My First Client

Today I used my Therapy System on my first client. Her owner called and said her coming 3 yo mare has had a stiff right shoulder for 4 months now, vet and chiro work done and she still wasn't improving. I agreed to go treat her mare for practice on a strange horse and "K" agreed to hang up flyers and leave business cards at the 2 barns she teaches at as well as the one she manages, and to tell all her friends!

I liked K just from the message she left on the phone, and I couldn't have picked a better first client. I will have to get "K" at Hemphill's something special for sending her friend K my way! Anyways, the mare, "C", was so good and patient. She had LOTS of points on the left side of her neck, some on her back the same side and lots on her right shoulder. There were a few points here and there on the rear, but most stuff was front-end. K was amazed at the equipment, and she treated with the lights while I scanned and marked spots. It still took us over an hour, closer to 1 1/2 hours to finish. I went slowly and went over places a few times to be thorough, and had the scanner on a pretty sensitive setting so it picked up quite a bit. I offered to come back in the middle of next week to scan her again and see if there's a difference. K will ride her tomorrow to see how she feels. It was a great day, and I felt so totally comfortable with K, we both felt it was meant to be. Too Cool! I truly hope C is more comfortable now, that's the most important thing to me, helping the horse. I will update C's progress when I hear how she's doing.

Business Cards and Flyers

Last night I played around making business cards and flyers for Back on Track. I'm experimenting! Here's a couple of designs I did:





I think I'll take the red off the horse on the business card and have it look like the flyer. We'll be tweaking as we go along I'm sure!

Holy Shot!

On Wednesday I had the vet come out and give the first Rhino shot to the 4 girls as I didn't have it done last year and they will need a booster. I also had him check Angel's stifles and he couldn't see/feel anything wrong with them. She was running, rearing and hopping around last night like a wild woman, so things must feel pretty good!

Molly has reacted to vaccinations before. The thing is, sometimes she does, sometimes she doesn't. The first year I had her and gave her rabies, it was over a WEEK before she could raise and lower her head normally, she was miserable.

So she gets her shot around noon on Wednesday. She's looking ok when I go to bed, a little sluggish in the morning before I go to volunteer at the Food Pantry. When I get back just after noon, I find my scanner has arrived back home and my horse is one hurting unit. She can't lower her head enough to eat off the ground and is shuffling sideways. I scanned her and the horse that only had 4 points to treat last time, lights up, especially around the liver, kidneys and colon. Now, I thought her liver was back by her stomach area, so I couldn't figure out how come she had points lighting up about a third of the way between elbow and flank making a vertical line. Now I know thats where her liver really is! But I'm not supposed to ask why, just mark and treat! I did a treatment in the afternoon, and she looked a little perkier after. I treated her again in the evening, and the sparkle was definately coming back into her eye. I had given her Banamine too.

Friday morning she was moving better and could lower her head without too much trouble. I called to check on her at noon and Alan said she looked good, was moving around and had walked right up back no problem. When I got home, she was looking sooo much better. Last night she was back to chasing the two Arabs and this morning she's back to 95%! I've NEVER had her recover that quickly. Usually a mild reaction takes at least 4 days before she's looking any better and its been more than a week on medication for reactions this bad.

I'm so happy, I hate seeing her in such a state, and she only needed one dose of meds. I hate giving shots anyway, now I know the Rhino affects her so badly, I'll dose her before the next one and scan and treat the same day. I'm going to scan her again today and see what shows up. I need to order a different color crayon so I can tell which spots are the new ones!

I REALLY need a camera. I wish I could've taken video of how she was acting before and after each treatment. I'm bidding on some on E-Bay, wish me luck!!

New Way to Waste Time on the PC

I found a site called Nicker Network that has a video library of almost anything you can think of that's horse related and its FREE!

Playing with Light

I've been experimenting with the light therapy, my scanner is on its way back after having the battery replaced, so I've been using some acupuncture/meridian charts to find points to treat.

Angel, 10 yo gray Arab mare, was really touchy about her hind legs, not letting me touch them. I couldn't see any swelling or lameness, so treated by holding the lights near her flank, stifle and hocks. After 48 hours, I tried touching her legs and she let me. Now I can tell the problem is near her stifle, so I treated that again. She was running around yesterday, chasing Maya and hopping around, so I think she feels better. I've narrowed the reactive area down to the muscles above the stifle, and will treat them again today.

River, 14 yo chestnut roan QHxTB mare, has started coughing again. I had to feed the hay from the shed, she's more sensitive to that hay, so I'm hosing it down. One bale looked and smelled fine to me, but she still coughed. I used the lights on her lung meridian last night and she had some definate reactions, lots of head shaking and rubbing. It would be great if her allergy to dust would be helped by this. Its tough in the winter to find hay that doesn't bother her. She only coughed a couple of times this morning, but I did get the hay I fed her last night wet down, so that may be why.

I also treated me! Friday night I started feeling AWFUL! I'd subbed at school 2 days and everyone was sick it seemed. At supper Friday night, my husband asked if I felt okay, because I looked sick. My throat was sore, eyes were red and irritated, I had constant nasal drip so my nose was getting raw, I was sneezing and I had a headache. I thought I was going to be sick as a dog the next day. I used the red light on my sinuses, nose, forehead and back of neck. I took a Tylenol for the headache, but no other meds. I slept quite well, and the next morning was surprised at how good I felt. I still had stuffy nose, so used nasal spray, but my throat was better and headache was gone. My eyes were fine too. I've used the red light every day, but no meds and have felt better each day. Sunday I took the girls to the movies and yesterday was back to mostly normal. I'm impressed because I was sure I would be soooo sick. My son, DJ, told me he felt awful last night, same symptoms. I had him use the light, so will be curious to see how he feels this morning.

Back on Track Equine Therapy

Back on Track is now an official business. I finally got an ID number and now need to make business cards, flyers, etc. I'm very excited about using this therapy system, I've had some great results on my own horses and people, dogs and the cat too!

My mare, Molly, has had an enlarged udder since having her colt 4 years ago. She suffers with mastitis every winter and we've only had success treating the symptoms. I had her hormone levels checked and they were fine. I decided to have her be the test horse when Dan Sumerel came to show me how the therapy works and noticed a difference in her after that. A couple of weeks ago, I finally got a chance to scan and treat her again. Only 4 points showed up, the reproductive ones on her gut. I treated them and she's looking so much better, almost normal now! I should have taken pictures, but my camera died and I haven't replaced it yet. I know the farrier will be impressed as we've discussed her condition before. Maybe we will get through next November with no hours spent in the cold trying to relieve the poor girl's discomfort.

River is still doing great. I've been working on Angel's hind legs and will post a separate post about that later.

So Darn CUTE!!!!

Cleo rides Blaze

Alternate use for Vet Wrap


When the little Arab, Maya, had her abcess, I had to wrap it, so needed a few rolls of vet wrap. I let the girls help pick out the colors but when I went to use it, a couple of rolls were missing. The mystery was soon solved when I discovered the new wardrobe the Bratz dolls were sporting! These girls are always thinking up new things to entertain themselves, I love their imaginations. They had more fun with a few rolls of vet wrap than with the extensive wardrobes that come with the dolls!

Simple Knee Surgery?

My husband went in for a simple arthroscopic knee procedure to repair a torn meniscus and everything went wonderfully. The surgeon said it was easy to fix and his knee looks great, no arthritis or anything. Alan felt great, his knee was not painful at all and he had no problems walking on it, except his calf really hurt after the second day. He said it felt tight, like it does after starting jogging after time off, we thought it maybe from the exercises he needed to do. But it didn't get better, I really didn't feel comfortable with it, so finally demanded he call and get it looked at. He has a small blood clot in his calf. He had been on aspirin because the surgeon was concerned about his varicose veins, but he'd never told us the symptoms of a blood clot and we didn't think to ask. Thank goodness for the Internet, that's where I found the info I needed to convince him to get it looked at. So now we're on blood thinners and I have to give him injections for 5 days and coumadin for 3-6 months. We're keeping our fingers crossed that it resolves quickly and without incident!

New Hay

Well here is the report on the new hay! I paid the same price for the new bale as I did the old one. Most of the bales seem fine, although I did have a bale that triggered River's coughing. The new hay is looser packed than the original hay and baled in smaller bales. They weigh about half as much as the other bales. Now I own a whole trailer full of those "cute little bales of hay" that I first saw at the Vermont 100 Endurance Race last summer. I had seen some bales of hay in the back of the trailer of the people we were crewing for and said to L, "Look at those cute little bales of hay, I wonder where they get those." L looked at me and asked what I meant, I told her they were half the size of my bales. She just glared at me and said they were the size bales she got too, then growled "Don't even tell me how much you pay for your hay!" This hay will get me to warmer weather when I can soak the rest of my hay, but I will be going back to my hay guy. Its worth the hour round trip!

Feeding on the Hill

I've noticed since I started bringing the horses up the wooded hillside to eat lunch and supper that they don't stay up here and eat til everything is gone like they do when I feed in the paddock. They will come trotting or cantering up and walk around to the many different little piles of hay I spread, tasting each one, chasing each other off, coming back together to share a pile. Then at least twice, they will travel down the hill to the paddock area and get a drink, check things out, take a nap sometimes and then head back up to finish the hay. If I throw hay piles in the paddock, they stay right there wolf it down and then stand around like bumps on a log. Hmmmm, I can't wait to try the track system of pasturing when I get down to Pittston!

February Sleigh Ride

During the February vacation week, we joined the other riding students of Orient Farm at Lemeiux's Orchard for a sleigh ride. It was quite cold, the wind was blowing in the open field, but we were sheltered in the woods. If it had been any colder, it would have been miserable. Mr. L. hitched up the two Percheron geldings, Tom & Jerry. They are 10 yo and well-behaved. They had to wait after being hitched for the runners to be pried out of the ice, they stood patiently thank goodness! We started out in the apple orchard, the horses were eager to go and everyone was excited to have the opportunity to enjoy the horses and each other. One parent said it was a dream of hers to go on a sleigh ride, she was so happy! We rode about a mile into the woods and unloaded to have a hot dog roast. We were so grateful for the warm fire! Mr. L. made sure the horses were covered with their blankets and fed them carrots as they waited for us to eat lunch. After the hot dogs, the kids made s'mores and then we loaded up and headed home. We of course had to sing "Jingle Bells" on the way back. Everyone had a great time and we all agreed to do this again next year.

Back on Track with Back on Track!

Well, I've finally decided that I'm going back to my original idea of living above the barn! We've explored other options, yurts, round Deltec homes, cordwood houses, and regular square houses. I've learned so much about the different building techniques, and plan to use some of them for out-buildings, but finishing the space above the barn feels like the right choice for now at least. Alan and I immediately fell in love with the same barn when looking and he's happy to know what direction to head in now! Truth be told, he would move down there tomorrow and live in a tent, just to be there. The only other place I've seen him so excited to be is Grand Manan Island, you can see him relax and see the joy in his face as soon as he steps foot on the Island, the land on Hemlock Lane has the same effect on him. It already feels like home to him.

I've been worried about moving the girls, then learned that Macy's best friend's parents are getting divorced and she is moving next week, to another town and school. At least we will move together. I'm so very sorry about that family, but it makes the decision to move easier for me somehow.

Its such a nice day already, I'm getting a load of hay soon from a different source, and have Aikido tonight. We had breakfast together at Tim Horton's as Alan had a doctor's appointment at 8:40 this morning after getting called in to work at 4:00 pm last night and getting home at 5:30am this morning. Will let you know how the hay works out, my friend said its the best she's ever had, so we'll see! I will have to post pictures of the sleigh ride we took at the apple orchard that sells the hay, it was so fun!

New Favorite LOA Quote

"Reality is still just a story. Pick the happy one!"

Replacing "Energy flows where attention goes."

Acceptance

A couple of on-line groups I'm a member of have been discussing acceptance. One is a horse-related group and one is a Law of Attraction group. I am continually amazed at the extent these two seemingly unrelated groups end up discussing the same topics and struggling or triumphing with some of the concepts integral to succeeding in either area. That is the reason I so love Mark Rashid, he was the first I ever heard talk about horsemanship as an extension of how you live your life and that actually practises it extensively, always bringing something new to the table to share with others. I'm sure a few other clinicians discuss this, Harry Whitney comes to mind, but Mark's stuff is what I've had most accessible to study.

Acceptance has been a tough one for me, accepting things as they are and then letting go is really the only way to make progress. For someone who likes to know who, what , where , when and how something is going to happen, this is difficult! Especially if you are really attached to the outcome. One of the biggest examples I've had was buying the land in Pittston. We had been wanting to move for a few years, I wanted to stay in Vassalboro. Many properties came up for sale, but none were quite right. Meanwhile, I was so unhappy with what I had here, always looking at other set ups and feeling many "if onlys". If only we had more land, if only our land was flat, etc, etc. Then I read a few things about barefoot trimming and how traveling over rocks, up hills, over logs and through wet areas helped the hooves. We had those features right here. Finally after the annual Memorial Day parade that we rode our horses in for the first time, a very respected horseman struck up a conversation with me and when he realized where I lived he said he'd been tempted to stop in and ask why we hadn't fenced in the rest of the land to give the horses access to the stream and woods. So for my 45th birthday, I asked for fencing and we fenced in the rest of our "unusable" land, a wooded hillside littered with rocks, stumps, logs and a gully with a stream. It was the best decision I've made, the horses have thrived. About two weeks after putting up the fence and being so thrilled with the results, thinking that it was okay if we ended up staying here, I was finally happy with what I had, the chance to buy the land materialized! Once I accepted the reality of where I was and stopped resisting that reality, new opportunity appeared. Then the whole story of how we decided to buy the land started, and that was quite an example of many "coincidences" guiding our decisions!

In my horsemanship, accepting the fact that its a journey not a destination and that the horses always try their best to get along has made it so much more enjoyable and less stressful. Letting go of the thought that they should do as I ask just because I ask was a big one. Now I accept that they are trying and something is making it difficult for them. Maybe its me, something I haven't noticed in the environment, the way they feel that day. I've learned so many things by stepping back after a couple of asks and assessing whats going on. It amazes me at the things I've been made aware of by listening to the horses. The latest example is River's experience with the farrier. Next time a horse constantly pulls feet away after behaving for previous trims, I will investigate further. Acceptance in riding is helping me improve so much. Instead of resisting a pull I try to go with it, then redirect it. When wanting to slow down, taking that forward energy and practising circles, all with an accepting attitude instead of an adversarial attitude. Doing the same move with different attitudes is so powerful.

In parenting, I still struggle with acceptance. I find its easier to let the horses be themselves than it is for me to let my children be themselves. Some people improve their horsemanship through parenting, but I have improved my parenting through my horsemanship. I'm learning to let go of taking everything personally and trying to see that most things are about them, not me. Growing up in the role of taking care of my siblings, feeling that I needed to protect them, has resulted in feeling that I'm somehow responsible for my children's problems and failures. Two of them are very good at reinforcing that feeling! I'm finally learning to let go and not accept the responsibility for everything they do or feel. Now I'm just trying to encourage and support instead of control and get entangled in power struggles. The attitude of do it because I said so and not looking at why they may not do as I ask has been much harder to let go of in my parenting.

I am learning acceptance in Aikido also. Accepting the energy of an attacker and redirecting it. Accepting the fact that I will do things incorrectly and that's ok. Accepting that Sensai will step in and correct what needs correcting, that I don't have to constantly be looking to him for approval. Letting go of the need to keep asking "Am I doing this right?" I'm finding it easier with Aikido to just go and have fun, enjoy each new thing I learn and not worry about doing everything perfectly right away. It gets easier each week, even as the moves get harder. A big part of it I believe, is the acceptance I feel from the others in the class. Everyone helps everyone else, there's no competition, each just striving to better themselves, each at a different level. When someone does well, everyone acknowledges it, good job is commonly heard. It feels like a Mark Rashid clinic, lol!

Dream Weaver

For the past couple of months, I have had vivid dreams of being pregnant or having a baby. Or should I say, nightmares! Not only that, I have had actual feelings of having a baby kick while awake, enough so that I was going to make a doctor's appointment to check it out. I KNOW I'm not pregnant and have no idea how I can have these physical symptoms. They aren't spasms or gas. I finally started asking a few people if that had ever happened to them and after the looks I got, decided to stop doing that, LOL!

The first dream I remember having was telling Alan I was pregnant. My belly was big and you could see the baby moving. He didn't believe me and kept asking me if I was sure and I told him yes, I could FEEL it. The second one, I had twin boys and remember saying I thought six kids was enough. I realized in the dream that I had forgotten to feed them and felt really bad about that, but then said, "Well, I really didn't want them anyway". The third one, I let someone else carry my baby and they dropped it on the rocks! I was horrified and vowed to carry it myself from then on. I wake up thinking thank God that it was only a dream.

The physical thing started right after the last dream of someone dropping my baby. The baby is usually a boy.

I looked up the symbolism of being pregnant or a birth in dreams and they said it usually symbolizes a new project or life change that you are giving birth too. The only thing I can think of is moving to the land in Pittston and how I've been trying to hang onto our present house while planning what to do down there. I think I need to let go of this old place I'm at and embrace the new adventure. What I feel is that this is the home my boys grew up in, they talk about buying the house, how this is home, etc. I even asked Alan where the boys would come home to this summer if we move! As if they couldn't find us. I finally had a dream the other night that Ryan & Will came home at the same time and the setting wasn't this house, but everything was fine and we had a great visit. At this point, I'm willing to do anything, even move, to get these freaky dreams to stop!