Hello!  To introduce myself, my name is Karen and live outside Rothienorman with my very patient partner, our two dogs and our herd of ginger horses - Rian the Welsh D golden boy who thinks he’s king, Louis the warmblood giant, Orla the baby warmblood giant, Dillon the tiny giant and the resident sensible mare Hope that belongs to my sister.  When time allows, we enjoy dabbling in dressage, hacking and only very occasionally leaving the ground these days. We also own a rather wonderful Welsh Section A, Cassie, who lives and plays with the Barclay family.  

Horses have been a large part of my life from a very young age and have taken me through a childhood of pony club in the Western Isles, to competing in various disciplines throughout the UK as an adult - British Dressage, British Eventing, Show Jumping and Showing.

It was my old mare Inula who initiated my training in massage therapy, being a highly suspicious pony she made it quite clear that she did not want some stranger in her stable touching her, and to be fair the 'strangers' didn't fancy being in her stable much either!  And so,  in 2011, the journey began...

The first step was to undertake a Diploma in Swedish Massage, which I did over 8 months through the Scottish Massage Schools.  The course involved the in depth study of anatomy and physiology of the human body, practical massage skills, regular assignments and case studies followed by oral, written and practical examinations. 

Shortly thereafter the equine studies started.  In order to get the best possible equine education, I went to the best possible educator and embarked on the ITEC Diploma in Equine Sports Massage with the world renowned Mary Bromiley MBE.  Mary was a fellow of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy, a highly regarded veterinary physiotherapist, an international lecturer and author, not to mention being the  team physiotherapist to the New Zealand equestrian squad for 4 Olympics.  You couldn't find a better master to learn from; a most mind blowing 8 months of hard graft.

After a couple of years of working on both horses and people and doing various CPD courses, I felt I needed to get back to studying again and went on to complete a further diploma in Remedial and Sports Massage, again through Scottish Massage Schools.  After qualifying in 2016 I then joined the team at the Wellpark Clinic in Inverurie and haven't looked back. I now work out of my own clinic at Thainstone, and treat horses around this, fitting in further CPD when I can.

Some of the CPD I’ve undertaken over the years:

• Kinesio-taping

• Advanced Soft Tissue Techniques

• Muscle Energy Techniques

• Functional Anatomy

• Body Master Knee, Hip, Shoulder, Glutes and Psoas Masterclasses

• Andy Thomas (EventPhysio) - Treatment and Rehabilitation of the Equine Athlete, Level 1 & 2

• Infection Prevention & Control

• UKAD Clean Sport Training

• Various Conferences, Seminars and Webinars

I am fully insured through Balens, registered with the ICO, and hold a full First Aid at Work and PVG Certificate

It's been an amazing journey so far, and every day is an education...

If you want to learn more about how massage can help you or your horse I have included some information pages on the site, alternatively contact me for a chat.