It's not just humans who are turning to alternative therapies, writes Gemma Tipton, who arranged a spot of acupressure for her own trusty steed, Bosco
The fact that health insurers now cover some acupuncture treatments shows that we're finally catching on to a tool that the Chinese have known about for thousands of years. Still, a nagging doubt remains that the benefits of alternative or holistic treatments may be psychosomatic - they work because we believe that they work. If we didn't know that this herb was going to relax us, or that touch there cure our stiff shoulder, would we experience the same effects? When someone came along and did acupressure on my horse, and made a correct diagnosis, I became a convert.
It started down in Wexford, where we'd gone to take part in a polocrosse tournament. The horse, the present love of my life, is a relatively recent purchase. He's called Bosco, and is a 160cms dark bay Thoroughbred. He had, until recently, a very annoying habit of waving his head around when cantering.
Me being rather short, it's handy sometimes to get a leg up when mounting, especially when Bosco is dancing around in preference to standing still. I was half way up to the saddle when my knee rubbed Bosco's shoulder. "Hop off there," said Ivor Young, who was giving me the leg up. "I think this horse has a sore tooth." He demonstrated by rubbing the top of a riding crop down the horse's shoulder, and sure enough as he did so, Bosco made a sort of grimace.
Young showed me how various parts of the horse can be used to diagnose particular problems, and intrigued, I made an appointment with the horse dentist as soon as I got back to Dublin. And I'm glad I did. Bosco, it turns out, had a tooth that was impacted, and pressing into his gums every time he cantered. He had been in pain. Out came the tooth, with the result that I now have a much happier horse.
Horse happiness is a major factor in performance, and according to Young, most problems with horses and ponies can be solved by finding out where they are experiencing discomfort or pain. "It is extremely rare," Young says, "to find a horse that is actually bad or mean."
Equine therapist and racehorse trainer, Lady Jane Alexander, agrees. Alexander combines massage with iridology (which involves spotting conditions and ailments by means of looking closely at the eyes) and herbal treatments, and while she can take in-patients, she prefers to go to the yard or stables where the horse is kept. "You get to see the whole situation then," she says. "It may be something simple like size of stable, or bedding that needs to be changed."
She is based in Co Tyrone, and her clients are mainly racehorse owners, but she was recently called to neighbouring Co Monaghan to look at a horse at Castle Leslie. One of the riding school horses had become bad tempered in her stable, and wouldn't let anyone get near her to put a saddle and bridle on. Alexander diagnosed a kidney problem and recommended a change of diet and some herbs. Within five days the horse, Kitty, was back to her usual self, and is now once again a favourite at the yard.
What might seem like "new" thinking is, in many cases, a return to the old ways of caring for horses. Young points out that strapping, which involves thumping your horse with a hay wisp across his major muscle groups, has been almost forgotten now. I remember as a kid in pony club being taught how to make hay wisps and, like Young, I remember being told that you couldn't strap a pony with your jacket on, and that if you didn't work up a sweat you weren't doing it right. Strapping and grooming are, of course, forms of horse massage.
Grooming, according to Alexander, is important before you tack up your horse, to make sure there's no grit or mud where saddle and bridle may rub, but equally important afterwards, when the muscles are warmed up and the blood is flowing. "You're massaging them just by giving them a really good groom," she says. Alexander is a member of the Equine Sports Massage Association (www.equinemassageassociation.co.uk), which has a register of approved practitioners, including listings for Ireland.
Old fashioned it may be, but horse massage has also come into the 21st century with Equissage, a deep tissue massage system that can be of assistance to anything from an old, arthritic family pony, to dressage horses, eventers, show-jumpers and racehorses in training which need to be at the top of their form.
Ivor Young came to Carrickmines Equestrian Centre, where Bosco lives, to give us a demonstration. Playing polocrosse is tough on both horse and rider, and an acupressure test showed that while his teeth are now fine, he had a bit of stiffness in his right side. He's always happy to do nippy left turns, but I have no end of problems trying to get him to go right. With an Equissage pad attached to his back, and a hand-held unit making passes down his neck, Bosco soon settled into a position with his head low and bottom lip hanging down - a sure sign of relaxation. Young recommends Equissage as a regular treatment rather than merely as a cure for problems. "Sports people know that you look after your body before any injuries happen."
Thinking about how I look after Bosco, perhaps I have been onto the whole "alternative" or "complimentary" thing without thinking about it. His feed has herbs mixed into it, and extra garlic in the winter; when he got heat rash I washed him down with tea tree oil and lavender mixed in the water. A lot of what might seem like aromatherapy or herbalism is really common sense.
When common sense slips over into crank cures, however, horses are more highly legislated for than people. It is illegal to carry out any invasive treatment (such as using a needle - and that counts for acupuncture as well as injections), or to administer drugs, unless you are a vet. The theory is that people can choose for themselves whether to accept or reject treatments, but as animals have no say in the matter, they need better protection.
Some vets are sceptical, but others are also qualified acupuncturists. There is a register of veterinary acupuncturists in the UK, but while the Irish Veterinary Council plans to create a register of specialist vets, they have yet to decide whether therapies such as this will be detailed.
Ivor Young's visit to Carrickmines converted me to a belief in horse whispering - that seemingly-uncanny ability some people have to communicate directly with horses. Sent down to the fields to try to bring in a very reluctant pony, I set off with a lead rope and a bucket of feed, prepared for the inevitable battle. But Ivor Young walked up to the pony, rubbed his forelock, stared into his eyes and was then followed, with dog-like devotion, back up to the stables. It's a trick I've tried since, but all I get from Bosco is a look that clearly says "all right, where are the carrots?" Which is, I suppose, communication of a sort.
Ivor Young: www.ivoryoung.com.
Lady Jane Alexander: www.caledonracing.co.uk.
Equissage will exhibit at the RDS Dublin Horse Show next Wednesday to Sunday