To keep your horse happy and healthy, and able to train and compete to the best of his ability, a regimen that regularly includes effective bodywork can be truly beneficial for maintaining optimum health and decreasing time spent recovering from injury.
Mandy Collier
Equine Bodyworker
Mandy owns and operates Optimum Equine LLC providing integrated equine bodywork in the Pittsburgh area and its surrounding communities. Her practice focuses on hands-on techniques based on the principles of traditional sports massage therapy and the well-known Masterson Method. Bodywork sessions are enhanced by the use of SureFoot equine balance pads and red/near-infrared light therapy. Mandy was first inspired to pursue a career in equine massage therapy by her heart horse, Charlie Brown, who benefited greatly from a variety of therapies to help him feel his best while competing in dressage. The pair earned their USDF Bronze Medal together and competed at the US Dressage Finals in 2014.
It was her young mare that inspired her to learn more about healing at a deeper, nervous system-level and Mandy began to pursue her Masterson Method certification and integrate alternate modalities and therapies like SureFoot equine balance pads. These methods have become important tools in her bodywork practice, enabling deeper healing with horses who are anxious, sensitive to touch, or have become so guarded and braced in their bodies that these gentler techniques are the only way to unlock them and reach the parasympathetic nervous system to let relaxation and healing begin.
Mandy holds a neuroscience degree from the University of Pittsburgh, and frequently experiences satisfying full circle moments while working on horses and revisiting her nervous system anatomy and physiology roots. In addition to her bodywork business, she works in a mental health research lab and enjoys the not-always-obvious connections between emotional and physical healing, even across species.
Our Team
No horse and rider team can function without an entire village supporting them. Mandy and her horses proudly support these professionals who help them stay happy, healthy, and competitive.
