FEATURE FRIDAY-Megan Hensley–From Farrier to Holistic Hooves

Howdy Folks,

"What am I doing wrong?" Megan Hensley was relieved when they fired her. The horse had been diagnosed Navicular very lame, and the wedge was not working. She looked at those hooves, feeling defeated because she did not know what else to do, but she knew, just knew, the 4 degree wedge wasn’t the answer and she refused. She was relieved when they fired her but cried for the horse. At that moment, tears washing down her face, Megan decided she would do no more therapeutic shoeing. Megan transferred all her clients who wore eggbars, wedges, any type of specialty shoe to one of her colleagues. It cut her business by more than half. But the ongoing pain she saw and felt in the horse's eyes would not allow her to be part of the universe that promoted that kind of insanity. The myth of healing through hurting.

That was 2009 and Megan had been enjoying a thriving business as a "Therapeutic and Corrective” farrier who specialized in difficult cases. She was though, beginning to feel increasingly frustrated. She felt as if she was charging people large sums of money to apply prescription shoeings for thin walls, crushed heels, Navicular, laminitis, contracted hooves, white line disease and other “mystery” problems, and it wasn't helping. She could not think of one horse where any of these things ever showed long term improvement. The materials were very expensive and the work hard. She remembered one lady near tears because there was no way she could continue to afford the corrective shoeing, for laminitis and she had to have her horse put down. It broke Megan's heart.

Megan & Jerico

She was left with all the ponies, donkeys, and basic shoes all around, and just fronts, plus all the horses who just got trims. It was a huge relief. Megan knows now this was all part of her transition she was going to make. She continued on doing her work. She loved her clients dearly, but there was a part of her that still felt bad for letting all those horses go. She so wanted to help them, but didn't know how. Megan began noticing the difference in the bare hooves of clients she only trimmed; they seemed never to be lame. Then there were the horses who only wore front shoes. It was as if they had completely different hooves front and back.

Then one of her most favorite clients, Haley Bop who wore only front shoes began to show lameness on her front.  Her owner talked Megan into just putting a flat pad under her shoes. They did this for several shoeings, but Haley Bop declined rapidly... She dreaded taking her to vet, because they both knew what the diagnosis would be ... Navicular!  Sure enough, that is exactly what they said. The vet wanted Megan to wedge her, and give Haley Bop joint injections...  Haley Bop's owner opted for the joint injections but not the wedges and kept the pads on her.

The injections Haley Bop received provided slight comfort for only a very short time. Then they began Buting her almost every day. "It was awful. We were both just devastated!" Megan said. She worried they would put Haley Bop down … Megan again felt defeated, and the old pains of guilt revisited her about all the horses she seemed unable to help. She wondered if her shoeing was making Haley Bop lame. Megan seriously considered leaving shoeing altogether, just trim a few horses and get another job.

Just then a client loaned Megan “The Soul of a Horse” by Joe Camp. As she read the book Megan felt an emotional relief. A wave of energy swept over her. She read the book in two days and went straight to Pete Ramey's website. There she found Pete's article "Digging for the truth on Navicular." She read that article over and over. "My mind was reeling," Megan said. "I was thinking this is it! THIS IS IT!!! Why didn’t I see it sooner? Of course, that’s why the horses I just trim have better hooves!" Megan watched Pete's DVDs, studied all he had to say on booting and trimming Navicular horses.

Haley Bop had taken a turn for the worse and had been lying down for several days. Megan shared all the new information she'd just learned with Haley Bop's owner who eagerly said, "Let's do it!" We were down to the wire and Hayley Bop’s life was on the line.

"The day I pulled Haley Bop’s shoes was the best day ever!! It was incredible," Megan said. "She was so relieved and began to show immediate improvement. She has made a near complete recovery. She is my inspiration, and has been great teacher! Haley Bop is how I KNOW this is the right thing."

"Haley Bop is how I KNOW this is the right thing. I've now been doing this work for the last year and a half and it has been the most fulfilling thing ever. I have helped more horses than I ever did as a farrier. It breathed new life into me, and I have become so passionate about this work. I just can't keep my mouth shut.  It's all I talk about, and read about, I wake up every day since then and feel like I finally found my truth, what I am supposed to be doing for horses." Said Megan.

Spicy & Megan

Megan has totally transformed her business to Barefoot Trim only, and since Haley Bop she has saved 5 more horses who suffered with Navicular and had been recommended for euthanasia. "I feel like I can finally make up for the times I wasn't able to help. Yet I know that experience makes this even more important. I know what doesn't work. I've been there."

Megan is working hard to spread the word on how we can truly help horses. She campaigns daily on Facebook, started a page called Holistic Hooves devoted to helping folks discover the true way to help horses. She posts on as many blogs and pages as she can find. Megan is devoted to getting this message out and devoted to helping folks understand how easy it is to have healthy hooves. She frequently speaks on local radio, at Expos and other venues and does demonstrations at Wellness Clinics. She also started an apprentice program teaching students the Barefoot Trim, who can go out and teach others, thus spreading the word.

Megan also recently started offering rehabilitation services at her farm. Folks can send their horse to Megan and she'll work with them, trimming, exercising, booting, and feeding, in a natural lifestyle environment.

Megan knows that horses are great teachers. "I frequently ask my clients what can your horse teach you? Especially lameness cases. Where is the gift in this situation?  When I work with a client and horse in a barefoot rehabilitation, I see transformation in the horse, but also the caregiver. When we are experiencing pain, fear, or stress there's a great opportunity for growth and healing.  As they become more educated they become more empowered. It is a beautiful thing. I am constantly inspired by this work, the people, and the horses. Instead of fighting old ways of doing things we are simply allowing the new to rise through us. I know horses can help us raise our consciousness."

Thank you Megan and Haley Bop for helping so many to understand.

Visit Megan here on Facebook-https://www.facebook.com/holistichooves

Find Joe Camp's book, Soul Of A Horse - Here - http://thesoulofahorse.com/

Visit Pete Ramey's Website Here - http://www.hoofrehab.com/

Gitty Up

Dutch Henry