A-OK Equine Massage

08/25/2023

My little business turns 4 today, and I am forever grateful to every client and horse I've worked with over the past four years. Each horse teaches me a little something and I'm so incredibly grateful for all the lessons they've taught me.

Here's to another year of happy and comfy horses 💕

-Anna

08/10/2023

Nothing is more exciting than when your clients are just as happy to see you as you are to see them 🥰

05/08/2023

Nothing good is achieved through force. Ever. Massage should be at the horse's pace, not ours.

05/06/2023

The short answer- it depends! After your appointment, always check with your practitioner to maximize the positive impact for your horse.

05/05/2023

I am a massage practitioner, but saddle fit has a huge impact on your horse's musculature health and is something that I often see working with horses.

A poorly fit saddle can cause damage that is irreversible. Don't sacrifice your horse's back for its entire lifetime for a saddle that doesn't fit.

02/23/2023

Saddle 👏🏻fit👏🏻is 👏🏻 important 👏🏻. Poor fitting saddles can cause irreversible damage to your horse.

You should be regularly checking your saddle fit with a professional fitter, especially if you have a young horse or a horse coming back into work. Saddle fit changes with weight and muscle gain and loss, so it’s something to be aware of and keep an eye on.

Amanda has fantastic posts on how to evaluate saddle fit, I highly recommend checking out her page.

01/10/2023

Great reminder for the new year! Fitness takes time, don’t rush it.

Just like with people, horses don't respond to fad diets or fitness plans.

There is no magical cure to getting your horse fit or competition ready. It takes TIME which is not something people like to hear.

The body needs TIME to build, rest, recover, grow and strengthen.

Your horse can be stronger this season but you will need to start bringing them back to work now.

📸: .tales.photography
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01/09/2023

Happy Monday!

Fun fact- horses have no collar bones; therefore their front legs are attached to their bodies via muscles and ligaments, and the pectorals are a group of muscles that connect the limb to the body, but they also do so much more.

What else did you not know about your horse's chest?

12/30/2022

This is the one thing that I will advise and stand behind. Make sure your horse is properly warmed up before you ask them to work.

Copy this---Put it where you will see it every time you get on a horse. Then give your horse a fighting chance to stay sound by actually giving the horse a thorough warmup, rather than getting on, walking for a couple of minutes, picking up the reins, and getting right to business.

It isn't just the tendons you will be helping, either. It will color your entire attitude about schooling if you slow down and take time. And it will sooth your horse, once it knows it isn't going to be instantly rammed and jammed into some "shape."

Klaus Balkenhol talked about this same thing at a clinic I attended, He said most people are in way too big of a hurry, and tend to skip over a decent warm-up time.

12/27/2022

These are fantastic photos showing the muscles that are under your saddle and why saddle fit is so important to the health of the back muscles. Poor saddle fit can cause atrophy to important muscles and irreversible damage to the scapula cartilage. When was the last time you had your saddle fit checked?

12/19/2022

Just because your horse is not LAME does not mean its SOUND.

It's time we separate soundness from lameness. Its part of our daily conversations with owners. They have seen multiple vets, trainers, and are even competing their horses because they are told the horse jogs and flexes fine so it is sound. There are a lot of horses showing that are not totally sound.

Lameness is defined as an impediment to walking due to feet or legs. Soundness is defined as the state of being in good condition. This is an important distinction we need to start addressing in horses. Just because your horse jogs and flexes without concern does not mean your horse is sound. We need to raise the bar in what we consider acceptable to horses soundness and overall well being. Horses are amazing creatures, that tolerate a lot from us. They try to express their discomfort but sadly most go unheard. If their message goes unheard for too long, they often become behavioral or checked out. One of our most common calls is that the horse is increasingly difficult to work with and is becoming dangerous but the owner have been told there is nothing wrong. They are at a loss for answers.

It is NOT okay they pin their ears, constantly swish their tails, get fidgety, are bad for the farrier, bite at or look at themselves, unable to lounge, buck/rear/spook, get cast, sit on the wall, bank shavings, toss their heads, kick out, are not be able to back up, avoid collection, hop into transitions, hate to be brushed, chronically shift their blankets/saddle, or stand abnormally. ALL of these are signs of discomfort.

Its not their temperament. It is their expression of PAIN! We need to stop excusing it as thats just the way they are or they are difficult/fresh/jerks/wimps. That is not normal behavior for horses. They are trying to tell you they are uncomfortable and they deserve for us to listen to them.

We owe it to them to look at their whole presentation not just how they jog/flex on their legs. We owe it to them to not ride them when they are clearly trying to show they are in pain

Its time we are better to these amazing athletes.

DeClue Equine

11/30/2022

Some food for thought on this blustery Wednesday evening.