Tennessee Veterinary Board Threatens Jail Time for Giving Unlicensed Horse Massages

Martha Stowe and Laurie Wheeler were threatened with fines and jail time by the Tennessee Veterinary Board for practicing equine myofascial release without veterinary degrees. 

A decade ago, Martha Stowe founded True Equine, an equine-services company, a few miles south of Nashville, Tenn., in Williamson County. After earning a certificate in equine myofascial release, a massage technique that releases tension and pain in a horse’s body, Martha soon acquired a large clientele. “For performance horses, this is important,” Stowe tells National Review. “You want them to have complete range of motion.” 

Two years after Stowe’s business started to rake in profits, her husband, Kirk, was deployed to Iraq — and, since his return, Kirk has been out of the workforce. “I became the sole breadwinner,” Stowe says. Ultimately, it was Stowe’s decision to specialize in equine myofascial release that allowed her family of four to stay afloat during tough times.

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