My horse is a 7-year-old Dutch warmblood gelding called Wolkendans. He hadn’t been completely sound the past years and I contributed it to an accident with barbed wire. He was always afraid of everything and very tense. In May 2011 I got really low points from the jury riding a dressage test and the jury commented that he really wasn’t sound and that I should have him checked by a vet.
I discussed this with my instructor because the unsoundness wasn’t always visible. We first decided to have him looked at by an osteopath, but he couldn’t find anything wrong. Then I had my horse treated by a masseur, he found a sensitive area in his left hind leg. After two treatments my horse started walking better and he became friendlier. I got better points for my dressage tests but the lameness reappeared and then my instructor advised me to contact Joey since she also had treated his own horses with success. I must say I was a bit skeptical about the treatment but the before and after pictures definitely showed improvement of his body. After 4 treatments Wolkendans really started changing and also lost weight (which he needed to), he started to move better and became so much easier to handle.
The last three dressage competitions I didn’t get any comments from the jury, and I actually had great results! Wolkendans has now had seven treatments and he is still sound. He is less spooky and much more relaxed. Joey also gave me useful tips and you can always email her with questions, something I really appreciate. Wolkendans has really made a transformation from a tense and difficult horse to a happy and wonderful horse. So I can definitely recommend craniosacral treatment.
