How it started… When I was 9 years old I started taking riding lessons at the riding school. I could be found here every day caring for and riding ponies and horses. In 1997 it became possible for me to buy my own horse. I bought Kartouch, a 5-year-old black KWPN gelding, who was only saddle broken. He helped me develop into what I do now. After a number of years of training, his deep-lying problems came to the surface. In retrospect, he had already given several signals about this. Eventually it emerged that Kartouch had congenital defects in the hind legs. After three hind leg operations, I did a lot of rehabilitation to get him straight and flexible again. In this phase I gained a lot of experience with various therapies. Continuing the upward trend in training or keeping it stable became an art in itself. Getting the horse to move in the right way fascinated me more and more. I learned a lot about gymnastics, biomechanics and the physical condition of the horse. I also studied saddles in order to allow a horse to move optimally in this area. Ultimately I rode with Kartouch up to and including class Z2. Unfortunately, after a creditable retirement in 2019, Kartouch passed away peacefully at the age of 26. In 2020, 2 sweet treasures came my way that I work with and enjoy every day, and of course learn a lot from.

soon to come 

Her drive and passion is to support horses in their health and allow them to move freely (free of discomfort) so that they can ultimately perform better. The Los-Paard company was founded in 2008 and she started as a massage therapist for horses. Through these experiences she developed a great feeling for (muscle) tissue and increased her knowledge in various areas. The years of practice that followed were and continue to be supplemented with various training courses. This allows her to look at the horse from different angles. By choosing from various therapies, it is possible to treat each horse tailor-made. This has created a nice total package, the “osteopathy all in” treatment. This treatment contains all the therapies that loose horse has to offer so far.

What does a treatment look like?

An anamnesis is taken prior to treatment. By identifying a large number of points, such as: past injuries, possible complaints, nutrition, training, etc., a good picture of the horse is obtained. The treatment takes place at your stable in your own environment. The horse is then viewed during movement to assess mobility and gaits. The horse is then fully examined, during which the mobility of the spine, tension in the muscles and around the organs, the sacrum and the legs are tested. After this, the spine, skin and subcutaneous connective tissue are released from blockages using various techniques. This gives the organs the opportunity to move better and will be able to function properly again. If necessary, the muscles are treated additionally by means of dry needling, Jack Meagher massage (trigger point massage) and fascia release for optimal relaxation. Every bit of tension somewhere in the body has an impact on the movement pattern. This determines whether a horse can distribute its weight well over all four legs, relax and straighten. Due to the years of experience and the training that has been followed, the horse can be loosened in many different ways. Los-paard always treats the body in its entirety and solves problems through gentle direct and indirect manual techniques on the three systems. This is how the body's self-healing capacity is activated. An all-in osteopathy treatment takes about an hour. Depending on the problems, it is not always possible to solve everything in 1 treatment. The longer the problem is present, the more time the horse needs to break free. In an all-in osteopathy treatment, loose horse uses everything that is needed for the horse at that moment. 

This could be: Osteopathy Craniosacral therapy Various massage techniques Dry needling Fascia release Connection sensor Essential oils Bemer matte Hirudo therapy (leech therapy by appointment)

All therapies can also be used separately if preferred. However, experience shows that drawing on various combinations can actually strengthen the treatment. In some cases it is possible to support the treatment with essential oils. The composition of the oil is specially tailored to the animal, so that the owner can treat the horse himself. These essential oils are of very high quality and are not included in the price of a treatment.