ENGLAND

LYN PALMER                                                                                                                             
I first introduced to the Equine Touch in 2000 when I hosted the very first Equine Touch clinic in the UK on the reccommendation of the Natural Horse Magazine. Jock and Ivana had arrived at Heathrow from South Africa only three hours earlier, they just rushed in with a quick apology and started. Being a traditional horse person I was more than slightly unnerved at the way he behaved around the horse, but as he explained all his safety rules came from the ring and Aikido. Whatever it was, the horses seemed unpreturbed and I was amazed how they relaxed and did everything he asked of them without any pressure at all, pain vanishing before my eyes.  This, was something I just had to learn. I became Jock and Ivana's shadows, putting on classes for them in the UK, training through all levels, becoming a practitioner then a tutor, and traveled across America with them several times, teaching at the Parelli headquarters in Colorado and then becoming appointed the first UK Instructor back in 2003. I have been dedicated to ET for the past 10 years, teaching in Norway, Sweden and France and never once has my faith been shaken in ET as the greatest gift we can ever give to the horse. I have also qualified in VHT both as a practitioner and Instructor, and under Ivana qualified in 2008 as a Canine Touch Instructor.  It is not only wonderful to practice these amazing modlities but also to teach them to others so that they may go out into this world and help not only their own horses, family and friends, but to horses everywhere. I have my own ET, VHT and CT teaching center outside Glastonbury where I live with my husband Jack, my never to be without horses, dogs and several cats. I am often told by my students that Equine Touch has changed their lives,  I know it certainly has mine.                 

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EMMA KNOWLES                                                                                                                        

I have been sharing Equine Touch with horses and people since qualifying as a practitioner in 2002 and an instructor in 2005. I teach in France and the UK with regular venues in Oxfordshire and Yorkshire. Since a child I have been around horses and it was my first pony that in his very later days benefited from my initial Equine Touch studies. I decided to learn Equine Touch as I saw many horses that were labled as ‘problem’ horses that were not a problem but in pain. This inspired me to learn more so I could help them. For me the Equine Touch was the perfect way to do this – Level 1 is 3 days training and I had something truly amazing! Hard to believe unless I had not seen it with my own eyes. Now I love teaching others how to do this in a relaxed, friendly environment where the horses show us how we can all help them no matter what our level of horsemanship all you need is motivation to do it. Since learning Equine Touch I have had the privilege to work on many different horses and help them through the Equine Touch. Over the years I have experienced different aspects of being a horsewoman from studying British Horse Society exams, natural horsemanship courses, working regularly with Kelly Marks and Monty Roberts, attaining levels in Parelli and appearing as an extra in ‘Lord of the Rings’. I have also attended courses for hoof trimming and cranial sacral therapy, helping me to continue to learn more about how we can help horses. I am also a qualified VHT practitioner, which means I can provide Equine Touch on humans. I can therefore work on both horse and rider a perfect way to further help the horse.                                                                                                          

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KATE PROWSE                                                                                                                          

I have always been interested in what makes horses tick but I began my journey of discovery in earnest in around 2002 when I committed to being a student of the horse. I have been fortunate to learn from many wonderful horsemen, from the great names of Natural Horsemanship as well as Classica. The greatest teacher of all is the horse himself and I have been learning how to balance the mental, the emotional and the physical aspects in all that we do together.If I am honest, when I first heard about ET in 2004, I thought it sounded a bit too good to be true. There was a long list of benefits for the horse which I was supposed to be able to achieve, and in a short period of time? I was not entirely convinced, especially as I had little formal training in anatomy or bodywork. However, I had two horses who were very special to me; my oldie at 29 was getting rather rickety and my younger riding horse, was not proving to be the athletic performance horse I was hoping for. In January 2005 I signed up for ET Level 1, and the rest, is history. For me, Equine Touch really filled part of the hole relating to the physical aspects of the horse – removing pain and stiffness. I was already working as a qualified Freelance Horsemanship Instructor when I started teaching Equine Touch in 2007, and besides the physical benefits that can be gained by the horse, I have found it a fantastic way for my horsemanship students to learn to feel of the horse. A relationship between a horse and a human can gel so tight when you are able to offer that unconditional gift of help, build a trust and maintain well-being. I am always amazed at how a group of people can gather and after a couple of days (at times filled with feelings of incompetence and self-doubt!) learn to make such a difference to the horses they put their hands on. 

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EMMA OVEREND                                                                                                                        

I I have worked in the equine industry for 24 years. In 1998 I graduated with a BSc in Equine Science and went on to qualify as a McTimoney Animal Spinal Therapist in 2000, and Equine Sports Massage Therapist in 2005.  I discovered Equine Touch in 2006, and was so impressed by the profound results of this unique technique, I became a fully qualified Practitioner and later a fully qualified Instructor of Equine and Canine Touch. I now use the Equine and Canine Touch as my primary address on every horse and dog I see, with some wonderful results. I really enjoy teaching, I just love the amazing transformation in people and horses over the 3 days of the course. Some people have no confidence in themselves at all when they first start the course, but by the end tare enjoying the work so much and getting amazing results. On every course I have taught so far, one or more of the students have had horses lying down after they have performed the Equine Touch body balance, it is amazing. The best thing for me is that students don’t need to have any anatomical or physiological knowledge of horses to come on the course, but after just three days they have a very powerful tool in their hands and can get out there and start helping horses straight away.                                                   

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SOFI RITCHIE    TUTOR                                                                                                              

Learning The Equine Touch has most certainly changed my life considerably. I first came across it in 2001, and 2002 I attended one of the very first courses held in Britain. I had been looking for something where I could help my own horse, but so many modalities were either very expensive or took far too long to learn, some of them even spread out over years. After attending The Equine Touch Level One course, in only 3 days, I was out working on my own horse with incredible results. I knew then I wanted to pursue it further, enabling me to help more horses. I became a practitioner in 2004 and in 2008, after attending the Instructor Course in Texas, I was appointed as a Regional Equine Touch Instructor. It gives me enormous pleasure to be able to teach this great discipline. I have attended all the VHT (human) courses and am working on my case studies to become a practitioner, to enable me to do bodywork on riders. There is not much point in Equine Touching the horse if the rider’s body is unbalanced, so learning both VHT and ET makes sense. It is my opinion that The Equine Touch is the best thing that has ever happened to horses.                                                       

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CHRIS WYLLIE                                                                                                                         

  I discovered Equine Touch in 2006 by chance during a (main) career break when I was searching for an equine modality that was less onerous on my hands than the massage techniques I was currently using on my own horses. I was immediately hooked qualifying as a Practitioner and subsequently becoming a Regional Instructor in 2008. I also am a qualified VHT Practitioner and Canine Touch Instructor. Having researched other modalities, the joy of ET was being able to go back to my horses after the Foundation Level 1 course and really help them, not just my old boy Oyster, who being arthritic appreciated the gentleness of ET and the greater mobility it gave him, but also improving the trainability and performance of my competitive carriage driving horse. The satisfaction as an ET Instructor introducing these skills to like-mined people for the benefit of more horses is immense. There is always such a diverse range of personalities coming to learn ET, all joined in their desire to make an improvement to their horse’s well being. The dynamics of each course are different and the opportunities to exchange experiences make the whole process invigorating. It’s said you never stop learning with horses and it is the same with Equine Touch, ultimately it is the horses that are the real teachers. ET has provided me with this fantastic ability to offer help anywhere, anytime with willing hands, body mind and spirit.  It is enormously fulfilling. 

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SCOTLAND

SUE GROUT                                                                                                                              

My Equine Touch journey began in 2003 when I saw Jock give a demonstration on several horses at liberty in a fairly small enclosure! The results for each were truly astonishing and I knew that what I’d seen was the next piece in the jigsaw of giving something back to my own horses. Prior to this life-changing encounter, I had competed heavily in Endurance and had been chosen on two occasions to represent my country in the sport. I had become increasingly concerned about the wear and tear on my horse’s body, and my inability to address it in any real way. I finally quit competitive riding to explore equine psychology and horsemanship, and an understanding of biomechanics. And neither my horses nor I have ever looked back! I became an Equine Touch practitioner in 2007, a licensed instructor in 2008 and am currently putting the final element in place to apply for my CT Instructors’ license. I absolutely love getting out and about to work on other people’s horses but my biggest passion lies in teaching them to do it for themselves; in short, helping them take their own steps on their exciting Equine Touch adventure. Courses are always filled with laughter and I am constantly inspired by what students achieve in just three days and how fired-up they are to begin offering this wonderful gift to their own horses. and cattle! I am now back on the Competitive Long Distance circuit, loving every minute of it but loving even more the fact that I can show others how they too can make a massive difference to their horse’s lives. It’s amazing how many conversations can open up as I am watched, working on my horse’s back, hamstrings or shoulders after a long day on the Scottish hills! 

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IRELAND

HEATHER McREYNOLDS                                                                                                        

Heather, who lives in Northern Ireland was a competitive horsewoman and riding instructor for several years before she began studying Equine Touch with Jock in 2001 in Ireland. Intrigued and committed she then traveled to England regularly to study further, qualifying as a practitioner in 2003.  In 2004 she was appointed an official ET Tutor and spent a year flying back and forward across the Irish sea assisting Jock and Ivana as well as other instructors on ET courses in the UK. In November 2005 her dedication saw her being appointed the first ET Instructor for Ireland where she has been teaching ET courses regularly in both the North and the South ever since. Heather works with horses full time using Equine Touch, as well as VHT on riders who fall off horses that have not been ET’d.

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SWEDEN

CAROLA GRAUERS                                                                                                                         

I I live in the South of Sweden and am a qualified masseur, I havethree grown up children, two grandchildren, several cats, a dog and two horses.  I was first introduced to Jock and Ivana in 2003 when I was asked to translate the VHT manual by the Bowen School in Sweden who wanted to teach their advanced students Jock's technique. I had started her career as a bodyworker with massage but soon realized that it was quite hard on my own body and although very relaxing had a limited effect.  Although I had studied Bowen for some time I was amazed and impressed at the results that VHT had over every it, and other hands on therapy modalities I had learned. As a result of my success with VHT on my clients I flew to the UK to learn Equine Touch with Jock and Ivana and then translated the Level 1  and Level 2 manuals into Swedish.  Acting as the founders translator on their clinics in Sweden I managed to develop a unique insight into the technique as I had to explain it in detail to my countrymen who had absolutely no knowledge of bodywork for horses.  I was appointed a tutor in 2004 and subsequently certificated as an instructor in 2005 and then attended the Instructor Clinic in Texas in 2007 where I officially graduated. I now hold ET Level 1 and level 2 clinics as well as VHT and Canine Touch in Norway and Sweden, as well as working on horses, humans and dogs fat my own clinic whenever I can. I have found the gratitude from my students and horse owners who have come across the amazing results of Equine Touch overwhelming.  

Swedish website
DENMARK

EVA LONBORG-MADSEN 
Eva sat on a horse from the age of 4. Untill she was 18 whilst she lived in Angola when she was sent to Denmark to get an education, and unfortunately was forced to leave the horse world. In 2002 a 6-year-long illness prevented her in walking more than 100-500 meters on a good day. From having been a very physically active person to a very passive one she missed nature and an outdoor life immensely. In 2005 Eva had the opportunity to find herself a friend, who could help her with her problem: Lucas. Lucas is a gelding of the North Swedish Horse breed. Lucas brought so much pleasure into Eva’s life that she wanted to do something in return, not only for him, but for the entire equine world. After having googled millions of pages she came across the Equine Touch and Jock. Need we say more?

Danish ET website