P.Ann Turner's Blog (12)

Last weekend, our May long weekend here in Canada, some friends and I drove 6 hours up into the interior of BC. We rented a cabin for 6 and we took 3 horses. It was a place called The Hills in 108th Mile House. The altitude is 12,000 feet, the air is clear and the trees are not as big and lush as our famous "wet coast". I loved the serenity, no people, traffic noise or cell phone towers! I took my new horse Bandit, who has spent years on the Hunter/Jumper circuit, and he has never done much o

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Here is a topic that everyone can relate to, the dreadful habit of cribbing. And I have an aversion to cribbing collars that a lot of people use, as I have seen horses have swollen heads from them being adjusted too tight, and also there is risk of damage to the oesophagus. It can also create pressure in the bones of the neck, creating nerve pinches and even sometimes nerve damage. Horses can also get caught up in fences in them, and break their neck. So hence I never use them.

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Talking about the Good old Days, this one is really old! My Classical Equitation trainer Craig Stevens has been working with an Italian Nobleman called Pucci, who is bringing a centuries old method of training horses to the world from the island of Sicily. Sicily was a melting pot between the east and west, and has retained this method of developing trust with humans. It is done from the time the foal is weaned, and involves the gentlest touch and the lightest pressure you can imagine! You an

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You know I see and hear so many thoughtless comments about horses, the good old days need to return! So many people are missing so much because they are not being taught to care for their horse's emotional state and not just his body. Riders are so interested in what they can get out of their horse, but what about what they put into the horse?

Let me explain what I mean. Years ago as a young teenager I was taught by a marvelous lady called Pamela Goodwin, who was Irish, and who

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You know all my life I have owned chestnut geldings with attitude and grey mares who were like a mum to me! It's funny how we attract the horses into our lives that mirror the lessons we need to learn. For some reason, I always get horses no one else wants to deal with, usually because they are labelled "hot and dangerous" or "wild and crazy". In every case, I just saw a horse that was grossly misunderstood and treated inappropriately for their personality and history. They usually had a heal

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Well I took two of my 4 horses to a sleep over at another barn for some lessons in Classical work, and I was very proud of them. Stonee, my giant horse, is afraid of everything and very insecure, due to being kept in one barn for 8 years of his life and not really getting out. He was much better this time, the anxiety is lessening. And Indy, my 4 year old Appendix was an absolute star! She loaded well after having inspected the trailer, and travelled well. After the lessons she hung out with

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Wow, I cannot believe it, after nearly two years counting the writing, and editing, my first book is finally published! Here is the link to my storefront: http://stores.lulu.com/store.php?fAcctID=3875761. It's so exciting, I can hardly wait to start the next one! Thanks to everyone who encouraged me to write this, it has been fun and a very healing experience for me, back soon everyone! cheers, Ann. Continue

Two years ago I purchased a horse, my Oldenburg dressage horse, who is an upper level horse that has never done competition. He was a project for my trainer, who took him as payment for training another horse to Grand Prix. Stonee was diagnosed as having String halt, a knee jerk reaction in the hind legs when the patella catches on a ligament and it causes a jerking, shivering action with the leg, which the horse usually slams to the ground. Stonee had both hind legs like this, they would swing… Continue

For many years I never did what other people did. Whenever I was in barns people always came to watch me ride, I still haven't figured out why - maybe it was because I never fought with my horses. All my life I have ridden thoroughbreds off the racetrack, most of whom nobody else would take on as they were labelled "wild and crazy". Those wild and crazy horses taught me so much. I learned at a young age to listen to what the horse was trying to tell me - common sense. As a young girl I was taugh… Continue

I had such a great time today working with my 4 year old Appendix Indiana Jane. She is such a sweet horse, and so willing. They bring us such peace, and such honesty! I find my tolerance for dishonesty in people gets less as I age, I turn 51 this year, and it seems the older I get, the more years I spend with horses, the more I wish people could be more like them! They never hide their true nature and are always who they are, living in the moment, we learn such great life lessons from them. I ha… Continue

Hey this book sounds very interesting! where did you get it? cheers, Ann. Continue

I am a history buff, having studied European History in detail in high School in Jamaica. I am thinking about writing some articles about the men - and some women from the past who literally changed the course of riding and how it evolved to this day, and I mean dating back to Xenophon the Greek and forward! I am so fascinated by the people, their characters and how life was back then, for instance did you know that during the reign of Louis 14th in France, there were 5000 horses at the Royal Pa… Continue