Animals as Herbalists

I have been extremely fortunate lately to have the opportunity to connect with a number of excellent Herbalists, (just one of the many good things that have been made possible from our friends at Mountain Rose Herbs), but for most of my previous herbal education I found some of the most influential teachers to be the animals themselves.

My first introduction to herbs for horses was from my first horse Tahoe. She had an affinity for Dandelions and Red Clover and whenever I would hand graze her she had this knack for locating them both. I remember asking my trainer at the time about it and she said it should be fine, but not to let her have too much clover because it can make them sick. There was nothing about what Dandelions or Red Clover could do to enhance Tahoe's health or why this horse might be craving them and seeking them out. I frequently feel as though I should apologize every day to Tahoe for my ignorance and Thank her for her patience. It is amazing to me that even though she died in 1997 the lessons she tried to teach me still affect me today, both in herbs and in working with other horses.


When we open ourselves up to guidance I feel that it shows up sometimes in unexpected places so we have to keep our eyes and our awareness open. My most recent guide to herbal medicine has come in a feathery form. Our neighbors have peafowl and for reasons I can't quite figure out, I adore them. This young male in particular has started hanging around every time I am making the horses supplements. It started out with him coming up to the doorway and watching me, but I have noticed this Fall he is doing a lot more than watching. He tips his head, clucking slightly and shakes his top notch. I began to offer him Borage, which now he will take right from my hand. I was concerned initially with just how much of the fresh Borage he ate, but I reminded myself that he probably knows what he is doing. This behavior I have seen in the horses and dogs as well. They will gobble up a bunch of an herb fresh, sometimes for several days in a row and then not want it at all for awhile. I know it frustrates the volunteers and people I try and help with herbal formulas because they always want ratios and timelines and more structure then I can provide. Herbs are personal and individual and we have to listen to those little voices and pay attention for them to be the most effective. Or, if all else fails, take advice from a peacock.

Tumors and Turmeric

With the start of our recent Capital Campaign we have the opportunity to raise awareness as well as funding. Some people have followed us for years, but hopefully there are a lot of new faces who are not aware of our success with healing horses with cancer. For so many of us cancer is this dark shadow we live in fear of. We are like the Native Americans who have no reference for Columbus's ships and therefore can't see them on the horizon, but notice the disturbance in the water on the shore. I have had people tell me it's not possible to cure cancer or as my Dad says "Prove it." Now you see it, now you don't isn't exactly the response people want. We have horses that had cancer when they came to us and now they don't. In the past we have been too busy trying to save them to really document what we do, let alone share our results and treatments via blog and Facebook posts. We hope to be able change all of that with the support of our fans and their generous donations. We will start by sharing some of Nehalem's story.

If you aren't familiar with our mare Nehalem who suffers from Equine Lymphoma, please refer to our previous post regarding the disease. One of the main herbs we use in treating Nehalem's cancer is Turmeric.  Friends tease me that I am so passionate about Turmeric that if it were a man I would be married to it. In my defense, if I had a man who did as much as Turmeric, I would marry him. Turmeric is the one herb I rarely rotate off of. It does everything and it does it well. Liver, digestion, helps clean the blood, anti-inflammatory, anti-spasmotic, anti-tumor, anti-fungal, anti-arthritic, anti-mircorbial and much more. Turmeric does not like abnormal tissue growth which is great for all kinds of obvious reasons, but the one that surprised me was it removes proud flesh (a form of scar tissue) on horses.

In addition to the Lymphoma, Nehalem has a sarcoid the about the size of a fist on her underside almost directly in front of her teats. We find sarcoids to be more common on horses with immune compromised issues and have used Turmeric successfully in treating other horses with them (including Konah). The sarcoid is currently about a quarter of the size it was and over the last year with us being able to keep Nehalem on her Turmeric fairly consistently we have had the opportunity to watch it change and peel off. It is currently going through a shedding cycle and we are hopeful that this may be it's last and that it fall off and be gone for good.

I do often say that if you can only afford one herb for your horse most of the time that herb should be Turmeric. My disclaimer being that if you fail to treat the system as a whole and try to make Turmeric take care of every need you have without helping him to do his job, you will not find the same result we have experienced here at 3TF. Most of us at one point or another have had a boss or co-worker who made our job much harder than it needed to be. That's what's like for Turmeric when you don't support the whole system.

Fall Favorite

One of the things we talk a great deal about with our Herb Walks is that to be really effective when using herbs it requires us to think differently. With so many horses depending on us for their well-being and money not always being available I will frequently re-research the herbs around the property that we have on hand. One of my favorite new combinations came about almost by accident.

I tend to be a bit like a fickle teenager when it comes to herbs. I get crushes on herbs and become completely infatuated with a new one and then for months everything is all about how amazing this herb is and I want to know everything there is to know about this herb because he is just so great! Then a few months later a new boy band appears on the scene and I'm off again into an equally dreaming state. Luckily, my room for herbal knowledge is great and even though my heart suddenly belongs to another I still remember my Spring (or Summer or Fall or Winter) crush.

Borage was my new Spring heart throb this year. I was looking for an herb that I could use in rotation with nettle to meet the horses needs for vitamins and although borage didn't really fit the bill for that I was excited by some of the other things he could do. We had an issue with several of the horses having spring coughs and borage seemed to be more than up for the task of lending assistance in that area. Borage can be a tad on the prickly side, although nothing like another favorite of mine nettle, he is a beautiful plant. I do not consider myself a gardener, as much as I am a gardener groupie. I have some friends who are amazing gardeners that I hang around and listen to and admire (and drool) over their creations. So the fact that I could grow amazing and beautiful borage plants in our garden deepened my love for borage by no small measure.

When feeding borage to the horses I cut it up with scissors immediately after harvesting it from the garden, as it doesn't tend to stay fresh for long. The horses have never seemed to mind the prickles, but I do try to get the younger, more tender looking, leaves or flowers. I notice especially when feeding fresh herbs the horses tend to pick what they want and leave the rest. The fresh cut borage smelled amazing. As the summer wore on I noticed the horses showing less of an interest and their coughs went away, so I stopped feeding it. By late summer, though borage had practically taken over the garden. I didn't want to see it go to waste so I decided to start feeding it again. It was around this same time that someone sent me an article about the benefits of using rosemary for coughs. Our Poppy pony has struggled ever since getting really sick a couple winters ago with a dry chronic cough. Even with the horses and dogs I still think the way herbs smell and taste together should play an important role in choosing what to give. Fresh borage and rosemary smell amazing together and make the most remarkable looking salad. I am tempted to wash it up and have it with a side dish for dinner. It has become all the horses' favorite Fall herbal combination.

Why 3TF Chooses Herbs

I get asked all the time about how and why I got involved in using herbs for horses. Right after college I was lucky enough to work for two different alternative veterinarians who introduced me to a different way of thinking about horse health care. One vet specialized in Acupuncture and Chiropractics and the other was trained in Homeopathy. I think that through my experiences with these women the door was opened to all kinds of possibility. Although I spent some time studying Chinese medicine and was first introduced to herbal healing through Chinese medicine I wanted to connect more with what was going on in my own backyard, so to speak. I love the forest of the Pacific Northwest and it seems I can never live anywhere for very long without feeling the pull to come home, so about ten years ago I started studying and experimenting with more local herbs and how they might enhance 3TF horses' health and performance.

With the economic decline I was forced to get more creative about meeting the health needs of 3TF's horses and I turned more and more to herbs for filling those requirements. I noticed that the more I looked the more I was able to find ways to help our horses by the plants I was finding around our Creswell location. For a few dollars in seeds as well as receiving donations from friends with abundant gardens we were able to significantly expand what we are able to produce here at home. We not only continue to invest in our own gardens as funding allows, but we have an abundance of several herbs and have been able to help others do the same do the same by sharing that which we have extra of. Live plants as well as seeds are always available for people attending our Herb Walks.

Our Herb Walks were born out of a desire to share and support others in similar difficult economic circumstances as well as being able to share the passion and excitement that comes with re-connecting with our natural environment. It is impossible to be connected to our environment and actively harming it at the same time. I can't begin to tell you how much more satisfying it is to go into the garden and harvest leaves from the plants we have, or take the dogs for a quick hike in the woods to grab some of what I need. Using herbs I feel also better connects me to my horses, because when I am with them I am checking for subtler things. Does Poppy's coughing sound dry and unproductive? Do her eyes appear to have excesses mucus? What's her energy level like? If it all sounds too much or too hard don't worry, once you start to get the hang of it, it becomes a rewarding challenge. It always reminds me a bit of my favorite childhood game Clue.

Our Herb Walks are designed to support people on their herbal journey. As we wrap up our 2012 Herb Walks we already have our sights set on even more wonderful and empowering herbal classes for people. We couldn't have done it without all the help from our friends at Mountain Rose Herbs who have made these Herb Walks possible for a number of disadvantaged youth and people working in equine rescue and we look forward to bringing herbs into many more people's lives in 2013.

Lemon Balm

One of the difficult things for us about Fall is we seem to find ourselves looking at all the things still left to do. There is a kind of denial that happens as the nights grow colder, but for me what really drove the point home was when the Lemon Balm started to turn. It is with a heavy heart that I cut the last of it by the fistfuls for the ponies at feeding time, knowing that we will not see each other again in this way until the spring. Luckily, if I miss Lemon Balm too much I can still find a high quality, organic source of it through our friends at Mountain Rose Herbs.

Lemon Balm was the Prom Queen of herbs for the 2012 Herb Walks. One of the things we try to teach people with our Herb Walks is how to open up to their natural intuition and find the herb that most speaks to them. This is a long forgotten skill for most of us and one of the things I deeply appreciate about working with animals and herbs is animals tend to still be fairly in touch with this intuitive side of themselves. I notice with animals, as with people, the closer we are to our natural environment and way of being the more this intuition expands. I have noticed over the years the longer the 3TF horses and ponies are on herbal supplements, the clearer they become about what their needs are making it easier for me to choose their herbal formulas.

One of the things we use Lemon Balm for is to help with horses and ponies who have thyroid problems. Many horse owners have experienced either first hand or through a friend's struggle with a horse that seems to gain weight on air. Problems with the thyroid are often related to problems with metabolic function. Lemon Balm is an excellent choice to try for horses who tend to have problems with excessive weight as it is a nice gentle herb that tends to blend easily with other herbs. With it's refreshing smell and taste there is just something about Lemon Balm that feels like summer. One of my favorite ways to let our horses and ponies choose their dose is to cut it up in the water trough.

Lemon Balm is also good for spasmodic colic and is considered a good choice for treating depression. Anyone who has smelled Lemon Balm can attest to it's uplifting quality. Like most herbs it is not a suitable choice for those who are pregnant and I would encourage and assume anyone who is pregnant to consult a professional before adding any supplements, herbal or otherwise to their diet.

Bess and Corie

I met Ferronato Shen and became acquainted with Three Treasures Farms in the Spring of 2010 when I assisted in catching their beautiful stallion, Coppola, after he’d escaped from his stall.  He was so well-behaved that I had no idea he was a stallion until a few days later when I formally met Ferronato.  She was in the process of moving the program into Whispering Meadows Equestrian Center, where I was currently boarding my thoroughbred mare, Bess.  At the time, I was both actively coaching and coordinating the University of Oregon Equestrian Team and fully-enrolled in classes but I became so enamored with the amazing program that 3TF runs that I quickly found ways to become involved and do my part to help. 

My first hands-on experience with 3TF was when I introduced Bess to the Massage Intern Program.  I was amazed at Ferronato’s skill at handling and assessing the physical and emotional state of my sassy mare as well as how educated and professional her students were.  I put Bess into as many classes from then on as I could.  Being a college student (and a little horse-poor), however, I wasn’t able to pay to have Bess in all the classes I wanted her in.  So, I became one of 3TF’s working students and began my journey into the 3TF family.

I started off by cleaning stalls, turning out, blanketing, all the while picking Ferronato’s brain about nutrition and homeopathic supplementation.  I kept at it, working whenever I could and asking as many questions as I could think up.  Eventually, I passed the perseverance test and was introduced to the after-school program 3TF ran for underprivileged kids from Lane county.  I had an absolute BLAST working with the kids.  Ferronato had designed such an incredibly rewarding program and kids that might have shown up a little sad, or without wearing their smiles, would leave happy and fulfilled. 

The work I was doing with 3TF offered a kind of fulfillment that I wasn’t used to.  I’d been a working student throughout my entire show career- assisting with client horses, teaching lessons, performing general horse-keeping chores, but the work 3TF does allowed me to not only continue to grow as a horseperson, but also to directly affect the lives of both children and the horses in the program.  That feeling isn’t something I’d trade for the world.

As my time spent with 3TF increased, I was able to place not just my mare but also my Mom’s mare, Dolley, into the Massage classes.  About 30 minutes into her first class, you could not only see but actually feel Dolley’s overwhelming anxiety about the world just melt away.  To this day, Bess and Dolley become ecstatic when they see Ferronato or one of the first interns to work on them. 

After I graduated and moved back to Portland, I kept in touch with 3TF and updated on the program’s success stories.  Not 3 months after I left Eugene, I was back every other weekend taking Equine massage classes from Ferronato and, once again, learning as much as I could from her.  Being 2 hours away and only being a part of the 3TF team twice a month, I started helping out with grant proposals and recently took over as Donations Coordinator and PR person for 3TF.  I tried off and on to take a career path within the business world but I never quite found anything that left me feeling both happy and content with the path my life was taking.  Eventually, I ended up working as an assistant to a couple of training programs in Portland.  During a massage class I set up, Ferronato used her knowledge help a client’s horse who suffered from a sugar allergy.  He is still on the herbal supplements she recommended during that session, and is doing incredibly well.  I also used my massage knowledge to help rehab an injured horse in the other program I was working with.  The horse was high-strung and full of vinegar from his 6 month stint on stall rest.  I was only able to work with him successfully because of the in-hand work I learned while working with 3TF.

I am currently living in Corvallis, Oregon, and am about to start a job working with troubled youth and horses.  I continue to use my massage and nutrition knowledge with Bess and hope to show her this next show season.  The issues she was having prior to our relationship with Ferronato and 3TF have been almost completely resolved, and I know she and I will both continue to benefit from the experience, wisdom, and compassionate nature that Three Treasures Farms exudes.

My goals with 3TF are not just to help them raise the income that they need to continue to provide scholarships for their programs, such as the ones I received, but also to allow them to grow and reach more passionate, caring, horse-friendly, and hardworking individuals so that they can continue to influence the lives of those who need it the most. 

Corie Townsend

Fall Herb Walks

Our intention with the Herb Walks is not to make a student leave feeling like an herbal expert, but that they will take with them some powerful and simple tools which will enable them to sow the seed of change in their lives. It is no easy task to change our life style, even when it is a change for the better. Many of us end up in less than healthy patterns or cycles, whether it is the food we eat not being in the best interest of our bodies, too much work stress, or a lack of exercise. It is challenging to make the changes we need to feel better when we are in this place of depressed health. Modern society is not making it any easier with its conveniences designed to save time, which, in the end, ultimately steal it from us. Most of us know someone who lives a healthy lifestyle and we think: I would love to be able to do that. Given all the things going on in our lives, the distance between where we are and where we they are seems like an overwhelming distance to cover. We end up thinking: why bother? However, some of us are going to make that positive change next week, or next month or when that thing happens that will let us do what we need to.

I would love to be that person who was turned onto herbs and a holistic lifestyle who made a sudden, dramatic, and complete change. The truth is I didn’t (and I haven’t) and I still look to find the little subtle ways I can keep shifting my life towards that course of action. On the most basic level I find people really need three major things to shift to start feeling better. We attempt to touch on these three areas in our Herb Walks with real and simple solutions for people to try.

The first is to become more aware of how the foods we eat impact our bodies. For a long time I was unaware that I had some food allergies that were causing a variety of problems. Once I became aware of my allergies and took steps toward being more mindful of them when making food choices I saw a variety of health improvements. We have simple, sample foods and recipes available for people to try that will encourage them to incorporate herbs into their everyday eating habits in manageable ways.

The second is stress. Perhaps not everyone finds the forest as a relaxing as I do, but I think for most people it is far less stressful than the office and just the smell of certain herbs can lower heart rates. By getting people out into Nature we are able to reconnect, re-charge and remember what is possible for us. For those that need to hold onto reasons and agendas the Herb Walks allow one to be in nature with purpose by teaching people which herbs are helpful and can become useful parts of their health program. The kitchen part of the Walks teach people what to do with the herbs once they have them, in simple, easy to follow steps that can be duplicated outside of class.

Third is exercise. I am not a fan of the electronic era although I appreciate and value what technology allows us to do. I find that many electronic devices steal our energy and motivation. It is so much easier to sit and be entertained then go out and create our own adventures. Maybe walking isn’t exactly what you had in mind when making the New Year’s resolution to exercise more, but it is a start. You will find as you try and discover new places or when re-visiting old ones to test your Herbal IQ that you will start to feel better for having gotten out of the house and way from the TV. At each Walk we provide plants from our garden, so that for people who are ready to make a start have a jumping off point. We choose hardy and easy care for plants so that budding gardeners are inspired to get out and do more in and with their soil.

 There is so much information out there that it can feel overwhelming. We strive with our Herb Walks to provide fun and simple ways that you can take with you (a plant for your garden and samples of products you make) to start living a healthier life for yourself, your animal companions and the planet.

For more information regarding our Herb Walks check out our website, the Events section on our Facebook Fan Page http://www.facebook.com/ThreeTreasuresFarms or email us directly threetreasuresfarms@gmail.com