

The rights of Sue Palmer to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

Edited by Martin Diggle

Line illustrations in Chapter 2 by Samantha Elmhurst BA Hons

Photographs and other images by Simon Palmer, Into the Lens, except where otherwise credited.

Disclaimer of Liability

The author and publisher shall have neither liability nor responsibility to any person or entity with respect to any loss or damage caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly by the information contained in this book. While the book is as accurate as the author can make it, there may be errors, omissions, and inaccuracies.

Contents

Foreword by Kelly Marks

Author’s Preface

Acknowledgements

Introduction

Glossary

1. Learning Massage

2. Equine Anatomy

3. Massaging Your Horse

4. Problem-solving

5. Frequently Asked Questions

Prompt Section for Massage Routine

Useful Information

Index

Foreword by Kelly Marks

IFIRST MET SUE PALMER (then Sue Brown) over fourteen years ago when she attended one of my Intelligent Horsemanship courses. Sue not only stayed strongly in touch with me – she also married a fellow student, photographer Simon Palmer! I remember Sue’s father’s wedding speech when he talked about her endless quest for learning and I can vouch for that. Sue has not only studied on my courses and gone on, in fact, to represent us as an Intelligent Horsemanship Recommended Associate, she also went on to study for seven years to qualify as an equine massage therapist and Chartered Veterinary Physiotherapist.

Sue continues to be on a quest for never-ending improvement in horsemanship. She is a fantastic example to anyone who truly wants to do their best for horses in general, or simply for their own much-loved horse. The need to have your horse physically comfortable cannot be overestimated when it comes to his quality of life, and my own horses have regular treatments from Sue. The owner’s desire and ability to pay attention to what’s happening with their horse, and further, through this book being able to massage him themselves on a regular basis, is an essential element of the respect and understanding that leads to a healthy, happy horse.

Kelly MarksIntelligent Horsemanship

Preface

MASSAGE HAS BEEN A PASSION for me as long as I can remember, and my objective is that this book will excite a similar passion in you, the reader. My enthusiasm for massage developed over many years. I was lucky enough to be brought up with horses, and have ridden since I was 3 years old. My ponies carried me safely from lead-rein through Pony Club and on to horses, including competing in affiliated showjumping and eventing.

Deciding initially that university wasn’t for me, I followed my love of horses through a variety of jobs, working with a range of breeds from Shetland to Shire, and in diverse areas such as driving and point-to-pointing as well as dressage, showjumping, eventing, hacking and teaching. At one time I had my point-to-point jockey’s licence, but unfortunately the horse ‘did a leg’ the week before I was due to ride in my first race, and by the next season racing wasn’t an option.

The majority of my time in my late teens and early twenties was spent with a horse dealer. We visited horse fairs including Appleby, Stowe, and Ballinasloe, and were regulars at Southall and Reading Markets. I met horses from all walks of life, including a spell of selling to the knackerman, and importing top-quality showjumpers from abroad. It was a steep learning curve, one that not many people have the opportunity to experience, and one for which I am forever grateful – I truly believe that I would not be where I am now without the knowledge that I gained during that time.

The horses were my teachers, and those at the dealer’s yard taught me far more than any book, DVD, or instructor could ever teach. I learned very quickly to assess accurately a horse’s behaviour, both on the ground and ridden, because if I got it wrong then I got hurt – which happened on many occasions.

Most of my time in late teens and early twenties was spent with a horse dealer.

One thing I quickly learned to assess was whether or not a horse had been ‘broken-in’, and what his ridden behaviour might be. This wasn’t something I was conscious of learning, it just ‘happened’. I now know that I must have been assessing not only behaviour and attitude, but also muscle tone, reactivity and comfort levels; there was no doubting when I got my assessment wrong – I ended up on the floor!

We had hundreds of unbacked youngsters over the years, either home-bred or bought from the sales, and it was part of my job to back them and prepare them for life in a private home. Many were straightforward, calmly accepting saddle, bridle and rider in no time at all. Some were more difficult, perhaps more spooky, difficult to get the bridle on, or over-reactive when the girth was done up.

When it was time to move on, I studied hard to qualify and teach as a BHSAI. Around this time a dear friend of mine took me to see a gentleman called Monty Roberts doing a demonstration at Addington Equestrian Centre in Buckinghamshire. I was fascinated, and I remember commenting that it would be a dream come true to study his methods on the course that was then run at West Oxfordshire College. I am a great believer in following your dreams, and so I applied and was accepted to study for the Monty Roberts Preliminary Certificate in Horsemanship with Kelly Marks. In due course I qualified as an Intelligent Horsemanship Recommended Associate (see the Useful Information section near the end of this book for more information), and the behavioural knowledge that I have gained from this work forms an essential part of my massage and physiotherapy work. How else can you persuade a horse to accept the discomfort that physiotherapy sometimes involves, without understanding his behaviour and working with him rather than against him? Owners are regularly surprised at how accepting the horse is of the work that I and many other practitioners do, and I’m sure it’s because we communicate with the horse, which importantly includes listening to him. At the time of writing, I am the physiotherapist on tour with Monty Roberts and Kelly Marks in the UK, and have been a member of the ‘tour team’ for several years.

A friend of mine took me to see a Monty Roberts demonstration in 1997.

It was when I was teaching riding at Summer Camp in Maine, USA, that I applied to study physiotherapy at university. I was accepted at King’s College in London and spent three years studying hard to achieve my BSc, whilst keeping up the horse work to pay the bills. My aim was always to study further to do physiotherapy for horses, but to my surprise I enjoyed working with people so much that I almost changed my mind! The restrictions of employment didn’t suit me though; I had spent too many years setting my own hours, and so thankfully I returned to the horses and being self-employed.

I also followed my passion to study massage, initially taking an ITEC diploma in anatomy, physiology and massage, so that I could treat family and friends. Whilst I was at King’s College studying physiotherapy, I wanted to understand massage in more depth and to apply more advanced techniques, so I also studied for a qualification in sports massage (ITEC diploma). I took this further to study horse massage with Equinology (see the Useful Infomation section near the end of this book for more information), and qualified as an Equinology Equine Body Worker before studying at the Royal Veterinary College to gain my MSc in veterinary physiotherapy

My work with horses has developed over the years to take into account my knowledge, experience, and the various qualifications as they have progressed. For many years now I have worked freelance to help horses and their owners, whether the issue is caused by ‘brain’ or ‘pain’. With over thirty years of experience, I offer a variety of physiotherapy and teaching techniques including individual and group sessions, courses, demonstrations, and the Horse Massage for Horse Owners DVD, first released in 2010. From a routine ‘back check’, to solving loading issues, to teaching the Horse Massage for Horse Owners course, I try to look at the whole picture to support the client towards achieving their dreams with their horse.

I offer a variety of physiotherapy and teaching options.

I have also contributed to a wide variety of magazines and produce a weekly ‘Brain or Pain’ e-newsletter giving top tips for equine health and behaviour which you can sign up to from the homepage of my website, and also a monthly e-magazine, and enjoy maintaining a friendly and supportive Facebook group. I have been overwhelmed by the positive response to the DVD and these other forms of communication, which have allowed me to touch the lives of far more horses than I could ever have hoped to make a difference to, and I hope this book will add to this process.

The combination of a wide variety of experience, traditional qualifications, behavioural qualifications and physical therapy qualifications allows me to offer a holistic approach to working with you and your horse, and in this book I aim to involve you in this approach. Massaging your horse regularly will mean that you can understand him better. The communication between you and your horse will improve as he realises that you are listening to him as much as he tries to listen to you. Through this and the well-documented physical benefits of massage, his health and wellbeing will be enhanced and his performance will improve. And, best of all, massage is something that will be enjoyed by both you and your horse!

Acknowledgements

THIS BOOK IS WRITTEN FOR ALL THE horses of the world, and for my very good friend Jo. It could not have been finished without the support of my husband, family, friends and clients, and the patience of the thousands of horses I’ve learned from.

Thankfully my parents encouraged my passion for horses, and they continue to be there for me, including proof-reading the early versions of this book – thanks mum and dad!

An important person in helping me to be where I am now is Vera Lacey, who took me to my first Monty Roberts demonstration. This ultimately led to working closely with Kelly Marks and Monty Roberts, who continue to provide outstanding inspiration and education, and with the Intelligent Horsemanship Association.

My husband, Simon, was instrumental in filming, editing and producing the Horse Massage for Horse Owners DVD that I’m so proud of, and which allowed us to showcase the potential for this book. Crucially, I’d like to thank the many attendees of the Horse Massage for Horse Owners courses, who continued to question, comment, persuade and enthuse until I agreed to put the contents of the course into a format they could take to the yard with them! I am especially appreciative that I was chosen several years ago as the carer of Carol and Don Brazier’s stunning black Shire x Thoroughbred Belvedere, who is incredibly tolerant of my ongoing efforts to perfect new techniques, and is the star of my DVD.

My husband also took the photographs in this book, and I thank him for his patience each time I asked for yet another review of the pictures! We’re also grateful to my sister Charlotte for being willing to get very cold posing for massage photographs in the winter, and to Alison Tyler with Spider, owned by the Thoroughbred Rehabilitation Centre, for being such stunning and patient models.

Thanks to Andy White, with his company WowMe! Design, who kindly put together at short notice the diagram that you’ll use as a quick reminder of the massage routine. Also thanks to Samantha Elmhurst for the muscle illustrations in Chapter 2, and to Jackie Locheff (www.equimazeequinethermography.co.uk) for use of the image on page 93.

I’d also like to thank Lesley Gowers from J.A. Allen for believing in this current project and getting it off the ground.

Finally, I am eternally grateful for this opportunity to make a difference to the comfort of horses throughout the world, and so I thank anyone and everyone who has helped in any way. Happy massaging!