Horse humor – add jokes for us all to enjoy
Pro Equine Grooms did a fun feature (apparently four years ago, but I just saw the repost recently) with a starter question “What’s your best bad joke about horses?” Liv Gude offered her horse humor – “A horse walks into a bar. The bartender says ‘why the long face’?”. What resulted were some hilarious replies […]
What is ground work with horse training?
From the way some present it, you’d think good horse training ground work requires a deep knowledge of trick training, horse whispering (a misnomer for sure), professional stature or hundreds of hours in planned activity. Nope. All you really need is common sense mixed with a bit of horse sense. That’s something that can be […]
Triple Crown Trivia
Sure, this year’s Triple Crown is old news for most, but I’m not quite ready to let go of a victory that was 37 years in the making. So, if you’re in the mood to let this high continue, you’ll enjoy the bit of fun history below. Honestly, after so many disappointments, I didn’t see […]
Young Horse Training Tip #4: Pasture time is training strategy
It’s not fair to expect a young horse to be focused on your requests if he’s not allowed time to kick up his heels. A tiny paddock available through the back stall door isn’t enough. If your horse is at your home, there are many ways you can design space with what you have. Sometimes […]
Young Horse Training Tip #3: Ride every other day
Trial and error is always a big teacher when it comes to young horse training. Sometimes, what you discover will surprise you. For many years at Halcyon Acres®, young horses were lucky to get a day off each week once training started. Probably a big part of this thinking came from the racetrack, where young […]
Young Horse Training Tip #2: Keep Lessons Short
Try it. Give it a few weeks, or even better, a couple of months. You’ll be shocked at how quickly your young horse surpasses the neighbor’s project being drilled for hours a day. It may not make sense to you, nor be the norm at the training facility down the road, but it works. Young […]
Young Horse Training Tip #1: Listen to what your horse is trying to tell you
So much is lost when we focus more on telling a horse what to do than what he’s trying to convey. The joy that comes from making a connection can’t be fully expressed in words. There’s that ah-ha moment in young horse training when human and horse understand. It’s surreal and often sudden. You’ll never […]
Horse and human help for making your first off-property ride a success
It can be nerve-wracking for anyone (professionals included) to venture off the property with a horse for the first time. This becomes more challenging for novices who don’t have the benefit of drawing from decades of experience. Know you’re not alone – everyone has some doubts, anxiety and excitement associated with that first public appearance. […]
Keeping your horse cool during the summer
Periodically we offer horse care tips on the Horse Sense and Cents® blog. Paisley presented some good tips to get thinking about now it seems like winter might actually leave this year and summer may appear. Chin up – no more chopping ice, climbing through drifts and skating to the barn – get ready for […]
Building a horse business around a custom tack idea
This is the second part of an interview with Natasha Raina of Two Horse Tack. If you missed Sunday’s post, find out what fun she’s having with horse business success here. Read this prior horse blog post if you want to know why Natasha started her business, what beta biothane is or how she can […]