Located in Sandstone, Minnesota, this facility offers pastures with shelters and pasture mates for the most natural boarding possible. The geldings and the mares are separated and the pastures are rotated as needed. There are several private paddocks with shelters for additional separation if that is necessary. Stallion boarding is also possible. Box stalls and tie stalls are available for inside control of horses in tacking up, hoof trimming or other necessary procedures or individual feeding.
Basic board includes use of the indoor riding arena, outdoor riding arena, outdoor 60’ training pen, trails, private 3' x 3’ full size locker, outdoor wash stall, heated observation lounge and bathroom.
Other boarding services available include laundry, individual feeding, worming, vaccinations, natural hoofcare.
Incoming horses all must have a current Coggins test and must be barefoot.
There are many school horses on the farm for lessons. Laura is willing to train horses, but prefers to work with horse/rider pairs so the owner/rider can continue schooling and training successfully at home.
As a graduate of the International Center of Equine Arts, Laura can provide evaluation of hoof issues (navicular, founder, clubfoot, cracks, contraction) and estimates of healing time for lameness. Rehabilitation of the hoof has many facets and preventative trimming is also an important part of the management program at the farm.
Go to any of the shows held here in any state, and you'll see a wide variety of hooves. High heels, low heels, barefoot, shod, short toe, long toe, hair lines that cut a plane and those that arch and everything in between. Within the Strasser Protocol there is a model that is considered healthy. These parameters define a healthy foot as one that has hoof mechanism, that is, when the horse weights his hoof the walls are able to move in a proscribed manner and the sole is able to draw flat. This allows for maximum blood circulation and allows the coffin bone to descend without pinching the solar corium. Also, the hairline forms a plane at a 30 degree angle to the ground and on the front hooves the dorsal wall makes a 45 degree angle to the ground. Heel height is at 3 cm. These angles and heel height contribute to hoof mechanism and blood flow and allow for the best weight displacement across the hoof contributing to a wide variety of health factors PLEASE VISIT THIS WEBSITE TO SEE GREAT ILLUSTRATIONS AND AN ANIMATION OF HOOF MECHANISM
http://www.hoofnexus.com/HoofModel.htm
The barefoot method, presumes, that the hoof is a biologic organ, and not just a structural element on the end of the leg. In the natural environment (which includes about 20 miles of walking and running per day) normal hoof growth / wear ratio has been perfected over millions of years of evolution. This balance between hoof growth and wear continues to promote hoof growth in a way that naturally accommodates for hoof wear patterns, from normal activity as well as maintaining circulatory function, shock absorption, and a healthy hoof.
Domesticated horses do not have normal growth/wear ratios and therefore have already deviated from the evolutionary design. Conventional treatments not only fail to recognize normal evolutionary hoof form and wear patterns, but often treat the hoof as a purely mechanical element.
In order to promote healthy hooves, as well as allow the hooves to contribute to the overall health of the horse, they must be allowed to function as a circulatory pumps, also known as "hoof mechanism". What this means is that the hoof wall must be allowed to expand and the sole to flatten upon weight-bearing. Blood is then drawn into the hoof, while the hoof is weight-bearing, and then when the horse finishes the stride (lifts the hoof off the ground), the hoof contracts and blood is ejected through the venous system, out of the hoof and up the leg. This mechanism not only contributes to the health of the hoof itself, but contributes to the cardiac output of the horse as well.
To allow the hoof to function in this way, one not only presumes that no mechanical appliances (horseshoes) be applied to the hoof (which restrict its motion, alter stress patterns, and do not allow it to function as a shock absorber), but that the correct barefoot trimming of the hoof optimizes its form as a shock absorbing, weight-bearing, and pumping organ.
Unlike conventional methods of hoof management, barefoot management recognizes these physiologic features, and attempts to trim to promote these functions. The method by which the trimming is done is designed to maintain and return optimum physiologic function, particularly its expansion and contraction, while at the same time promoting normal wear and weight bearing.
When the hoof is healthy and has adequate blood supply, its mechanical properties are optimized. This means that weight is evenly distributed around the lateral edges of the coffin bone, and transferred to the hoof through the lamina. Abnormal growth of the bars in the heel of the hoof, are recognized and trimmed.
The details of this process require extensive training and experience to recognize and master the healthy as well as diseased hoof. For more information and references contact us.
Equine RainDrop Therapy is an adaptation of the RainDrop Technique, created by the holistic veterinarian Dr. Heather Mack, VMD. While based on Gary Young's revolutionary aromatherapy application, it focuses on the unique structural needs of the horse's anatomy.
It's a simple, but powerful, treatment for the horse. It enhances the immune system, alleviates pain along the spine and generally invigorates the horse.
the purpose for doing the Equine RainDrop Therapy is to strengthen the horse's immune system. It also can be:
It leaves the horse with an aura: an energy of healing and vibration, so the horse "will not get sick".
Raindrop Therapy involves the use of ultra-pure organically grown essential oils. These oils are dropped onto the spine from about six inches above the body. The oils are then spread using light strokes which stimulate the body to disperse the oils. Essential Oils penetrate cell walls, bringing oxygen and stimulating the immune system as well as detoxifying at a cellular and tissue level. Certain oils used in this treatment help reduce inflammation and help destroy bacteria and viruses, assisting the body to come back to balance electrically, physically, mentally, and emotionally.
It's for Human Clients, too!
Mary Beth’s human clients receiving Raindrop Therapy have reported feelings of deep relaxation, balance, and presence. The oils will continue to gently balance the body for 5-7 days after a Raindrop session. Please contact us for more information or to schedule a Raindrop Therapy Session for you and/or your horse!