L Brand Equine Massage Therapy by Mariana Warnock

03/16/2025

I often get the question..

“What is shiatsu massage?”

To answer that question.. it is more than just a massage.
Equine Shiatsu Massage is a Japanese physiotherapy technique used to treat a variety of issues from soft tissue injuries such as stiff joints and muscle tightness that may lead to chiropractic issues, to stress management and emotional health problems.

Shiatsu is a manual therapy preformed with primarily thumb and finger pressure on acupuncture points along meridians in the body, in order to allow proper function and improved lymph flow throughout the entire body from pole to hoof.

What makes Shiatsu special among the vast array of modalities available for equine athletes today, is its unique ability to target the root cause of dysfunction in the body and not just temporarily treat the symptoms. Healing is obtained by combining in depth knowledge of anatomy, physiology and pathology, together with a well developed sensitivity of touch, to bring long lasting relief to hard working equines. It can be carefully curated to the needs of each individual animal.

If you have any questions or you would like to book a session feel free to message me.
I offer a range of discounts including group deals for 4 or more horses and referrals to two approved and trusted farriers to ensure long lasting results.

01/31/2025

Don’t over ride your young horses..it’s not a question of if it will cause them issues later on, it’s when.

Keep in in mind...

01/03/2025

❤️

10/02/2024

We are working to coordinate bringing supplies into areas affected by Hurricane Helene by pack mule strings. We are planning to head to Weaverville, NC tomorrow, but available to go to other areas of need as well. Please reach out to us at 910-885-1402 if you know of specific needs and areas that we can get our mule strings in to help! We can bring supplies or pack in what your group has acquired already!

10/02/2024

❤️For the month of October I am donating 60% of all massage income to the people effected by Helene.

10k sounds like a good goal to start with!

Let’s get your horses ready to go into winter feeling 100% and help bring comfort to people who have quit literally lost everything.

Please pray, watch this video and share share SHARE!

Again the money is going to grindstone the money will go directly to those effected. I encourage you all to give what you can, they need everything.

08/31/2024

When your horse lowers their head to the height of their withers, the funnicular portion of their nuchal ligament (the cord like structure which runs from their withers to their poll) will traction on their supraspinous ligament (which runs over the top of their thoracic and lumbar spinous processes).

As the nuchal ligament tractions on the supraspinous ligament, the early thoracic spinous processes draw forwards and apart.

As the horse steps under from behind, via engaging the hindlimbs and shortening through their abdominals, the supraspinous ligament over the lumbar spinous processes will traction towards the horse's tail, drawing their lumbar spinous processes backwards and apart.

These are key mechanisms in kissing spines rehabilitation.

However - if your horse has muscular tension around the neck and back muscles, the efficacy of this ligament system may be inhibited, potentially creating pain and, if prolonged, tissue remodelling (e.g. ligament thickening, lesions or bony adaptation).

This means that, whilst we can look at training practices set to target supporting these systems - you have to be able to OBSERVE if the exercises are actually acheiving the desired effect.

You can track your eye over your horse's topline and see where the dysfunction might be occuring by literally looking at the skeletal and soft tissue system at a standstill and in motion.

I think this has to be one of my favourite assessment tools to help me to help horses with their movement ❤️

-

Want to learn how to do this?

Join me in my next live webinar where you will learn exactly how to do this and:

- How to feel for muscle wastage even in horses that are overweight
- How to see compression points throughout the horse's topline
- How to determine if your horse should be ridden or not.

02.09.2024 19:00 BST

Recording available after the event if you can't attend live!

08/30/2024

HORSEMAN
There are horse trainers, horse traders and horse whisperers. There are show men, show boaters and show offs. There are fast talkers and would be magicians.

But then there are true Horsemen and Horsewomen, and these are harder to find and sometimes even harder to recognize because they are often tucked away in quiet hidden places, working slowly and silently without national recognition or appreciation.

Often times, the true horseman or woman does not have the most horses in training or those horses that are exceptionally bred or high priced. Often times, the true Horsemen and Women do not have access to big money owners or run through dozens and dozens of prospects in order to find the few that can take the pressure of aged event prize money or high profile exhibition. Many times, the true horsemen and women are slow and steady, methodical and patient, training on an individual horse's timeline and not to a rigid show schedule set by the seasons or show management.

These people recognize a horse's physical and mental capabilities and showcase their assets without sacrificing their bodies or minds. Horsemen and women take their time developing their horses' skills and confidence through a traditional steps, one before the next, placing just as much credence in their teaching relationship and equine partnership as they do in show pen results. Horsemen and women are humble because their reward comes from within; from knowing that they have taught through kindness, patience, fortitude, and logic. Their rewards coming from creating a confident horse that works with them and not for them, horses that are not scared or intimidated, horses with solid foundations that last season after season and that carry a gamut of riders from the experienced non pro to the Amateur to the Green Reiner. Always Dedicated. Always Patient. Always Consistent. Whether it be riding young horses, resurrecting older horses, or maintaining the Steady Eddy, a True Horseman is one of the first ones to throw a leg over in the morning and one of the last ones to pull their boots off in the evening.
Horsemen and women are a pleasure to watch in the arena or on the ranch as they diligently and patiently impart their knowledge and logic to both horses and students.

In an era where the horse industry is so economically driven and success is measured primarily in prize money and accolades, the tradition of the true horseman and the process of training horses seems to be changing; giving way to an assembly line mentality where immediate success and financial compensation take precedence over handcrafted quality and longevity. Dedicated to their craft, loyal to their students, ambitious, hardworking and a role model for anyone interested in making their way in an industry dominated by pressure to build great animals in less and less time, old fashioned horsemen are women are now Artisans, assets to our heritage and traditions and harder and harder to find.

A thoughtful teacher, a thorough instructor, a gentle hand, a firm guide, a rational yet fearless showman, the greatest compliment that I think could ever be given to someone who works with horses, is to be thought of as a Horseman.

📝Becky Hanson

08/30/2024

I will be working in Halfway at the Fair and Rodeo today through Monday and I have a few time slots available. If your animal isn’t feeling 100% let me know and we can get it there!

08/12/2024

This is why your turn does not come from pulling on the rein. Note the riders hand and leg position and hip angle in each sketch. Note the development of the horses muscles in each sketch. Note the shape of the horse in each sketch. A truly supple, truly bent horse is working through their entire body. It is OUR job as the rider to guide the horse to become soft, supple, and through in all movements.

Rider one is pulling the nose around, and trying to push the haunches in, with a following outside rein offering the horse no balance, and a hardly supportive inside leg to wrap around. This has created a rigid, stiff horse that will surely be back sore, weak in the hind end, with front end bulk in all the wrong places. This horse has every opportunity, and will likely be so uncomfortable that it will try every time, to run out of his right shoulder.

Rider two is pushing the horse from his inside leg to his outside rein. The outside rein is providing a balance point for the horse, allowing him to be both comfortable and willing to carry himself. Because the riders rein is supportive and blocking the shoulder, the horse can not blow out the shoulder, and can only become truly bent along the entire length of the spine.

In order to build the athlete you want, and to allow your horse the opportunity to have a long, successful, and most importantly SOUND career, it is important to understand how we ride, even in seemingly simple tasks such as the walk or trotting circles, is effecting each muscle in your horses body. Not all muscle is good muscle!

- Ali Hamann / South Coast Sport Horses

07/31/2024

The Air Quality Index (AQI) is used to measure the quality of air and is reported on a scale of 0 - 500. The AQI indicates how clean or polluted the air is, and is based on five major air pollutants:

1️⃣ Ground-level ozone
2️⃣ Carbon monoxide
3️⃣ Sulfur dioxide
4️⃣ Nitrogen dioxide
5️⃣ Airborne particles (particulate matter)

The two pollutants posing the greatest risk to respiratory health are ground-level ozone and airborne particles. Ground-level ozone is created when sunlight reacts with certain chemicals, such as those emitted from car exhaust or power plants. Airborne particles are small particles suspended in the air, like those that come from wildfire smoke, dust, and volcanic ash.

The AQI is designed for people; however, the classifications have been extrapolated for use in horses. Learn more in the full article at our FREE Horse Health Library.

07/17/2024

Rare occasion! I will be in Joseph/enterprise tomorrow! With time for two more sessions, let me know if you need your horse worked on and we can schedule a time. Text or call 541)403-2689

06/25/2024

🐴 Aquí hay 15 hechos interesantes sobre el cerebro de un caballo:

1. El cerebro de un caballo es relativamente pequeño comparado con el tamaño de su cuerpo, y representa sólo alrededor del 0,1 % de su peso total.

2. A pesar de su pequeño tamaño, los caballos tienen cerebros muy complejos, con una corteza cerebral altamente desarrollada, la parte del cerebro responsable del pensamiento consciente, la toma de decisiones y la memoria.

3. Los caballos pueden aprender y recordar tareas complejas, como navegar por un curso de salto o realizar una rutina de doma, a través de un proceso llamado aprendizaje asociado.

4. Como los humanos, los caballos tienen un hemisferio izquierdo y un hemisferios derecho en el cerebro, cada uno con funciones especializadas. El hemisferio izquierdo es responsable del procesamiento de la información lógica y analítica, mientras que el hemisferio derecho está más involucrado en el procesamiento emocional y el pensamiento creativo.

5. Los caballos tienen una gran memoria y pueden recordar personas, lugares y experiencias concretas durante muchos años.

6. Los caballos pueden aprender por observación, y a menudo pueden adquirir nuevos comportamientos y habilidades simplemente observando a otros caballos o humanos.

7. Los caballos tienen un sentido del tacto muy sensible y pueden detectar incluso la más mínima presión o movimiento en su piel. Esto les ayuda a responder a las sutiles señales de tu motorista o guía.

8. Los caballos pueden procesar información visual muy rápida y precisa, permitiéndoles evitar posibles peligros y navegar por su medio ambiente con facilidad.

9. Los caballos son animales sociales y dependen de la comunicación no verbal para interactuar con otros caballos de su manada. Esta comunicación es facilitada por el cerebro del caballo, que puede interpretar cambios sutiles en el lenguaje corporal, expresiones faciales y vocalizaciones.

10. En última instancia, como todos los animales, los caballos tienen una personalidad única y rasgos individuales que se moldean por sus experiencias, genética y entorno, todo lo cual se refleja en su función cerebral y comportamiento.

11. Los caballos tienen un fuerte sentido del olfato y su bulbo olor, que procesa los olores, es relativamente grande comparado con otras partes de su cerebro.

12. El cerebro, que es responsable de coordinar el movimiento y el equilibrio, también es relativamente grande en caballos. Esto se debe a que los caballos deben ser capaces de moverse rápida y eficientemente para escapar de los depredadores o navegar por terrenos difíciles.

13. Los caballos tienen un umbral de dolor muy alto, que se cree que está relacionado con cómo sus cerebros procesan las señales de dolor. Aunque esto puede ser beneficioso en algunas situaciones, también puede significar que los caballos no muestran signos obvios de dolor, lo que hace más difícil para sus cuidadores detectar y tratar los problemas de salud subyacentes.

14. El hipocampo, una parte del cerebro involucrado en el aprendizaje y la memoria, está particularmente bien desarrollado en caballos. Esto les permite recordar no sólo experiencias concretas, sino también conceptos y patrones generales que pueden aplicar a nuevas situaciones.

15. Finalmente, los estudios han demostrado que los caballos, como otros animales, son capaces de experimentar emociones como el miedo, la felicidad y la ira. Se cree que estas emociones están mediadas por el sistema límbico, un grupo de estructuras cerebrales interconectadas que juegan un papel clave en la regulación del estado de ánimo y el comportamiento .