A Warm Croup

Last Sunday I had a pretty good ride on Cider. Even though it was cooler Cider was not flinching as much.

When we drove up to Shannon's place her mom, Nancy, was getting Cider ready. I noticed that Nancy had put the Fenwick quarter sheet over Cider's croup, she said that she thought Cider might appreciate it…

So often it can be hard to tell what aspects of a horse they are born with an which ones they have developed from the handling they have received over time.

Righteous is one of those horses.

He came with a whole list of behavioral issues and phobias. Luckily for him he landed with one of the few people willing to put the time in to help him. Explosive and overly sensitive, getting him closer to being a ride-able horse who could be handled on the ground has been a long journey.…

It’s with a heavy heart that I am writing this. I’m concerned I’m going to have to put my boy into retirement. What do you do if you have a 20-year-old horse that you love to death and he can’t perform anymore? There is no answer but one. You keep him. But what if you want to still compete? How does one afford two horses? I need help! Here is Henry and his ice boots for the third month in a row hoping he will be better soon.…

I Return to What Worked Before

I only got to ride once last week, sniff.

Since Cider was so upset over the last Weymouth I tried with her, I decided it would be best for both of us to go back to what definitely worked before. The time for experimentation is over, Cider did best with the former combination of the 125mm Fager…

This is the only high whorl that shows an introverted temperament.

This is also the hardest whorl for me to recognize. In fact it’s lack of definition and ease of recognition is one of the hallmarks of the whorl. It is usually a bit muddied with faint ghost whorls and feathering weaving between the two whorls.

It is the hardest whorl for me personally to work with. There are no bad whorls, just different ways horses need handled. This one needs handled with extreme care and…