My Story

I’ve been in love with horses for as long as I can remember. I grew up in Wilmington, NC and began riding lessons when I was five years old. I got my first pony, a cheeky little pony named Teke, when I was eight. Growing up, I was always at the barn, and I got very involved in a couple clubs as well- participating in clinics, competing in judging competitions, and attending horse camp. I was fortunate enough to ride with a couple fantastic trainers, and I spent summers traveling back and forth to Southern Pines and Raleigh with my heart pony, Ricky.

Of course, dogs are my other love. When I was growing up, my family had a short-haired dachshund and later a golden retriever. Some of my fondest childhood memories are of running with my dogs on the golf course after school and exploring the nearby woods.

I moved to Western NC in 1996 and have been blessed to ride with some truly amazing horsemen and horsewomen. I am exceedingly grateful for the influence and education I have received over my 45 years in horses. My coaches have always been horsemen who focused on the care and well-being of the horse in addition to performance goals.

I rode a mare for years that did quite well in dressage and jumping, but she seemed to get a little off toward the end of summer. We found that rearranging her work schedule and adding bodywork to her care routine kept her sound and strong, I felt drawn to learn to do bodywork myself, but it took some time for me to form that.

In March of 2019, I attended a Masterson Method clinic in Green Creek, NC and fell in love with the work. Two months later, I enrolled in a human massage program. While I decided to focus solely on animals, the 9 months spent studying human massage still taught me a lot about techniques, kinesiology, and biomechanics. In the fall of that year, I completed a certification course in Equine and Canine Sports Massage at Equissage International in Round Hill, VA, and I spent several months doing case studies at Vick Russell’s Lynard Hills Farm.

My practice grew slowly but surely, and in February of 2022, I was accepted into Jo-Ann Wilson's course, "Practitioner of Technical Skills in Equine Sportsmassage."Jo-Ann is the physio for the US Eventing Team, and she has travelled to the Olympics, World Games, and Pan Am Games many times providing muscle therapy to the teams' horses and riders. I worked from February through October completing the coursework, and in late October I travelled to Camden, Maine to spend the week, along with four others, studying and discussing biomechanics and practicing the Wilson-Meagher Method.

I have also completed coursework in:

Equine and Canine Anatomy
Kinesiology taping
Neuro-Myofascial Release