As a Shiatsu practitioner, I’m delighted that Shiatsu on Horses – Equine Shiatsu – is becoming increasingly well established as a “first choice” Complementary Therapy
for horses. Here’s an interesting account of it…

Shiatsu is a Japanese therapy which is growing in popularity for both people and animals. Shiatsu on horses has been developing in the UK since the mid 1990’s, and there are now many Equine Shiatsu practitioners offering treatment.

So – what is Shiatsu?

The word “shi-atsu” in Japanese means “finger pressure” and the basic technique of Shiatsu involves pressure with fingers, thumbs and palms on areas of pain or sensitivity. Stretches and rotations are also an important part of the treatment, which aims to stimulate the body’s own natural healing abilities through increased blood circulation, lymphatic fluid movement and the activation of both divisions of the autonomic nervous system (namely the sympathetic and parasympathetic systems).

The theories underpinning Shiatsu are those of Oriental Medicine, which is rooted in Classical Chinese medicine, similar to Acupuncture theory. The basic premise of Chinese Medicine is that the body (whether human, canine, equine, etc) is an energetic entity whose health and wellbeing are dependent on a smooth flow of energy (“Ki” in Japanese) to all the internal organs, muscles, and body tissues.

“Ki” flows throughout the body, but condenses more strongly in certain spots and channels which are often near to nerves, joints or major arteries. These spots and channels are known as acupoints and meridians, and it is here that the Shiatsu practitioner or Acupuncturist can most easily access the body’s “Ki”.

The meridians are named after the organs of the body, and centuries of experience in China and Japan have shown that stimulation on certain points can affect a certain organ or body system. Thus the Heart meridian and its acupoints can be used to affect the heart or circulation, and the Stomach meridian can be used to help digestive upset or sluggish metabolism.

If “Ki” flow in a particular meridian is disturbed or interrupted, then symptoms of illness or discomfort will begin to manifest. In Equine Shiatsu we use the aspects of Oriental Medicine theory which are relevant to horses and apply them accordingly.

So, for example, we would define a muscular, well proportioned horse who enjoys his work but gets impatient without plenty to do as a “Wood” type horse. He may encounter tendon and ligament problems: whereas a “Metallic” horse is quieter, has less presence, but likes routine.Skin, intestinal or lung imbalances are more prevalent in this type of horse.

A typical Equine Shiatsu session

A typical Equine Shiatsu session begins with taking a case history, including questions about the horse’s attitude to work, emotional outlook and social position in his herd, as well as the details of any physical problems.

This broad outlook is important in Oriental Medicine as we are taking a holistic health approach – looking at the whole horse and how any problem may manifest in all areas of his life, not just “the problem” that the carer called us to look at.

Next there will probably be some time observing him being walked and trotted up, and if appropriate worked under saddle. All this information provides pointers towards the overall energetic and meridian imbalance, and helps us to choose which of the meridians it is most appropriate to work on.

Quite often we start with working on the back, since this is the area most stressed by riding, and working close to the spine affects the autonomic nervous system and assists in the release of relaxing endorphins.

Pressure is then applied on the meridians relevant to the horse’s condition, for example the Lung meridian if there were respiratory issues. We begin with palm or whole hand pressure before going on the specific work with thumb or fingers.

Each point is held for three to five seconds, and pressure varies depending on the area being worked and the wishes of the receiver – horses are very quick to let us know if we are working too deeply!

Often horses enjoy firm pressure on large muscle groups and will even lean on to us to get the level of stimulation they want. The whole length of the imbalanced meridian is worked several times, with attention being given to sensitive or needy areas.

We include stretches and rotations to the legs and tail, with the angles of stretch varying to affect different meridians. Stretches are particularly good to loosen up the limbs or large trunk muscles, and horses often participate in these with enthusiasm once they understand what we are trying to do.

Because Shiatsu is a holistic therapy we work on the whole of the horse’s body, not just, for example, the stiff hind leg. Often we would end with some relaxing techniques on the face or tail. A session normally lasts between 30 minutes and an hour, depending on the needs and wishes of the horse.

What does it help?

Much of an Equine Shiatsu practitioner’s work involves the musculo-skeletal system, whether it is helping a horse to recover after injury, releasing aches and pains caused by inappropriate work or badly fitting tack, or giving a general relaxing session.

If we’re working with a horse which suffers from arthritis or a tendon injury we would stimulate the meridians associated with the tendons, bones or joints, but in addition Shiatsu can identify and improve areas which have become tight and sore as a compensation to the original problem.

Shiatsu has been used for a variety of other conditions

Skin problems react well to Shiatsu as a complementary therapy – flaky skin, mud fever, urticaria. Laminitis is another area where Shiatsu has been found to help, as it assists the circulatory system, alleviates tension in the muscular system due to the classic laminitic stance, and helps the digestive system.

Much of our work with horses, as with humans, falls into that grey area between sickness and health, where things are not definitely “wrong”, but they are “not quite right” either. Often this is because of low grade pain.

It’s obvious that a horse that is free of physical discomfort, whether it is due to muscles, joints, tension headaches, hormonal upset or allergic reaction, will feel more able to cope with his work and environment, which will lead to a change in attitude.

Source: Equine Shiatsu Association – Equine Shiatsu – by Elaine Liechti and Liz Eddy

Author: Liz Knox