Essential Oils

ESSENTIAL OILS

Using essential oils to incorporate into holistic healing

Essential oils can offer a natural solution to help heal the mind, body and spirit; they are distilled from scrubs, flowers, trees, roots, bushes, and seeds. These oils have potent healing properties and are one of the oldest healing methods still being used by monks in the Vatican today! Upon my many travels around the world and research into these fascinating healers I have seen amazing results both for horses and riders.

My story of how I got into essential oils is very unique from most people. It all started with my horse named Izzy who had been diagnosed with chronic laminitis and founder back in the spring of 2012. I would often watch helplessly when Izzy would have an ‘episode’ of laminitis and would look to be in terrible pain, just walking from her stall to the outside pen. I was always fascinated about natural healing and have felt that if the body is given the right ingredients, it can heal itself better then any prescribed medication. With this health fascination of natural healing I decided rather spontaneously to see a medium! You could say I trusted my intuition after the fact! When meeting the medium for the first time I simple said to her ‘I don’t know why I am here, only that I felt I needed to be here?’; She smiled and said ‘well I don’t usually get to talk to horses from the other side, but this horse has something very urgent to tell you!’. As the medium was describing this horse with the urgent message, I quickly realized it was Reiko my last horse and my best friend growing up! I met Reiko when I was 12 years old and stayed with him till literally his last breath when I was 19 years old. Realizing whom the horse was I felt as urgent as Reiko did to receive this special message. The medium said he wants you to use peppermint oil on your horse (Izzy). There was a lot of healing that came out of that medium session, but that was the moment I started truly learning about the power of essential oils. As you can imagine, it is a very awkward conversation when people ask me, how I got into essential oils...

When I think of holistic healing, it means looking at everything the body is showing you, from what is being ingested, what is sore, to what is coming out the other end! It also usually means that no miracle pill exists to fix the entire body, but rather a customized routine that is unique to each body. That is why I love essential oils so much, when I incorporated essential oils with Izzys routine, I found that swelling would be noticeable reduced after a healthy application of my peppermint oil mixture within an hour, Reiko was right! You could also see she noticeable had an easier time walking/lunging with the essential oils during these laminitis ‘episodes’. Since starting with essential oils, I have also started to incorporate them into my life! I have had huge bruises on my legs gone within 24 hours using Geranium oil! This paper is to share with you the knowledge that I have picked up healing both animals and humans!

Using essential oils can be as easy as 1,2,3!

  1. Always started with a therapeutic-grade essential oil and I would recommend an organic carrier oil. Young Living is the brand I buy for essential oils and when I choose to use a carrier-oil, I will often choose coconut oil, avocado oil or olive oil. The carrier oils are used to dilute the potency of the essential oil as each horse/human will have a different sensitivity-level. When starting I would recommend a 1-4 essential oil to carrier-oil ratio, if you feel your horse can benefit from a stronger potency you can increase the ratio, this is a judgment call. If the horse is moving away from you when attempting to apply the oil or seems restless, it probably mean either they do not like the oil you have chosen or you are not diluting it enough! It is also worth noting to always try and use glass when mixing your oils, as plastics and metals can leech toxins into your mixture.

  2. Choosing where to place the essential oils mixture can be a little intimidating. When grooming your horse as per normal, I recommend watching what your horse does! If in particular areas you notice stiffening, or they appear to be enjoying certain areas, take note! These are great areas to start and are clearly important to your horse! Safe places to start are sore areas or along the spine. There are also educational videos on youtube.com, search ‘raindrop technique on horses’, my only words of caution is dilute the oils or use a few less drops as not all videos will mention this important step of adjusting for sensitivity. It is also beneficial to have you horse smell the oils in your hand. You may notice them just stay there for a few moments and take in some good deep breaths, let them!

  3. Less is more! Don’t over apply the oils even if you notice many sore areas, to many oils can be a bit overwhelming for our furry friend, whether you use 3 drops or 6 drops, I promise they will smell like they just came from the spa!

When choosing which oils it can be a little scary! Here are a few helpful charts to get you started:

Peppermint Oil - This is one great for aiding in digestion, the liver, respiratory system.  It is also commonly used for Arthritis, respiratory infections, viral infections, fungal infections, headaches, and skin conditions.  Its medical properties are anti-inflammatory, antitumor, antiparasitic, antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal, gallbladder/digestive stimulants, pain relieving. This can be used for soreness, colic, infections and is not sensitive to the sun.


Panaway (blend of Wintergreen, Helichrysum, clove, peppermint) - This popular oil blend is used to reduce pain, inflammation, increase circulation, relieves swelling from issues such as artritis, sprains, muscle spasms and cramps.


Wintergreen - This oils is used for artritus, muscle/nerve pain, hypertension.  Its medical properties are anticoagulant, antispasmodic, highly anti-inflammatory, reduces blood pressure. You probably best know this as the flavoring used in gum and candies.

Thieves Oils (blend of clove, Lemon, Cinnamon Bark, Eucalyptus, Rosemary) - This blend is best used for its high anit-viral, antiseptic, antibacterial, and anti-infectious.


Oregano - This oil is used for infectious diseases, infections, tuberculosis, digestive problems.


Eucalyptus - This oil is primarily used for respiratory/sinus infections, decongestion, rheumatism/arthritis.  Its medical properties are expectorant, mucolytic, anti-microbial, antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral.

Peace and Calming (blend of Tangerine, Orange, Ylang Ylang, Patchouli, Blue Tansy) - This blend is best used for relaxation, it reduces depression, anxiety, stress and insomnia.


Lavender - This oil is used for Respiratory infections, high blood pressure, arteriosclerosis, menstrual problems, skin conditions, acne, eczema, scarring, burns, hair loss, insomnia, nervous tensions.  Medical properties include antiseptic, antifungal, analgesic, antitumoral, relaxant and anti-inflammatory.


Joy (blend of Bergamot, ylang ylang, geranium, lemon, coriander, tangerine, jasmine, Roman chamomile, palmarosa, rose) - All these oils will bring calming energy and joy to your heart, mind and soul.  They can also aid in releasing tension, stress, relaxant, relieved anxiety, nervousness and anti-depressant.

Valor (blend of coconut oil, spruce, rosewood, blue tansy, frankincense) - This oil is good for finding balance and instilling courage, confidence, self-esteem.  When feeling weak or tired, this is a great oil to help you and your horse rebalance. 


Cypress - This oil is good for circulatory disorders, grounding, and stabilizing. Its medical properties are Improves circulation, anti-infection, antispasmodic, antioxidant, discourages fluid retention, promotes liver health.


Lemon - This oil is good for circulatory problems, parasites, urinary tract infections, varicose veins, anxiety, hypertension, and mental fatigue.  This medical property will help improve the immune system, memory, and relaxation.  When inhaled this oil can promote clarity of thought and is invigorating! 

Lemongrass - This oil is used for respiratory infections, parasites, torn ligaments/muscles, fluid retention.  Its medical properties include anti-inflammatory, regenerates connective tissues and ligaments, improves circulation, promotes lymph flow.  

Clary Sage - This oil is used for menstrual discomfort/PMS, hormonal imbalance, insomnia.


Geranium - This oil is used for skin conditions, fungal infections, hormone imbalances, Menstrual discomfort/PMS and circulatory issues.  

If you are interested in more essential oil literature, I would recommend reading the following as they were sources for the data above:
  • Essential Oils- Pocket reference by Life science publishing
  • The animal desk reference by Melissa Shelton, DVM
  • Reference guide for essential oils by Connie and Alan Higley
This is my personal experience and information gathered for some of my favourite essential oils. I hope this information was helpful for you and your horse! 

– Monique Hetu
Share by: