C.C.EquineTherapy

One day, I hope to see a change.

Yes, a change in the way horses are treated - to see them truly treated like partners with their own physical and emotional needs met.

But to also see a change in the way the humans treat each-other.

How can we expect a change, when people are so focused on proving why they are better than another?

On why only they can treat or teach a specific way?

How can we expect change to truly happen, when people are so focused on tearing each-other down?

I think - everyone needs to take a step back a breathe.

There is so much we can learn from one-another.

Imagine the change we could actually create, if instead of focusing on tearing each-other down, we focused on learning from each-other instead?

We can all be taught the same methods - using the same videos, the same instructors - and we can all take something different out of them.

And THAT is a good thing.

It can open up so many avenues for learning, when these take aways are brought back together.

I'm not saying competition is a bad thing - this is often something that helps push us to better ourselves.

But, we also need to know when to put our own egos aside, so we can learn from someone else.

I hope that one day, humans can learn to treat each-other better.

Imagine the changes we could see with our horses then.

Happy Tuesday!

Let's train your eye:

- What do you see?
- How long do you think it has been between these two photos?
- Which photo was taken first?

Leave your thoughts in the comments below! I will be back tomorrow with updates. 😊

**Note: yes, ideally these photos would have been taken in the same lighting and on the same flooring, etc. Let's just have some fun with it. 😊 **

Sometimes - less is more.

It's gentle pressure.

The quiet moments.

Soft breathing.

Lowered neck.

Soft eyes.

Sometimes - the best thing we can offer is space.

A space with no expectations.

A space to explore.

With no stress.

To breathe.

Our industry often puts too much pressure on our horses to always be on the top of their game.

Rigorous training programs.

Restrictive equipment.

Lack of turn out.

No "off" days.

No friends.

Sometimes - the best thing we can do is take a huge step back.

And just allow them to be horses again.

There is healing to be done, that only slowing down can achieve. ❤

The Magic of Horsecraft

🌞 Now Booking June! 🌞

Show season is officially upon us!

Here are a few of my travel dates - I will have additional availability throughout the month as well.

Please contact me ASAP if you would like to claim a spot. 😊

UPDATED POST

I love hearing all your guesses! There was one that was close, but no one spot on. 🤭

The first photo was taken last Friday: May 8/26

The second photo was last night: May 12/26

4 days apart.

Aside from what we can physically see, what else has changed?

He is much more settled. He is not showing the same volume of stress behaviours.

He is not as worried when I take him away from his ponies.

I am able to feed, groom, and walk him through the property without a lead rope, and he will stay with me.

Yes, we have added a lunch consisting of soaked forage based food. (3 over the past 4 days)

While he may have gained some weight, what we are seeing here is also a huge change in the amount of tension he is (no longer) holding throughout his body.

The only work I have done, is working on "bringing his brain back down to earth", or trying to regulate his nervous system. (We have no done any hands on bodywork yet.)

We have been going back to simple everyday tasks where I ask little questions he knows the answers to.

We have continued to do dynamic pillar 1.

Soon, I will start to address the tension in his body - once he is settled enough to do so.

Never under estimate affect that stress has on the body.

I have attached a third photo from May 4/26 as well.

A Rant: The “He Doesn’t Do Much” Delusion🔥

There’s a very frustrating belief in the horse world that once a horse becomes “just a trail horse” or gets ridden once every blue moon, they somehow no longer require maintenance, management, or physical support.

Apparently arthritis is deeply respectful of low-level recreational activities and simply stops being an issue.🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄

Performance horse? Joint injections, corrective shoeing, saddle fits, rehab plans, bodywork, supplements, carefully monitored workloads.

But...Twenty-two-year-old trail horse Jimmy, with the mobility of a rickety wheelbarrow, who gets dragged out of the paddock once a fortnight to carry hubby Trevor through the state forest?

“He doesn’t do much.”🤯

Exactly.
That’s the issue.

This is where I once again pull out the Worry Cup metaphor to explain why. Every horse has a capacity to cope with stress, discomfort, uncertainty, pressure, and life in general. The fuller the cup becomes, the less capacity the horse has to stay calm, think clearly, and tolerate being ridden without their behaviour spiralling into meltdown mode.

And one of the fastest ways to fill that cup is pain.

Sore feet. Arthritic joints. Weakness. Stiffness. Inflammation. Poor fitness. The sort of body discomfort that makes movement feel less like “light exercise” and more like "arduous hard work".

Movement becomes STRESSFUL when movement HURTS.💥

Then humans act shocked when the horse becomes reactive, tense, resistant, spooky, or “naughty.”

No.
The horse is physically REELING, and the risk of riders falling skyrockets.📈

And from a safety perspective, this matters enormously. The horse ridden “only occasionally” is often the horse with the least conditioning, the least strength, and the fullest Worry Cup. You are climbing aboard an uncomfortable, under-prepared animal and hoping for emotional stability, good decision-making, and a lovely calm ride.😎

That’s not horsemanship.
That’s not understanding what drives horse behaviour.😎

And honestly, more equine professionals need to help me out and stop reinforcing this myth. We need to stop telling people that because a horse “doesn’t do much,” that you can cut the support to them. Often these horses need *MORE* support because they lack the fitness, mobility, and resilience that help bodies cope with carrying riders.❗️

Less work does not magically make discomfort easier to tolerate.

That is not how bodies work.

Ask literally anyone over forty.😆

As someone with arthritis myself, I can assure you that having a few weeks off does not transform me into a majestic woodland athlete. It turns me into a packet of uncooked spaghetti held together by anti-inflammatories and heat rubs.

So if you want a horse that feels safer, calmer, and more capable of coping under saddle, management matters. Comfort matters. Welfare matters.

And ironically, the less your horse does, the more important that becomes.❤

Collectable Advice 212/365. If this gave you insight hit share or save. Please no copy and pasting🙂

Never underestimate how much stress can affect your horse.

Can anyone guess how far apart these photos were taken?

(no, they are not perfect side by sides, or same ground, etc - but we can still learn from them. 😊 )

I will post the answer tonight.

* ~ Just out here looking for HD's brain cells ~*

I say this jokingly - in reality we're out here finding ways to help bring HD back down to earth.

For context, his world has experienced quite a few changes in the past few weeks - new horses, battle wounds, new people, a new herd - and honestly, he hasn't handled very well.

HD is a horse that when he gets stressed, can be difficult to bring back down. So what have we been doing?

- Lots of dynamic Pillar 1 (I highly recommend everyone look into Celeste Lazaris' Balance Through Movement Method)

- Finding him a job: and by this, I don't mean "working".
His jobs could be as simple as standing on his mark (or in our case, a mat in the barn isle), walking beside me, walk-halt transitions, backing a few steps.

- Grazing in hand

- Playing at liberty or in hand: redirecting some of that anxious energy into movement he enjoys.

In times where he is stressed, I am not trying to out dominate him - it's a time where clear, consistent communication is key.

Matching his energy when needed, but then bringing him back down.

Catching his responsive behaviours in the early stages, before they explode into something more.

Redirecting anxious energy into forward, controlled movement, before asking him to repeat the same task.

Focusing my attention fully on him and helping him find the right answers to the things I am asking.

And most importantly - rewarding the little trys that he offers. This could be as simple as standing when I ask him to stand, backing up the two steps I was looking for, or dropping his head and searching for that relaxed state.

There is only one goal in all this - helping him regulate his nervous system. The more we can help him come out of that fight or flight state, the better able he is to adapt to the changes around him.

So, for the time being, this is where you'll find us. ❤️

I have been testing out a new charting/book software over the past couple weeks.

I will be working to get everyone transferred over to this new system over the next little bit! 😊

This means:
- Online Booking
- Emailed Chart Notes
- Emailed Invoices
- Appointment Reminders
all in the same spot!

Thank you for your patience in advance as I work to implement this new system!