Safe and Comfortable on a Cold Day

It's still snowing here and I was able to make a quick trip to the stables before the real heavy stuff starts again. Luckily, we are warm and cozy in our house and our horses are staying inside their stalls today. This is far and away the most snow we've ever had here in the 21 years of living in the NW. I'm originally from Chicago, so I've lived through a couple of blizzards that literally paralyzed the city, stopping the buses, freezing the "3rd rail" on the elevated trains and keeping the streets impassable for almost a week, so I know what real snow is. It's great when you are in school and it means that you don't have classes. For the kids here it means that they got 3 extra days of Christmas vacation. But what you don't do now, you have to make up later.

That reminded me of how many times I've tried to cut corners with horses and their training. When I was inexperienced and lacking in the knowledge I have now, I would find myself struggling to get a horse to stand still while I put on its halter, remove or put on its blanket and numerous other common routine activities that we have to do every day. I would pull on the horse or slap it or yell at it and finish what I was doing, figuring it was no big deal. Then, after owning horses for several years and gaining a little insight, I realized that even the small things can become a major hassle. I still watch horse owners struggling and wonder how involved they really are with their horse, because, it can't be fun to put up with the annoyance of constantly battling with your horse about everything!! I guess they figure, like I did, that it's just this one time and it seems "easier and quicker" to finish and go. It would take longer, right then, to stop and give the horse a quick lesson on how to behave and how to respond to particular cues, so that the routine becomes enjoyable for the horse and the owner.

Why is it that we have time to do the wrong thing over and over, but we don't have time to do the right thing once? I've heard it explained as similar to someone who wants to hang a picture by putting a nail in the wall. Except that, the only thing you have available is a wrench. Sure you can hammer the nail into a wall with the flat end of a wrench, but it's not the right tool or the most efficient way to accomplish the task. Imagine telling a hoof care person that the only tool they can use to trim the horse was a nail file-not a rasp-a file that humans use to take the edges off of their fingernails. Just how quickly would they stop and say, "this isn't working" and tell you just how frustrated they were. Why do we put up with the frustration? We either don't know any better or the alternative takes more time or thought on our part. I compare it to parenting. I'm sure you've all seen someone who instead of thinking ahead and avoiding disruptive behavior in their children, just end up yelling or spanking them in public when they act up. I call it "preventative versus reactive" parenting.

Most of us who love horses learn just enough to get us through an average day with our horses. Clean, feed, lead your horse in without being hurt or at least without having your arm completely pulled out of the socket. One of two things usually has to happen before people realize that they need to expand their knowledge and skills with horses: they begin taking their horse out, away from the routine of daily life and/or the owner gets hurt while handling/riding the horse. The great thing about horses, unlike children, is that they are looking for a leader, every minute of every day and if they meet someone new, human or horse, they start the process all over. They are literally checking your qualifications for leadership as you walk them from point A to point B. They can tell pretty quickly, if you can cut it. Depending on whether their personality is more dominant or submissive, you have to show leadership that fits their needs. Children and adolescents as they get older, figure out how to get around authority and leaders because they figure they don't need them anymore and they've experienced inconsistency and dysfunctional behavior. Horses are much more forgiving and that's why we love being around them. You can have another chance EVERY time you're with them.

So, even if you didn't take care of things today, with a little knowledge and time, you'll convince your horse that you can make his life enjoyable and keep him safe tomorrow and from now on. That's all he really wants. To be safe and comfortable on a cold day......or any day!

P.S. If you look closely, the photo above was taken in the same place as the photo from the fall and the blog entry "A Beautiful Day".

Let it Snow! Let it Snow! Let it Snow!

I suppose we're not the only ones having some pretty cold, snowy weather. But, here in the NW it is not typical for us to go down into the teens at night and to have 4 to 6 inches of snow. It only has to snow an inch or two for the schools to be closed because so many people live in rural, hilly areas where the buses would have trouble navigating the slippery roads. Our snow plows come only once the snow has stopped......we're still waiting.

We're inside staying warm and cozy, but I worry about all of the horses out there who don't have shelter or whose water is freezing over with these low temps. Our horses are in stables and have blankets, but it's a real challenge to keep their water defrosted. I'm still wondering how I'm going to get to the stables, even with the studded tires on my car.

Cold weather can be rough on older horses and I'm concerned about my 28 year old mare who lives at the neighbors. She too has a stall and wears a blanket, but it gets harder and harder for her to tolerate these cold winters. Sometimes having the blanket on is worse because we tend to leave it and not brush the horses adequately. Having a thick coat of fur/hair beats a thin blanket that flattens the protective natural coat. Giving horses enough hay to generate body heat is also important and it is always a balancing act for me with my laminitic horses. Too much hay and they get their blood sugars out of whack with the negative consequences, and too little hay and they suffer the stress of being cold during the long dark nights.

It really is beautiful to sit here at the window and watch the snow come down and it'll give me a chance to finish the last of my Christmas cards and wrap some presents and baskets. I just may have to call my friend and see if she can get out to the horses for me today. "Oh the weather outside is frightful, but the fire is so delightful. And since we've lots of places to go (but can't get there), Let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!"

Holiday Shopping

I don't know about you, but with the holidays getting closer, I seem to find less time with the horses. Tomorrow, our stables or "the barn" is having their annual Christmas party. We all bring food and exchange gifts and the horses get to go outside and do the same thing they do every day. We're going to try to get out early (me and the friends) and get a quick ride in, but first thing in the morning on a Saturday.....I'm not sure I'll get there with time to spare.



You would think that it would be easy to come up with ideas for holiday gifts for horse lovers, because I iz one, but I think we buy most of what we want and need throughout the year. I think one of the best "little" gifts around are those $1 cotton gloves that you wear until they wear out. For my birthday, my friend got me 6 pairs of them. Plus a couple of boxes of those salty and sweet granola bars, plus a very pink sweatshirt to wear under my vest or just on its own for those not so cold days. I'm still looking for a good pair of "barn shoes"; something that is waterproof, manure proof or at least washable and is good for the arches of the "mature woman" whose feet will be killing her if she doesn't wear something with support.

See, it isn't about buying stuff for the horse or for riding. The tack we use every day is very personal but the stuff we wear or use is pretty universal. It's as if there is a uniform for barn wear. Most people who see me outside the barn, don't even recognize me. Because I keep my hair up in a ball cap (in case I don't have time to shower that day or don't bother to because I'm just going to smell bad after 4 to 5 hours around horses. What am I saying? My girls don't smell bad-it's one of my favorite odors), they've never seen my hair down and can't place me when I say hello. I actually have a real job that involves dressing nicely and professional, but I can't wait to get out to the barn wearing comfortable warm riding breeches and soft, cotton shirts and hoodies or denim.

I think this year I'm going to give the gift of time. Since I have been trimming for almost 3 years, I can offer my services for free to those who are finding it difficult to come up with the funds for their "hobby". And because I have experience working with horses, I can take the time to help someone who is having difficulty with their horse, or spend time with a horse whose owner doesn't have the time for her-maybe I'll exercise her, or clean her stall so she isn't standing there daily for hours. Helping out is something I can do for those around me. Yes, there are lots of horses who need adopting or who need donations of money for feed and health care, but I find that all I have to do is look around me, right in my area and there's plenty of need right here.

Yeah, the holidays can be stressful and finding the right gift can be challenging, but I usually find that more than anything, I want to spend time with the people who share my passion for the beautiful creature the horse. It makes me feel alive and it keeps me sane. Then I can go out and start shopping for the other loved ones in my life. I hope they need gloves....

A Long Ride is Just A Series of Short Rides

Today my friend and I had the opportunity to go out and ride at a local county park. It sits right on the beautiful Columbia River and since I first started riding over 20 years ago, it has been my favorite spot to ride. It has everything you could ask for to expose my horse to many experiences. It has hills to go up and down, trees to go around, sand and beach with driftwood to walk over, flat terrain for smooth rides on circles and water that splashes at the feet. If we choose to ride there on weekends, it offers an additional challenge of riding around children and dogs. Today, two dogs wanted to check out the "big dogs" walking near them which fortunately, did not disturb either of our horses. It's not unusual for people to walk up to us with their kids and ask if they can pet the horses, even sit on them. In the interest of safety, we don't allow anyone to climb on our horses.

When I first began riding there with my mare Sally, it was not with the control, emotional and physical that I have now. I recall her racing off when she saw waves from passing ships, with me clutching to the horn of the saddle. Fast forward to today....

I currently ride a lightweight endurance saddle with NO horn on my horse Chanty who is now a veteran of the park, the trees, the water, the dogs and most of all the walk back to the trailer. For those of you who ride anywhere outside of an arena, you know that for horses whose number one priority is safety, just the mere act of returning from a ride can turn on the fast forward switch in their brain. When I first encountered this, I tried several of the recently popular techniques that involved disengaging the hindquarters. Unfortunately, that also meant I had to pick up on the bit and pull her head around to slow or even stop her. After several months of trying to control her speed on a straight line, she was no calmer or slower. If anything, she had begun to resent the contact with her mouth and the constant bending. I would become more frustrated and the fighting would begin. If gentle slow pulling didn't work, then I'd try hard, aggressive tugging.

The information I was reading said that the discomfort of stopping every few feet by using the one rein stop, would discourage the horse from running off. This may work for the left brained (see Parelli "Horsenality" DVD from the Success Series) horse, but my right brain extrovert feels more trapped, claustrophobic and threatened if I use her mouth, head or neck to control her.

What's interesting about Chanty is she is like every other horse-basically lazy. When her emotions are under control, she walks slowly, she canters very slowly and does not like to sustain either gait for very long at the same speed. Her trot, on the other hand, is her signature gait. Being a saddleseat Morgan, she loves the high stepping trot that carries so much ground per stride that she makes every other horse canter, just to keep up with her. But, when Chanty is nervous, scared or excited, she can move at a brisk walk or a downright gallop. Every time we headed back to the trailer after our ride through the park, she would "kick it up a notch" and it seemed there was no stopping her. Until......I learned how to break up the long ride back to the trailer with small "rest stops" along the way. The trees in the park made it easy. Similar to Cathie Anderson's technique using cones and the bitless bridle, we would first walk, then trot and finally canter from tree to tree. Just before we reached a tree, I would quietly say Whoa and gently pick up on the reins and release quickly with even the slightest slowing. Of course, it was important to use my seat and legs before reins, but best of all, the mere presence of an object in her path gave her something to focus on each time we headed back and forth. She knew what came just before we reached the tree, the rock, the log or whatever we were using at the time.

Pretty soon, it took less and less effort to get her to stop and best of all, she never felt nervous or worried or uncomfortable, because I didn't pull on her mouth/face, nor did I move her in sharp turns and circles. She began to walk off at a nice slow pace, loose rein. The closer we got to the trailer, the more rest stops in between, but that was fine with me. She got back to the trailer as calmly as she had left. The big accomplishments with horses (and with life) are usually the result of a series of small victories. After all, a long ride is just a series of short rides....

Riding Well Means Never Having to Say "I'm Sorry"

When I look back over the last 20 years of riding I can now say that in almost every case where I had problems with my horse under saddle, it was usually because of what I was doing to disturb the horse's balance and emotional state, probably inflicting pain either at the front end by pulling on his mouth or by bouncing on his back while moving around erratically, giving mixed signals for whoa and go at the same time.

Anyone who's spent more than a year of consistent contact with a horse, knows that for the most part, they are a patient and forgiving animal. Some animals have more tolerance of course. The ones who don't put up with our foibles, are passed on to owner after owner. We just had a horse at the stables that had been given to a horse owner for free from the previous owner who had also gotten her for free. She was apparently of excellent breeding with several foundation quarter horses in her pedigree.

Unfortunately, no one told her that she was a supposed to be a well bred horse, worth thousands of dollars, which apparently guarantees that her behavior would be exemplary, a horse easy to train and destined to be a success in the arena or out on the trail. She has now been passed on to yet another owner because her personality was one that made her very mistrusting, oversensitive and downright dangerous when pushed to her limits. Fear was the most prevalent emotion for her, followed by a need to be dominating-the scariest combo in a horse. When overwhelmed with fear (which happened easily)this horse will try to run first, then fight vigourously. Without consistent, confident treatment, it's only a matter of time until she hurts someone or is hurt. Unfortunately, many people believe that the only option is to use the mares for breeding, passing on the extreme personality to yet another generation.

Fortunately, my horses recently have been very forgiving, allowing me to continue my education as a rider while I learned to keep my position consistent, the cues as light as possible and my hands as quiet as I can manage. There was a horse, though, in my past who fit the same description as the horse who recently left the stables. Being inexperienced and downright ignorant about the personality differences in horses, I continued to dismiss the signals that my mare was giving me. Instead of becoming calmer and more confident, my time with the horse made her more agitated and mistrusting, to the point where she finally decided she'd had enough. It was the first and only time a horse has injured me-I was lucky, a broken collarbone and a few bruises, including the one to my ego.

Now that I know what I know, I would have used significantly different techniques to train the mare. I would have also known that she was about to blow when I got on her that day. Since that day eight years ago, I've been trying to understand everything I can about the horse, so that it would never happen again, to me or anyone else. And I'm sure I owe the mare that bucked me off, a serious apology.

Today's ride with my current mare was a success. She remained calm and confident from beginning to end, even though I chose to ride with a bit in her mouth. My hands remained quiet and I asked her with cues that were barely noticeable to anyone but her and me. So many times over the past years, I was not so nice to her and she reacted negatively. I blamed her and the ride ended in frustration and disappointment for me and probable unspoken pain for her.

So,today I said "I'm sorry" to my mare for all of the bad rides we'd shared and made a silent promise to continue working on my riding, so that she would never lose her balance or feel nervous or experience pain because of my ignorance or physical limitations. I've learned that riding well means never having to say "I'm sorry."

"Just Get on and RIDE!!!"

I can still remember the days when I used to come home and talk about my frustrations with the horses and my family would listen politely, but never really understand what the problem was. How hard can it be to sit on an animal and hold on while it takes you wherever you want to go. As if there were an on/off switch that signaled to the horse that you were ready. From there, it's just a simple kick to go and a pull on the reins to stop, right?.

Seems like I've spent the last 20 years trying to do everything to avoid those exact things. And while that is going well, it's only occured to me recently that just that act of bringing my horse out and saddling her up is not a guarantee that SHE is ready to go. We as humans forget that they are living, breathing creatures with emotions, good days and bad days. They are effected by the weather, their feet, their joints and muscles aching, the cold air, the wind blowing, female hormones and most of all they are effected by how they are being treated at the very moment you enter their day.

How many times have you seen someone just hop on their horse and expect today to be just like any other day. Chances are if they do the same monotous things with the horse, it will be. If you ride around an arena at a walk and then a trot, not asking your horse to maintain speed or gait, not turning your horse at a particular spot, not asking your horse to bend around an object and maintain the shape and size of a circle for example, then your expectations will be pretty low and your horse's performance will remain at the same low level. In order to remain interested in horsemanship and riding, I look at something new at least once a week. Being the owner of a rental service that has hundreds of DVDs to choose from, this is not difficult. But, now a days, there is so much information, on TV, in magazines, at expos, clinics AND DVDs, that there is no excuse for wandering around aimlessly with your horse or using the same tired old techniques from the trainers who haven't changed their routine for over a decade.

It seems that even with the wealth of information out there, we still see people who believe that if the horse's head is down and they are going around and around quietly, then they must be well trained. I believe that if you work with someone who is asking to be paid for their knowledge and they do the same thing over and over with your horse, then you should look elsewhere for help. Especially, if you cannot duplicate their results without using spurs to go, severe bits or tie downs to slow or stop your horse and even with "training" your horse does not behave well on the ground.

I can honestly say that today I was very careful about keeping my excitable mare calm from the moment I asked her to stand still as I mounted to the walk back to the stables from our ride in the pasture. I know now when my patience is lacking and I stop and regroup. It saves us from fighting and she remembers the experience the next day. I keep harping on the emotional state of the horse, but since I've begun paying attention to it more, I've seem a dramatic improvement in my horse. With her calm, it gives me a chance to pay attention to my riding, my position, my legs, my balance, all of the things that were impossible to do with her racing off in a fit of anxiety, the two of us locked in mortal combat, or so it seemed.

Now, I don't share all the details with my family when it comes to the horses and all they know is that I'm out at the barn again, riding my horses. When I ride with them (they're usually on bikes), they notice how calm and well behaved my "nervous" horse is and they take for granted that I took their advice to "just get on and ride!"

At least the trim went well...

The days are getting shorter and so when I decided to go out and ride at 3:30 in the afternoon, I had to remember that there was only a little over an hour until dark. Right now we have just an outdoor arena to ride in and a large round one at that. Normally, I'd take Chanty to ride in the pasture, but decided to ride in the arena, so I could let Sally run loose and exercise on her own. Unfortunately, she was not feeling up to any running around. It's hard to tell if Sal is improving on her new feed or whether she has significant arthritis in her hocks that some days slows her down.

I know how she feels. There are days when I am just a little too achey to ride for long and I can tell immediately that it affects my balance and my ability to focus on what I am asking my horse to do. It isn't just when your off physically, but on the days when you're feeling a little "out of sorts", it's so easy to blame your horse for the missteps and the resistance you feel with each transition. Things began to go from bad to worse and fortunately I was able to see my own mood creeping into the riding. It was close to dinner, Chanty was watching the other horses leaving the arena and there was no reason to push her to do anything beyond what we had done today, even if it was just to raise her heart rate and run her around for exercise. My job that day was to leave things on a positive note. I still had to trim her feet before the day was over.

Since I first acquired Chanty, she has been very sensitive about her feet, especially the back feet. As a matter of fact, the previous owner had her for almost 5 years and had never picked up her back feet. Chanty had not had her feet trimmed for years when I bought her and since I had not begun trimming myself, I contacted a local farrier for the first few hoof care appointments. He was barely able to trim the front feet and was totally unable to handle the back without a serious struggle. As with most farriers I'd met, he considered it a sign of bad behavior and wanted to physically dominate Chanty, which only served to aggravate her more. Her previous owner told me that she was once trimmed with a twitch on her nose to keep her still during the process.

It wasn't until I'd learned more about Chanty's personality and what it meant to her to have her only source of escape taken from her, that I finally understood why she was reacting so strongly to the trimming experience. Instead of constantly trying to reprimand her for reacting normally to her feelings of insecurity and utter dread, I have been paying attention to her reactions and interpreting them from her point of view. I reward her for standing quietly and for calmly picking up her rear foot and letting me hold it and even place it on the hoof jack while I rasp AND use the nippers to trim off hoof wall. That's something no one was ever able to do during the first 12 years of her life (she is now 15, I've had her 3 years). I consider our time to together during a trim, in which she is standing in the aisleway, untied, eating hay , as one of our many moments of success. She trusts me, she is confident and calm and she remembers how much I care for her feelings no matter what situation we are in.

So, maybe the riding exercise didn't go as great as I'd hoped. No day with my girls or being out in the sunshine with good friends (four legged as well as two legged) is a waste. At least the trim went well....

A Small Victory

It's always the litttle things that we either don't notice or that we appreciate for their simplicity. It never ceases to amaze me how both things could happen at the same time for different people, especially when it comes to horses. After spending just 20 minutes with a horse whose owner had been struggling to simply walk him back to his stall, I noticed that the horse's emotions were dictating his every move. He wouldn't walk forward without looking back at his pasture mates, he would stop and pull his head down to the ground, and his feet seemed to belong to another animal, because he continually slipped or tripped over them on his way. His owner commented several times that he was typically fighting her and overreacting, pulling and throwing his head during their short walk together.

Having made the observation a long time ago that horses react differently to different people, I was now able to prove to this horse that I was someone different from his owner and I was going to offer him a chance to trust a human for more than just this one time. It had to start with something as simple as getting from his safe haven at the paddock where he "hung out" with his buddies all day, to his other safe place, his stall, without feeling threatened, harassed or intimidated. He had gotten very good at intimidating and threatening his owner as a pre-emptive strike and that's where the battles began.

Having walked him back and forth several times with slow deliberate effort, offering him a chance each time to stop and relax, he finally walked the entire distance with his head low and made it to his stall with what I think was a different perspective. The real test would be how he would act the next day, first with me and then with his owner.

Today, it was my turn to bring in all the horses and it was strange for me to doubt whether I could bring in the young horse with whom I'd worked just the day before. Was he going to remember what we did and would it have impressed him enough that he would trust me without hesitating? Only one other horse owner saw me walk the gelding back to his stall and I'm sure to her it was not a notable event. But to me and to this young horse, it was a huge accomplishment and in its simplicity, made me smile. I will ask his owner when I see her again if she was able to walk her horse the short distance back to his stall and more importantly, did it put a smile on her face when their journey ended without their usual battle. Ah, a small victory!

A Beautiful Day

What a gorgeous day! The picture was taken several weeks ago at the peak of the fall colors, at a location just 5 minutes from home. The leaves were extraordinarily beautiful this year (I guess all of the conditions were right). I almost drove right by, but realized that the trees, the sky, the water, may not look quite that beautiful if I waited for another day when I'd have more time. I wasn't really in a hurry anyway-just headed to the stables.

Today, even though most of the leaves had fallen,it felt like early autumn. It was 60 degrees and clear skies, perfect for being outside. I had promised one of the young women who rides with me and for whom I've helped for a year now with riding lessons, training and working with her new horse, that we would spend a few hours together, ride and even take a short trail ride just off the property of the stables.

We both went to get our horses from their respective paddocks and as with most simple tasks of every day life with horses, it became a chance to teach both horse and owner. Parellis would probably identify her horse as a mix of left brain introtrovert and right brain introvert. He can act dominate, pushy and very food oriented with a "what's in it for me attitude", but mostly he is a horse who is very concerned about his survival and when it comes to trusting humans to keep him safe, he is not convinced that we are up to the task . Walking him up the hill to the stables to saddle him turned into a real challenge and my young friend recounted for me how many times she had struggled to keep him from pulling her so that he could eat the grass on the way up the hill as well as his general disregard for her space and her role as human leading horse and everything that goes with that.

The "lesson" (and isn't everything we do with horses, a lesson?) began with reinforcing the idea that pulling me (now at the other end of the lead rope in order to demonstrate for my friend) was not going to happen, because I was not going to put any tension on the rope. If he dipped his head, I would smooch to him, signalling my desire for him to move forward, thereby lifting his head. IF he did not, he would receive first a slap to the ground near him, then a sharp tap to his side with my stick or end of the rope. Once he complied, we moved on. Having a personality that looks for safety and survival first, he tends to fight back with dramatic moves where he humps up, bucks, kicks out and throws his head to intimidate. Calmly, I reassured him that I was not the enemy and that as long as he didn't pull on me, I would never raise his level of anxiety with any physical threat to him, which is what he expected. Once that was taken away, his attitude changed. It took almost 20 minutes, but it did change and once he was able to control his emotions, asking him to move his feet without resistance, was easier and he was willing to listen to my suggestions. He just didn't want to be SHOUTED AT.....

Once you have a horse's emotions under control, there is nothing you can't do! She was now able to ride him and ask of him, first the most simple and familiar tasks under saddle and then, again without pulling on him and stirring up his innate need to be safe and comfortable, ask him to move out in different direction, maintain circles, figure eights, keep his speed at each gait consistent and respond to weight and leg cues with the lightest effort on the part of the rider. Because she had gotten his emotions under control and knew better how to avoid pushing his buttons and losing that control, she was now able to take him out to the big open pasture to ride. He came through with flying colors. SUCCESS....

But the greatest success for me today was practicing what I preach with my right brain EXTROVERT Morgan mare, Chanty. To say that she is motivated by a need to feel safe and comfortable, is an understatement. When she is pushed beyond her comfort zone (which doesn't take much) she turns into a "sewing machine on speed" with her rapid trot in place that rivals any horse of her saddleseat breeding background. We have been practicing the control of emotions, by first and foremost, identifying them before they get out of control. That is where my education has been helped tremendously by watching my Parelli videos more than anyone else. I knew how to move their feet, backwards, forwards, sideways, etc and rewarding the slightest try. I knew how to disengage the hindquarters and circle my horse, back up my horse, etc, etc. Trouble was that by the time I got to all of these "techniques", it was already too late. I had not listened to the earliest signs that my horse was about to lose it, emotionally.

We headed out on our trail ride after giving Chanty a chance to unwind in the arena with a few patterns and most importantly, without any pulling on her face/mouth (we're riding with a bitless bridle these days) which immediately makes her feel claustrophobic and uncomfortable, emotionally and physical. She of course, wanted to walk a little faster than my friend's new mount, a 13 yr old quarter horse mare who loves trails and who belongs to another horse lover in our close group of friends. But, the minute I felt the energy that moved her forward change from a walk that said "we're going somewhere" to "I've got to back to the barn now, before I die!", we would come to a soft, slow "whoa" with a gentle pull and release on the rein and I would let her turn to wait for her buddy, even letting her eat a little grass to calm her (horses can not be nervous and lower their head to eat at the same time). Most of all I had to keep up my mantra of "calm, rhythm, consistentcy" in which I would pick up one rein to signal her quietly along with my body, that we were walking and she was doing great.

It was one of the best days yet-the weather, the horses and we made it back without a fight, without a bad word and with a horse that was just as calm coming home as she went out. A beautiful day....

"She likes it, hey Mikey"

Today was another gorgeous day and of course, my other commitments kept me from getting out to the stables until late. I think that is the biggest challenge for us horse owners-finding the time for our critters. And why is it that those of us who are the busiest have not one, but TWO horses? Actually, I'm much more fortunate than most because I spend only 16 to 20 hours at my "real" job and the rest of my time is available to my real passion-horses. Oh yeah, and my family and friends. They understand though, the addiction, and have yet to sit me down for an INTERVENTION, but it's been close in the past.

When I finally made it out to the stable, my friends were already saddled up and riding and I still had cleaning, feeding and grooming to do. I couldn't resist though, and so grabbed ol Sal Gal and took her to the arena with no tack and just decided to jump on her bareback. Okay, so I used a step to get on her back. I don't think I've EVER just jumped up on her or any horse's back. I know Linda Parelli recently demonstrated jumping on a horse by getting them to lower their head and neck and using that to jump up-good for her-still not going to happen!!

Sal was already feeling better on her new "light" food and wanted to trot around with me holding her mane, hoping she'd remembered all those days long ago when we worked on bridleless riding when she was feeling less achey and arthritic (turns out all of those years of wearing heartbar shoes with toes pointing down and constant concussion of her back legs, had created damage to her hock joints). She moved out pretty well and my friends were impressed when she pinned her ears as she passed their horses. Sal has a reputation for being the sweetest horse in the barn. They've only seen the Sal, post founder, hock arthritis, looking older and harmless. But when she's feeling well, she can move out faster than any horse in the barn (it must be the Arab in her, matched with her long legs) and if you're not ready for it, she'll take you back to the barn in an instant.

Back at the barn Sal was more than ready for her evening portion of beet pulp with the great tasting feed that was now part of her dinner. Both her and Chanty have quickly decided that beet pulp alone for breakfast just doesn't cut it. Sal actually left the entire pan untouched this morning, but was thrilled when I sprinkled a little low starch feed on it. I'm so happy she likes it....

The days are shorter now and after arriving at the barn so late, it was already time to go. Tomorrow is supposed to be another cool, sunny day, so more riding outside. I thought about hooking up the trailer and hauling out to the park at the Columbia River but I may need to get home a little early tomorrow and help the hubby with his project. As long as I get to ride my girls ....

Welcome!

Welcome to "More Horse Matters"

It occured to me that every day is something new with the horses and while it used to be that I kept a journal to remember it all, it seemed a better idea to share it with those who are out there struggling to get it right as well.

Here in the NW, it has begun to rain quite hard, or at least it did for the last 48 hours. As I look out my window, it has begun to look sunny and cool and I know that my "girls" (my 15 year old morgan mare Chanty and 18 year old morgan-arab mare Sally, featured on the site) are thrilled to be out of their stall and running in their paddocks, able to stretch their legs. I won't be able to see them today, but I know they are smiling.

Yesterday, I began feeding my girls a feed from Triple Crown called Low Starch. I'd known about the feed for almost 2 years but until recently, it was not availble in our local feed stores and driving 30 miles to buy feed did not seem fiscally responsible (it cost too much!). In the past I would feed a combo of beet pulp and rice bran with multi vitamins, plus their hay. At our stables, the hay comes from multiple fields and so it varies in its carbohydrate content, bale to bale. I could have all of them analyzed and feed the lowest carb hay, but again, it is an added cost and not very practical. Sally began gaining too much weight with all the extra hay she was getting (to stay warm on the cold nights), and was showing signs of early laminitis-sore feet, fat pads more prominent over eyes, lethargic and more outbreak of skin fungus on mane and legs.

Why is all of this important? Because both of my horses have had acute laminitis and Sally has foundered (rotation of coffin bone) at least 3 times, the last one was 2005, winter time, when I finally learned that it was diet that triggered it. She was on high levels of grain, eating alfalfa, all because I was riding her constantly and I thought she needed it. She is the reason that I went looking into natural hoof care after seeing Pete Ramey. It's a long story and I'll share it with you throughout my entries here, but suffice to say that this time of year is critical when it comes to feeding and managing your laminitic horses.

Hormones in the horse's body are changing in order to adapt to the colder weather and as an adaptation to the change in the natural diet of a horse which can be quite sparse in the winter months. Morgans as a breed (as well as ponies and other breeds) are designed to tolerate very harsh conditions and live off of very little vegetation. We fill them up with lots of excess calories thinking they need to have rich grasses and grains. I had to learn the hard way. At the time, there was not a lot of information-even the vet did not suspect it was a dietary issue and said it was okay to continue feeding grain, maybe just a little less.

Fast forward to today and numerous bags of beet pulp and rice bran later-Sally has not foundered and has grown out her separations and rotated coffin bone (turns out that the bone is not permanently deformed as I so naively believed, but is just moved out of place by the swelling and subsequent laminar wedge that develops). I have now been trimming her myself for almost 3 years. She is my "project" and has educated me about horse behavior, anatomy, physiology, hoof care, not to mention being the most loving, patient, sweet tempered animal I've had (other than my beloved, Belle, lab golden retriever mix, now passed away). I will keep a close eye on Sally and Chanty as I change their diet slowly, but hope springs eternal that I will finally be able to give them the nutrition they need, keep their weight at a healthy level and not put them at risk for further laminitis episodes. I'll keep you in touch...

Sal's Gal