Common Conditions That May Benefit From Horse Massage

  • Difficulty Bending

  • Attitude Problems

  • Change in Attitude

  • Loss of Performance Ability

  • Soreness in back

  • Injury Rehabilitation

  • Head Tossing

  • Cinchyness

  • Stiffness and Resistance

  • Short, Choppy Strides

  • Incorrect Leads

  • Rearing/Bucking

How To: Evaluate your own horse in 2 minutes to determine if he/she is sore

Massage Impacts More than just Muscle!

Nervous System

  • We are able to address compensation patterns so the body can stop guarding areas- this is particularly important after an injury when the horse needed to compensate to function. Once they have recovered, if we don’t reset the system, they will continue to compensate!

  • Flight Animals- getting them into the parasympathetic is extremely important for them to settle

  • Proprioception

Skeletal System

  • muscles attach to bones via the tendons

    • tight muscles put pressure on tendons, which puts pressure on joints (and vice versa with complicating factors like arthritis).

    • monitoring this system is the key to prevention of soft tissue injury

      • When the whole system is tight, there is an inability to shock absorb, and things that your horse had no issue with before suddenly can cause a major issue

EARLY DETECTION

  • In learning about your own horse and their body, not only are you able to detect differences sooner, but you are telling them that you are there for them. This builds relationship, trust, and has major impacts on the ground and in the saddle! If your horse can communicate with you without shouting, you are both going to be happier!

Circulatory System

  • Massage creates vasodilation, which helps with the flow of nutrients in and waste out

    • Creating a fluid pump helps with the “fullness” of the muscle

    • Feel of the muscle should be like a damp sponge- if the tissue feels like a dried out sponge it doesn’t have enough fluid going in and out of it.

Digestive System

  • During massage, the horse goes into the parasympathetic nervous system or “Rest and Digest” phase

  • Because they can’t throw up, the digestive system being relaxed and flowing well is incredibly important to decrease the colic risk

    • When you take away body pain, the horse will get out of a constant anxiety mode, and in that relaxation can actually increase appetite and healthy body condition.

Immune System

  • Lymph is the body’s waste system- it can expand up to 40x its volume to accommodate injury support.

    • With massage we are able to “jump start” the Lymph system, and move the stagnant pooling edema.

  • The skin is the largest organ in the body, and therefore its biggest defender!

    • Massage encourages blood flow to the skin, rehydrating cells, and strengthening the whole system.


 

Use Equi-Tape® Equine Kinesiology Tape to:

  • Support ligaments, tendons, and joints

  • Prevent injury and speed recovery

  • Help with injury rehabilitation

  • Increase circulation and promote healing

  • Increase equine athletic potential

  • Decrease Muscle Spasms

  • Reduce inflammation and associated pain

  • Reduce swelling and edema

  • Re-educate muscle memory

  • Help release Fascial Lines