Gretchen Johnson, EEBW

I was born loving horses and always connected to them and been in awe of their beauty and strength. My grandmother used to sit me on our paint gelding when I was a two-year-old, and my first real memory of riding was at four.

My family had horses on my grandparents’ farm in Pennsylvania. I grew up learning to care for my pony, played with him in the pasture, and rode through the large fields on the farm and across the creek to the hillsides.

My life’s dream has always been to work with horses. Early on, working with horses meant being a horse trainer, barn manager, farrier, or veterinarian. I really enjoyed riding, and training seemed a natural route to take.

While working for trainers, I also saw some horses needed more help than others. I have always been interested in massage, physical therapy, and rehabilitation for people, and I saw equine massage as an opening to learn how to apply massage therapy to horses. (Source)