To all of you who have hung in with us over the past decade Ivana and I wish to thank you and sincerely wish you all the best for the upcoming 12 months and beyond. For us down here in New Zealand it has been hectic as we moved into our new home, had Christmas with the family, had an old wrestling friend drop in for a few days to celebrate Hogmany and then on the 2nd Ivana and I celebrated our 10th Wedding Anniversary, and no, I did not forget to get her a card and a present.
It has been hard without broadband keeping up with things, neither of us knew just how much we had been spoiled with the overseas system until we tried dial up for a few weeks and now satellite, which is also so slow compared with overseas. Ah well, I suppose one has to balance the beauty of this country and the countryside against the drawbacks of what they call modern communication out here.
I had a lovely letter from Penny Crockart in Zimbabwe this morning which I would like to share with you. For those of you who do not know Penny, she is a former Rhodesian Police Officer and champion show jumper. She is also the coach and manager for the Zimbabwean disabled olympic riding team, as well as being an excellent VHT and ET practitioner and instructor. In her role as a coach she recently took a trip to Chile.
"I went to Chile in November last year as coach for one of my pupils who qualified to ride in the FEI World Show jumping Challenge. We stayed a week after the competition and I met some of the amazing people there. The president of the Club St Christie asked if I would look at her horse. He was a thoroughbred named Chiroc. He had started stopping at fences and was refusing to jump anything at all. I worked on him twice. I did not charge them for the sessions as they were really lovely people. About 2 weeks after my return, this lady messaged me to say that she had won the 1.20m National championship class on him! They were really impressed with ET and I left them with the ET web site details. I was very happy with this result!"
So ET is 'HAPPENING' all over the world. Fabulous, the more and more people we can introduce to the integrity of ET, the better place this human dominated world will be for these magnificent creatures that we are all determined to help. This year it looks as though we may be holding the first ET clinics in Poland as well as popping over to Ireland to hold some basic and advanced clinics there. Also for those of you who wish to book into Ivana's whole horse dissection clinics we will be holding one in Pennsylvania in May and then one in the UK at Hartsop Farm in September. Hopefully in the next newsletter we will have the confirmed dates and contact points.
|
Q and A WITH JOCK AND IVANA Q How can I tell a client who has just paid a fortune for a saddle that it doesn't fit and is causing the problem with her horse? She tells me that the saddler fitted it perfectly. If I tell her the truth I may lose her as a client. |
Letters from Students: Hey Ivana! hope your move and Christmas and New Years etc etc went well. It was amazing to finally meet you guys in Christchurch, I had an awesome time and I know my horse appreciates all the new moves! I played with his hyoid and suddenly (and for the first time) I am able to get my fingers behind his shoulder blade. They're still tight, but getting better every time I work on him, and it shows. His trot is getting free-er by the day! AND! He no longer even notices if I'm doing his girth up. Previously we'd got to where he'd only put his ears a little back, rather than trying to eat me. Now it is no problem at all! So Harry says thank you too! T. W I have just started to perform VHT for Family and Friends on the riders at my local dressage stable. the results not only for the rider but for the horse as well have been amazing. Now that the riders are relaxed and balanced, the horse is not having to compensate for them and are moving much more freely. The great thing about it is so simple and it only takes such a short time to do and the difference it makes is just so noticeable. I virtually have all the grooms queuing up for me to work on them when I arrive. G. R Three winners and two seconds at a meeting last week. These thoroughbreds are moving just so freely after the basic work and with the mobilization and stretching on top. Can't wait to learn some more. A. L. |
A: This reminds me of an old joke, where the tailor was selling a jacket to a customer and it was too long in the sleeves. 'There you are sir' he said', Perfect, fits you like a glove'. 'Sorry said the customer 'I want it to fit me like a jacket'. How do you tell someone that they have just been conned - or misled? Very hard, however your integrity must come through as the horse is your primary concern. Perhaps you could start off by really focusing on the horse's back and demonstrating the pain reaction, then do the work, then show the removal of the pain, and then focus on the saddle. Mention what a nice saddle it is, have the owner put the saddle on the horse, walk the horse around in it, or even have the owner sit on the saddle and walk the horse for a few minutes. Point out any negative reaction from the horse during saddling or riding and then check the horses back using your palpation skills and point out the horse's reactions when you touch the pain buttons. I have always found it best to take an educational route and not do my 'tactless best' (by throwing the saddle in the dumpster) and explain to the owner that while the saddle appears to fit (excellently), it does not appear to work for the horse, as the pain and discomfort which it creates she can see with her own eyes. Allow your client to be part of the discovery, make her think, guide her to make a decision, it is really all you can do. Just last month in Christchurch we watched 14 saddles being tried out on a horse - not one of them worked. So be true to your own beliefs when you talk to your client, use tact and good luck. It's not the horses fault that they have gullible owners |
SPOTLIGHT ON NEW ZEALAND - FEBRUARY |
||
| 5, 6, 7 | Level 1 and level 2 in TAURANGA | Contact: Denyse Cambie: denyse.cambie@trustpower.co.nz |
SPOTLIGHT ON AUSTRALIA - FEBRUARY |
||
| 11,12, 13, 14 | Level 3 and level 4 in WAGGA WAGGA | Contact: Janis Hobbs: equinetouch@hotkey.net.au |
Tip: If you have taken your horse for a ride, when you bring him back to the stable and remove the saddle, give him a few minutes to allow the blood to start to flow through the capillaries in the saddle area, then do a complete holistic back opening - from tail to top (work cranially). Then move onto the lower bladder meridian and open that also. You can expect some reaction as often with the return of blood and nutrients to the back tissue it can very often be quite sensitive. After completing the back opening, go for a scratch lift to arch the spine and try to hold this for at least 15 seconds. Then groom your horse, drawing the brush in long strokes caudally along the bladder meridian. Feels great when its done to me - try it and see how your horse feels?