Receiving a massage is a great way to relieve stress and loosen the knots on your body. The aromas, lighting and music all help to ease your worries and put you into an almost slumber-like state. However, there are so many types of massages that it became inevitable that some weird ones would pop-up. Straying from the normal Thai and Swedish massages, here is a list of weird massages from around the world.

 

10) Pet Massage

As if pets aren’t being spoiled enough these days, people have started to take their pets to receive massages. Trained animal masseuses knead the muscles of dogs, cats and horses for around the same price as a regular massage, but your pet receives the treatment instead of you.

 

9) Butt Massage and Facial

Generally the rear end is not touched during a massage, but some spas are now offering services to rejuvenate the butt. One of those places is the Smooth Synergy Cosmedical Spa in New York, which offers a fanny facial. The masseuse kneads the butt and then applies a variety of ointments combined with scrubbing to create the perfect beach butt.

 

8) Cactus Massage

At the Four Seasons in Puerto Vallarta, you can receive a cactus massage with tequila. First the masseuse pours a mixture of tequila and other oils on your skin and then pats you down with the cactus paddies. Naturally, the thorns are removed and the procedure is said to rejuvenate your skin. A big plus is you get to drink tequila while you receive the massage.

 

7) Beer massage

Something that is popping up more in Europe is the beer massage. First you get to drink some beer, which itself is a bit strange compared to herbal tea or water. Then, you get sprayed with beer before receiving lotion and a massage. Evidently the beer’s aromas act as a calming effect.

 

6) Chocolate Massage

Believed to moisturize lipids and fats to plump and firm skin, chocolate is being used more often by masseuses to relieve pain relief and produce a slimmer body. Having chocolate scent in a spa is nothing new, but pouring chocolate onto the body is growing in popularity. Unfortunately, you can’t lick the chocolate as it sometimes is mixed with other oils.

 

5) Nightingale facial

Okay, it’s technically not a massage, but it’s still a very weird spa service. Also known as the geisha facial, it is when you receive a facial using the excrement of a nightingale. Essentially, you receive a bird poop facial. The bird poop is thought to moisturize the skin and leave you with a glowing effect. If bird poop isn’t something you want smeared on your face you can get the same result from the amino acid guanine, which can be extracted from fish scales. I’m sure you’re relieved to hear that.

 

4) Fire Cupping

Spanning back to the ancient Egypt, fire cupping is when the rim of a cup is heated and applied to the skin to create an air-tight seal. The idea behind the massage is to mobilize the blood to promote healing. Fire cupping is on par with acupuncture in that it is suppose to relieve pain. Some believe it does relive pain, others don’t, including the American Cancer Society. One thing is definite, fire cupping will leave bruises.

 

3) Fish Massage

For years people used leaches to suck out the toxins from their blood. So, it’s not uncommon to use animals in massages. One of the more recent popular massages involving animals is the fish massage. A person puts their feet into a footbath and the fish eat the feet’s dead skin. Basically, the fish act as a lava rock, but without the scrubbing. In addition, some people believe the fish can cure skin diseases and promote good blood circulation in the feet. Because of the fear that the fish may carry diseases, the practice has been banned in most U.S. states.

 

2) Snake Massage

At a spa in Northern Israel, one can pay $80 to have a variety of snakes crawl over your back. While most people would be deathly afraid to even touch a snake, people will pay the fee to ADA BARAK’S CARNIVOROUS PLANT FARM. The snakes are suppose to make a person at ease and even work on knots by grabbing onto a person’s skin.

 

1) Buccal Massage

One of the weirdest massages being offered, a buccal massage is an intense massage of the face from inside of the mouth. Yes, you read that right. The massage is done on the inside of a person’s mouth. What happens is a trained therapist massages parts of the musculature to promote blood circulation and add oxygen to the skin. Evidently, it’s incredibly painful, but that hasn’t stopped celebrities like Angelina Jolie, Scarlett Johansson and Kate Moss from getting one.