What Does it Mean to be Domesticated?
If you have been reading along for the last 1300 or so weekly essays of mine, you know sometimes I...
Auld Lang Syne Horses
I've heard it a couple of times just today: "As we head into the third year of Covid..." It makes...
Relaxed & Forward in 2022. Now What?
The lockdown at the beginning of 2020, followed by months of quarantine, was a wonderful opportunity for a thoughtful assessment...
Why Don’t You Ride?
"Why don't you ride?" It's the question we dread. Sometimes the people who ask are neophytes who don't understand that...
A Book Report and What We Know Now.
A bit of explanation: I grew up on a farm without a bookshelf. We were not readers. Once we finally...
The Problem with Pre-Corrections on Horses.
She enters the barn, looking left to right. What does she think her horse might be afraid of? First, let's...
Is She Still Going On About Helmets?
Riding Habit 1801 Yes. I've been writing in support of helmet use since the start. I...
The Dynamic Power of Consistency
We would like consistent behavior from our horses. It would be good if they took each cue with light and...
For the Fragility of a Horse…
"When we see horses galloping with ears sharp, tails flagged, and hooves churning up the soil, they are the epitome...
Beyond Legal Whiskers
The International Federation for Equestrian Sports unanimously banned horse whisker trimming, effective 1 July 2021. Horses snort and rub their...
Affirmative Training: Misunderstandings About Control
You have made some changes in how you work with your horse and you're both much more relaxed. You've evolved...
Calming Signals and Feculence
I'm responding to a request to write a few words about poop. "BM, defecation, excrement, fecal matter, the deuce, sh*t,...
Calming Signals: Planning for Stress
Calming signals are an animal's emotional response to their environment, expressed in body language, sometimes in increasing anxiety moving toward...
Why Horses Don’t Multi-task
Imagine what it means to have senses as keen as a prey animal. Feel the roar of nature even on...
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...
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...
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...
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