RELAXED AND FORWARD: Since 2010, an archive of weekly horse training essays. My dogs say it's their turn now. Happy to oblige, it's all affirmative. Including words from a gray mare on the fine art of aging cantankerously.
The Best Horse Conversations Start With “No”
Imagine that each time you climbed on your horse, he began to move in a slow canter, so rhythmic and...
Advice? Take a Deep Seat and a Faraway Look…
My young horse was lame, so my mentor asked if I'd like a lesson on her horse. It wasn't a...
Take a Cue from Your Horse
He was a bright young gelding. Alert, athletic, and so willing. One day he would become the kind of breathtaking...
Affirmative Training: A Cowboy Walks Into a Bar…
A cowboy walks into a bar. He's dusty, fresh from the barn. Shuffling his feet, keeping his eyes low, he...
Horses and the Pain We Can’t Stop.
The Grandfather Horse: Dirt Bath Interrupted. We've all done it. We look at that horse and...
Saying Yes to a Horse When You Mean No
Sometimes something someone says sticks with you because it's brilliant. Sometimes it sticks because it's plain wrong. I was working...
How Humans are Different from Horses
In the beginning, a filly is born. In the hospital, a baby girl human is born. The filly stands almost...
Calming Signals: How Do You Listen To a Horse?
What is your first memory of listening to a horse? Not standing next to a horse and being certain he...
Life Happens: The Unplanned Dismount
"I owned horses for 20 years until divorce happened," the reader said, asking me to write about it. "I think...
Whoa. A Hands-Free Halt.
She's an 18hh Thoroughbred-Shire cross. She's 30 years old and her name is Thyme. I'll give you a minute to...
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