Relaxed & Forward Blog

Cleaning Out the Toolbox

If it weren't for manure frozen into the ice, we'd have no traction at all and it's only the eleventh...
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Calming Signals: Repeat after me, “Not that I care…”

Because they're doing construction down the road. His previous owner says he once spooked at a llama. The wind is...
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The Thing About Dimensionally Succinct Horses

I've written "The Thing About" essays on Mares, Geldings, and Donkeys to dispel untrue myths and sing their praises. These...
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An Invitation to a Clinic in Your Home

I have a problem. I'm a clinician who loves her job and at the same time, wonders if there are...
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Loafing in Limbo: Hibernation as a Training Aid

We are in Limbo. It's that week between Christmas and New Year when nobody knows what day it is. Not...
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Silent Night: The Truest Words Aren’t Words At All.

I was standing outside of a hotel at five in the morning waiting for my limo. Obviously, several things had...
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Things We Should Refuse to Train Horses To Do

Warning: Loudmouth Party Pooper Rant. I think we all know whose side I'm on in this horse training reality show....
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Nebulous Lameness. Nebulous Anxiety. And a List.

Your inner monster screams, "Just Kick Him!" but you don't. You aren't that person. You don't use spurs or whips....
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You Know I’m a Small Business, Right?

Do you like the writing I share? It's free, and it always will be. That's my gift to horses, hopefully....
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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...
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“Why Don’t You Post Training Videos?”

Photo by Ilona Gerou   It was at the dark ages of VHS, long before the...
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Helmet Safety and the Ability to Buy Hay

If my horses could see the big picture, they'd still say my job is hay. They have not read one...
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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...
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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...
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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...
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The Season of Letting Go

The autumnal equinox is about change. There's a miserable fog today, dense and so uncommon on my high prairie. Chilly...
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How to Attend a Clinic

Gray Mare memories: It was one of the first clinics I ever attended. The clinician was famous; I signed up...
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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....
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