Sylvia is a certified practitioner of The Masterson Method, an interactive method of equine bodywork in which she uses the horses responses to touch, to find and release accumulated tension in key junctions of the body that most affect performance.
The techniques are non invasive, hands-on and often help both physical and behavioural health issues in horses. The focus is to promote recovery from injury, illness and any compensatory patterns that have developed through its working career causing imbalances in the body.
Sylvia’s Passion Statement is: Listening, feeling and trying to understand each individual horse as a “Whole Horse Balance Affair”. With that in mind she feels very privileged to be able to live, work and learn from her patient teachers on a daily basis.
With a lifelong passion for horses, ethology and behaviour, Sylvia completed studies in anatomy, equine nutrition, saddle fitting and biomechanics, and she offers many skills. These help to formulate an approach for each horse on an individual basis. It is also her intention to include all members of the team who look after the horse and thus achieve the best results.
In February 2019, Sylvia completed her studies with the Centre for Neuromuscular Horse Dentistry, trained by Spencer LaFlure, in the US. She is now a fully Certified Natural Balance Equine Dentist.
She lives in the Algarve, South of Portugal, together with her 2 horses. Sylvia and her husband enjoy trail riding all over Portugal and America and competitive endurance rides including FEI level.
In July 2016 she was fortunate enough to be able to ride and complete the Tevis Cup. It would not have been possible without her incredible equine partner crossing the Sierras into Auburn, CA. Her name is “Kismet” and she taught Sylvia everything she needed to know to get them safely to the finishing line. The other horse mentor is Sharif, who continues to challenge her to become a better listener and hone her skills as a Certified Practitioner. Thank you!
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