Bring Expert Equine Acupressure Education to Your Barn - Hosting Requirements
Are you interested in hosting an equine acupressure clinic at your barn? Poll to Pastern travels throughout the Southeast to bring hands-on equine acupressure education directly to your facility. As the only practitioner in North Carolina board certified by NBCAAM in both equine and small animal acupressure, we provide professional instruction that gives horse owners valuable skills to support their horses' wellness.
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Hosting a clinic at your barn is free, and it offers tremendous educational value to your boarders, lesson students, or local equestrian community. Review the requirements below to make sure your facility is ready to host a successful clinic.
What We Teach at Equine Acupressure Clinics
Our clinics combine Traditional Chinese Medicine principles with practical, hands-on acupressure techniques for horses. Participants learn to locate and work with up to 20 key acupressure points, understand the meridian system, and apply these skills to support their horses' comfort, performance, and recovery.
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Clinics focus on equine acupressure fundamentals, and photopuncture (red light on acupressure points) can be added when hosts and participants request it. All instruction is led by an NBCAAM board certified practitioner and NBCAAM-approved continuing education provider, so eligible participants can earn continuing education credits.
Requirements
Facility Requirements
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A clean, horse-safe facility
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A covered space for the classroom portion
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A barn or stable for shelter in bad weather (an enclosed arena isn't necessary)
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Enough parking for participants
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Liability waivers for all participants, signed before the clinic begins (provided by the host)
Liability Waivers
As part of our policy, the host is responsible for providing liability waivers to all participants. The waivers serve to acknowledge the potential risks associated with the facility and release the organizers from any liability.
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The liability waivers should be filled out and signed by each participant before the start of the clinic.
Horse Requirements
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One horse for every 2 to 4 participants, plus one horse for instructor demonstrations
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Horses should be clean and comfortable around multiple people
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Stallions and pregnant mares can't be used
Off-Site Horses
Bringing Their Own Horse? Many participants love learning on their own horse. If you allow outside horses, let us know how you'd like to receive Coggins results (at the clinic or by email beforehand). Trailers will need room to turn around, and while stalls aren't required, they're appreciated by participants who'd rather not tie to a trailer.
Registration and Fees
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Participants register and pay on our website so we can plan for the group.
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Minimum: 10 paid participants. If the minimum isn't met 15 days before the clinic, it may be rescheduled or canceled.
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Maximum: 20 participants per clinic. With enough interest, we can hold a second clinic the same day (minimum 6 participants).
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Facility fees: Hosts may request a per-participant facility fee, paid out on the day of the clinic. To keep acupressure accessible, excessive fees won't be approved. If you'd rather not take a fee, you can choose one free registration (not counted toward the 10 minimum) or a free red light session for one of your horses.
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Refunds: Refunds aren't given to participants who can't attend. If we cancel, all participants are refunded. If a rain date was announced in advance, refunds aren't given for a reschedule.
Clinic Hours
Clinics run 3 to 4 hours, depending on group size. We start with a classroom session, take a short snack break, then move to hands-on point work with the horses, and finish with 15 minutes for questions. Hosts can provide snacks and drinks, or we're happy to bring water and light snacks.
Food Information
As the host, you have the option to provide snacks and drinks at your own expense or through the facility fee. Please inform us in advance if you will be providing the food.
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Alternatively, Poll to Pastern can provide water and light snacks for the duration of the course if you prefer.
Helping Spread the Word
For public clinics, we'll email you a flier to share. We ask that hosts post about the clinic in local social media groups and hang fliers at nearby feed and tack stores, since this makes a big difference in reaching the minimum. Any additional promotion costs are the host's responsibility unless approved by us in advance.
Additional Costs
Any optional expenses incurred by the host for promoting the course will be at their own expense, unless approved by Poll to Pastern.
Meet the Requirements and Want to Host?
Ready to bring expert equine acupressure education to your barn? If your facility meets the requirements above, we'd love to work with you to create a valuable learning experience for your equestrian community.
As an NBCAAM-recognized instructor offering continuing education credits, Poll to Pastern delivers professional instruction on equine acupressure techniques. Whether you're hosting for your private barn clients or opening the event to the broader equestrian community, we'll help make your clinic a success.
We travel throughout the Southeast and have conducted clinics in Virginia, Florida, and beyond. Distance is no barrier when there's sufficient interest.