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News From Jim
Hello All, When you read this, I will be in Ireland, teaching the Advanced 5-Day, and enjoying a good Guinness Stout! I will be in the UK through the first week in September, teaching in Ireland, Britian and a course for my certified practitioners in Scotland. We still have openings for our weekend course the first week in September in Devon, so if you are on the fence, come join us. After this 5-day in Ireland, I am heading to the Dublin Horse Show to work on Andrew Bourn's horses. He lives in Galway but I met him in Florida over the winter. I then will head to the World Endurance Championships in the UK in Euston Park.  Before I left the States, I had an interview with Lizzie Iwersen, the Horse Talk LIVE Host on Rural TV which aired August 3rd. The show is up on our website on our "In The Media" webpage. We have two new capable Masterson Method™ Certified Practitioners to add to our roster, Becky Tenges, from Mequon, Wisconsin and Kim Dabolt from Sanford, NC. You can read about them below. Becky wrote our "Tip of the Month" which I found informative and very helpful on, "Beginning, before you begin." I need to remind myself of that sometimes too. Below we have a great testimonial from a client of Coralie Hughes, one of our Weekend Seminar-Workhsop Instructors. It's a real inspiration to read, and sheds a glimmer of hope to those with horses that have a lameness that defies all the veterinary profession can offer. Lastly, Cindee Van Dijk, in our home office, asked me to remind everyone that we have a new link on the website for those interested in hosting a weekend workshop in their area. Click on Hosting a Weekend Workshop and we have all the details there to help you to organize one. As you can see to the calendar to the right, we are adding courses left and right!
Until then, like me, Enjoy Your horses! Jim
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The Masterson Minute In a minute (well, sometimes a little longer) Jim demonstrates a Masterson Method™ Technique. This month, Jim revisits the Bladder Meridian Technique  | | Revisiting the Bladder Meridian |
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New Certified Practitioner,
Becky Tenges, (Mequon, WI)
Greetings! My name is Becky Tenges. I grew up in Southern California and had the supreme pleasure of having horses in my back yard from the age of 5. My first horse was a Shetland pony that my farrier-dad rescued from some place after he found it tied up to a tree. I was 9 years  old, in 4-H and this pony (pictured here with me in a sailor dress) was my first project--literally. We fed him and I brushed and brushed him until he finally recovered from his starvation syndrome. He grew into a fat, feisty, and fast friend. Thus began my long journey with horses. My second horse was a big old mare named Rosie, whose head I think was as long as a yardstick-at least it seemed so when I was a kid. She was the best, not because she was pretty...because she was not and not because she was tall, even though she was...about 18 hands. No, she was the best because when my sister or I wanted to mount her, she would put her muzzle down to the ground and let us shimmy up her neck. Then when we were almost there...she would slowly raise up her head while we slid down onto her back...and then wait for us to get turned around and facing forwards! The story of my life and my experience with horses has lots of chapters, with lots of horses in our family, ultimately over a hundred. I had a dad who was a farrier and at some point my mom convinced him it was a great idea to breed Arabians. So, my horse experience story also includes a move to San Diego to begin an Arabian horse breeding ranch...in the heat of summer...to a 20 acre property...with no electricity and no running water. It seems to me that first summer there were 8 - 10 horses on the ranch. Now you might be wondering how exactly we watered all of those horses. Great question! Let's just say that a girl and her sibs learn how much a horse drinks (LOTS!) when they have to hand-water each one (and the 50 rose bushes and 80 trees) out of 55-gallon drums that my dad filled from a neighbor's place a half mile down the road. Those pioneer-days on my parent's ranch taught me perseverance, patience and the ability to persist...without complaining (at least in his presence) because dad was military guy. Those qualities I learned being a family laborer have served me well, including in the many chapters and the couple of decades where I worked on Wall Street, but had no involvement with horses. But those horseless days are behind me now thanks to one of my darling daughters, who has been horse-crazy since she was a toddler. After years of lessons and several leases, her dad and I finally broke down and bought her a horse in 2011. And that purchase of Prince Ivan, shown with me below and as I look now...all grown up,led me to pursue certification in The Masterson MethodTM . This method of bodywork is a truly amazing gift to the horses fortunate enough to get to engage in it with a certified practitioner. Winston Churchill once said: "There is something about the outside of a horse that is good for the inside of a man." Jim Masterson teaches us with his breakthrough Masterson MethodTM that there is something about the outside of a man...or woman...that is good for the inside of a horse. If you have a horse that could use a Masterson MethodTM session (and you live somewhat near Mequon, Wisconsin), give me a call or drop me an email. I'd love to work with you both to help your horse's body to do what his heart desires: rise to your expectations, comply with your every request and be your best partner. Becky can be reached at: rst@wi.rr.com| Phone: 414.852.8621 |
New Certified Practitioner, Kim Dabolt 
(Sanford, NC)
I have been involved with horses in disciplines ranging from barrels to eventing to western pleasure to dressage to trails. These endeavors were met with varying degrees of success but always enjoyed. I have also been active in 4H as both a youth and adult leader.
I have had a lifelong love affair with horses and a passion for learning more about them. It was this constant learning that led me to Jim and the Masterson Method™. I bought my daughter his video for Christmas. After watching it I decided to go to a weekend clinic, after that I was hooked!
With a career in research Microbiology I feel that there is always something new to learn. This extends to my horses. When my horse had an unresolved lameness and my daughter's horse was having trouble performing I wanted to know why and fix it. This led me to an insatiable interest in equine biomechanics and behavior.
The Masterson Method™ ties both these interests together beautifully. By watching for subtle responses in the horses body I can help them achieve more freedom in their movement. The horses' response determines the direction the session progresses, there is no set "order" for the moves. Bodywork is done in a way that keeps the horse relaxed and comfortable. I like that this method of bodywork is done with the horse instead of to the horse. My goal is to enable the horse to comfortably perform at his best for the rider.
You can get in touch with Kim at: kim@CustomEquineMassage.com or by Phone: (919)770-7655 or visit her website: Website: www.CustomEquineMassage.com
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Testimonial on the Masterson Method™, and Coralie Hughes, MMCP and a Weekend Seminar-Workshop Instructor:
My horse, Briscoe, has had a sore back since I purchased him 2 and 1/2 years ago. The veterinarian who did the pre-purchase exam did not catch his spasms in his back before I bought him, and actually gave him a passing grade on his muscular-skeletal system. Two weeks after I purchased him, our barn manager ran her hands down his back and his back spasmed very badly. I had my vet examine him, and we decided to give him cortisone injections in his most sore areas of his back. Then I hired an equine massage expert. For about 3 months, he had bi-weekly massages, and light work. There was some improvement, but not substantial. I then ordered a new saddle, an MW, 17 and 1/2. I started working with Briscoe with a trainer. After a few weeks of lunging and riding, he began bucking when we lunged him. My trainer suggested having his back examined again. This time, the vet found that his back had returned to its original sore state. We decided to give him a few months off. I believe we even started a second course of cortisone injections. I also came down with an illness that prevented me from riding. So Briscoe had many months off. I decided to try a new saddle after returning to riding, and worked with a fitter to order a new saddle. We ordered a MW 18. I began riding quite a bit and taking lessons. Briscoe seemed to be doing better. I rode him for about 4 months, 3-4 times a week. The last time I rode him he seemed to be doing fine. However, when I asked him to canter, he bucked me into the air. I went through a fence in the arena. I had a mild concussion, but still lunged him. My trainer rode him the next day and said he felt very stiff and uncomfortable. I had the vet return to examine his back. It was very, very sore. The vet thought he might have a fracture. I decided to take him to a well-known clinic and have him x-rayed. After the x-ray, the physician decided that he did not have a fracture, but instead had osteo-arthritis in his vertebrae, and recommended a treatment of anti-inflammatory medications, which we gave him for 3 weeks. After that, I decided to take a lesson and brought him out into the arena for my lesson. As I began to lunge him, he took off wildly and began bucking all over the arena. We finally calmed him down enough to get the saddle off and him back into his stall. I then read about mesotherapy and asked the vets to perform it on his back. Briscoe had two treatments of mesotherapy. He initially responded, but it wasn't long before his back was sore again. The vet recommended at this point that Briscoe be put out to pasture. He did not feel that his back would ever improve to a point where I could ride him safely. Then I began taking lessons at Equus, and met Coralie Hughes. My trainer recommended that I try Coralie's Masterson Method on Briscoe. Coralie has worked twice on Briscoe, and it has been absolutely amazing. His back was so tight the first time I lunged him that he wasn't moving his back muscles when he trotted and cantered. His back improved substantially even after one visit. After two visits, even the vet felt that there was an improvement in his back. This is the first time the vet has mentioned that there has been an improvement in Briscoe's back. I feel that with additional treatments, his back will improve to an even greater degree. Coralie also quickly identified the possible source of Briscoe's back problem, in that he has a very short back and rib cage, and will need a much smaller saddle to be ridden in than a size 18. I was probably bouncing on his kidneys in my size 18, which was causing him great discomfort. I am surprised he didn't buck me off sooner, but he has such a good temperament, that I feel he was just tolerating the pain. In summary, I have a horse with a sore back and basically tried everything to improve it, including cortisone injections, massage therapy, anti-inflammatories, new saddles, rest, and mesotherapy. The only treatment so far that has seemed to help him is the Masterson Method as performed by Coralie Hughes. I am confident that with further treatments his back will get better and better, to a point where he can be ridden again. I plan to keep Briscoe, and when his back is substantially better, to get a new saddle, size 16, and ask a small young lady I know to begin riding him again. I now am confident that there is a future for Briscoe beyond being a pasture horse. Thank you, Coralie and Jim Masterson.
Sincerely, DB
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"Tip of the Month"
by Becky Tenges, MMCP
Each time I see this sign in the Milwaukee Airport, just beyond the Security Check Point, I chuckle because that word, recombobulation, is such a goofy word. I've heard of discombobulated, but really...this word? Both of them look like they belong in a Dr. Seuss book. Today, however, after looking up the definition, I find that, without regard to its silly sound, it perfectly suits both The Masterson Method™ in its entirety and my Tip of the Month!! Perfect...humor and utility. So here's the definition straight out of the Urban Dictionary: Recombobulate (verb) 1. To put something back the way it was, or into proper working order. 2. To gather one's thoughts or composure. Any of you who have read Jim's book, watched a him in a YouTube short video or attended a Demonstration, Weekend Seminar, or Advanced Course, would have to agree that the Masterson Method™ is all about 'putting a horse back the way it was or into proper working order'. That said, we move on to the second definition, which gets us to how we endeavor to put into practice Jim's methods. As you all know, this form of bodywork is an endeavor that we engage in with our horse-partners and is not something we do to them. As such, you must Begin...Before You Begin-you must Recombobulate, or 'gather your thoughts and composure'. In other words (and especially you A-Types out there like me!), before you step into your horse-partner's stall, do a head check. To help you to 'Begin...Before You Begin', here are some questions for you to consider before each session: - Am I truly present? Or am I thinking about the 14 things I need to accomplish before picking up my kids?
- Am I willing to inquire-with the most gentle of touches, or no touch at all, if necessary? Or are the muscles of my hands, arms and shoulders demanding, firm, rigid, and/or heavy?
- Am I willing to listen-with my eyes-to what my equine partner will tell me? Or will I miss the subtle, minute messages sent with the tiniest quiver of a nostril or the loosening of an eye lid or the rhythm of breathing?
- Am I willing to request and encourage-and not demand? Or am I on a mission...in a mood...intent on accomplishing my own agenda?
- Am I willing to accept criticism-from a horse? Or am I too arrogant today, unwilling to modify my approach, because 'this is the way it is done and I know best'?
- Am I willing to allow this horse to define success on this day? Or have I set the metrics for success which I intend to check off.
- Am I willing to back down instantly-at least momentarily-in order to de-escalate a 'fight'? Or will I grip tighter, shove harder, reprimand, if the horse throws his head or leans into me...when what he would have told me, if he was Mr. Ed, was: "Ouch...be softer, be gentler...that hurts...I can't yet".
Pilots go through a mandatory checklist before embarking on their journey. Follow their lead and enter the Recombobulation Area. Recombobulate-Gather your thoughts and composure before you approach your horse. Then, Recombobulate - The Masterson Method™ way - Partner with your horse to put it back the way it was and into proper working order. Good luck out there.... May your efforts bring you many sneezes, snorts, head shakes, eye rolls and yawns! |
Another "Ask Jim" 
A lady who will be in a seminar with you, suggested I check into this for my horse Jet. He is a 18 year old quarter horse gelding. He gets somewhat arthritic and acky in the winter and damp weather. He is otherwise healthy. I don't ride much, he is more a companion, I enjoy spending time with and brushing. I have to be more soft brushing him in certain areas then, as he is acky then. When I try some light massage, he will put his ears back(not pinned) and may raise a hind hoof a little, then put down. Vet confirmed he is arthritic, and has a lower pain tolerance. He is on MSM. Would your dvd benefit a horse like him safely? Being that he is semi retired, would your dvd still be appropriate for us (being we don't do alot as others) Thankyou! Debbie
Hi Debbie,
The answer is yes it will help. The thing about this Method of bodywork that will work for your horse is that when you run into any resistance in the horse, you soften a little until the horse releases the resistance, and then move forward through it. As a matter of fact, the very first technique in the video requires absolutely no pressure on the horse - the Bladder Meridian.
In your guy's case, like many of older, stiffer people, he is grumpy and sore all over to any pressure. The first thing he will probably do when you rest your hand lightly on his neck with the Bladder Meridian technique, is to pin his ears, swish his tail, and give you a mean look. If you just rest your hand lightly there, doing nothing, then his body will start to send circulation to that area and the tension will release. H will then begin to start licking and chewing and dropping his head, and you will move on and do the same on other parts of his body. And, the good news is that you can do it yourself.
I hope this helps, and that you will make the old guy feel more comfortable.
Jim Masterson
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Calendar of Events
For Prices of each course, follow the link for more information to the Calendar Page on the website. There you will find each course's price, location and registration information
September 1st - 2nd Totnes, Devon, UKWeekend Seminar-Workshop with Jim Masterson For more informationSeptember 3rd - 7th Devon, UK - FULL5 - Day Advanced Course
September 8th - 9th Hobart, IndianaWeekend Seminar-Workshop with Coralie Hughes For more informationor call 641-472-1312 September 8th - 9th Three Forks, MTFULL
Weekend Seminar-Workshop with Yvonne Ohlensehlen September 22nd - 23rd Grass Valley, CANEW
Weekend Seminar-Workshop with Lisa Haldane For more informationor call 641-472-1312 September 22nd - 23rd Fairfield, IowaFULL
Weekend Seminar-Workshop with Jim Masterson September 29th - 30th Butte, Montana NEW Weekend Seminar-Workshop with Yvonne Ohlensehlen
or call 641-472-1312 September 24th - 28th Fairfield, Iowa5 - Day Advanced Course FULL October 6th - 7th Kent, WashingtonWeekend Seminar-Workshop with Coralie Hughes For more informationor call 641-472-1312 October 6th - 7th Palo Alto, CAStanford UniversityWeekend Seminar Workshop with Lisa Haldane or call 641-472-1312 October 8th - 12th Palo Alto, CAStanford UniversityFULL
October 13th - 14th The NetherlandsOud-Zuilen Weekend Seminar Workshop with Diane Howard For more informationOctober 13th - 14th Harwood, MDFULL
Weekend Seminar-Workshop with Marie Riley October 15th - 19th Harwood, MD
5 - Day Advanced
Course - FULLOctober 20th - 21st Carleton, MINEW
Weekend Seminar-Workshop with Yvonne Ohlensehlen October 20 - 21 Smithville, TX Weekend Seminar-Workshop with Lorre Mueller For more informationor call 641-472-1312 November 3rd - 4th Jacksonville, FLWeekend Seminar Workshop with Coralie Hughes. For more informationor call 641-472-1312 November 5th - 9th Dade City, FL5 - Day Advanced Course - FULL2013 Course Dates
January 12th - 13th Tucson, ArizonaWeekend Seminar-Workshop with Lisa Haldane For more informationor call 641-472-1312 January 14th - 18th Tucson, Arizona5 - Day Advanced Course
For More Informationor call 641-472-1312 January 21st - 25th Palo Alto, CANEW5 - Day Advanced
April 13th - 14th, 2013 Lexington, KYWeekend Seminar-Workshop or call 641-472-1312 April 20th - 21st 2013 Woodacre, CANEW
Weekend Seminar-Workshop or call 641-472-1312 April 27th - 28th, 2013 Clinton, OKWeekend Seminar-Workshop with Yvonne Ohlensehlen For More Informationor call 641-472-1312 All courses are certified by the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage & Bodywork for continuing education credits for massage therapists.
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Ask Jim
Editor's note: This question was posed to Diane Howard our European Instructor, after a weekend workshop.
Dear Diane,
I had such a good time over the weekend and came home very enthusiastic.
On Monday I practiced the techniques on three of my clients horses (thankfully they are quite happy to let me use their horses a guinea pigs!!). I got good results from two of them (including lots of yawns from the tail/body wiggle), but I would appreciate your thoughts on the reaction I got from the one I told you about who did a forwards roll down a hill three years ago.
He wasn't happy to let me bring his head round in cervical flexion but he would whip it round himself as if he was doing a carrot stretch. And when I held his head straight and just wiggled his head and placed my hand (air gap) on his axis/atlas junction, he let me do it for about 30 seconds, then he walked away and yawned and yawned and yawned, then shook his head and shut his eyes. I know some of these responses are good signs, but I am worried that I may have made him more uncomfortable and he was trying to "shake away" the pain and shut it out? Also when I turned him out afterwards, he took himself off away from the other horses, which isn't normal behaviour for him.
I will exercise him tomorrow to see how he is, but I would appreciate any feedback you can give me as I'm still quite a novice at this!! I've seen ill treated horses take themselves off and "shut down" in a similar way before and I just want to be sure in case I come across a similar reaction in a horse I don't know so well.
Further, if you think all the signs were good, how often would you continue working on him? Should I do head wiggles with him every day? Every other day? Once a week?
I too hope to see you at another course in the very near future,
Thank you for being such a calm and informative instructor.
Kind regards,
Anne
Hi Anne,
I'm happy you had such a good seminar. Diane and Vicki are excellent teachers.
Diane asked me to respond to your question. I'll try not to be too long-winded, but I know you're curious about what's happening and how to respond to it.
The behaviors your horse exhibited are pretty familiar for horses that have been holding a lot of tension in the neck and poll. What we are doing with the Lateral Flexion Technique is asking the individual vertebrae of the neck to move through a range of motion in a relaxed state. This releases tension in the joints of the neck. The reason whips his head around is because he is trying to "go around", or avoid having you move the vertebrae of his neck in a relaxed state. Why, you might ask, would he not want to move and release tension in them? It's because the horse blocks out and covers up pain and discomfort to survive. Why, you might ask, is he able to flex his neck on his own without pain? Because he's able to protect the bits that might be causing discomfort in his neck by using other bits to do the work.
So you responded by doing the correct thing for him; very gently wiggling while resting your hand (air gap) on the poll/atlas. This gave very gentle movement to the neck and poll (the most important junction) in a relaxed state. This released such a huge amount of protected tension that he needed to step away to process the release. That was his way of saying "That's all I can handle for the moment."
The yawning was a clear sign that he was releasing tension that he'd been blocking out for a long time. The shaking was in response to the sensation he feels as things loosened up and synapses in the nervous system begin re-firing and circulation starts returning. When you turned him out, he needed more time to process and went off on his own. This is common behavior with big releases.
It happens all the time when horses have had serious tension they have been blocking for a long time, as appears was the case with him.
One good thing about this gentle way of asking the horse to release tension is that it's very difficult to do damage to the horse (not that you would want to try to!) because you aren't forcing anything.
Since working on him you may have already seen some positive results. He may be a little sensitive about flexing in exercise at first, but I think if you give it a chance to rest then do a little bit a time that he will feel better.
As far as how often should you work on him, go by his responses. Given how much tension he appears to be releasing I would give him a couple of days to process before doing more bodywork. Exercise in between is fine, keeping in mind that he may be a little sensitive to flexing at first. Every two or three days you can do some work on him, and if at any point he stops showing release responses, or he absolutely won't let you do more on his neck and poll, then move on to the scapula releases or even go to the hind end work, then come back to the poll later. It's easier on the horse to do a little at a time, going back and forth to other techniques and parts of the body then back to the neck, than spending a lot of time on one area.
Another thing that keeps this safe is that you aren't looking to "fix" the horse. You are only looking for a little improvement at a time. If he has done damage to his neck, to try to "fix" it could cause further damage. But by getting a little improvement at a time, and letting his responses guide you, you will get as much gradual, solid improvement as possible.
I hope this helps. If you have any further questions, let us know.
Very Best Regards,
Jim
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