I just have to tell you that I was pretty impressed about my Mip and you! At the end of January, we had a phone consult to check in with my 4 beautiful pets. When I told you that I was going away in March to Hawaii, you said that the animals knew already. And Mip, the cat, added that there was going to be an earthquake, but I would be alright! Well, I got to Hawaii and over a few drinks, I was telling the friends I was with about what you said Mip had said. They laughed and thought I was a real nut (and you too!). I was the joke for a few days. But…. two days later, news headlines were that an Earthquake 4.9 magnitude hit Hawaii! I then had people coming up to me amazed saying,” wow…who is this lady you speak to?” So, clever Mip and you! Thanks for listening to my pets.

Xx Anita

Today I said goodbye to NavMan. He will be sadly missed.

Murphy The Wonder Dog was one of my first  regular clients. I first met Tracey and Murphy in 2002, and have been treating Murphy regularly ever since. Master Murphy trained all who came in his and Tracey’s world brilliantly, and will be sadly missed by many . Farewell to a very special  friend. 

Murphy the Wonder Dog

Born 1996, adopted 14 Feb 1999

Walked the Rainbow 04 May 2012

From his human Tracey

Aloha All,

Many of you knew Murphy through him being such an important part of my life, through coming to workshops, helping in Lomi’s and so much more.

He was a mistreated, malnourished little street kid who came in to my life 14Feb 1999 at the age of 3.
He however had a resilience and pu’uwai ( heart) that was strong in all ways.
His aloha touched many and he certainly helped me through the numerous challenges I have encountered on my journey.

On Friday it was time for that journey in the physical realm to end so that he could walk the rainbow.
So, whilst his kino ( physical being) is moe lepo ( sleeping in the earth) now, under the lemon tree, outside the kitchen window,
His ‘uhane nui ( spirit greatness) is happy and frolicking with his pals.

To those who knew what was to happen on Friday, deepest mahalo for your words, thoughts, aloha energy and actions of aloha for both myself and Murph.
I hope the attached pics fill you with aloha and help put a smile on your dials.
To my little pal – Aloha ‘oe and a hui hou.x

Keali’i Reichel – Goodbye My Friend

Oh, we never know where life will take us
Guess it’s just a ride on the wheel
And we never know when death will shake us
And we wonder how it will feel,

So goodbye, my friend
I know I’ll never see you again
But the times together through all the years
Will take away these tears
It’s ok now
Goodbye, my friend

I’ve seen a lot of things that made me crazy
but I guess I looked unto you
would’ve given up and left, well maybe,
But you held my hand and saw me through

So goodbye, my friend
I know I’ll never see you again
But the love you gave me through all the years
Will take away these tears
It’s ok now
Goodbye, my friend

A life so fragile a love so pure
We can’t hold on but we try
We watch how quickly it disappears
And we’ll never know why

But I’m ok now
Goodbye, my friend
You can go now
Goodbye my friend

As I have done several times before, I communicate with some of the resident guests, passing on their likes and dislikes to their Kitty Carers. This time I also was introduced to some of the resident cats, including the Office Supervisor Garfield, who enjoyed a Craniosacral Therapy session, as he is a little stiff in his hind end. Garfield makes an excellent supervisor in the office with Cory (pictured left on the phone) and the rest of the Kitty Carers as well as human and cat clients.

Farewell to a wonderful friend, Office Manager and partner. He will be sadly missed.

Claudia with Cai

Summer is here, and so are flies. Lots and lots of flies. To combat these little suckers a lot of people choose to put fly masks or fly veils on their horses. These are great, but if fitted incorrectly can cause problems for your horse.

As most people use fly masks these days they are what I will cover. The most common mistake I see when people are fitting these is that they are fitted too tightly. A horse needs to be able to yawn and open his/her jaw fully at all times. I see many masks fitted so that there are rub marks both on the nose and lower jaw. As well as being very uncomfortable for the horse, long-term this will cause your horse a number of other problems.  The jaw is the biggest ‘pattern setter’ of the body. A horse will naturally graze usually for about 16 hours per day. Each hour his/her jaw will move in over 1000 rotations. If a fly mask restricts this in any way it will have a huge impact not just on the jaw, but the ribs, diaphragm and also the whole hind end of the horse. Clench your own jaw and hold it for a couple of minutes and you will find your lower back and pelvis tightening up, as well as your ribs (it is impossible to tighten your jaw and expand your ribs fully naturally). A good rule of thumb for these masks is if you can’t get a clenched fist in between the horse’s lower jaw and the fly mask it is too tight. Some people will tell me the mask will slip etc if not fitted tightly. This simply means that you will have to try another style/brand that fits differently. No one cut of rug fits all horses, no one shoe type fits us all-it is exactly the same for fly masks.

Another common problem is the mask is too tightly fitted round the temporal bones (ears) and occipital bone (poll). It is far more comfortable for the horse, and will create far less problems if they are a little on the loose side rather than too tight. You should be able to get at least two fingers width between the ear and the mask, ditto at the poll. You know how uncomfortable a hat is if it is too tight and you wear it for several hours. Your horse is unable to make the decision to take the fly mask off for himself!

A final word-you know how itchy your head becomes after wearing a hat all day. Horses feel no different wearing a fly mask. The mask should be taken off daily to check for injuries etc to your horse’s face that you may not see with it on. When you do this, your horse will appreciate having their face brushed well-it will improve circulation as well as getting rid of the excess hair that isn’t able to shed naturally while the mask is worn.

I have seen quite a few horses of late that are wearing rugs that don’t fit as well as they should. This in turn can lead to a host of secondary problems. While I am not going to get into the “to rug or not to rug” argument, I do have some suggestions from the CST point of view if you do choose to rug your horse.

A light cotton can do as much potential harm long term as a heavy canvas, if fitted badly. A lot of people seem to have the impression that while a heavy canvas has to fit due to weight, because a cotton summer sheet is so light it won’t affect the horse in the same way. Wrong!

There are many different types and cuts/fits of rugs these days. One size or type does not fit all. One 6 foot 3” rug may fit a thoroughbred but not my quarter horse gelding properly, and visa versa. If you can, try several different makes out before you make your decision. I have had clients buy or borrow several $10.00 second-hand patched rugs to try on their horse to see which fits before buying their rug, and the horse has benefited.

Now to one of my main problems I see with rugs (I have been known to be quite evangelical on this one ☺). Hind leg straps. They need to be loose!! So many people have them tight so that they hold the rug in place. If you need to do that, your rug doesn’t fit. Get another, or have belly straps like you see on some of the higher quality brand rugs for example. Hind leg straps should be loose enough that they don’t restrict the horse in ANY way when it is moving at a trot or a canter, not just a walk or standing still in the paddock grazing. At least 80% of the horses I see are compromised in the back end in some way. This will be exacerbated by a rug that doesn’t fit or has tight leg straps. Think how long each day (and night) the horse wears the rug. Every time that horse takes a step the tissues are restricted in some way by the leg straps. Over time, the compromisation pattern that builds up from this will affect the horse’s action.

Same for taking rugs on and off. Try dropping a strap and metal clip and letting it bang against your shin. Hurts, doesn’t it. Yet 90% of people I see do this to their horse daily. Not all clips are metal I know, but even plastic ones can hurt on a windy day. When you unclip a strap, hold it, unthread it if necessary, then clip it back onto the rug then do the other side. Your horse may not move, but they still tense their muscles waiting for the bang. Over time, this creates another muscle tension pattern you don’t want your horse to have. Ditto when putting rugs on. So many people throw them on with the leg straps just dangling. You may be careful, but sooner or later they will knock your horse, and there is very little tissue covering the bone in that area – it hurts! It is so easy to avoid the whole problem by having the straps done up when you put the rug on, then unclipping them when the rug is on the horse.

Added to this, is the fact that many horses I see don’t just have one rug on, but 2 or even 3 in winter and you can start to see the sort of muscle tension patterns that can develop. For horses with severe hind leg issues I often suggest a rug that has no leg straps, only belly straps and the cord that runs from one side of the rug at the back to the other and passes under the tail. It continually surprises me how much of a difference such a rug can make.

Similar sorts of problems can develop with the front of the rug too. Aside from rugs that rub on the wither causing obvious (and painful) problems with a whole bunch of secondary potential problems, chest straps done up too tight can be an issue. When you do up your chest strap, it should be loose enough that it does not restrict the horse’s movement WHEN IT IS GRAZING. So many people check the strap when they put it on, when the horse has it’s head up. Most horses spend the majority of their time with their heads down, not up, as they eat. Restrictions in this area can also lead to a host of problems. Keep in mind that one of the most obvious areas this will affect is the thoracic inlet of your horse. The thoracic inlet is where the lymphatic system (the garbage disposal system of the body if you like) drains into. Any animal with a compromised thoracic inlet also will have compromised lymphatic drainage. Not what you want for your best buddy. Again, if your horse has two or three rugs on, you need to check not only the top rug, but also the inner ones as well.

People are becoming well aware of the damage a poor fitting saddle can do. A rug may not be as obvious, but has the potential to create unwanted muscle tension patterns in your horse if it does not fit well. Keep in mind that your horse wears a saddle for usually a couple of hours at most per day. Many horses are rugged 24/7, which gives them much more time for these things to develop. Having said that, rugs can and do prevent a host of other problems I see regularly. I choose to rug my own horses. I am certainly not anti-rugging, I simply want people to be aware of the importance of the fit of something your best buddy wears every day, and how easy and simple it is to prevent a host of problems a lot of people are not even aware of.

Joel Eade is the web designer.  Go to www.joeleadedesign.com.au  or email him at me@joeleadedesign.com.au.  He’s a great guy and always very happy to help!

If you haven’t been doing groundwork at least a couple of times a week take the time to do so for at least a few days before you throw the saddle on your horse. Not only will it help with your leadership, but also it will give you an opportunity to see how your horse moves. Can he cross over and yield easily at the hind end in both directions or is he stiff? How well does he lead from both directions? What is his flexion like-even on both sides or is he stiff or unwilling to flex? If so  this may point to a problem that may need addressing before you ride.

What is your horse’s topline line? Chances are if you haven’t been riding it will not be the same as it was when your horse was in regular work, so your saddle may need to be adjusted to fit the new shape.

How are your horse’s feet? Seems incredible but some people don’t bother to trim/shoe if the feet are long before they ride. I have been called to do bodywork on horses whose feet have been unattended for months and the owner hasn’t even perceived that this will lead to problems! The fable of the kingdom that was lost for the want of a horse- shoe nail is far truer than many people realize. “No hoof, no horse” can be quite literal.

When was the last time you had the dentist to your horse? Teeth are not something that people always think to check, especially when they ride bitless. However, the TMJ is the largest pattern setter of the body, and tension/imbalance in the jaw will lead directly to problems with the hind end. Check not only your horse’s teeth, but if the bite is even or to one side. Does your horse hold his tongue between his teeth? If so or the bite is uneven, this is telling you the horse has TMJ problems and would benefit from some bodywork. A lot of so-called hind end and performance problems are secondary to TMJ dysfunction.

How well does your horse’s ribcage flex when you send him out? Horses with restrictions thru the ribs may ‘blow out’ and struggle with maintaining fitness due to rib and diaphragm restrictions-remember “oxygen is your very good friend”. Any injury to the ribs, a kick or even good knock from a stable door, fence etc may lead to compromised function.

Remember too, to work your horse up gradually.  You are not going to go for an extreme workout at the gym after sitting vegging on the couch all winter and not expect to be stiff and sore afterwards. Your horse is no different.  You want your horse to have a good association with your riding, not a poor one, and by starting gradually and working up to longer rides both you and your horse can have a fantastic summer riding season.

Happy riding to you all!