| A horse owner since the age of seven, Diana Thompson's
first experience as a paid equine professional came during high school.
She handled foals, started young horses, and showed and managed a breeding
stallion for a Palomino quarter horse ranch. She also managed a boarding
stable during college before taking a break from horses to finish her
degree in journalism.
In 1980 Diana opened a full care boarding and training facility
where she started young horses under saddle, schooled and showed English
and Western pleasure horses and conditioned race prospects. She integrated
heart rate monitors and other sportsmedicine practices into her
conditioning programs and became a licensed exercise rider on Oregon and
California race tracks.
In 1983 Diana personally received relief from chronic back
stiffness and pain through lessons in The Feldenkrais Method, a method of
human movement education. Her success with this work on her own body came
at a time when she was questioning conventional horse handling and
training methods. As a result, she has spent the last 17 years seeking out
education in equine anatomy, movement, alternative health care and
training methods. She completed two of the four professional training
programs required to become a Feldenkrais practitioner for humans and is a
certified human massage practitioner. She has also studied with many of
the leaders in both the human and equine alternative health care fields.
Today, this extensive education and over 25 years of practical experience
training horses gives Diana a wealth of knowledge to pass on to her
students.
While Diana is based in Santa Rosa, California, she currently
teaches her Hands-On Horse Care (TM) classes throughout the United States.
Her innovative approach includes equine massage and acupressure, movement
improvement exercises, flower essence therapy and homeopathy, saddle
fitting and many gentle, effective horse handling and training methods.
She also uses movement education to help horseback riders improve their
riding skills. Diana's services include private consultations and lessons,
multi-day intensive training programs and club or event demonstrations.
Diana also educates horse enthusiasts through writing and
photography. Soon after graduating with honors from Oregon State Univerity,
she earned a job with EQUUS Magazine as a staff writer. This position
enabled her to interview some of the top equine veterinarians and research
professionals in the nation. |
