Trevor!

Well my darling boy is doing well.

One side effect of surgery was he began to be NEUROTIC...again...

Scritching his teeth, biting, walking over me, panicking. Ugh! Didn't I deal with this once?? Well, here's the lemons so how about some lemonade. What else could I do? I needed to have my horse's brain back.

When I first got Trevor, he was rude, rude, rude, and super stressed. I worked long and steadfast to address those issues. He came out of surgery in great shape, but fell right back into the rude and stressed behavior.

So that has been out focus. It is going well. He's remembering that his job is to be a gentlemen when ever he has to deal with me. I haven't started riding him...yet. I'm in no hurry. I want him to be fit and focused when we reintroduce the riding aspect to his brain. It's a good brain.

Breezy's progress

So, last I left the Breezy update, she was improving within her shoulders, and hence, in her hindquarters.

Due to Trevor's rehab status (handwalking with light turnout) my lessons with Jackie Browning have been on Breezy. That's a good thing!

One of Breezy's compensation behaviors while being ridden is to gape her mouth and carry her head behind the bit. Just another evasion, avoidance, unwillingness, or what have you, to engaging that hindend.

With mouth-gaping, the head becomes the horses's focus instead of the rest of the body. Not only does the jaw, poll, and neck become inflexible, the back, ribcage, and hindend also become too ridgid. Not to mention it is really ugly.

Jackie suggested shutting her mouth with a figure-eight caveson.

A figure-eight wraps around the jaw of the horse with the upper strap sitting in front of the facial crest and the lower strap sitting in front of the bit like a dropped noseband. The pieces cross on top of the nose and create the shape of a figure-eight. Hence, the name. You can adjust the tightness of each piece since both straps have buckles. It also allows for greater flexibility and is less restrictive then a flash noseband.

It took a few minutes, but Breezy relaxed into her new mode of operation quite well. However, she still futzed and fidgeted if she wasn't moving. So, after a short ride, I decided that she just needed to SHUT UP! for real and stand quietly with me hanging out on her back.

**I want to note, that even though Breezy is being ridden, she is still getting her massage and lunging session to help her stay supple and relaxed. I bodywork the areas on her that need addressing - a lot in the groin/hindquarters - and wait for the relax and chew. Also, I wait for the chews in each gait before I move on to the next (starting with walk). She is learning to stretch down and forward in her gaits. The mobility in her back gets better and better as she moves on the lunge line. There is movement over the topline (ribcage, back, loin, and pelvis) where before there was NONE!**

I had her stand in the arena and she was NOT! happy with my decision. I started with my reins in a "riding" position and as she relaxed, I gave her more and more rein. That, was something that took awhile. She was a COW and threatened to rear or run me into the wall when all I wanted her to do was stand. I did not make a big issue of these behaviors, but I did tell her it was not OK!! We ended up at the opposite end of the arena compared to where we started. That was OK.

Breezy finally decided to stand still. Then an AMAZING thing happened. I felt her lumbar/sacral area self-adjust. There were three adjustments - clunk, clunk, clunk. The adjustment was soft, no loud cracking or painful reactions. It just went back into place. Immediately after the adjustment, her head dropped, she chewed and sighed with relief. It. was. BEAUTIFUL.

Without addressing her mouth-gaping issue, the adjustment in her spine would not have happened. Breezy needed to pay attention to that problem area to help "fix" it. Now, I'm not saying that if your horse doesn't come through and use his/her body correctly that you should clamp his/her mouth shut and the figure-eight is the end-all and be all of troubleshooting. I'm saying this is what worked for Breezy.

BUT!!!! Yet again, we've modified her bridle. Our rides were going well, she was relaxed and moving off my legs, and still receptive to her bodywork. Then she was a COW. Don't know why, she just was. Breezy regressed back into her brutish behaviors and we had a lousy ride. Even with two days of relaxing lunging and bodywork, our next ride was much the same. We changed her bit out from a soft loose ring to a thin loose ring. Pick youself up and use it!!! The figure-eight began the process of her starting to carry her herself and use her hindend and now the thinner bit will help it along.

It is a process.

Particulary with horses that have "baggage" from former injury or poor training/handling techniques or what ever they bring to the arena. You move forward and then you plateau. As you can work through it, the plateau begans to rise again. Look at options, see and feel what the horse is telling you, assess it, and make a plan.

Breezy and I had a fabulous ride the other day. She did every thing without complaint. The ride was short & sweet. So she got to play. A good reward for a good job.

Trevor update

My obnoxious, yet darling boy, Trevor, went to OSU on September 22, 2009, and had colic surgery. It was that or death. I chose surgery for many reasons. So, now I have my own rehab project.

He's post surgery about six weeks and doing very well. We've been walking a lot! and he is in his small turnout for now. I will keep you posted on his progress, as well.

Breezy update

Breezy has continued to improve. Her waddle is about 50% improved. Mid-August to compliment her massage, we had Gene Crampton do a Chiropractic session with her. This was his second session over about six months. This time, we had a breakthrough.

Since Breezy does not engage her hindend correctly, she does not crossover with her hind legs correctly when asked to pivot on the forehand. I've always suspected she had scar tissue in her pelvic region and it is just plain hard for her to move. Gene was able to isolate her lefthind (with his rope technique) and really get a big release from the pelvis/femur area. You could actually see the change in Breezy's energy. It went from up here!!!!! to a quiet, down here. It. was. beautiful.

Not to mention! We began another more stringent lunge regiment. Breezy likes to slide her right shoulder/knee over any pole/cavaletti that poses any risk of shifting her weight and rocking back. It is all very lazy and not very pretty. To help with picking that shoulder up, I incorporated cross poles along the cavaletti to encourage her to lift! that shoulder!! Lift that knee!! Beautiful.

Not only is she engaing that shoulder (and in turn, the left hind leg), she can do it without the extra incentive of the pole. I do have to remind her occasionally, but overall, she is getting it. She is learning that she CAN use her hindend and it is o.k.

We've been changin things up as we ride, too. I will keep you posted!

Busy, Busy, Busier!!

Well, it has been a while. The summer was filled with horse shows and massage and horse shows, and massage...Do you get my drift??

So, please forgive me for negelecting.

Case Study - Breezy - Cold Springs Mustang

Mustangs!
When people hear that word, it brings images of the Wild West, bands of horses racing across the plains, and stallions silhouetted in combat defending their herds.

To some degree, there are still those images, but they are wedged between the fast pace progress of "civilization" and the fast pace "round-ups" used to lower the numbers of these Wild West icons.

Breezy is one of these icons.

She was captured from the Cold Springs Wild Horse herd in Eastern Oregon when she was 2 years old. She is now five.

Upon her change from wild to "domestic," she was adopted by Debbie Driesner, founder of Mustangs and MOHR (Mustangs Offering Hope & Renewal), in Dallas, Oregon. She began working with mustangs when she adopted Eeyore, a lop-eared misfit needing a home several years earlier.

It was known that Breezy was with foal, but due date was for anyone to guess. Unfortunately, she dropped the foal earlier then anyone expected and it ended up on the wrong side of the fence, literally. More unfortunate was, that is was winter and the foal did not survive due to cold temperatures and Breezy being unable to get to her. A very sad situation.

I met Breezy this past October 2008. She is a stout, bay mare with a strong face that is reminescent of the military horses bred by the army for the calvary. Her eye is sweet, but distant. She is a wide-load and needs little when it comes to food and is all business when it is feeding time. She has one of the most beautiful tails in the horse world. It looks like an extension (something I do not approve of...) but is all Breezy.

All-in-all, Breezy is quite lovely.

However, as an Equine Bodyworker, I have to look beyond the "prettiness" of a horse. Pretty does not mean anything if the horse has movement issues, and...Breezy has movement isses. For reasons we can only speculate, her pelvis is "stuck."

Have you ever seen what is called the "dirty diaper" walk? It is where the horse sa-shays her hindquarters in her movement with flat steps that lack impulsion and swing. The pelvis stays in a fixed position. No movement, no swing, just a waddle. It is most noticable in the walk and trot. When a horse is able to use her hindquarters effectively (which means she can use her entire body well), her hindlegs come up and through, pushing, while the pelvis flexes back and forth allowing for momentum to create the "swing" in the entire gait. Movement, swing, implusion, beautiful.

So, if you haven't guessed, this is Breezy's movement issue.

Breezy is not what one would call an EASY horse. She is out to protect her own and rightfully so. I believe that she has been living with discomfort for quite some time. The waddle, distant eye, and general blah attitude toward people is legitimate.

In being an Equine Bodyworker, I wanted to help Breezy. A comfortable horse is a beautiful thing. She, didn't have quite the same idea. Our sessions began in October and Breezy was, well, Breezy.

Let me explain my method of bodywork. In getting a horse to relax and truly benefit from a massage, the horse needs to trust and give up the self-protection that comes from being prey animals. That is a tough nut. Tougher for some horses then others. Naturally, I begin with the head. If there is NO relaxation in the brain, there is really no relaxation anywhere, and no massage. Once the brain relaxes, the muscles follow and I become a facilitator, addressing the "stuck" areas and letting the horse work it out. Generally, it takes about two or three massages for a horse to trust and relax enough to benefit from the massage. Some take to the bodywork right away and some take just a little longer.

Breezy was none of these things. She was sort of receptive to front end work. She was NOT receptive to hind end work. Up went the legs and she was telling me that was TOO much!! Luckily for me, she never did really kick, but the inclination was there.

After futzing with her and really not getting anywhere, my enthusiam for this horse was waning. I took a break from her and let "her" stew in the back of my mind. After assessing the situation and I decided to go another way. Beginning in May, I focused only on her head. I began working out all those muscles, big and small, that attach the body of the horse to it's skull. Within a couple sessions, I helped her self-adjust her poll and cervical vertebrae. I aided her in relaxing the many muscles around her poll and she went "pop! pop!" Her eyes softened and there was that relaxed chew.

Since I have the luxury of not only being her bodyworker, but her rider, I decided to work with her in the round pen and see how well she joined-up. I suspected that Breezy went through the motions of walk, trot, and canter, but she really wasn't THERE. It also gave me the opportunity to watch her movement, not just feel the lack of impulsion. Her initial reaction was to move when asked, but on her terms and at mach three. Breezy would also decide when it was time to quit. O.K. Now, I thought, I have a better idea of where she is coming from.

With round pen work, I incorporated lunging over poles. This way, I could connect with her and I could see her move. The ability to push with her hind end and create some loft in the gait was evident over poles, particularly, when I asked more of her and raised them. That's a good thing.

And as luck would have it...We had a BREAKTHROUGH! About three weeks ago (mid-June!), I lunged Breezy and took a chance. I hadn't worked on her hindquarters for several months due to her lack of enthusiam (and mine). I broke protocol and went straight for the hind end. Oh Frabjous day! Complete relaxation. No inkling of a kick. It was beautiful. I massaged her hindquarters and topline and she zoned the whole time. When a horse is concentrating on the bodywork and the session ends, I will step back and let the horse continue to process. It is enjoyable to watch the eyeslids flutter and squint, the jaw to clinch and relax, and the head to weave and bob while the horse works in the relaxation. Sometimes, the horse will self-adjust or stretch as the relaxation process comes to an end.

As of late, hindquarter bodywork with Breezy is still an option. The breakthrough day was not a fluke. For now, I am again, lucky enough to have my friend, Connie, ride Breezy while I watch. Same idea with the lunging and round pen with poles and a rider. Breezy does A LOT of walking. She has to walk-like-she-means-it, especially over poles. Her walk has improved, but there is still work to be done. With the light riding, Breezy is learning to relax while being ridden. Every time she is ridden (since the breakthrough day) she yawns - a rather blatant indicator of relaxation.

So, now you are up to speed on Breezy and her movement issues. I will continue to update and tell you all when her trot improves!!!

Mental Massage is Everywhere

A couple weeks ago, I competed in the Oregon Dressage Society League Championships. A "league" show is one step down from a "recognized" show and a great place to start a young/green horse. Trevor is my rising star and was a gentlemen in the show ring. However, being a new arena, he was not as relaxed as he usual.

He was not, however, as good in the warm-up (I guess that is the best deal at a horse show!!). His new evasion technique is to rear. Luckily, he is very balanced and honest is his silliness. So, as a massage therapist, I say, "that horse needs a massage!!" There are all kinds of massage: in-hand, pasture etiquette, ground manners, riding manners, trailer manners, etc. You name it, it can be massaged. With behavior like that, it becomes a MENTAL Massage.

Trevor came to me as a freebie and in need of a lot of direction. His level of respect has improved greatly from the ground up. Remember, if a horse can't do it on the ground, he can't do it while you are on him! I am thrilled at his potential in the Dressage arena and where we will go.

My point being is that the whole process of training, whether it is in-hand or Grand Prix, is all connected and every aspect influences the others. How your horse walks beside you tells you something about his mental and physical state. What is his affect? Is he walking fast? slow? Look at his eye. It is calm?? Even more important, it tells you about your own mental and physical state. Horses read humans like open books. Since I know that Trevor can be a bully, I am not surprised to see the bully behavior arise (no pun intended) when I am riding him. And, how I am feeling that day also influences him. Regardless, he needs to learn to be a gentlemen more often then not.

So instead of turning his ridiculousness into a fight or discipline (i.e. spurring, tight circles, raised voice, whatever), I turn it into a strong mental massage where by I redirect his disruptive energy into a difficult exercise. Jackie Browning, my riding instructor or 20+ years was the creator/inspirator for this great idea! While Trevor is trying to change the subject from working trot to rearing right, I engage my legs and seat, pick him up and create a canter pirouette. Mind you, they are not always that good, sometimes they're great!, but either way, I've created a new movement that makes him think the next time that wild rearing hair shows itself. Not only do I massage him mentally, I give myself a direction instead of flailing around trying to figure out what I am suppose to do with this rear. I stay calm and focused, therefore he is calm and focused. I don't have to redirect myself because I already have a direction. Occasionally, we go left. Sometimes we go left, right, left.

Why canter pirouette?? When Trevor rears, he is engaging his hindend. Why not utilize it?? At some point he will be learning this move, so, let us have it in the arsenal sooner then later. Ultimaely, we want him to engage that lovely hindend. He is just engaging it through rearing that is not productive. Now, through canter pirouette, it is. He gets stronger physically - thumbs-up. He gets a mental massage through re-direction and focus - another thumbs-up. I get a mental massage by staying directed and focused - triple thumbs-up.

Now think to yourself...Where do I have difficulty with my horse?? It may not be as extreme as Trevor, or it may be much worse. Be sure and check you saddle & bridle fit, and your bit to rule out any painful physical cause. Know your ability as a rider to make sure you are asking for what you want in a way the horse understands. Are you being clear? Keep in mind the exercises you are asking your horse to do. Are they in your horse's range of ability (re-direction being the exception). Finally, ask for someone to watch you ride and tell you what is happening when you are having difficulty with your horse. Feel the movement and channel the energy into an exercise that will create a direction for you and your horse, mentally massaging you both.