15.2 Equine Performance Bodywork LLC

A letter from your horse...

If I could speak to you in a language you understood,
I would start by saying thank you.

Thank you for choosing me…
even on the days when I wasn’t easy,
when my fear looked like stubbornness,
and my confusion looked like attitude.
You loved me through all of it.

If I could tell you what I feel,
you’d know how much your presence calms me.
How I hear your footsteps before I see you
and my heart settles…
because I know I am safe.

You’d know that every soft touch,
every scratch in my favorite spot,
every slow breath you take beside me
means more than you could ever imagine.

You think I carry you...
but you carry me, too.
In your voice,
in your patience,
in the gentle way you forgive me
when I make mistakes.

If I could tell you,
you’d know I notice everything:
the way you linger a little longer on hard days,
the way your shoulders relax when you bury your face in my neck,
the way your heartbeat softens
when you whisper secrets you tell no one else.

I want you to know I listen.
I understand you in ways words can’t explain.
I know when you're hurting…
and I try to stand a little closer.

If I could speak,
I’d tell you I remember the moments you think were small —
the treats tucked in your pocket,
the slow cool-down walks,
the promise you made to always show up.
Horses don’t forget love like that.
We hold it quietly,
deeply,
forever.

And if I could tell you only one thing,
it would be this:

You are my person.
My safe place.
My comfort.
My home.

I may not have the words to say it,
but every nicker,
every soft breath,
every time I lower my head into your hands…
I am telling you:
I love you, too.

Why Mares Are Better Than Geldings (and yes, this is absolutely my biased opinion) ❤️ 🐎

There’s a pattern in the horse world that mirrors the human one a bit too neatly.

People don’t like mares for the same reason they don’t like strong women.
They’re direct.
They know what they want.
They have boundaries that aren’t negotiable just because you asked 4 times.

Call a mare “moody” and half the time you’re just describing a horse who refuses to tolerate behaviour that doesn't serve her.

Watch a herd for long enough and you’ll notice it’s the mares who stitch the whole thing together. They manage space, negotiate tension, hold social order, and they do it with very little fuss.

Geldings are lovely. They can be the reliable, soft-hearted labradors of the equine world. I adore them.
But mares… mares operate on another level entirely.

You don’t get anything for free, and that seems to be what rattles people. To work with a mare, you have to be clear, respectful, and emotionally tidy.
She will not pretend for you.
She will not humour you.
She will not let you blag your way through a session while you’re thinking about your Tesco shopping list. ✨️

And that is exactly why they’re my favourite.

A mare makes you accountable.
She makes you present.
She makes you honest about who you are and how you show up.

People say mares teach patience.
I think they teach you how to communicate with someone who knows her own mind.

And when a mare with that kind of intelligence chooses you?

That is not luck.
That is a privilege.

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1EFP9nVjQJ/?mibextid=wwXIfr

I always like to have a reminder as to why something is important.

When girthing up a horse, it’s important not to over-tighten the girth. An over-tightened girth may pinch or bruise the muscles, especially those in the chest (pectorals), the neck (trapezius), the side of the ribcage (serratus ventralis), and the lower back (latissimus dorsi), which are shown in red on the diagram bel. Similar to how a tight belt can cause discomfort or bruising in a human, an overly tight girth can cause soreness in these areas. It may also lead to bruising of the ribs and the intercostal muscles (the muscles between the ribs), restricting movement and causing pain. Additionally, the tightness will cause the saddle to put more pressure on the horse’s back muscles, leading to further discomfort.

Think of it like wearing a belt that’s too tight around your waist: it presses into your skin and muscles, causing discomfort, restricting movement, and potentially causing bruising. Just as you wouldn’t wear a belt so tight that it hurts, it’s crucial not to over-tighten the girth to avoid these issues for the horse. Always ensure the girth is snug, but not excessively tight, to keep the horse comfortable and prevent injury.

Today I was able to share my The Masterson Method, Integrated Equine Performance Bodywork skills with others. This was also a wonderful moment for me.

True.

A thought-provoking read.
By Jane Smiley

Most horses pass from one human to another - some horsemen and women are patient and forgiving, others are rigorous and demanding, others are cruel, others are ignorant.

Horses have to learn how to, at the minimum, walk, trot, canter, gallop, go on trails and maybe jump, to be treated by the vet, all with sense and good manners.

Talented Thoroughbreds must learn how to win races, and if they can't do that, they must learn how to negotiate courses and jump over strange obstacles without touching them, or do complicated dance like movements or control cattle or accommodate severely handicapped children and adults in therapy work.

Many horses learn all of these things in the course of a single lifetime. Besides this, they learn to understand and fit into the successive social systems of other horses they meet along the way.

A horse's life is rather like twenty years in foster care, or in and out of prison, while at the same time changing schools over and over and discovering that not only do the other students already have their own social groups, but that what you learned at the old school hasn't much application at the new one.

We do not require as much of any other species, including humans.

That horses frequently excel, that they exceed the expectations of their owners and trainers in such circumstances, is as much a testament to their intelligence and adaptability as to their relationship skills or their natural generosity or their inborn nature. That they sometimes manifest the same symptoms as abandoned orphans - distress, strange behaviors, anger, fear - is less surprising than that they usually don't.

No one expects a child, or even a dog to develop its intellectual capacities living in a box 23 hours a day and then doing controlled exercises the remaining one.

Mammal minds develop through social interaction and stimulation.

A horse that seems "stupid", "slow", "stubborn", etc. might just have not gotten the chance to learn!

Take care of your horses and treasure them.