Harness racing stars enjoy Equine Reiki demo
Japanese energy balancing method enhances general wellbeing
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Dr Valerie Westfield of Westfield Equine Reiki was invited to do a demonstration at the N.I.S.A. Harness Racing held at Ballymacbrennan, outside Lisburn, on Saturday, July 29.
Reiki is a simple Japanese energy balancing method, a hands on treatment. Valerie places her hands on different areas of the horse’s body, helping it to produce a state of balance.
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“Equine Reiki is very hard to explain and that is why, in most cases, I do a short demonstration first, as owners can see the change in their horse straight away,” said Valerie.
“The great thing about using Reiki on horses is that you can 'see' it working! The horse will start to relax, lick his lips, lower his head and neck, pass wind. Some horses start to lean on me and close their eyes. Some horses will lie down to sleep. Different types of horses can react in different ways.”
At the end of the day, after the harness racing had finished, Valerie gave two Equine Reiki treatments to two different horses, owned by two different people.
“In this case, both horses reacted a little differently. One horse reacted very quickly to the Reiki and the owner was amazed - he kept calling people over to look at his horse resting his head on my shoulder with his eyes closed!
“The other horse was a little bit more ‘on her toes’, as they say and I had to watch my toes! It took her much longer to settle, but she had just come off the race track after winning the big main race of the day. She was just starting to really relax by the end of the short treatment. Her owner was so impressed he wanted to pay me, but I said no, no this was just a short demonstration treatment,” Valerie concluded.
Both owners said they would be in touch to book appointments for full treatments.
Any horse can benefit from a course of Reiki treatments, regardless of age or state of health. Healthy horses can benefit from Reiki too, as treatments will enhance their general wellbeing.
Reiki is not a substitute for veterinary care and treatment and before Valerie gives a full treatment to a horse, the owner must get veterinary consent.
For more information, please email: westfieldequinereiki@gmail.com or go to Facebook, Westfield Equine-Reiki