Friday May 13 2011 Had my first fall off of Cooper today, rider error. It was pouring rain as we rode in the indoor arena. A black cat ran by, I don't know if there was another noise, it all happened so fast.

I was trying to do shoulder over at 9 o'clock position and pulled too hard at the same time that he spooked. He went one way, I went the other way off his right side. I held onto the reins too, green rider thing, and almost pulled him right down on top of me by doing so.

I…

Going to another Lyons Symposium, this time with John on April 15-17 2011. I saw Josh last year at Five Star Ranch.

I have also signed up for a Lyons certified instructor riders clinic with Cooper on April 22-24 2011, I just hope my rotator injury is better by then!!

I moved Cooper April 1 2011 to the barn where I will be taking the riders clinic, now I will be right there to get help with him.

I rode Cooper April 7 after over 3 1/2 months of not riding him because of an…

I finally got the reins fixed on my Spirit bridle so I could use them without getting distracted.  Since Debbie is off showing at the NC State Fair this week I did not get a lesson, I could not even go out on Wednesday to ride since everybody was leaving early, right when I ride.  So Friday I cheerfully got out to the stable, my son was with me so he could do most of the work!  I got to trim Mia's hooves and for once she was not too kicky with her hind…

Is it just me -or is a big part of the work-a-day horse world seized up in a flop sweat about money? Stress and worry seem to hang in the air. Horse sales are down. Hay production is…

I have just watch the documentary on Buck Brannaman and will be writing a full review shortly.   In the meantime, I came across an article that included these these five tips that are well worth considering for every rider.

1. Don’t intimidate.  You may temporarily intimidate a horse into good performance, but intimidation ultimately leads to fear, which is paralyzing.

2. Loosen the reins.

3.…

Although I have broached this subject superficially in a past blog, I would like to address the last two key points in more detail, as they are important in determining the proper saddle fit especially for women – which is 85% of Schleese’s market – and makes us the only female saddle specialist in the world!

Watch this month's informative video. One of…

Nothing like the horses...

So, we clipped, full body clip, mind you, the big old girl.  She's 16.2hh of half clyde, so this was rather a large job.  She's 24, and we have blood work being done for Cushings.  She looks 5 years younger and shiny as the baby.  She was a bit resistant on Friday, so I had the brain fart to change her bit.  She's had the same bit for the last decade, so it might be time.  Specifically, as horses age, their incisors tend to slant more forward, which…

Since I finally found a tack repair guy willing to make the reins of my Spirit bridle shorter I could not use my Spirit bridle this week.  Deprived of my new tack I sat looking at all my other bitless options and I remembered the sort of dead feeling contact with them.  I decided to see if I was right with my hypothesis that the feel of the Spirit bridle was so much like that of a bit that I would have no problems switching back to a bit.  So I sat…

There is so much debate currently about methods of training: German vs. French, classical vs. competitive, natural horsemanship vs. anything with an English saddle. It can get adversarial.

Most people agree that finesse is better than force in horse training, but we seem to have a hard time agreeing upon a definition of what those words actually look like in technique. That…

I think a huge part of being a good rider is knowing when to ask for help... and being able to make informed decisions without necessarily following the flock...

I've been riding for over 15 years. I wouldn't call myself a professional, there's been the odd time I've accepted money for lessons or for a training ride or two, but horses are not my main occupation by any means. That being said, I would say my knowledge on the topic is comparable to an individual with a level one…

http://www.stonegatefarm.ca

Henk writes:

I've been working in therapeutic riding lessons for the past couple of weeks because Sunny, the tiny Standardbred with the delicate physique has hurt himself again. His owner (who lends him to my human, Lil, for lessons), calls it Recurring Sunny Summer Lameness (RSSL), because he likes to maim himself each summer and spend at…

It seems every time I look in these days, I see things that make me sick and/or sad. 

Jockey stomps horse

Horse slaughter (which has to be discussed, but oy, there's no good solution)

Neglected horse

MORE neglected horses

Abused horses

Horses die in bee attack

Hendra virus

EHV-1

and other places:

Lost penguin in New Zealand

Owner hangs pit bull after it bites a kid

Tongues.... blue tongues, bleeding tongues,…

When looking at a horse you're considering buying, keep the following in mind in terms of the purpose/discipline for which you are purchasing it

• Soundness
• Any blemishes
• Movement
• Conformation
• Manners
• Health (history and current)
• Training and show history
• Size (and is it full grown?)
• Quality/flash - is the horse eye catching? will it stand out in the show ring?
• Pedigree (if considering…

I recently read an article explaining the concepts of Equine Facilitated Learning, a discovery/recovery program for people using horses as the teachers. The authors praised the program’s ability to enable self discovery and personal…

     Hi everyone, sorry it’s been so long since my last post. You see, I had some unwanted drama in my life this past month and I’ll share the details with you soon, but first I wanted to share this short video of Chance and I. We were filmed a few weeks ago for the “Story Tellers” segment on the AZ Central website. You can find the finished product here:…