Living with Horses is My Happy Place Where is my home?Every man needs a placeWith a little bit of space,A roof and four walls,For when the rain falls. – Forest Sun A friend of mine recently sold her two horses. She’d raised both from colts and worked hard to turn …
Give Your Horse a Happy Retirement “The closest thing to being cared for is to care for someone else.” – Carson McCullers May we speak for a moment about responsibility? I don’t want to sound like your mother…well, maybe I do. Here’s the thing—I regularly get phone calls, messages, or emails …
Listen to Your Horses to Learn What They Need Once upon a time there was a little girl who loved horses. She dreamed about becoming a famous trainer. She willed herself not to grow, because she wanted to be a jockey (and she was the shortest person in her family). …
Family or Friends with Big Hearts Can Fill this Role I recently judged a show in Chicago and noticed two competitors helping each other throughout the competition. One, a younger woman, was especially attentive to the other, older, woman. They called (read aloud) each other’s dressage tests, gave that last …
Be Sure Your Equines are Ready for Their Outings After two years of COVID, and a winter that felt like it was two years long, I’m itching to get out to some shows, trail rides, or clinics. Though I’ve been to horse shows wearing my judge’s hat and I regularly …
I’ll try not to rant. Unfortunately, I’m a worrier, and I’m worried about the horse business. We’re facing some serious difficulties. Many in the horse business are getting a bit long in the tooth—especially those who own and maintain the facilities where many equine activities happen. Boarding barns are closing …
Relationships are complicated. Whenever two beings come together both good and bad things can result—sometimes at the same time. Problems arise with horses (and people) when we think ownership allows us the right to change the essence of a horse to make him do or be whatever it is that …
Decades ago, before the advancement in veterinary care we now enjoy, horses over the age of 20 were considered very old and rarely ridden. They were “put out to pasture” and unfortunately often forgotten about. These days though, many horses in their 20s (and beyond) still live useful and productive …
When I first moved to the Pacific Northwest, I found the rapid descent into darkness in autumn quite depressing. I couldn’t believe how dark it was at 7:00 a.m. and then again at 5:00 p.m. The rain and grey skies didn’t help my mood much either. But over the decades …
I got pretty sick a few weeks ago. I just kept pushing myself, thinking my lack of energy and aching muscles were related to the fact that I’m getting older and the physical demands of caring for the farm had me a little run down. Then one morning I almost …
