EAR SLIDES Stroking horses’ ears for faster recovery
after hard work dates back to stagecoach days in England, where it was said that teams arriving at rest stops would drink a draught of beer while grooms would stroke their ears to ready them for the next day’s work. By an accident of fate, I stumbled onto ear work when my Arabian endurance mare, Bint Gulida, colicked in 1958. After a four-day impaction (in those
Key uses for the Ear Slide: ✸ Calm a nervous or frightened animal
✸ Invigorate a tired horse or revive an exhausted equine
✸Lower pulse and respiration, induce relaxation
✸ Alleviate pain and shock caused by injury or colic while waiting for your veterinarian to arrive
✸ Help boost the immune system
days in California there was no possibility of surgery), my veterinarian recommended that we humanely put her down. Because we were preparing for my fi rst
100-mile-in-one-day endurance ride, mea- suring pulse, respiration and temperature and checking the body was part of our daily routine. I found Gulida’s temperature to be seriously subnormal and her ears ice- cold. Before succumbing to the vet’s edict, I decided to spend a last hour with her. I covered her with dryer-heated blankets and intuitively began stroking her ears to warm them. At the end of the hour, her ears were warm, her temperature had returned to normal and she passed manure. That was the end of the impaction! It was 20
years later when I met Dr. Christine Kruger in Germany that I learned of the ears’ con- nection to the entire nervous system and continued my journey of discovery of the value of ear work. Now we know that Ear TTouches activate
the triple heater meridian (an acupressure point that wraps around the ear and runs across the shoulder and down the front leg to the hoof) that positively affects the digestive, respiratory and reproductive systems. To calm your horse on a windy or cold
day before you ride, or at a competition where he is nervous and excited, do fi ve minutes of Ear TTouches in the stall. This can save you an hour of warm-up time that you would otherwise need to calm him down. It has an added advantage of loosening up a stiff horse before you get on. By stroking the ears outward at an angle perpendicular to the neck, you can relax tight muscles at the poll or upper neck. Ear work is said by craniosacral therapists to assist in the activation of cranial-sacral fl uid.
Slide from the middle of the poll over the base of the ear all the way to the very tips, emphasizing contact with the tip as you slide your hand off the ear. If the horse allows, fold the ear together to give him a feeling of the inside of his ears. Some horses enjoy having your fi nger sliding or circling on the inside of the ear as well as the outside. Try some tiny Raccoon TTouches on the
insides and outside of the ear. There are acupuncture points throughout the ear which relate to different parts of the body. These points can be stimulated by TTouch to improve general health, and when dealing with specifi c organ dysfunction, stiffness or arthritis. Raccoon TTouches inside the ears help prepare the horse for medication or clipping.
Photo 1. Stand in front of your horse and lower his head with one hand on the nose- band, and stroke the forelock slowly from roots to tip. T is is something lovely you can do for your horse, as it is quite relaxing and gains trust.
Photo 2. If your horse is sensitive about hav- ing his ears touched, do a few Lying Leopard or Abalone TTouches on his forehead. T is can be soothing for horses who are moody or perhaps get the equivalent of headaches.
ABOUT THE TELLINGTON METHOD™ AND TTOUCH™
T e Tellington Method™ is a special system of training for horses and riders that has been developing for nearly three decades. Its roots can be traced to Linda Tellington-Jones’s discovery in the mid-1970s that working on a horse’s body in specifi c ways releases fear, tension, discomfort and pain in a way that shiſt s behavior, infl uences personality, and enhances overall health.
Its foundation is Tellington TTouch, a variety of circles, liſt s and slides done with your hands and fi ngertips. Coupled with carefully orchestrated Ground Exercises and Ridden Work, the Tellington Method dramatically expands and improves a horse’s capacity for learning and cooperation, improves balance and coordination, and deepens the horse- human bond.
56 June | July 2010 •
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