From Cal Poly Pomona
It's good, it seems, for man and beast. Massage, that is. Working with four animals from the W.K Kellogg Arabian Horse Center, researchers got them a 90-minute, standing sports rub down from an expert in horse massage. They then let the animals rest for 30 minutes before putting them on special treadmills and collected a range of data on their well-being and response. More research will be done to see the detailed benefits of massage to horses, including those with gait problems. It took students, by the way, weeks of preparation for the animal tests, getting them, among other things, accustomed to the apparatus. Horses get massage after competing in jumping, dressage and barrel events.
Photo: Debranne Pattillo massages Gentle Touch, a Kellogg Arabian / Cal Poly Pomona
A Rub Down, a Treadmill Trot: It's All in a Day's Testing on Horse Massage
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