Do You Need to Keep Your Horse Calm?
I can't be the only woman of a certain age whose parents thought she needed to be muffled indefinitely. They...
“Why Don’t You Post Training Videos?”
Photo by Ilona Gerou It was at the dark ages of VHS, long before the...
Leading Horses with Spatial Kindness. What?
The exercise was to halter your horse thoughtfully, asking the horse's permission for each step of the process, and acknowledging...
When Impatience and Cruelty are Normalized
Sometimes I find myself standing in front of people talking about horses' feelings. I'm almost embarrassed; I was raised to...
How to Stop Taking Your Horse Personally
Bhim is a one-of-a-kind, I surely hope. People might say he's still with me ten years after he came for...
Being the “Good” Horse Isn’t Easy.
People want to tell me about their challenging horse, the quirky one, the scary one, the kill pen (scam) horse....
Calming Signals: Thoughts About Spooking at Nothing
There are two kinds of spooking. This is the first: It was midmorning on the ranch, and we were riding...
Reverse Anthropormophism: Building A Better Relationship
Do you ever go to the barn and pretend to be a cowboy? You'd wear the shirt that matched your...
Calming Signals: What Normal Looks Like
Do you ever think about what horses give up in living with us? Humans have a way of always seeing...
Horses Are Like Bad Boyfriends (Or Why the Wrong Answer Might Be Better)
Horses are like bad boyfriends because they only want to talk about themselves. Wait, let me explain. First of all,...
Is Your Horse Mentally Exhausted?
No other animal is quite like a horse; never fully wild and never quite domesticated. Engaged with us but never...
On The Road for Horses: Adventure, Drama, Dog Hair.
Aftermarket radar. I hope you didn't worry I'd get lost. I installed radar and didn't...
The Failure of Good Intentions
There was a time that I thought if I saw my horse curled to one side, itching his flank, I...
Euthanizing and Herd Anxiety
"I’m wondering if you could address animals and grief in one of your columns. We’ve lost a horse and a...
Why “Ride ’em Through It” Is a Bad Idea
"Sure, your horse is tossing his head and wringing his tail, but you push him on. More leg. Ride 'em...
A Training Question About Hurrying Horses …and a Grass Fire
I see people in the grocery store thoughtfully reading labels and pondering choices. The Dude Rancher and I look like...
“Why is Everything With Horses So Hard?”
"Can Competition Horses be Trained Affirmatively?" she asked. I know why she asks. This rider has been trained to think...
Affirmative Training: Response Time and a Hail Mary Pass
My client and I were having an online meeting. We'd been working on a systematic process of getting her and...
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