As the dust settles after the rush of Black Friday and the Visa bills arrive, I was thinking about how easy it is to get our credit and our lives out of balance in our consumer culture . Bling and brands – when I began judging I was struck by how little influence fashion trends … Read more
What book influenced you as a young rider? It’s fun to ask this to my clinic participants. Black Beauty typically tops the list. But this classic is more influential than I thought – so I learned at this weekend’s Equine Industry Symposium at the U of Guelph. Written from the horse’s point of view, Sewell’s … Read more
Standard equipment in English disciplines. Training equipment in western. While nosebands are designed to prevent bit evasion, in the horse business, we’re inclined to think “If a little is good, more is better! Are we masking bit evasion without asking WHY the horse might be resisting? Who knows where the “two-finger rule” for fitting bridle … Read more
Here are 10 tips to spice up your schooling, if you need some inspiration to avoid the couch and get into the saddle in these darker evenings! – suggestions from equisearch.com. However, I omitted # 6,7 – I thought they were boring! Keep in mind that every time you ride, you are “training” your … Read more
I’ve learned so much about horses by watching them – particularly the countless ones I’ve watched revolve around me on the lunge line.(One at a time of course). I’ve learned to “read horse” by studying the subtleties of body language and facial expression, noting signs of stress, distraction and relaxation. Lunging has tuned my eye- … Read more