Developing a “Yellow Pages” of Holistic Care
By Robin Davis
Almost all of my horsey friends got involved with horses because they love the idea of the spirit of horse. They want an opportunity to capture that spirit and ride it in freedom. As we endeavor to develop this type of partnership we are oftentimes challenged with how to honor the horse as well as be able to do the fun things that are available. My goal has always been to help humans and horses come together in a way that honors the horse as well as the human. What does honoring the horse really look like? Why do some tools work with some horses and not with others? And where is that Yellow Pages of Holistic Horse Care? These are some of the questions that inspired me to form the Holistic Horse Care Cooperative, otherwise known as the Holistic Herd.
It is my heart’s desire to help every horse fulfill their greatest potential of performance and partnership with their human. I used to think that the only way to achieve this would be to train as a natural horsemanship trainer. Using techniques from a wide variety of successful natural horsemanship trainers would often bring success in accomplishing these goals while other times, not so much. I would become frustrated when one of my clients or one of my 4-H students would leave behind the tools that I had offered them because they felt they needed to become more domineering in order to achieve their goals. It just did not sit right with me that some horses might need more domination tactics to help them become productive team members.
My desire to maintain an honoring of the horse as an individual and to allow the horse a voice in the partnership, led me to look into how our management practices can affect the horse emotionally and physically. I began doing research on vaccines, hoof care, dental care, nutrition and more. I was beginning to recognize that many of what we might call negative behaviors, lack of fluidity, or a lack of willingness could be coming from a lack of wellness in the horse and/or rider.
I began applying a checklist to horses as soon as they would come to me for training:
• Hoofcare
o Could the horse go barefoot?
o Was the trim the right trim for this horse?
o Are the feet healthy – most wellness issues show up in the feet first
• Dental care – have the teeth ever been done by an equine dentist or a veterinarian who has spent extra time really learning about the direct relationship between properly balanced teeth and movement in a horse?
• Nutrition – whole foods vs. processed foods, what type of foods, how often
• Tack fit – Are any behavioral issues stemming from pain resulting from too tight or too loose or just generally poor-fitting equipment
• We would also discuss turn-out or movement. How many hours was the horse just standing around or did they have access to a pasture or paddock paradise?
After these initial assessments, I might add in some body work to help the horse balance any physical issues:
• Acupressure
• Craniosacral Therapy
• Chiropractic
• Massage
• Energy work
• Etc.
Many times just by addressing these things the horse would begin to move more fluidly, emotional issues would diminish and they would become a solid team member. My training jobs got a lot easier and we would have wonderful results. I learned to do much of the work myself, but maintain a good working relationship with professionals in order to have them look at a horse that might need more care than my expertise could give when needed. It is all about teamwork.
As a trainer/instructor, one of the most interesting things for me to see is how certain tools, healing methods and equipment work great for one horse and rider team, while others work better for a different horse and rider team. It became very apparent to me that the energetic connection between horse and rider creates a dynamic that is unique. Sure we know that each horse is an individual, but when we add the energetic imprint that a human puts on their horse, the term ‘individual’ has even more depth of meaning. I used to lease horses as part of my 4-H program, and it was interesting how the same horse would be an almost entirely different animal depending upon who was their ‘owner’ and main rider. From physical manifestations to behavioral issues, they could all shift depending upon who the horse was currently connected to.
One solution is to expose people to the many types of training methods, supportive care modalities, and various ways of keeping and managing horses while opening up a whole new way of exploring the expansive possibilities of complimentary care. The key is education, openness and community. As people feel safe exploring a new thought process, they remain more open and the horse wins.
The Holistic Horse Care Cooperative is an organization which hosts a website listing holistic – minded professionals of many categories. We encourage these same professionals to submit articles, photos and a list of their events so that when a potential client visits our website they have an opportunity to learn a little about the work they do and who the professional is as an individual.
To continue our mission of education and community, we also host regular Meet & Greets where professionals can share their work through demonstrations. Attendees are presented with real tools to take home and sit with or to begin adding to their own tool box. Once a year we sponsor a Holistic Horse Affair an event where attendees can listen to a variety of presentations, demonstrations and workshops and really talk with practitioners about their needs.
We don’t always create our own events we also attend other events such as shows and competitions where we share information from our many members. All of this is designed to empower the horseowner with information so they can make decisions based upon what feels best to them and their horse.
The Holistic Herd is a community where we recognize that competition is not always the best answer. Allowing for openness and dialogue between herd members is our intent. Every horse and every rider does not resonate with every trainer or healer and their methods. There is beauty in our diversity that allows us all the freedom to learn and grow and express ourselves as individuals. There is also beauty in developing a team of professionals. Not only do ‘many hands make light work’, but many eyes on a quest for a solution, allows for more possibilities and more opportunities for finding wellness and peak performance.
It’s fun to see these humans and horses coming together as partners in support of maximum wellness. Relationships are stronger, awareness of any potential issue arising before it becomes severe is greater, and the horse owner is saving money in the long run. A win, win for all.
To become a member of the Holistic Herd Click here….
To Learn more about Robin Click here…
