What are the benefits of massage?

Massage has been used for centuries to promote relaxation and encourage wellbeing of body & mind. Some of the host of benefits include;

Increased circulation- pushes that lovely oxygen and nutrient rich blood around the body while assisting in removal of waste products (increased lymphatic drainage)
Relieves tight muscles and fascia - like humans, horses are often crooked somewhere in their body, leading to compensation patterns and unwanted tension in the musculoskeletal system.
Improves muscle tone- decompressing fascia and keeping muscle fibres healthy

Promotes a feeling of relaxation and wellbeing- allowing the horse to access the parasympathetic nervous system space of ' rest & digest', rather than being in fight or flight response. Also greatly helpful with a horse recovering from illness or injury to aid recovery.
Greater range of motion- relieving the muscle tension and using mobilisations and stretches to lubricate joints and increase flexibility and resilience.
As well as many more!

About Kate

I have always had a passion for horses, having worked and trained at various yards before following a path into massage therapy. I understand each horse is an individual and treat them as such, making sure to build a good relationship during their treatment.

I achieved my qualification in Equine Sports Massage with The College of Animal Physiotherapy in 2019 and am fully insured for massage. I am always looking for new tools to add to my therapy ' toolbox' so that I can provide the best possible treatment for her clients.

Some of my biggest influences in how I treat have to be Jim Masterson, of The Masterson Method and Christian Langeder, of Langeder Equine. These therapists follow what can be described as a 'less is more' approach, really listening to the horse and helping him listen to his body. I enjoy letting the horse lead the session, if you know where to look they will tell you all you need to know! The results speak for themselves.

I currently work at a riding school alongside my massage work, as a qualified instructor and groom (BHS Stage 3). I look forward to being able to offer freelance teaching as well in the near future. I also have 2 horses of my own, Jango- a gyspy cob originally from The Horse's Voice Rescue and Denver -an ex-racehorse who has been possibly the biggest learning curve of my life!

Important Information

Under UK law, Veterinary consent must be given before any non- veterinarian can perform manipulative therapies on an animal. Due to this I require all clients to confirm their vet has given consent before a treatment can take place.

There are some times that massage is not advised, these include;

Horse is lame, dehydrated or fatigued ( not recommended to treat for at least 72 hours following a period of prolonged or intense physical activity such as racing, long endurance rides, 3 day event etc, the body needs time to recover)
Presence of Azoturia ( tying up), colic, open wounds, cancer, infectious skin disease, burns, infection/contagious disease, high temperature.
Horse is in foal- can cause early labour/ abortion in rare cases but certainly not worth the risk!

In some cases such as chronic laminitis, massage can actually be beneficial to recovery, however, it is entirely at the discretion of your veterinarian and what is right for your horse at that time!

Please let me know as soon as you can if your horse has any changes to his health in the run up to his treatment. I reserve the right to refuse treatment and refer to the vet where necessary.