Time, or the lack thereof, is often the number one thing that keeps riders from training their own horses. And while time is an essential part of the puzzle in order to develop and grow your horse successfully, often we overestimate how much of it we actually need. In fact, one of the reasons riders often don’t have enough time…
I am all for intentional, relaxing hacks with your horse. And I also think that it’s worth remembering that not all hacks have to be for ‘doing nothing’. In fact, there are some things that may actually happen more easily when out of the arena. Working contact is, for some riders and horses, one of those things. We are always…
It can be frustrating when you know exactly what you want to achieve when training or retraining your horse, but it seems to be taking ‘forever’! It seems that no matter how much you explain your horse, he’s not ‘getting it’. Training or retraining your horse is something that takes time. And, sometimes, it is our own impatience or actions…
Do you have days where, after you get home, sit down, and think over the day’s events, you think to yourself “Why did I react like that?!”? I know I do, even now. I find that if I allow my emotions to run things, the chances of everything turning out exactly as I would have two chances. Slim and none! …
There are some things that many of us simply accept in life. Rainy days. Horsehair is everywhere in Spring. The rhythm in the canter. And yet, while we cannot change the weather (okay, debatable) and we definitely cannot get around the necessary loss of the winter coat… The Rhythm in the canter is definitely something we can have a more…
It can seem like a strange topic for many OTTB riders and owners. One that, initially, may not seem all that important. And yet, for many OTTBs, the lack of boundaries is the number one frustration. And, it is something that can eventually undermine the whole relationship between horse and rider. Setting boundaries requires that both you and your horse…