Long Dark Night of the Soul: Colic
Andante's nickering. I've pulled the hay out of his run and swept the mats. He has a baritone voice, a...
Why Training Techniques Don’t Work
It's Sunday night and the clinic has ended, but there might be a horse or two that can't seem...
Photo & Poem: Words
“You’re not wearing that, are you?” Voicing her anxiety first, was my blouse revealing something more than unconventional taste? Welcoming...
Deconstructing Fear with Affirmative Training
Something is off with your horse, but you can't tell what. You might be leading him or you might...
Edgar Rice Burro on Covid-19 and Physical Distancing (on World Donkey Day)
Does Covid-19 impact my herd? The email asked, "I wonder if you've noticed the quieter world in your horses?...
It Could Be Worse. You Could Be Married to Me.
"Honey, when you're in town will you pick something up for me?" I don't quite wait for the answer. "Great,...
Photo & Poem: Aged-Out
Aged-out with his horse, he said, like a sell-by date in the grocery store. We all stop riding, just a...
How to Be a Safe Anchor for Your Horse
For us long-timers, if we've been lucky, it feels like we're always standing in a ghost herd. They're good company...
A Calming Signal Way of Being
I have to credit a decent mid-life crisis for changing the course of my horse life. Not that I...
Affirmative Training and Trust During an Emergency
You started with horses the same way most of us were taught. You tried to show them who's boss,...
Horses and Common Sense.
Not long after I moved to the farm, a friend brought her two young kids out. We all walked the...
Photo & Poem: Soundness
Centering myself behind the horse as he walks away, bent forward with my hands on my knees, staring his hips...
Training Advice for Horses in the Spring
Photo & Poem: Body Voice
One horse flicks his ear, still grazing, another pauses his jaw, his tail still amid flies. The mare lifts her...
Horsewoman, A Computer Can Smell Your Fear…
We are horsewomen. We muck 13,505 pounds of manure a year... per horse, and you know we don't own...
Let Perfection Go. Try Consistency.
Here is a shortlist of the things horses don't understand: Sarcasm. Exploitation. Shaming. Guilt. Drama. These are human behaviors that...
Photo & Poem: Two Women
I had the window seat on an early morning flight to Tucson. In the row ahead were two women. I...
Riding a Princely Trot
Is your horse uncomfortable in the trot? He might toss his head or maybe his strides are short and choppy....
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