Mission Statement:
The Art of Wellness: “Empowering others to provide wellness support through the simplicity of massage therapy and allied holistic healing techniques.”
Massage is a preventative therapy which helps horses maintain healthy muscle function and performance, improving flexibility and range of motion, therefore reducing the chances of injury. It is a tool to detect potential problems before they become full blown. Massage is a way to speed up the recovery process for injured horses by increasing circulation, reducing fluid buildup and muscle soreness and more.
But massage is much more than something that makes your horse feel better. It is like a new language, another form of communication, one in which you become more in tune with your horse and more aware. Massage helps to reduce the risk, severity and frequency of injuries, improves your horse’s agility and minimizes restrictions caused by scar tissue. Massage is a natural, non-invasive approach to “re-charging” your horse’s battery and providing holistic healing. And believe it or not, it’s simple to learn and easy to apply to your every day routine.
Let’s face it, we use our hands for everything. Our hands are possibly our most used tool and can often read things before our brain can process it. The sense of empowerment you feel from working with the maintenance skills that even the most basic massage provides is unbelievable.
Massage is a preventative therapy which helps horses maintain healthy muscle function and performance and improves flexibility and range of motion, therefore reducing the chances of injury. Detect potential problems before they become full blown. Massage is a way to speed up the recovery process for injured horses by increasing circulation, reducing fluid buildup and muscle soreness and more.
Knowledge is power, which is why the clinics that Nanci offers are designed with the idea that understanding why you are doing what you are doing and why it works is as important as the applied techniques. Classes are relaxed, enjoyable and focused on the needs of individual students.
In addition to providing lots of hands on experience that you can use with your own horses, each clinic includes an information handout. These include the basic protocols, the outlines of the lectures given at each session as well as anatomy and physiology coloring book pages. The clinics add readily accessible skills to “toolbox” already used by barn managers, horse owners, horse rescue managers and anyone interested in learning the benefits and importance of equine massage.
Just a few comments from people who have attended one of Nanci’s clinics:
“Thank you so much for sharing a bit of your incredible knowledge with us last week. Great job – left with an appreciation of balance & movement that will change the way I approach my horse – on the ground and mounted.” – CL
“I’ve been using the technique you taught me on Lily’s leg for lymphatic drainage and I just can’t believe the difference it has made. The swelling is down significantly and the wound area looks more pink and healthy than I’ve ever seen it. I can’t even begin to describe how grateful I am, and how great it feels to know that I can do this myself – I never thought that something as simple as you taught me could make so much difference. You have a true gift for teaching people who don’t think they have the ability. ” – HLW, Hillsdale, NY
“My horses have never looked better!” – AW, Farmington, CT
Nanci is currently offering the following clinics.
Basic Introduction to Equine Massage:
This is a fun 3 hour, mostly hands-on clinic designed for summer camps, 4H groups, equine groups and more. This short introduction to equine massage is designed to show students the basic massage techniques and provide a taste of what Nanci has to offer.
Introduction to Equine Massage:
The 1 day clinic is the perfect introduction to learning about equine massage and a great way to explore important aspects of learning how to help the animals who give so much to us. Clinics are a combination of classroom work and hands-on work with a variety of horses. Small class sizes will allow for individual participation and instruction. This clinic is a basic tool for you to use with your own horses and is good for anyone who is interested in gaining the skills for basic equine massage.
- Basic anatomy and muscle structure.
- Basic techniques of how to effectively perform hands on massage
Requirements: This clinic is good for anyone, but some horse experience is a plus.
This one day clinic provides 7 CEU hours for licensed massage therapists.
Equine Massage & Locomotion:
This clinic is an extension of the 1 day clinic. The first day is a repeat of the one day clinic, with an in depth review for those who have already taken it. The second day goes into more depth working with movement analysis to read the psycho-soma of locomotion. By understanding the jobs of muscles, skeletal form & function and how they appear in the psycho-soma of locomotion students will learn ways to choose what massage techniques might best address problems that are identified. Both days are a combination of classroom work and hands-on work with a variety of horses.
- Learn to relate to your horse and properly read & interpret your horse’s behavior.
- More in depth anatomy and muscle structure.
- Basic equine locomotion and how to detect common problems.
- Techniques of how to effectively perform hands on massage.
Requirements: Horse experience is required to participate in this clinic.
This two day clinic provides 14 CEU hours for licensed massage therapists.
Communication through Equine Body & Mind Integration: 
This is a 9 month certification course that provides up 50 CEU hours for licensed massage therapists.
We realize that you’re busy, but we also know that there is a demand for people who want to learn more about the rehabilitative aspects of equine massage. The 9 month course will meet 1 day per month for 9 months with required homework and practice between each session. Each session will be 6 hours. The first session will be held at Nanci’s barn in Southfield, MA and will travel to a participant’s barn for each session thereafter. As everyone will have their own specific areas if interest and problems they want to solve and the class is designed to help with that. Each session will build on what’s been learned in prior sessions. In addition to the monthly sessions, participants are encouraged to interact with the other participants and Nanci via email, a blog forum, sending video of their practice sessions and more. We will be running ideas by each other throughout the course. There will be both a hands on exam and visual presentation exam at the end of the nine months. Upon successful completion of this course, participants will receive a certificate; this is not a licensing course (NY, MA & CT do not recognize a license for equine massage). This course will allow for a maximum of 6 participants to allow individual participation and instruction. Smaller class size allows for greater participation and more detailed instruction.
Topics that the sessions will focus on, in depth:
- Gross Anatomy of Locomotive Systems, Bone Structures and Muscular Structures.
- Anatomy of the Equine Digit & Hoof Function, and its effect on gaits
- The Gaits, Body Mechanics & Proprioception
- Confirmation and the effect of Body Mechanics on Performance
- Behavioral characteristics of a moving horse and their origins
- Common problems of the Locomotor System
- Lymphatic drainage and how to address scars
- Gain the knowledge to explain what you’re doing and why to others, you will learn the tools needed to help track your progress and to use with your students, volunteers, etc.
Requirements: This clinic is geared towards equine professionals and significant horse experience is required to participate.
This is a 9 month certification course that provides 50 CEU hours for licensed massage therapists, including two hours of ethics training.