The
Art
of Rehabilitation: Tanzeln’s Story
When two stallions mistakenly find themselves out together, it is
a nightmare, plain and simple. Such was the case when Tanzeln, a 2000 premium Trakehner stallion by Enrico Caruso *Ps*E* out of Tannenelfe *E* by Pre- gelstrand *E*, and another large Warmblood stallion some- how became loose together at a stable where Tanzeln was being boarded while his trainer was away showing at Devon. In the ensuing fight, Tanzeln was seriously injured. Although no one will ever know exactly what happened that day, the result was a sudden end to this young stallion’s promising career as a dressage horse. At seven years old, Tanzeln had just started to show at
Second Level. He had excelled in the show ring, winning the Region 9 colt championship as a three-year-old and winning many Training and First Level dressage classes and championships. His owners and breeders, John and Kari Cassel of Arkansas, were devastated. After many vet- erinarian visits, a complete bone scan finally diagnosed the source of his injury: a fractured left hip. Sadly the recom- mendation was to retire him. Tanzeln had earned nines for his walk and canter before the injury—now he could barely walk with comfort.
Relocation and Hope The Cassels and Jean Brinkman, from Valhalla Farm in north- ern Florida, knew each other from numerous American Trakehner Association meetings. Jean bacame aware of the difficulty Tanzeln’s retirement had created, both for his own- ers and for the horse. Tanzeln, who had always enjoyed his work, was clearly unhappy about his early retirement. Jean expressed some encouragement that maybe he could be brought back to competition strength, despite the many experts’ opinions warning that he would never be sound to ride again. While regaining his impressive dressage skills was a remote hope, Kari and John wanted to at least give him a chance to regain his mobility and be a happy, com- fortable horse again as his happiness was their priority. They were very much in favor of letting Jean give it a try.
By Jean Brinkman & Iris Eppinger
In early 2010, about three years after the accident, Tan-
zeln’s retirement was interrupted when John and Kari moved their farm from Little Rock, Arkansas to a farm adjoining Valhalla Farm in Wellborn, Florida. The relocation was advan- tageous since Tanzeln could begin his rehabilitation which was put in the capable hands of one of Valhalla’s trainers, Iris Eppinger. Iris, originally from Germany, rides and trains dres- sage and also has an impressive background in equine reha- bilitation methods and techniques.
Rehabilitation Begins Iris took on the task with dedication. It was a perilous under- taking in the beginning since Tanzeln was not able to move freely. Due to pain and stiffness his walk was very compro- mised and he had no desire to carry weight on his left side. “When Tanzeln came to start his rehabilitation work, it
was necessary to establish his trust in the trainer again and find ways to bring comfort to his body,” Iris explains. “Three years of rest had only made him tenser and guarded against the pain of even simple movement. He lacked muscling and was naturally very weak behind from his injury.” Iris initially focused on the pain in his left hip, which
needed to be released with massage and “passive mobiliza- tion,” specific stretching techniques that release and mo- bilize muscles and joints. This includes the C7 acupressure
Iris demonstrating the C7 technique. Warmbloods Today 21
Courtesy Iris Eppinger
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