Eva and I are now sponsored by Cat Carter Equine Massage!

Eva will be having monthly treatments from Cat which will have a range of benefits from relieving tension to enhancing muscle tone, and increasing range of motion. We’ve had our first two treatments already and after each treatment I can feel the difference especially in her shoulders!

If you have been following our journey for a while you will know that Eva isn’t one for strangers in her space, I think sometimes I and even the people at the yard who handle her regularly forget that Eva needs a little bit of time to warm up to people before you can just walk in to her space and ask anything of her! Some would say she’s a bit sensitive.

Cat really works well with Eva and if that means moving at a glacial speed so that Eva accepts what she is doing, that is exactly what Cat will do.

The Massages

Starting with Eva’s neck and shoulders this is were Eva really carries it all and to be honest so do I! Eva locks her neck to block me out, in order to get over it I need to unlock her neck then asks for her to move forward otherwise its like trying to get a brick wall to move. When Cat is working here Eva is the most sensitive and she really has to work slowly to get the muscles in Eva’s shoulders relaxed.

Cat will then work down Evas body and I was a bit surprised when it came to Eva’s back, she enjoyed it, like really quite enjoyed it! Wriggly nose and everything! Her back was in good shape which was a relief to hear as in the back of my mind I had a niggling thought that maybe she locks up through her neck because there is pain causes by the saddle (even although I’ve had her saddle and back checked before), but I was glad to hear and see that she is all good.

Exercises

As most massage therapist will do, Cat gave me a few exercises to do in between sessions;

Wither Rocking – For this exercise I gently rock Evas withers from side to side. The exercise is aiming for us to help keep the forehand loose and flexible.

Tail Pulling – For this exercise the aim is to help engage Evas core, this is to help improve Evas posture. Obviously its not yanking on Evas tail, more like a slow loading of weight that she’ll pull against therefore engaging that core.

Benefits

Obviously we will have the benefits listed above with the massages but it has really come at the right time for us as well. Having my own transport means that I will be asking more of Eva and it will be reassuring having Cat come and give Eva a once over every month so that if there are any niggles they are spotted as soon as possible.