Equine Massage: A Practical Guide

People in the horse world know all too well that performance horses, like human athletes, are trained, fed and cared for so they can go faster, jump higher and run longer. Daily training and competing can result in injuries, aches and pains, which if treated by drugs alone may only mask the problem and not remedy it. This is why equine massage therapist Jean-Pierre Hourdebaigt created a program of techniques that will enable owners and riders, trainers and grooms to:

• Alleviate soreness and pain in the horse's most vulnerable stress sites.
• Identify and treat the injuries common to any horse sport.
• Use relaxation and maintenance routines for the horse's mental and physical well-being.

Hourdebaigt provides step-by-step instruction and more than 150 photographs and diagrams so that everyone?including nonprofessionals?can learn to massage their horse. Equine Massage may be the key to unlocking the door to a horse's future, one that promises good health and improved performance.
The Howell Equestrian Library

About the Author JEAN-PIERRE HOURDEBAIGT is a Registered Massage Therapist. Originally from France, Hourdebaigt moved to Canada in 1981, where he continued a generations-old family practice of natural healing. After graduating from the Canadian College of Massage and Hydrotherapy, he pursued a successful career treating many well-known athletes and dignitaries. It was his passion for animals, however, that lead him to educate animal lovers in the art and therapeutic application of massage techniques to help their horses, cats and dogs. For many years he has worked on horses of all breeds and in all disciplines. With only two hands and so many horses to help, he created workshops in equine massage (preventative, maintenance, recovery and post-surgery) to instruct owners and riders. He wrote Equine Massage to reach a wider audience beyond those who come to study with him in Ottawa, Canada.