Horse Sense and Cents

Sneak Peak excerpt from Turning Challenging Horses into Willing Partners. Due for public release in 2010.

Red

Red came to us after having been “broke” by a girl who had little experience and less heart. She gave up after this four-year-old filly began flipping immediately following her hopping in the saddle. Apparently this went on for awhile, and this steed learned she could immediately and successfully end the lesson

with this strategy.

We spent some time on the ground with Red, as it was apparent she needed some preliminary guidance that had been skipped. We also wanted to establish communication benchmarks. She was actually responsive and compliant when we proceeded to under-saddle lessons in the round pen. Once we moved out of the confines and routine of this space, however, the flipping penchant resurfaced. In this case, we were able to step off as she went past perpendicular and hop back into the saddle while she was still on the ground, staying with her as she returned to her feet. That was the last time she flipped.

We had another week or so of good progress with this filly before her behavior deteriorated, and this time, she decided to lay down after we stirruped up. She was flat out on the ground and wouldn’t move. We sat on her neck (this is usually referred to as sitting on their heads, but that’s not really where you want to put your weight – horses cannot get up without their head and neck to use for momentum and the back of the neck is the safest place to be for both you and your horse) to immobilize her with a strategy designed to discourage this behavior in the future.

Horses tend to panic when they can’t get up and trapping an intentional flipper immediately generally teaches these horses to never go there again. She didn’t care. Red lay there, on the ground, perfectly content being stuck. This was a first. There was something really wrong with this filly. We didn’t have

enough information to determine if there was some major underlying physical problem that was causing this behavior (she traveled sound and seemed to be unencumbered by pain, but we didn’t dig too deep) or if she just had a major screw loose.

Either way, this was one of the few we quickly determined was best to toss back. We called the owners and admitted defeat.

They decided to forgo any future starting attempts and bred her instead. We’ll let someone else tackle that progeny beauty when it’s time to start riding lessons.

There’s been a recent barrage of messages lately through blogs, online forums, DVDs and other platforms that lambaste those who use tactics that ignore the horse’s needs. Of course, most of these directives are worded in a techie fashion that excludes the neediest novices from the conversation. It’s also interesting that some of the more vocal horse advocates are rude to the people who chime in with limited understanding and questions in an effort to learn. It kind of makes you wonder how they really handle a confused or green horse when no one is looking (and sometimes, even when they have an audience). When it comes to horses, though, anyone who professes a single right answer to a challenge may benefit from some basic observation and the associated horse sense it generates – provided they’re open to learning.

What’s a horse novice to do?

That’s the beauty of the uninitiated equine enthusiast – and the danger. They’re sponges for knowledge and easily influenced by messages that seem to offer easy answers, but may be designed with a profit motive in mind that doesn’t serve either the horse or handler. It’s sad that some who may have the knowledge and the willingness to share what they’ve learned over decades of kind approaches to horse interaction make their words so esoteric, the most eager learners flee feeling too ignorant to grasp the ideas being offered or fearful of being judged  if they join the conversation. Those who really want to help the horse should consider how their buzz words and platforms designed to impress their peers alienate those they claim to want to help.

Let horses teach you

Horses are great at communicating – if you know how to listen. It’s hard for anyone who hasn’t had a good deal of experience with a variety of horses to be able to read what a horse is trying to tell you. Often, it’s equally hard for someone who’s learned to reach horses in a subliminal fashion to express to others how they do it. Sometimes, it seems those who hide behind words and concepts too abstract for the most basic learners to understand do so intentionally to hide their failings.

Draw from the experience of those willing to speak your language

So, how can the novice begin to learn how to structure a plan to consider the horse? Spend time watching your horse and seeing how he reacts to what you do. Mix it up and carefully observe what he responds to with eager enthusiasm. Try to find people you trust who speak to you in terms that are clear with an approach that is flexible and responsive to your horse’s learning and performance preferences. Seek out those who are able to express ideas in simple terms, and willing to demonstrate, graphically, how certain actions influence the horse’s behavior. Ask people who are getting good results and building great relationships with their horses how they did it – and see if you can observe them in action. Use your head on what seems right and fair and where tactics designed to create a compliant horse may not make a happy horse.

The truly successful are humble

Some of the most successful human leaders in the world are humble, accessible and able to speak to anyone of any status or education as a respected and appreciated peer in a language that is easy for them to process and implement. The same holds true for those working with horses in a stand-out fashion. Those who use communications to dominate, impress, posture, separate and/or put others in a place below their status are suspect – both when it comes to human and horse communications. Learning should be fun for all involved and those who can make it easy for both the horse and human to understand, implement and embrace are special.  Sometimes they lurk in the most unexpected places. Finding someone with truly selfless motives where both you and your horse are concerned (and some of these people may charge for their knowledge – but it’s clear early on that it’s not about profit, but satisfaction in improving the experience for both you and your horse) is a joy. If you haven’t discovered such a resource yet, keep looking. They’re out there.

Overwhelmed and cagey

Rosie spent two days at the racetrack after being “broke” at a

distant farm. She wheeled about thirty times in a single trip

jogging around a half-mile training track, terrified of oncoming

traffic and the scene that presented itself to this unprepared,

frenzied baby. At Thoroughbred racetracks, generally jogging

(or trotting) horses travel on the outside rail moving to the

left; galloping horses and those moving at a faster pace track

right toward the inside rail. On day two, in a half-mile gallop

(we tried a different approach to the oncoming traffic concern

and started tracking right), she slammed into the rail at least a

dozen times and ran at full speed in a panic — sans steering or

brakes — not seeing, hearing, or feeling anything in her path of

sheer, all-out, running terror.

She was trucked to Halcyon Acres that week for some reprogramming

authorized by a trainer in a huge hurry to get her

back. He failed to recognize the increased challenges associated

with retooling a horse that had been poorly started. Still,

we were determined to help this filly cope with what would be

ahead of her. Of course, the idea of the imminent broken human

body parts that would result if she wasn’t removed from

the track for a more controlled turning process was a factor.

Since time was of the essence, we started her in the round pen

the day she was trucked in. It’s preferable to give young horses

time to settle into a routine prior to tackling performance challenges,

but, sometimes, you make less than ideal choices with

the horse’s ultimate welfare in mind. We began with a brief lesson

in responding to body language and voice commands that

set the tone for future success with a quick reward for responding

to easy requests. She understood.

Day two was a lengthy session, as was the case for the term

of her stay, struggling to encourage a filly who had apparently

no good ground-handling experience to perform simple tasks

like picking up her feet and accepting basic grooming. First, we

spent more than an hour each day in the stall, tackling activities

that most yearlings are prepared to easily tolerate. This was

a filly that was expected to perform on cue with a rider atop at

the track! No wonder she was unresponsive, as terror set in, to

requests she was woefully unprepared for.

We proceeded to the round pen and then the trails for under saddle

activities with Gatsby (our canine assistant trainer) as a

constant companion and teacher. Generally, it’s best to implement

short sessions, quitting as soon as a win is achieved, but

we had twelve days to get this filly ready to go back to a track

with a trainer who wasn’t likely to permit patient daily regimens.

Plus, Rosie wasn’t very cooperative and it often took more

than an hour to achieve a proper response to a single request.

The trails were tough at first as Rosie had little confidence in

her mount and seemed to have no confidence in herself. Gatsby

helped lead the way through troubling areas and trotted at her

heels the rest of the time, getting her accustomed to traffic and

noise behind her . . .

Chapter Three

Working with scared horses

Horses who have learned to view human contact with terror are relatively easy to reach with a patient, consistent, and confident approach. It takes time, but teaching these over-reactive mounts to calm down and gain courage is certainly doable if the handler offers assurance through kind, safe, and steady guidance. The biggest issue with these horses is not the initial concern, but the escalated craziness that occurs as they anticipate the punishment for their fear. The best course of action when they blow, and then really blow, is to do nothing. Merely wait out the ordeal with a steady, patient, but insistent attitude that makes it clear you are not going to attack them for their fear but will not proceed until the tantrum ends. Generally, a willing attitude to proceed calmly and quietly ensues. Initial work off their backs is key for these characters, as you won’t gain their trust while mounted until after you have been able to convince them that they need not explode when handled from the ground. Be careful and watchful, though, because you can easily be caught in a bad and dangerous position if you aren’t ready for, and mindful of, their likely next move. Once you learn to read your horse, predicting his or her blow becomes relatively easy, albeit not foolproof.

Instilling soundness of mind and body

Nette needed some reprogramming. She had been broke, but arrived at the track as a nervous, erratic filly that had no self-confidence and little trust in riders or handlers. Her reactive behavior was likely a large contributor to some subsequent soundness issues that had her on respite by the summer of her two-year-old year. Bloodlines were considered a huge contributing factor, as the stud was known for producing crazies. She arrived at Halcyon Acres that winter.

Groundwork was critical in the beginning to reshape this filly’s thinking and reaction to stressful situations. We spent a lot of time during her stay at the farm working on simple tasks in the stall with ample grooming and quiet contact that helped her learn to trust her human handlers. It was important to reassure this wary filly with calm and pleasant interactions with people. Making attention a welcomed treat versus a frightening experience was an easy initial and ongoing exercise for us and critical to Nette’s continued progress. Each day, a good half hour of time was devoted to currying, brushing, combing her mane and tail, picking feet, and getting Nette used to being tied to the wall (a black rubber tie with double-ended snaps is generally best for this as it stretches quite a bit and will break when the situation gets dangerous) for happy handling in the stall. Seemingly simple tasks such as grooming, leading to and from the paddocks, and merely getting her into the routine of the facility were not so easy for Nette. She overreacted to everything and expected harm with each new experience. It was important to address Nette’s anxiety with quiet and nonreactive time to prepare her for effective under-saddle work.

The second day Nette was at the farm, she spent a full twenty minutes rearing, nonstop, while being led home from the pasture. This was five feet from the barn entry door after calmly handling the trek from the paddock. We don’t know what set her off, but it doesn’t really matter. Ghosts, or imagined horrors only the horse can see from his mind’s eye, are as prevalent in panic attacks as reasonable issues with these scared characters. Nette must have gotten perpendicular to the ground at least thirty times during this tantrum. Initially, she tried bolting toward the door each time her front feet touched the ground. She was eager to join the other horses, but quickly became consumed with terror over what would beset her after her instinctive move.

We stood our ground, but otherwise did nothing. Finally, she calmed down and willingly and quietly walked into the barn. That was the last time this leading issue surfaced. It was amazing to see this filly begin to transform after this single incident. Once Nette realized her reflexive, excited move wasn’t going to prompt a beating, her fear subsided, she settled down, and she was willing to ponder a new paradigm.

Several factors were critical in making this incident so landmark for Nette. It was important that her fear was not reinforced with the aggressive reaction to rearing she was expecting. Doing so would have confirmed her expectations and reinforced the reactive, escalated behavior. Equally significant was the handler’s ability to weather this tantrum with a quiet, fearless, patient, and steady response. Scared horses have a keen sense for when the people working with them are afraid and respond in kind with intensified reactions. In addition, it was critical to keep a hold of this filly without injury to either horse or handler. We always work with long lead ropes that are either leather or cotton to give ample room to deal with explosive situations and reduce the likelihood of a tendon injury or burn if the horse gets tangled in the line. When dealing with scared horses in particular, it is imperative to stay with them – whether on the ground or their backs. These equines rarely want to go it alone and tend to get more anxious when they’re solo. They often run blind when released and can easily get hurt crashing through obstacles or running onto unsafe ground. Ensuring you maintain your contact with them (in a kind way) helps them calm down and gain confidence. With other types of horses, such as alphas or mean horses, a release would indicate a reward for their bad behavior. This is rarely the case, though, with scared horses, even though most have endured cruel or ignorant human handling.

Nette’s behavior and demeanor as she walked off the trailer led us to suspect she was taught to be reactive, but this incident underscored the fact that her fear was, at least in part, learned, as she became more explosive after her initial outburst. This type of heightened response to a misstep is a key clue in determining when you are working with a scared horse.

We didn’t even hop on Nette’s back for two full weeks, instead opting for early handling and grooming lessons supplemented by training activities in the round pen. While we try to get out of the round pen as quickly as possible with a horse, we do find this space a great tool for horses that have had a communication breakdown with the people they’ve encountered. Nette was no exception. The circular nature of the space and required close proximity of the handler to the horse provides a useful environment to establish a connection. Body language is the first step to drive, encourage, or stop the horse. Putting yourself behind the horse’s center drives them forward. Moving your body toward their shoulder or in front of their head (while in the center of the arena) should slow, stop, or turn them around. If you want them to accept your approach as nonthreatening, turn your back to them (this helps with persuading them to stop, too). . . .

If you have a thirst for knowledge, horses will teach you a lot. So can equine professionals (and a good number of horsemen who may not be professionals) who get the learning process never ends. Interestingly, it’s usually not the celebrated achievers and gurus who can teach you the most. Sure, they’ve done amazing things and are held in esteem for accomplishments most of us only dream of, but teaching requires its own skills, takes time and doesn’t work very well with formula approaches. Sometimes you’ll find the most lasting lessons come from the strangest places – including people and horses with messages you may miss if you’re not open and attentive.

If you work with young or challenging horses on a regular basis, and learn to really listen, they’ll teach you more than you can imagine. A seemingly difficult and talentless horse can morph into a star with just a little bit of responsive guidance. Others will show you something you had never considered that winds up being a lasting aid with horses you encounter for decades to come. Some will school you hard and fast or fall short of their potential if you don’t hear them or try to force them to comply with your regimen. Conversely, those who are understood and encouraged to trust and respect a handler or rider will strive to shine and exceed expectations. Bloodlines and talent aside, none of this will come to you through arrogance, but instead, is only available to those willing to don a bit of humility.

Good trainers/instructors also learn from their horse and human students. The best instructors/trainers are open to new ideas, willing to listen to both horse and rider/owner, invigorated by opportunities that provide a new approach to success and enthusiastic about improving their knowledge and arsenal. Similarly, you’ll grow much more as a student if you leave your ego (or studies – a quick way to really piss off an instructor or trainer and lessen the value of your or your horse’s lesson is to call them wrong because their methods do not conform with the formula teachings of the latest book you read or video you watched) at the door and focus on what’s being presented to you.

As to the difference between trainers and instructors, most assert that training pertains to the horse and instruction relates to the rider. How can you separate the two? An effective trainer needs to understand what demands will be placed on the horse and be able to impart knowledge to the rider specific to the horse under tutelage. Solid instructors need to be able to work with the horse to help the rider communicate in ways that are easiest for the particular mount to understand – and be able to know how to adjust the lesson if something’s not working. How about accepting that being an effective equine coach (whether your primary focus is on horse or rider) requires an ability to understand the needs of both the horse and the rider and leaving the turf wars at the door?

Smart students (and teachers) are modest enough to always be looking for an opportunity to learn from the horses they see and the people they meet.

Einstein was working on a unified field theory to put the entire universe into a mathematical equation when he was about 50 years old. He refused to talk to all reporters, sans one from The New York Times. Carr Van Anda, the editor, had found an error in one of Einstein’s equations. Instead of being offended, he was impressed and welcomed the opportunity to be proven wrong.* Could you? Every horse and human student can teach us something new if we are willing to leave our egos behind and welcome new ideas and approaches – no matter how green the source.

Thomas Edison built 1,000 prototypes for the light bulb that didn’t work. A reporter asked Edison how it felt to fail 1,000 times. Edison replied, “You misunderstand. I did not fail 1,000 times. I successfully found 1,000 ways that the light bulb would not work.” Attempt 1001 resulted in the light bulb we still use today. Edison, like Einstein, did not view failure as bad, but instead as a good way to learn and grow.*

Those who resort to bravado with horse handling, training, riding or instruction usually don’t know what they don’t know. The wise are humble and eager to learn from new insights and the experiences of others. The best in their field stand on the shoulders of giants, meaning, they gather their knowledge from others who have travelled the road before them artfully and successfully. If your teacher asserts only one right approach, or you have been guilty of close-mindedness when presented with learning opportunities, reconsider if that’s working for you. Better yet, realize how much this might be costing you if your goal is to grow as an astute equestrian thinker.

*Source: Ron White’s Ezine 11/25/02209 – subscribe at http://tinyurl.com/Memory-Master-Horse-Sense

Excerpt from Turning Challenging Horses into Willing Partners due for release winter, 2010

Table of Contents

Glossary

Section I: Starting from a position of knowledge

Chapter 1: The Challenge

Chapter 2: Identifying the root of the challenge

Section II: Developing a work plan

Chapter 3: Working with scared horses

Chapter 4: Turning mean to green

Chapter 5: An A for effort comes with Alphas

Chapter 6: Encouraging a timid equine

Chapter 7: Turning a sour mount

Chapter 8: Sometimes they’re just plain crazy

Chapter 9: Correcting coordination and other issues

Section III: Tips from the professional trenches

Chapter 10: Kels Bonham; Junior rider

Chapter 11: Denny Emerson; Olympic eventer

Chapter 12: Jutta Heinsohn; Bereiter, F.N., FEI dressage trainer and competitor

Chapter 13: Dennis Auslam; Western riding and training professional

Chapter 14: Claire Hunter; Hunter/jumper trainer

Chapter 15: John Newborough; Classic horse trainer and judge

Chapter 16: Kathy O’Neal; Lesson and training stable owner

Chapter 17: Mike Bonham; Grand Prix Jumper trainer

Chapter 18: Robert Fera; Professional stallion handler

Chapter 19: Fleur Bryan; British Horse Society certified instructor

Section IV: Getting Practical

Chapter 20: Sense

Chapter 21: Cents

Chapter 22: The rewards

Index

Excerpt featuring John Newborough from Turning Challenging Horses into Willing Partners due for release January, 2010

A bone breaker
Most who have worked professionally with challenging horses have a story to tell about a charge to fix a horse that has hurt someone else who tried.
“A man asked me, would I break a horse for him. He was a very good man. We hunted together. He bred a lot of horses, and I thought, why would he want me to do it? We were very much younger then. We were in our forties. We were quite busy, and I said, ‘I really can’t.’
“The postman used to sit with us and have a cup of coffee on his rounds. He asked if we were breaking any horses and told us that he delivered mail to a lady that specializes in difficult horses. About a week later, he said the lady had an accident. The man who asked me to have the horse said ‘John, I’m in trouble. I sent him away, and he broke the lady’s arm.’ He offered to pay any dowry for me to take the horse. I rang the woman; and she said she was long reining him, and he ran backward and broke her forearm.
“I had a gal working at the farm do the groundwork. He was a pig of a horse. All of his life he’d got away with a lot of things. He’d get topside of the people. If he took exception to things, he would strike and come straight at you rolling like a bull.
“My wife has been riding all her life, and when she started working with him, if he came striking at her or attacking, she’d give him smack on the nose with a longeing whip, and away he’d go. We drove him miles and miles. We did have a few battles, and sometimes he got away. We’d work with him two or three times a day. We got him used to a roll, and he wasn’t too bad with tack. But, he was pretty talented with his heels and would kick like a mule.
“We had one space in a cattle shed with a lot of cattle. It was what we call in this country a cubical house. He was in one stall in a row of seventy-two cattle stalls in this shed. He had the cattle moving constantly around him. He was tied in this stall with a hay net. Every morning, I took the cattle dung out with a tractor and back-mounted scraper. Initially, he would kick at the tractor as I scraped muck out behind him, but he just became used to everything. As I went down with the scraper he’d respond with a bang! bang! I’d hear him kicking every time with the scraper. He became accustomed to it, because he eventually learned we weren’t going to hurt him.
“I had tin with pebbles and a sack full of straw on a rope which hung down from the roof, so he got used to something constantly touching him. As he touched it, it would swing, and ultimately, he came to perfectly accept it. I’d stand up on the stall partitions and lean over him several times a day and rap him with the sack to get him used to it and ready for later lessons.
“We’d probably be about eight weeks with him, but when it came to riding him, he was a Christian. What I put it down to was patience and a lot of hard work.”

About John Newborough
Horses have been a big part of John’s (and his wife Gina’s) life in England, from hunting when he was younger to breeding and a lot of judging now. While the types of horses have varied from Thoroughbreds to Welsh Cobs, ponies, cart, and draft horses, their farm focuses on breeding sport horses now.
011 44 -1526 397153

Training Horses with Denny Emerson

Excerpt from Turning Challenging Horses into Willing Partners due for release January, 2010

Maturity provides insight

“I think this is something that comes with getting older,” Denny admits. “There are two ways of addressing ‘my horse won’t do what I want.’ The mature, quiet, classical horseman will say, ‘this horse won’t do what I want, therefore, I am not asking him in a way he understands, or I’m overfacing him with tasks he’s not emotionally prepared to handle.’ But, the impatient person will say, ‘this horse won’t do what I want, therefore, the horse is being bad and I have permission to get on his case and punish him.’ I am now 67 years old, and I need to figure out a quieter or more consistent way to ask him. If you could get the younger ones (riders) to have that more mature attitude toward the training principles, I think you’d have a lot less trouble with horses. If it doesn’t happen in a week, or two weeks, or three months, then that’s OK. But you don’t start to ratchet up the intensity just because it isn’t happening fast enough.

“One of the things that I really do believe is that there can be a very significant difference between someone who is primarily a competitor and someone who is primarily a trainer. Let’s say you’re going to a particular event in two weeks. Your goal is to win the horse trials. If your horse isn’t going well then there’s a funny psychological switch that says ‘my horse is an impediment to my goal’ and you tend to lose patience with your horse.

“If your primary role is a trainer, the objective is to have the horse go well. The event in two weeks is not the priority,” Denny explains. Instead, he says a trainer’s sights are set on finding the right time and place to ensure the horse is able to shine. Patient tolerance and an understanding of equine needs with a schedule designed for the highest-level performance is the focus. “There’s a very different mindset,” he asserts.

“The best horseman is the person that can do both — to be both is really good. I think it’s better to be a good trainer than to be a good competitor. I’ve known a lot of really good competitors where others say ‘that person can really ride, but God forbid that you be his young horse,’ because he doesn’t have the patience to create a young horse. They’re too much in a hurry and they want what they want when they want it,” he notes.

About Denny Emerson:

Denny is currently at his 48^th consecutive year of competing at the Preliminary eventing level or higher. He has been honored with the USEA’s Wofford Cup for lifetime service to eventing, the American Riding Instructor Certification Program (ARICP) Lifetime Achievement Award, and was inducted in 2006 into the USEA Hall of Fame.

In addition to his eventing career, Denny has been involved in numerous other horse sports during his 56 years of competing. He rode in his first one-hundred-mile trail ride at GMHA in 1956. Forty-eight years later, in 2004, Denny won a Tevis Cup buckle in endurance, for completing the 50th Anniversary of the Western States Trail Ride, the most famous and arduous 100-mile endurance race in the world. Denny has compiled 2,250 miles in American Endurance Ride Conference races, and was long listed for the 2005 USA East team for the North American Championships.

http://www.tamarackhill.com, denny@tamarackhill.com

Denny will be hosting a clinic, festival and show weekend at his facility September 5-7, 2009 at his Vermont facilities featuring Irish Draught and Irish sport horses. Auditors are welcome at $15/day.

Young and dumb can sometimes be a great asset when dealing with dangerous horse situations – particularly if it comes with a no fear mentality. Eventually, though, anyone who seems drawn to difficult horses over time – or feels they can save money by taking on a horse that has issues – logs enough injuries to happily prefer wisdom gained from the experience of others.

The Horse Sense and Cents™ notion comes from a lifetime of feeling compelled to learn lessons the hard way that finally gave way to a more mature perspective. Interestingly, the many horse training professionals involved in this project are quick to admit when they’ve been wrong, have chosen to adopt a more intuitive and careful approach to working with horses and have come to realize it’s a lot easier to learn from others’ successes – and failures. They’re wise and generous with their advice and can help you address easy issues and more dramatic cases.

If you’ve caught the horse bug in a big way and are ready to join a crowd that knows what they don’t know, you’ll have a lot of fun following this blog. Here you’ll find tips and stories to help you avoid some bruises and a whole lot of headaches and expense. Of course, anyone who’s been around knows you never stop learning on the horse front, so don’t expect formula answers that work in every case. We’re all here to discuss and share what’s worked for us and try to help you find ways to figure out what might be best for your horse.

We’ll start with five weekday posts and switch to a Tuesday and Thursday schedule once we get enough comments that keep us busy responding to reader questions and requests. In addition, we’ll let you know when particular professionals will be responding to reader comments so you can ask questions of those you’d most like to talk to when they are available.

We get that many who catch the horse bug aren’t wealthy and today, even the most established equine concerns are struggling, so we take the “Cents” part of our mission seriously. Creative, productive and budget-conscious tips will be offered every week. Let us know what you’re looking for and we’ll respond either as new posts or through the comment feature of this blog (which we hope to have up and running in the next two weeks – feel free to e-mail to questions @ HorseSenseandCents dot com in the meantime). If we don’t have the knowledge you need, we’ll try to find people who do.

This is a community designed for you – the horse owner, lover or professional who isn’t afraid to ask questions and seek help from others who have traveled the path before you.

We hope you decide to join a gang of equestrians determined to put their heads together so all can enjoy the ride!

Nanette Levin
Publisher of the Horse Sense and Cents book series