It’s wonderful when we can have a professional to come to us and do some bodywork for our horses. Horse owners may not be able financially keep up with having professional out as often as they may like, or even if they are, there is so much value to becoming knowledgeable about your horse’s anatomy and musculature. This helps the rider know when something might be off, even if it is a little soreness from work or something bigger that needs to be dealt with. Doing your own bodywork is also nice for your relationship.
As I have been diving into learning more about bodywork, I’ve picked up a few books and a few people have asked me for a book review. The first book I’ve been through is Ina Gösmeier’s “Acupressure for Horses: Hands-On Techniques to Solve Performance Problems and Ease Pain and Discomfort”. This book comes in a hardback with spiral binding which I love as it makes a sturdy format for referencing. You’ll probably want to bring it to the barn with you! It is well organized and has an excellent table of contents for quickly finding what you’re looking for.
Practicing Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) requires a huge depth of knowledge. “Acupressure for Horses” gives a practical primer for the horse owner. It gives the reader a foundation of theory and how to decide the horse’s TCM type as Gösmeier explains it is vital for picking the right points to treat. She gives many common ailments and treatments with excellent photos. She also includes interesting case studies that demonstrate the effectiveness of proper acupressure and TCM. While she does have a few “quick fix” points in the book, the reader will get the most out of it by studying the theory and learning more of the points. With that said, who doesn’t like an effective quick fix? One quick fix is Yin-Yang Balancing for achieving mental and physical balance, these are three points on the horse’s head that the rider can easily add into the pre or post ride ritual. Because it will help calm your horse, the rider would probably want to add it to post-ride grooming for an already laid-back horse and to the beginning for a horse that needs more relaxation. Acupressure of the eyes was another set of easy points the rider can use.
“Acupressure for Horses” will help the rider add another layer of knowledge to their horsemanship. This book admittedly does not replace the veterinarian, a trained professional bodyworker or acupuncturist, but it will help the rider understand their horse better if even to ask the right questions and get the right professionals to help their horse when necessary. It has been an excellent addition to my library. Click on the link below to order a copy for yourself!