The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has issued a patent to The Murdoch Method, LLC for The SURE FOOT Equine Stability Program. The patent includes SURE FOOT Equine Balance Pads as well as the step-by-step process that Authorized SURE FOOT Practitioners use to help horses find greater stability. Wendy Murdoch and Brad Schneider are listed as co-inventors of the system.
“The spark for SURE FOOT came in 2012 when I conducted a simple experiment of placing an air-filled balance pad under a horse’s hoof,” explains Wendy. “The results were astounding! Since then I’ve been experimenting, exploring, and refining what I now call the SURE FOOT Equine Stability Program.”
The patent confirms the unique nature of offering a horse the opportunity to stand on an unstable surface and find comfort, balance, and relaxation. At the same time, greater stability is achieved through greater muscle control. Because standing on the pads is an offer, not a demand, the process allows the horse to have choice.
“When you think of it this way, The SURE FOOT Equine Stability Program allows the horse to become his own teacher,” says Wendy. “By going through the patented process of inviting the horse to stand on Equine Balance Pads, SURE FOOT Practitioners, horse owners, and others have a validated method of improving a horse’s confidence, posture, behavior, and performance.”
SURE FOOT Practitioners are equine professionals (veterinarians, trimmers, body workers, trainers, etc.) who have completed training and become authorized in the SURE FOOT Equine Stability Program. There are four levels of SURE FOOT Practitioners – 1 HOOF, 2 HOOF, 3 HOOF, AND 4 HOOF – with each level requiring additional training in order to perform further services.
“We are working to expand the number of Authorized SURE FOOT Practitioners worldwide so horse owners everywhere have access to a qualified person in their area,” says Wendy. SURE FOOT Practitioners give private sessions, small group demos, larger clinics, and even train other equine professionals in the method. SURE FOOT Practitioners are showing how — when given a voice — horses become more engaged, present, and ready to work.
To learn more about The SURE FOOT Equine Stability Program, SURE FOOT Equine Balance Pads, or the Authorized SURE FOOT Practitioner Program, visit the SURE FOOT equine website.
About Wendy Murdoch
Wendy Murdoch is an internationally recognized equestrian instructor and clinician for over 30 years, author of several books and DVDs, and creator of the SURE FOOT Equine Stability Program® and Ride Like a Natural®. She is one of the most skillful teachers ever encountered in any equestrian discipline. Wendy’s desire to understand the function of both horse and human, her curiosity, and her love of teaching capitalize on the most current learning theories. In this way, she is able to help both the horse and the rider.
Wendy’s willingness to embrace new ideas led her to develop the SURE FOOT Equine Stability Program® and SURE FOOT Equine Balance Pads, which allow horses to reprogram their own brain in order to feel more grounded, secure, and confident so they can become a more willing partner. In 2015, 2017, and 2019, her SURE FOOT Equine Balance Pads were nominated for the Equitana Innovation Prize. In 2019, they were nominated for the prestigious Horse Product of the Year in The Netherlands, coming in third place.
To learn more:
Contact Wendy at info@murdochmethod.com or (540) 675-228544
Visit the websites murdochmethod.com and surefootequine.com
Follow Murdoch Method LLC and SURE FOOT Equine on Facebook
Follow murdoch_method and surefootequine on Instagram
Subscribe to murdochmethod and SURE FOOT Equine Stability Program® channels on YouTube
CONTACT:
Wendy Murdoch
The Murdoch Method, LLC
info@murdochmethod.com
(540) 675-2285
Images available upon request