Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
Improve your dog's movement, comfort, and longevity while
opening exciting new doors to better communication and a more meaningful relationship.
We all want our dogs to live pain-free, and we all want ways
to connect with them. The Masterson Method(R) is an interactive approach
to animal bodywork that follows and uses responses of the animal to your touch
to find and release tension in areas of his body that affect:
- His ability to get around.
- His physical and mental well-being.
- The quality of and length of his life.
- His connection with you and other humans and animals.
A lifelong horse person, Jim Masterson developed his method
for the purpose of releasing tension and improving movement in the performance
horse. An interesting benefit was that it led to improved communication and trust,
and a better overall relationship with the horse. Since dogs go with
horses "like peanut butter and jelly," Jim says, it was only natural that he
began to use his bodywork on canines, too.
The techniques used in the Masterson Method rely on reading
and following the subtle changes in the dog's body language as you work with him.
Once you learn to read his body language, you will be "on the same page" and communication
is established. Your dog recognizes that you understand what his body language
is saying, that there is no threat to his well-being, and that he feels better
when you work with him. In these pages you will learn the steps to
incorporating the Masterson Method in your dog's life, bringing happiness to
both of you.
By using these techniques, and knowing the responses to look
for, you will be able to:
- Achieve a release of
accumulated stress in deep-seated key junctions of the dog's body that affects
mobility, comfort, attitude, training, and performance.
- Restore muscular and structural balance, and natural
alignment.
- Discover new levels of communication and trust with your dog
that spill over into other areas of interaction.
This book includes:
- Step-by-step instructions, color photographs, and
detailed illustrations.
- Tips and techniques, understandable anatomical
explanations, and examples from Jim's personal experiences with hundreds of
dogs.
- A "quick-reference" section that points you toward
exercises specifically suited to your dog's breed or activity.
The Masterson Method is practical, easy to use, and results
oriented. You see the results in the dog's responses during the bodywork, and
in his behavior, comfort, and movement afterward. Beyond Dog Massage is
the ideal instructional guide for all those seeking a better quality of life
for and deeper connection with their dogs.
Synopsis
A searingly beautiful tribute to wild Mustang family groups that have been reunited after suffering roundup and separation in the American West.
In 1971, the US Congress passed an act that declared wild horses and burros as "living symbols of the American West" that should, therefore, be protected. But since then, the US Bureau of Land Management--charged with the management of the Mustang population--has rounded up over a quarter of a million horses, often using helicopters. In these intense and frightening scenarios, it is not unusual for wild horses to suffer catastrophic injury as they desperately fight to escape or to reach family members from whom they have been separated.
The Skydog Ranch and Sanctuary covers over 9,000 acres in Malibu, California, and Bend, Oregon, where wild horse advocates are working tirelessly to save these captured Mustangs from certain death through "kill pens" or a life of captivity in institutional "holding pens" and return them to freedom. To date Skydog has rescued over 100 wild horses and 30 burros, with a special focus on finding and reuniting bonded families who may have once roamed the West together but who were separated during the roundup and "adoption" process.
In this striking book, gorgeously illustrated with hundreds of dramatic photographs, Skydog founder Clare Staples recounts heartbreaking tales of liberty lost and the dramatic extents to which some Mustangs will go to flee captivity or rejoin their family bands. She describes the mission that drives her and the Skydog team to identify and locate iconic wild horses that have been removed from public lands, and then secure them in order to assure them freedom at the Sanctuary for their remaining years--whenever possible, in the company of their original wild herdmates.
Readers meet Blue Zeus, the stunning Wyoming stallion who Staples admired in the wild for years before, in the fall of 2020, his herd was slated for roundup and captured, in one day losing both their freedom and each other. The story of the urgent search for him and his mares and foals, and their eventual reunion in the hills of Oregon, encapsulates all that Skydog hopes to accomplish for hundreds more horses in the years ahead. Incredibly moving, inspiring, and offering the hope of wildness and beauty preserved for future generations, this book is for every animal lover and all those who honor the natural inhabitants of the American West. A percentage of all sales goes toward supporting Skydog Ranch and Sanctuary.