At 30 years old, Tiki is still lightly trail riding, living comfortably, and enjoying life with his owner Chris in Penryn, California. For many horse owners, that kind of longevity feels almost impossible, especially for a former racehorse and endurance horse.
But during a recent Holistic Horseworks live session, April Love shared the story behind Tiki’s journey and the holistic horse care practices that helped support him through decades of riding, competition, aging, and recovery.
Tiki’s story is one many horse owners can learn from.
From Arabian Racehorse to Heart Horse
Tiki started his life on the Arabian racetrack before April Love took him in and began retraining him for endurance riding and family life. Over the years, he became much more than a competition horse.
“He never dumped me. He never left me in the dirt. He was just that heart horse that was just so amazing,” April shared during the live session.
Despite being only 14.3 hands high, Tiki carried April through endurance rides while she competed as a heavyweight rider. Together, they completed over 2,000 miles of competition in just two years without vet pulls or lameness issues.
According to April, consistent holistic support played a major role in keeping Tiki healthy and rideable for so many years.
Watch this heartfelt story here:
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The Holistic Horse Care Approach April Used on Tiki
Throughout Tiki’s life, April used a combination of:
- Equine craniosacral therapy
- Nutritional balancing
- Barefoot management between competitions
- Muscle testing
- Energy balancing
- Hoof support
- Recovery-focused horse care
“I’ve always done all the bodywork on Tiki, all the cranial sacral that I learned, all the energy balancing, all the nutritional balancing,” April explained during the session.
One of the biggest lessons from Tiki’s story is that senior horse health is not about waiting until a horse breaks down.
It is about consistently supporting the horse’s body before problems become severe.
Supporting Senior Horses Naturally
As horses age, owners often begin noticing:
- Stiffness
- Slower recovery
- Muscle loss
- Hoof sensitivity
- Behavioral changes
- Reduced mobility
- Digestive imbalance
- Difficulty maintaining weight
Many horse owners assume these changes are simply “normal aging.”
Holistic Horseworks takes a different approach.
Instead of only managing symptoms, the focus is on identifying stress patterns inside the horse’s body and supporting the horse through bodywork, nutrition, cranial decompression, hoof support, and nervous system regulation.
In Tiki’s case, Chris has continued following April’s holistic horse wellness program to help keep him comfortable and active into his 30s.
“Chris has been following my program on how to keep your horse healthy, sound, and rideable through the thirties,” April explained.
What Happened When Tiki Suddenly Got Sick
During the live session, Chris shared a frightening experience that happened just two weeks earlier.
Tiki suddenly developed:
- A temperature of 102
- A heart rate of 80 beats per minute
- Low energy and unusual behavior
“I could tell right away something was wrong. His head was hanging, and his heart was beating at 80 beats a minute,” Chris shared.
The situation became serious enough that Chris brought him to Loomis Basin Equine Medical Center for emergency evaluation.
The conversation later shifted toward viral stress, immune support, environmental factors, and how chronic stress patterns may affect aging horses.
April discussed how she frequently sees viral stress patterns appear in horse distance readings and encouraged owners to pay closer attention to water quality, stress load, digestion, and inflammation support.
Horse Longevity Starts With Daily Support
One of the biggest takeaways from the Chris and Tiki session was this:
Healthy aging in horses does not happen by accident.
Tiki’s quality of life at 30 is the result of years of intentional support, careful observation, bodywork, nutrition, and understanding what his body needed throughout different stages of life.
Today, he still enjoys turnout, light riding, and life with Chris.
“He’s a one-eyed horse… and he’s 30,” Chris shared proudly during the session.
For many horse owners, stories like Tiki’s offer hope that aging does not automatically mean decline.
With the right support, horses can continue living active, connected, and comfortable lives far longer than many people expect.
Learn More About Holistic Horse Care
Holistic Horseworks offers:
- Equine bodywork education
- Distance readings
- Equine craniosacral therapy training
- Holistic horse wellness programs
- Horse owner education courses
- The Holistic Horseworks Remedies App
If you want to better understand your horse’s body, behavior, movement, or chronic stress patterns, explore the educational resources available through Holistic Horseworks.
Tags:
Senior horse care, holistic horse care, horse craniosacral therapy, natural horse health, horse bodywork, senior horse wellness, endurance horse care, barefoot horse care, horse nutrition support, equine bodywork, holistic horse healing, horse wellness program
Excerpt:
Most horse owners expect horses to slow down dramatically with age, but Tiki is still lightly trail riding at 30. In this Holistic Horseworks session, April Love shares the bodywork, nutrition, craniosacral therapy, and holistic horse care practices that helped support Tiki through decades of endurance riding, recovery, and healthy aging.