Bio for Tracey Ferguson, Equine Energy
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Like many young kiwi girls Tracey was horse mad as a youngster and took any opportunity to be near them. Seven years working on thoroughbred studs in NZ and Australia has provided her a wealth of knowledge and experience breeding and foaling mares, weaning, preparing yearlings for sale and general handling of young stock. Working on large stud farms has also enabled her to gain experience equine vet nursing.
Tracey has spent more than 5 years gaining knowledge and experience, in NZ and Australia, in Equine Anatomy and Biomechanics, Massage, Reiki and Equine CranioSacral Therapy. She also has plans to complete an Equine Osteopathy certification in either the States or the UK.
Tracey runs Equine Energy which offers horses and their riders a sports therapy service assisting with recovery from chronic and acute injuries and also behavioural issues. She can help address issues such as head shaking, head injuries and trauma, TMJ issues, spinal injuries and hind end injuries. More recently she has started offering animal communication as a service for horse and dog owners.
Currently living northwest of Auckland, Tracey has three horses and a dog and is working at becoming a more proficient event rider with her fabulous school master Just a King.
Hi Tracey,
I have an 8yo QH mare who does not seem to like pressure on her poll. I’m not 100% sure if that’s the problem or whether there is something underlying to cause it. She’s good being led, tied up, is not head shy and loves a good head rub but for some reason when you are riding (sometimes lunging) she outs her head right down and shakes to try get the bridle or halter off.
I ride her in a rope halter as I can put it further off her head away from her poll and she is good. I have been working with her to get her used to having something there by rubbing and brushing the area constantly, putting the lead over and between her ears and putting pressure on her poll then releasing etc.
She is good with what I have been doing but still seems shaky. She is quite sensitive about halfway up her ears but the bridle is nowhere near there. She also snorts alot. She doesn’t seem to have any allergies or infection and is a really sweet girl and the problem does not seem to be behavioural. Any theories on what it could be or what I could do? Thanks, Meridian
Hi Meridian,
Thanks for your question, it sounds like your mare is a really sweet girl who is mostly very obliging. I find it interesting that she seemingly tries to get her bridle off when ridden but unmounted seems fine around her head. In addition a lot of other questions come to mind, such as; how long have you had her; when were her teeth done last; what was she doing before you got her; what do you know of her history, etc. There are so many things that go into creating the overall picture, and often something can seem unrelated but is in fact important
Are you aware of the cranio-sacral system? Many people know the cranio-sacral system as a system comprising the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord (central nervous system) and the bones of the cranium and sacrum which attach to these membranes. However it also comprises the fascia which radiates through the entire body from the central nervous system, along with the cerebro-spinal fluid produced and housed within the central nervous system. Because of the very intricate way everything is connected pressure in one part of the body can effect, or manifest within, a completely different part of the body eg an accident or injury at the sacrum can effect a horse in the poll or head. Or, put in another way, the area where we see evidence of discomfort may not be the original site of the injury or pain. Horses are incredible in their ability to compensate for pain or dysfunction but over time sustained compensation puts stresses on the body and the pain will show up in the area that has been taking up the strain – so now you have two or more areas of discomfort instead of just the original one. This is why so often just relieving the symptom (the discomfort that has become evident) will not fix the problem and sometimes even leads you or the therapist on a frustrating journey – as you relieve pain in one area it pops up in another.
With this in mind, I would strongly recommend you have someone come out and assess your horse holistically i.e. look at the whole picture. The beauty of cranio-sacral therapy as a modality is that it addresses the whole system to restore balance. Janice Clyma is a very good equine therapist treating horses in the greater Christchurch area, and she may be able to come out and assess your mare for you and recommend the best form of treatment for your horse. She can be contacted through her website www.healthyhorse.co.nz
Best of luck, Tracey
Hi Tracey, my horse is slightly 'cold backed' not a term I like to use, but not sure how else to explain, if he hasn't had his saddle on for 5 days, once on and girthed up loosely I walk him around and he will leap off of all fours, once he has done this he is fine to ride. He will do this about for three rides and then he is completely fine, unless we have a period of time off. I have had his saddle checked, and yesterday he was given a nice massage/pressure points, which he really enjoyed. Are there any massage areas/techniques you could suggest I do prior to putting his saddle on to help remove the pain/discomfort he seems to have? Thanks, Alison
Hi Alison.
You’re certainly not alone in dealing with a horse who shows signs of being ‘cold backed’. There are a number of things you can do to ensure you’re horse is as comfortable as possible. The first suggestion I would make, it seems you’ve taken care of already. Ensuring your saddle fits properly is very important so it’s good to hear you’ve had the fit checked. I would also get his back checked out to ensure everything is fine in his wither, back and loins in case that is a contributing factor (so many horses have flipped themselves over or had paddock accidents at some stage in their lives and it can affect them for many years)
I always spend some time giving my horses some hands on work before tacking up to ride. A gentle and simple massage stroke you could do along the shoulder and then along the back where your saddle sits is with flat palms starting at the bottom of the shoulder just above the forearm and moving gently towards the wither. Use gentle slow strokes upward toward the wither. Your aim is to gently warm and loosen muscle. Repeat those slow gentle strokes along the back going from the ribs up towards the spine. Another really effective thing is to use some of Linda Tellington’s T-Touch moves. These can be found in her books and I’ve found them to be quite useful. Remember to do both sides. In addition after a gentle massage you can ask your horse to do some belly lifts and it will encourage him to stretch through his back and wither. If you’re not sure how to do it see if you know someone who can show you.
Other things you can think about when tacking up are ensuring all your gear is clean and has no debris on the undersides of your saddle cloths etc. Ensuring everything is dry and warm (believe it or not I actually hug my saddle cloths in winter to warm them up slightly before placing them on my horses back. You’re doing the right thing by doing your girth up slowly and giving him time to get used to it. I know we all run short of time these days but the extra few minutes you give them can make all the difference.
Remember also that cooling down is just as important for your horse as warming up. Working them hard then getting straight off and hosing them down does no favours for them. After you’ve finished your schooling walk them out gently until they are completely cool (if you’re hacking out make the last third of your ride a walk so they have time to cool down). If you’re hosing down scrape him off immediately and if it’s not very warm put a sweat rug over him so he doesn’t catch a chill in his back.
Hope that helps Alison.Cheers Tracey
Hi there, I was wondering if there are any safe, I-cant-stuff-them-up, massages I can do on my rising 9 tb just to keep him happy and relaxed and give us bonding time? Cheers Tina
Hi Tina,
Thanks for your question. Isn’t it great to be able to spend time bonding with, and fussing over our horses.
There are many good books and even some web resources that show you things you can do at home for your boy. In terms of being confident you’re not doing anything adverse, just think of big slow sweeping movements and you should be OK. If you do start to think there maybe something amiss with your horse, it would be safer to have a trained professional check him out, and I can certainly recommend one or two people in the Hamilton area.
When working with your horse watch his reactions as he’ll tell you soon enough if he’s not enjoying it. Signs of enjoyment are things like:
• Lowering of the head
• Softening of the eye (sort of half asleep look to their eye)
• Sighing
• Licking and chewing
• Yawns
• You may even feel your horse start to lean into your hands if you’re in a particularly good spot
Some signs he’s not enjoying it:
• Head raised
• Ears back
• Tossing the head
• Moving away from your hand
• Becoming restless
Also ensure that you are in a good frame of mind, as if you are stressed or in a hurry your horse will find his hands on session less than enjoyable.
Here are a couple of things you might like to try to get you started. Start by placing your hands either side of the neck at the base at what we call C7 (cervical vertebra number 7), and just hang out there for a while (Another wee hint, place a hand on C7 when handling an uptight horse as many horses find it calming. It will also help to keep you safe if they start moving around a lot). Take a moment and a few deep slow breaths. This will give the two of you a chance to just come together and connect. Think about what his skin feels like under your hands – does it feel soft, firm, cold, warm? What about the muscle under the skin? Does it feel pliable like a nice plump steak or does it feel solid like a piece of wood. These are just things that help you to forget for a moment about everything else and just focus on your horse.
Then when you’re ready take one hand and run it very slowly and lightly up his neck toward his head. By slow I mean counting slowly to 5 or 6 as you’re moving your hand. Follow the vertebrae in his neck and then lift your hand off where the vertebrae meets the skull. Bring your hand back down to C7 and do it again. Start off lightly at first because you want the muscle to warm up a little before you apply too much pressure to it. After 3 or 4 strokes upward try increasing the pressure slightly. Again your horse will tell you how much is too much pressure as he’ll duck away from your hand if it’s too hard.
Pay attention to his reactions. If he has a tight spot in his neck you may feel him duck away as you reach that spot. Come back to it and just place your hand over it, and let the warmth of your hand create warmth in the spot. Then very gently rub through the spot with the fleshy part of your palm (below your thumb) This again will ensure you don’t use too much pressure as it will be uncomfortable for you if there is too much. You may even feel little knots as you’re massaging. I like to apply a little pressure directly on them and just stay there until I feel them ‘melt’ away from under my finger or thumb. Then I gently rub through the spot again.
Follow the same line up the neck but this time above where his vertebrae are and then repeat the whole thing again but this last time the line you follow is much closer to the crest of his neck. This ensures you’ve covered all of his neck.
You could also do his shoulders – start at the point of shoulder and using two hands work in an upward motion following the shoulder blade. Then open your hands and sweep them down in a circle back to the starting point and repeat as you did for the neck. Again repeat the whole thing, but this time follow a line that is closer to his rib cage, essentially working your way across the entire shoulder.
Don’t forget to work both sides!
Let’s leave it there for the moment as that has probably given you enough to think about, and to go away and try. A book I highly recommend looking at is “Massage Techniques for Horse and Rider” by Mary Bromiley. It does contain a lot of information on anatomy but there are also some good techniques and stretches clearly shown that would help you. In addition, if you’re interested in a massage course that would give you the skills to improve your horses health and well being then I also recommend Rachel Phillips (Rachel Phillips Equine Therapy) – although she is based here in Auckland it would involve travel.
Please don’t hesitate to come back to me if you have any more questions, or if you feel I’ve not given you enough information here.
All the best with your boy
Hi Tracey, I own a 15 year old stationbred gelding who does a bit of low level competitions and he has had a couple of very easy years recently whilst I have been having babies. He is now back in work and the last time he was shod my blacksmith mentioned that he was fairly stiff, especially behind and I wondered if there was any stretches or exercises I could be doing with him to make him more supple?
Hi there,
Thanks for your question. You’ll be pleased to know you’re not alone in this situation. As our horses get older we do start to think more and more about healthy maintenance of their joints. There are many products on the market designed for joint health and maintenance and you may want to take some time to research those and see if there is something suitable for your horse. In terms of exercises or stretches you can do, believe it or not movement is one of the easiest things that helps. As horses get older they benefit more from regular gentle exercise as opposed to being ridden once or twice a week. As with people, fitness is the one of the cheapest tools there is for maintaining health and wellbeing. When riding ensure you give your horse adequate warm up before beginning your schooling exercises (either flat or jumping). Also remember that the warming down is just as important, especially if you have had a strenuous session. Warm down with a ‘long and low’ trot, gradually easing down into a good swinging walk (think free walk on a long rein from dressage tests). However, we all find it harder in the winter months when daylight hours are scarce. If you are running short on time then I would focus more on gentle fitness and suppleness rather than trying to perfect that new schooling exercise. As riders we can all be a bit guilty of doing an exercise over and over in an effort to get it right in the one session. If your horse is giving you a reasonable effort in lateral exercise for example, leave it at that and then try for the same quality of effort, or slightly more the next time. Doing endless 20m circles or leg yield will put a greater strain on the joints and tendons, and will contribute to the stiffness rather than overcome it. Transitions are also a catch 22 situation. They improve your horse but at the same time can put strain on joints and tendons if the horse isn’t fit enough or strong enough. So all the time you want to be asking yourself “is my horse fit enough to do what I am asking of him” For many people winter means it’s too wet to ride at home. So if you can, get out and do some hacking. You can incorporate lots of things into your hack, such as leg yields, shoulder in, quarters in etc. And you may even be lucky enough to find small obstacles to jump. In terms of manual stretches and exercises you could do, dependent on where you live, I would be happy to come assess your horse and work out a small program for you.