Rosie's New Pasture Mate

When Rose first moved to her new home at the stables near the Columbia River, she was given a pasture mate who unlike her previous stablemate was much younger-almost 20 yrs younger. Chester, a 12 year old palomino quarter horse was lame when I met him. The diagnosis-navicular disease. His owner had spent the previous six years trying everything to improve his gait and relieve the pain in his left foot. It had been agonizing for both horse and owner and had finally led to a surgical procedure to remove a piece of calcified bone that had grown off of the navicular bone. After complete stall rest for months and shoes to protect his heels, Chester was no better and his owner had resolved herself to keeping Chester as a "pasture pet", perfect to keep 'ol Rose company.

I had begun revising my trimming technique with Rose and putting her boots on more regularly, when I began talking with Chester's owner. I explained that I had begun trimming my own horses after I became disillusioned with traditional veterinary and farrier management of founder and navicular. I had learned that Rose's navicular condition had begun when she was put into shoes at an early age, before her heels had a chance to grow into tough, well developed cartilage deep inside, covered by a wide, healthy frog, necessary in every horse in order to tolerate the physical demands of an active 1000 lb animal. Each year as Rose ran around in shoes, her heels took the full impact of her weight, without really being able to absorb that impact. She then began walking on her toes to avoid the pain. Soon after, pads were put between her foot and shoes. That worked for a short time, but eventually Rose would begin walking up on her toes, and finally would shift her entire body forward to avoid a heel first landing.

In addition to putting shoes on horses at a early age and inhibiting the normal development of the thickened tough cartilage called the digital cushion, horse's can become lame and avoid contact with their heels if the frog is constantly being shaved off with trimming, or if the sole is thinned to put a shoe on, bringing the coffin bone closer to the ground and the angle of the heel going the opposite direction. This can lead to contraction of the heel and lack of stimulation to the internal structures, mainly the digital cushion. With the steep angle of the foot, the natural deep flexion of the tendon at the back of the foot becomes shortened and the joint space narrows as the navicular bone rubs against the adjacent bone and nerve. Pain becomes inevitable and the horse avoids walking on the heel more and more. Shoulder pain follows as the horse's gait shortens and becomes tense and stiff. As the bones rub against each other, a "spur" develops that is simply calcified bone created from chronic inflammatory damage, followed by attempts by the body to repair the bone.

When Chester finally went in for surgery, a piece of bone was removed that was 1/2 to 3/4 inches in length. Now almost 18mos after surgery when we met and still in shoes, he was in pain and being given daily bute or some subsitute for it. I explained the process by which navicular syndrome occurs and offered to trim Chester in what became "the last resort" for his owner. I told her that his shoes would have to come off and we would be using boots with pads on him to help with the transition-this would be a must! She agreed and a week later I began trimming Chester. This was July, just 3 mos ago. His left foot looked like this when I began:

The tip of the coffin bone was pointing down with the bulge of the hoof wall at the toe, a sure sign that the bone had moved forward in the capsule. In addition, evidenced by the shallowness of the collateral grooves at the apex of the frog, his sole was less than an 1/8th of an inch thick

and the coffin bone was JUST UNDERNEATH IT. His heels were contracted, very common in horse's with long standing pain in their heels or shoes that create a narrow width to the foot, depending on which comes first. The most important part of rehabilitating navicular syndrome is to encourge heel first landings-lots of them. Chester was put out with Rose and allow to move around on soft ground for hours, grazing. When brought in to exercise, he wore hoof boots with pads for his heels. In this way he can put the full weight of his body into a heel first landing, encourage stimulation of his inner structures, digital cushion as well as lateral cartilages, so important in side to side movements. Chester was really hard on boots, having ripped offf the gaiters on two different boots, so it was a good thing that his barefoot walking in the pasture was working to stimulate his foot. By September, there was a definite improvement in his ability to take heel first landings without pain. The structure of his foot was changing and his coffin bone while still close to the ground (no concavity of the foot yet) was beginning to level out to a ground parallel (or close to it) angle.

It's now November and Chester has begun going out with younger geldings like himself. He has been running around the arena with his owner at full speed, changing direction, trotting with his head held high and no signs of pain. He is no longer on any med for pain or inflammation and his owner plans to saddle him up for the first time in years. He is a fit 12 yr old whose life could have been cut short by a completely preventable condition. I hope his days of running and playing are all in front of him and that more horses get a second chance, thanks to the wonderful teachings of Pete Ramey and persistent owners like myself who want to help the horse who depends on us entirely for his care. Chester's owner told me that she would share her experience with barefoot trimming with his previous caregivers so that they may learn another method of caring for horses who in the past were considered lame and hopeless.

More good things to come I'm sure!!!!!!

I've Discovered "Feel"-Riding Gets Better and Better

An amazing breakthrough in my riding has occured. I think I've finally discovered "feel". It is something that I recognize in other activities but in my day to day riding, it has escaped me. I actually began practicing it while driving in my truck recently, hauling Chanty to a clinic four hours from home.

I was apprehensive about travelling so far with her in the trailer, especially through the very congested highways around Seattle. I knew I would have to leave at an early hour to miss rush hour in the big city. I prepared for the trip by making sure my truck and trailer had recently been maintained and that I had a spare tire for the trailer, as well as a way to change it, if necessary. The only issue that remained was how to keep myself from focusing so intently on the drive, the traffic, the other cars,as well as worry about how Chanty was doing in the back of the trailer. The weather cooperated nicely and for the most part, it is a straight shot down the highway. In order to quiet some of my fears, I listened to an audio CD that I keep in my truck. It is Jane Savoie's series on "The Rider's Edge" about techniques each of us can use to overcome fear and negative thinking. It can be applied to any aspect of our lives and can best be summed up as "what your brain thinks, your body feels."

So when I drove down the highway and began thinking, "is Chanty okay back there, is she hurting or nervous from the noise or the bouncing? Am I going to hit heavy traffic and have to change lanes quickly and what if I don't stop in time? what if someone cuts in front of me and I have to slam on the brakes? am I driving slow enough? what's that in the road? how fast am I going?" And on and on and on....
With all that overanalyzing going on, it is no wonder my palms were sweating and my heart was racing and my stomach was in knots. Too much information! I've been driving for 37 years and I've hauled my horse in a trailer for over 5 yrs. Sure this was the longest we've gone and sure there was going to be traffic, but as long as I allowed my abilities as a driver to take over and just feel for changes in the traffic, or the speed of the cars in front of me, I would just naturally adjust to those changes. Stop overloading the system. When you let your instincts take over, it's a sure sign othat you've gained experience from years of practice. It's like putting the car on cruise control or auto pilot. I wasn't asleep at the wheel. I was still very aware of what I needed to do at a moment's notice. But, now I could take it all in as a blending of sights and sounds, all creating one experience.

And that is exactly what I did today when I rode. I was circling Chanty at the canter to the right through cones. When I wanted to make the circle large, I would pass the cone at about 20 feet to the left of it. Then I would spiral down closer to the cone in the center and back out, all the while keeping the circle round and a consistent rhythm and speed to her canter. Instead of analyzing my position, my hands, my weight in the stirrups and every other detail of the movement, I just let my experience take charge. I'd practiced this so many times before and now my body was free of tension. It made it so much easier to just think about what I wanted and let it happen. I could make small adjustments if I needed to, but if I found myself trying to analyze and fix too much, the beautiful feeling would go away. And with it, our harmonious movement. I rode pain free and found I was able to remember how it felt so that I can practice another technique that many successful people use-visualization. I can recreate my rides and "feel" the entire experience, in the comfort of my recliner at home. Then when I take that with me in the saddle, I can have my brain think it and my body will feel it. WOW this just gets better and better.

Teacher as Student

I'm back from another Centered Riding Clinic. This time it was for instructors who wished to update their CR certification. It's now been more than a year since I met the first of many enthusiastic and energetic people who embrace the teachings of the now legendary Sally Swift. Since last September, I've been able to use my new found skills to enhance my own riding and horsemanship as well as share the information with my students. At this clinic, I was reminded that the foundation of Centered Riding are the four basics, Soft Eyes, Breathing, Building Blocks (Balance) and Centering that works best when we are Grounded. I know I've been using those basics with my teaching but, now I understand them even more and will incorporate them in my daily activities, not just my equine experiences. The clinic, held at the amazing Rhodes River Ranch, was a chance to meet even more people, like myself, who believe in the power of education and the transforming properties of the Centered Riding philosophy when using it in their riding and instruction.

Every time I attend a CR Clinic, I become a student again. I find that it is eye opening in so many ways. As a health professional, I have had a chance on a few occcasions to experience what it feels like to be a patient. The vulnerability, the insecurity, the fear and the uncertainty can be overwhelming. Allowing someone else to dictate the direction of my life for even a short time is not a comfortable feeling for me. When you are the patient, you must let someone else tell you what needs to be done. There is tension and apprehension-our personality dictates how much we "allow" without question. I am usually an active participant in my care because I understand what is going on and the information is not as foreign to me, as it would be to a lay person. What always stays with me after my experience as a patient, though, is the feelings I had for the providers who cared for me. It starts from the moment I meet him or her.

Did the provider engage in conversation with me from the beginning and make me feel as if they were listening or did they immediately dive into what's wrong and what needs to be done? Were they empathetic? Did they answer my questions? Did they try to allay my fears, make me feel more confident in them and in my ability to actively participate in my health care problems, as well as recovery? Did they communicate in a way that made sense to me? Was it an overall positive experience, even if the process involved emotional and or physical stress (sometimes pain is part of the experience)? If the answer is yes to all of these questions, chances are, I will not hesitate to return to that provider when I need care in the future.

The same is true, when I become a student rider of a CR instructor or clinician. It begins with a sense of vulnerability and uncertainty and if a positive connection is not made from the beginning, it can quickly dissolve into a tense experience, physically and emotionally, and an uncomfortable feeling for both horse and rider. This leads to lack of confidence, which creates further tension, until the rider is no longer able to concentrate on their own abilities.

I had just such an experience years ago with an instructor. We had never met and she introduced herself to me. She asked my horse's name only after she expressed several opinions: 1) my horse was too small for me 2) My saddle did not fit me or my horse 3) she did not like the word I used to express my new found experience of balancing myself with seat bones contacting the saddle correctly. 4) She disagreed with a particular method of visualizing a certain muscle in the body to center ourselves, stating that there were more than JUST one and it was incorrect to give credit to that particular muscle. 5) Contradicted me immediately when I explained that the word "allow" when used in riding, to me was not a direction that translated to an active motion in the body.

As you can imagine, I felt immediately deflated emotionally. I loved my horse and had been riding for years. Our relationship had grown and flourished and she had taught me as much, if not more than any instructor I've had in my life. My saddle issues had been ongoing, but I felt I was working with what I had in the best way possible. While I am a long tall person, my horse was certainly not a pony and had the stout, muscular features capable of carrying me without stress or strain. I had been excited and encouraged by the progress I had made with my seat and my balance through a method of releasing tension in one group of muscles of my body, while allowing others to activate. It had improved my balance and centering, further advancing my riding abilities. Being a very procedural person, I liked direction that gave me something I could "do", even if in the process, something passive was happening that made the whole thing work well together. I did understand the process of "allowing" things to happen and go with the feel.

I heard what the instructor said and I knew what she meant, but somehow, the delivery of her words, created emotions in me that translated into uncertainty. With each movement, I questioned my ability, over analyzing my technique and eventually regressed to the beginning rider of my early years. My shoulders dropped, my head rotated when I turned, my weight tipped forward, my feet were no longer evenly weighted in the saddle and my breathing was non existent. I was a mess! How did this happen so quickly?

The first moments of our experience with a new teacher, instructor, doctor, boss, customer service representative, or ANYONE that we look to for help or information, are critical. It's not about them, it's about US. We need to feel confident in their abilities, knowing that they are there for us, listening to our words, understanding our needs, able to communicate with us in a way that makes sense.

As an instructor I am now learning what it means to be grounded emotionally, before I begin a lesson. I will take a deep breath, clear my mind, check in with my own body and release any tension, aware of my surroundings prior to involving my student or her horse. I try to remember to stay balanced when I stand, to use my body correctly and avoid stress on my joints, that creates tension throughout my body, making it more difficult to focus on my student. I give my student a chance to do the same and avoid putting pressure on them to do something in the first 10-15 minutes. Watching them interact with their horse tells me a lot about how their feeling and what the relationship is like at that moment.

It is a wonderful experience to be a teacher. Being able to incorporate my love of horses with my passion for teaching means that I will continue to grow as a person and an equestrian from this moment on. But, I must always remember what it means to be a student. If I have that thought in mind, every time I begin a lesson, I will never fail to create an environment that will promote learning as well as fun for every student. ENJOY THE RIDE!

Out of Retirement

It's been a very busy summer. Since returning from the clinic in Yelm in June, a lot of changes have occured. The first one has been a monumental one for my first horse, 29 year old Rose, who for the last seven years has been retired out to pasture, spending most of her time with Tetley, who is more than 30 yrs old. While I was out of town Rose was given two new pasture mates, one of whom was given to the owner to ride, the other, just visiting while his pasture was being sprayed for weeds. Initially, the young geldings were separated from the old folks by a temporary fence, made partially from old barb wire. Rose, being the beauty that she is, immediately attracted the two young geldings' attention. Unfortunately, Rose was more than willing to back herself up to the fence, raise her tail and "show off" her stuff. When the geldings tried to reach across the fence to connect with Rose, she kicked and caught her hind leg just inside the hock on the wire, tearing the flesh and creating a nasty open wound.

Initially, I was called to attend to Rose and to make daily visits to clean and dress the wound. But, after the visiting gelding left and the new resident gelding was allowed to mingle with Rose and Tetley, it was evident that the threesome was not going to work. The young guy constantly ran Tetley off and made Rose his own. Soon, she was calling me to take Rose out of the pasture and if possible find her a new home. After seven years, I wasn't sure where she could go and have the same freedom and daily movement she needed with the safety of a calm, experienced, docile pasture mate.

As fate would have it, I'd recently met a woman through my job whose mother owned the stables around the corner from my friend's barn. We'd talked and I immediately found her to be friendly and upbeat. When I tried to think of a place to bring Rose, it occured to me that the closest place, most convenient, would be at her stables. Luckily, when I called, she had not one but 3 stalls available! I moved Rose two days later after having the vet give her a "cocktail" of sedatives to make her ride in the trailer less traumatic. Rose has never liked riding in the trailer and with her injury, plus the stress of leaving her home and good buddy of 7 years,I thought it best to make her travel to her new home as comfortable as possible.

Just before we left, the vet took a look at her injury, now 4 weeks old and recommended a spray called Vetericyn VF (twice as potent as the over the counter version), used to help heal wounds. He had not heard of it before and said he was not sure if it would work, as the ingredients were simple saline and sodium phosphate and hypochlorous acid. It claims that it has an "oxychlorine compound" similar to what the animal's immune system produced. I was the first client to whom he was selling a bottle and he asked me to report on her progress. Well, within 1 week, the wound had reduced in size by one third and I didn't even cover it or bother to give her the sulfa oral powdered antibiotics he gave me. (I'm skeptical when the same antibiotic is given to horses for everything and would rather not expose them to it unless absolutely necessary). It's now been 2 mos and the wound is down to a dime size pink scrape, and like other horse wounds I've seen, seems to have created it's own structure with lines of demarcation filled in with new colored skin and hair. Nature is amazing.

Now that Rose is in a stall at a stable, she is on a daily schedule very similar to her retirement: out at 8 am with a pasture buddy (a young horse suffering from navicular syndrome, who after 6 yrs of failed treatment, including surgery and corrective shoeing, has become one of my trimming clients-more on that in another blog....). She comes in at 8 pm and in between has been enjoying the sunshine and the freedom of a two acre turnout.

The big change has been that,now that she is in my care, I have begun to exercise her on the ground and I noticed something interesting. While comfortable out in pasture on her bare feet, she cannot handle the pounding of heel first landings at trot and canter in the arena. It turns out, I had been trimming her feet to fit a horse standing still or standing on soft pasture. She really has not completely developed her heels and the inner structures sufficiently to be worked at more demanding gait or unforgiving surface. So....I am reworking my trim with her and re-evaluating my techniques. I've gone back and read over and over the article from Pete Ramey, "Heel Height, the Deciding Factor." and now it makes sense. Just because it says to keep the heel approximately 1/4 inch off the sole and give the coffin bone a ground parallel angle while standing still (or close to it), this does not work when we have a horse who's heels are mushy and underdeveloped. It just sends them up on their toes, wearing down the wall unevenly and slowing the whole process to a stop.

I'm now putting boots on Rose as much as possible and will be leaving her heels a little higher (maybe up to 1/2 inch) until she shows that she can walk, trot and canter on the ground she lives and works on (mainly arena or grass for now). It's exciting to see her move out more and I've actually saddled her up and walked her around. She is so smooth and so comfortable to ride on. I'm so thrilled and I hope she will enjoy the new activity as well. Maybe she hadn't planned to come out of retirement, but I know she has a lot of good years ahead of her. Maybe by helping young and old riders gain their confidence and find that balanced seat, as a lesson horse. You're never too old to get a new job. WELCOME BACK ROSIE!!!!

Here's a video of my daughter Laura riding Rose for the first time in seven years:

The Power Seat- "One Stop Shopping"

I don't know if you're old enough to remember the days when in order to get all of the items on your grocery list, you had to go to at least 3, if not 4 different stores. There was the butcher shop, where you bought your meat, a bakery for your bread and donuts, a produce stand where you would buy your fruits and vegetables and if you needed anything for your medicine cabinet, you had to go to the "drugstore". It was time consuming, inconvenient and frustrating if you'd forget something and have to make another trip across town.

Well, now there's a simple solution for shopping-the superstore or supermarket! And just as remarkable, is a simple straightforward way to find your POWER SEAT when you ride. By engaging the supportive, powerful CORE muscles (no, I mean the REAL core muscles) of the psoas, located deep inside the body, you'll be able to sit deep in the saddle, wrap your legs snugly around your horse's barrel and keep your feet exactly where they need to be: grounded with equal weight in the stirrups. You will breathe softly and maintain your balance, and your joints will flex and absorb the motion of your horse.

Thanks to the brilliant, yet simple explanation by Karen Irland, Level 4 Centered Riding Instructor and the genius of Tom Nagel's simple book, "Zen and Horseback Riding", (see previous blog entry, "It's Like Breathing Out and Breathing In") riding is even more fun than I imagined. Although, I had read the book prior to attending a recent CR clinic with Karen, her explanation of how to put it into action made it come to life. Now I can't believe how easy it is, not only to use it in my own riding, but to teach it to others, in MINUTES! You don't have to constantly adjust your body as individual parts. You know, just as you fix one, you have to think through another method for adjusting the others. Not anymore....

The most dramatic thing for me was realizing just how much I tighten my abdominal muscles when I ride which immediately pulls you on to the front of your pelvis or pubic bone, instead of on your seat bones . This in turn, limits the movement of your hips, inhibits breathing, creates brace in your lower leg and removes your inner thigh contact. You must soften the abdominals, even if you have to poke yourself with your fingers and breathe through your mouth to encourage the relaxation. It took several attempts to really feel it and keep the softness. Once the abdominals are soft you'll begin to feel yourself sitting in the saddle with knees flexed and lower legs wrapped around your horse's barrel.

Now comes the real key to it all: engaging your psoas. This big muscle on both sides of your spine connects just below the last rib at your back and stretches deep in the pelvis or bowl in your lower body (your bladder is at the bottom of the bowl) and then connects at the top of the big leg bone, called the femur just where we feel our thighs . With your abdominal muscles "mushy" you can lengthen your spine and the stretch the psoas down easily (think of bringing your belly button back towards your spine-you'll initially feel like your slumping-this is your pelvis rocking as you put more contact on the mid portion or seat bones). This immediately tones the inner thigh muscles which creates improved contact with the horse. With the psoas engaged, you are now sitting on your seat bones, instead of pubic. And with your abdominal muscles relaxed, you are able to breathe better and move your hips easily.

Karen was kind enough to remind me over and over, to soften my abdomen and engage my psoas. An additional benefit to allowing this to happen is that when the hips move easily, so do the feet. When you tighten and tip forward on your "pube" as she called it, you brace in the stirrups and bring your heels too far up or too far down, depending on which direction you tend to brace and with it, you lock your hips and knees. But, with the psoas engaged and joints all moving (hips, knees and ankles) it becomes very clear that these natural shock aborbers are more efficient.

The comfort we feel is reflected in our horses movement as well. Now you can feel the left and right, up and down movement of your horse's hips. Your lower legs, thighs toned and secure around your horse can make imperceptable movements to cue your horse and as you remain grounded in your stirrups, you can rise at the trot, allowing your knees, hips and ankles to absorb the motion. Transitions become a simple act of inhaling to warn your horse that something is about to happen and exhaling as you engage your psoas and complete the transition.

Soften abs, lengthen the spine, feel better contact with seat bones, tone the inner thighs for better contact, feel the freedom of movement of all the joints with feet grounded. You've achieved the POWER SEAT with just one simple act: engaging your psoas. It really is one stop shopping! Best of all, it's easy to share with my students and they can tell the difference immediately. Try it and ENJOY!

Singing on Horseback

I was riding home from teaching a riding lesson yesterday and heard a talk show on the radio that was discussing how to make the most of your voice when you sing. The guest on the show was a jazz singer who teaches voice lessons in Virginia. When asked what advice she gives her students for creating the best sound from their vocal cords, she mentioned an exercise that releases tension in the jaw and drops the tongue, so that it lies flat on the lower teeth. Once you open your mouth, as if to yawn, you will find it easier to produce the sounds, starting with a vowel, for instance, with minimal effort, but maximum results. She teaches that tension is the enemy of the singer. Muscles that are tight cannot efficiently create the energy necessary to perform.


In addition to my passion for horses, I have a great love of music and singing and at one time dreamed of performing professionally. I was very shy when I was young and had to back out of a 5th grade performance of the Beatles classic, "Yesterday", after becoming sick to my stomach with stage fright. I tried again in college, singing with my boyfriend's band at a dance and somehow made it through without fainting. I even took a few voice lessons from a woman in New York city in my early 20s but other than singing at a friend's wedding, have kept my voice a well kept secret. Now, when I find a rare moment of quiet at home, alone, I turn on the ipod stereo and with my own personal microphone and small amplifier, I "practice" my singing. I'm not sure who or what I'm practicing for, but you never know when someone else close to me is going to get married.






As I listened to the radio and the voice instructor's explanations, I realized that recently, I've been using more body awareness and release of tension in my singing to create a much stronger, much more "elastic" quality to my voice, able to move up and down the scales with less effort. It seems that since I've begun my life in centered riding, I've noticed how the release of tension, increase in body awareness and centering , with breathing and soft eyes can improve my singing and for that matter, can be applied to ANY physical activity that you wish to accomplish proficiently and with minimal effort.



As an instructor, it is necessary to keep a large arsenal of tools at your disposal to assist in explaining particular concepts to students. I don't currently have any singers as riding students but I do have students who have engaged in other athletic activities. Knowing how to explain the correct use of the body and releasing tension while participating in a particular activity like riding or singing, is the most challenging part of my job. Probably, because it is the most challenging part of riding for me.

Recently, when I was riding, it occured to me that as a health professional I deal with patients who are nervous, scared and in pain at times and my experience allows me to remain calm, confident and reassuring in order to be a part of their care. But, I had to have training and instruction before I could become an experienced professional. They don't call it "practicing medicine" for nothing.

For example, in order to qualify to perform a procedure in which I examine the colon using a flexible scope, I had to have specialized instruction and training. In the beginning, I was moving my hands and going through the steps as they had been explained to me, but I was not really understanding the big picture. My body would tense as I struggled to find the correct position, inadvertently forcing the scope to move against resistance. Of course, the feedback I received from my patients when they felt discomfort, was immediate. Because I am outside of the body, able to look inside only with a 2 dimensional screen, I needed to have a sense of what was happening as I moved the instrument in one direction or the other, almost through "feel". As I became more adept at the physical skills I needed to complete the exam, I found I did not have to think so hard about what my hands and my body were doing-it became automatic. The tension was gone.

And so, in every aspect of my life and now with riding, I must learn to find the focus and the emotional center that creates the calm and the relaxation, once I have the coordination and physical skills to ride . Then I can allow the automatic part of my brain, the muscle memory as it were, to take over. Whether I'm singing, scoping or riding, it will make for a much more balanced, harmonious experience for all concerned. And if I turn up the tunes while I ride I can SING AND RIDE! Wouldn't that be a joy!

Natural Hoof Care-One Woman's Story

This article was published on the website of Dr Suzan Seelye at www.quantumvet.com . Suzan is devoted to the healing of horses through holistic methods, as well as educating horse owners regarding their horses health. It tells the story of my experience with natural/barefoot hoof care-C.M.

The first time I heard about Pete Ramey and Natural Hoof Care was when I saw his name listed as a guest on Clinton Anderson’s TV show. It said he would cover two topics, laminitis and navicular syndrome and that he would show how, with the barefoot trim, he could resolve both problems. I couldn’t believe it. If this was true, then it was only a matter of finding someone who knew his techniques and who would “cure” the horses affected by these crippling conditions. Little did I realize, in just one year after seeing Pete on TV, that someone would be ME and that I would be trimming, not only my own horses, but also those of several of my friends.

It just so happened that at the time I first saw Pete on TV, I owned two horses, one with laminitis that had gone to founder (rotation of the coffin bone or distal pedal bone), another with navicular syndrome. I had never been satisfied with the shoeing or veterinary care I’d received over the years and was all ears when Pete said “I’ve never seen a case of navicular that wasn’t resolved with this trimming.”
Over the years, my first horse, Rose had developed worsening lameness and had been wearing shoes with pads, due to a condition I did not quite understand. My “real job” as a medical professional gives me a distinct advantage over a lay person when it comes to recognizing anatomical terms and understanding disease processes. But, the explanation as to why Rose was lame, never made sense. The farrier said she had a condition that weakened the tendons in her front feet at the heels, that then damaged the nerve that ran along the tendon and that eventually it would break down the navicular bone.

Articles and books from vets and farriers had a similar description of the process but would sometimes reverse the order in which it occurred. Was it the damage to the bone that caused the tendon to be stressed causing pain or was it the damage to the tendon that caused pain and damage to the bone. The proof was in the xray, they would say or in the test that was commonly done in which the heel was pinched with metal grabbers. If the horse pulled away, then there was damage at the heel. Or, you could prove that the pain was at the heel and the navicular by “nerving” the horse, in other words, severing the nerve to stop the pain. Unfortunately, you might also eliminate the horse’s ability to feel the ground at his heels. And this was no guarantee that the whole process would not continue-it would just stop the pain. Rose was subjected to a special shoe with padding, but the process continued. I was told that she was born with bad feet and that she was “wolf bait”. Her hoof walls would crack and chip and I was told that it was because they were white hooves and everyone knows they crack easily. Rose began walking on her toes more and more, heels just too painful for contact with the ground, pads or no pads. The farrier said she would only worsen with time.
Rose was mine for 10 years from 1988 to 1998, until I finally sold her to a breeder, convinced she’d never be sound enough to be ridden again.
After selling Rose, I went about looking for another horse that I could turn into my trail riding buddy. I was still learning about horses and horse behavior, still learning how to ride and didn’t have a lot of money to spend on a new horse. I had just been exposed to a few videos from some guy named John Lyons and my friend had taken me to my first horse expo where I began hearing the term “natural horsemanship.” I was at the beginning of a journey that continues to this very day, when I saw an ad for an 8 yr old Morgan Arab mare, written by the young girl who had rescued her from a neighbor. Her description of Sally was so sweet and so full of wonderful details of her personality, that I had to go check her out. She was tall and thin with big brown eyes that were soft and gentle. The young girl’s mother said she would whinny when they came to feed her and that she got along with every animal at the place. But, she said, she had developed “founder” from eating fresh grass in the spring after a winter of very little to eat. She was obviously malnourished and her coat was dull. When I brought her to my stables for a week to “try her out”, I had the farrier check her feet-the same one who had put shoes on Rose. He said and I quote “I wouldn’t pay $50 for this horse.” Let’s just say, I paid a little more than that.
In the beginning, I left Sal barefoot and had a friend’s trimmer do her feet. Then I switched to a different one because someone else told me he was good. What did I know? I wasn’t even sure I understood what founder was, because it seemed that if Sal’s bone was rotated in her front foot that it would be permanent. But she seemed to do well. I began working with her using the techniques my friend had showed me and she lent me more videos, including one from a guy named Pat Parelli. When I finally got up the courage to take her on trails, I was told she would need shoes. The same people who advised shoes, also advised me on feeding Sal, including grain and alfalfa. Sure, sounds good to me. Only, it wasn’t good for Sal. She developed lameness in the spring and after being told that she’d strained a tendon or that she had a bruise on the sole of her foot, I kept her at rest for a while. She grazed on pasture and continued to eat the rich diet that everyone else in the barn fed their horses.

I will never forget the first time I saw Sal laying down in her paddock, unable to get up, her feet swollen with laminitis. Those who’ve studied the horse in its natural environment, say that a horse will never lie down unless they are in severe pain. Their only real escape from predators is to run and to lie down is to relinquish this means of escape. Sal would not get up. A vet diagnosed laminitis and suggested I use butte for pain and have my farrier look at her to adjust her shoes and/or trim. I called the farrier who had taken care of Rose, as he was considered a corrective farrier and seemed to understand what I was talking about. When he first trimmed and re-shod Sal, he began explaining the process of founder. He said that it could be from the spring grass or it could come from vaccines that we give our horses but that he could correct the angle of the pastern bone so that she would not stand on her toe, as that was now rotated down when the most distal bone in her foot, the coffin bone, moved downward. I wasn’t clear on how that had happened again and I was not sure if this was a recurrence of the same condition that she’d had when I bought her or a worsening of it. Was he going to MOVE the bone by putting these “heart bar” shoes on her. And why did he have to chop so much of her hoof wall off at the toe? All I knew was that it got Sal up and going again and as long as she was moving, I was happy. It didn’t even matter that he charged twice as much for the shoes on Sal as he did for “normal” shoes.
I moved to another stables and continued to ride Sal regularly . Our trail rides, while full of stress and struggle in the beginning, had become pure joy for both of us. I could tell Sal loved to run and I would let her move out on the straightaways, through the woods and up the hills. I fed her more grain and alfalfa, thinking she needed the calories to compensate for what she burned up on the trails. She was given carrots when she was a good girl. In addition, I found out about “horse cookies” that everyone raved about, full of molasses, used to treat their horses. Slowly, without knowing it, I was sending Sal into a downward spiral-killing her with kindness. When she first lay down in pain, the vet said she was suffering from colic. But, this was no colic and when the second vet came out, he confirmed that she had laminitis-again. He suggested that her diet may be the problem, but did not think she needed to be totally off grain. Maybe I could soak the hay. And he would do blood tests to check for Cushing’s (a pituitary disorder) and thyroid disease. In the meantime, I should place Styrofoam inside her shoes so she had more cushion on her toes where founder caused the most pain. I could give her butte.
I called out the farrier. He left the shoes on and said he’d be back when her pain subsided. When the vet said he thought it was Cushing’s based on Sal’s test results, I asked about treatment. Pills, he said, for the rest of her life. She was only 14 yrs old. Before I agreed to give her the pills, though, I began researching laminitis and Cushing’s on the internet. I had found an article months earlier in a horse magazine, written by a vet, about a condition called Metabolic Syndrome, similar to human diabetes, in which horses become resistant to the insulin in their body as their sugars increase, with a diet high in carbohydrates found in grain, molasses, alfalfa, orchard and timothy grass and treats like apples and carrots. I read everything I could find on metabolic syndrome and what I discovered was that many vets believed there was a connection between a high sugar diet and recurrent laminitis. And it seemed to occur in particular breeds that genetically were designed to eat very sparse diets-breeds like Morgans . Sal’s foot problems weren’t from some glandular disease, but instead, from feeding her too much SUGAR! I contacted the vet, who seemed to know nothing about metabolic syndrome and told him I would not need his pills. I would not be calling him again. I found a low carb diet for Sal with beet pulp and rice bran and put her on the driest hay I could find. And no more carrots and molasses cookies.
Weeks turned into months and with every shoeing, I could tell that Sal was not improving. She had now been wearing heart bars for almost 5 yrs. I asked my farrier why her “lamellar wedge” would never grow out and he had no explanation. He began asking me about the strange gray mush I was feeding Sally and what it had to do with her feet. I began noticing Sal’s limp in her hindquarters and did not know what to make of it. My beautiful horse, my wonderful trail buddy, my four legged friend was now unable to run with me and I would have to retire her to a life in a dry paddock. I began looking for another horse.

Sally's Feet in Heart Bars (This is after FIVE YEARS of "corrective shoeing")

Ironically, I found a horse in the same stables where I boarded Sal. She belonged to a young girl who had left her on pasture all year round. The mare arrived, obese, thick crested and unshod, and the girl told everyone she was trying to sell her. She had been unable to pick up her feet as the horse would become fearful and kick out, so she had not trimmed her in over a year. A few days before the young girl was about to advertise the horse, the mare lay down in her paddock. The beautiful Morgan was suffering from laminitis. I offered to buy her immediately, knowing I would be able to care for her and feed her the diet she required. Desperate to find a home for a horse she knew no one would buy, she gave me Chanty for practically nothing.
It was about this time that I watched Pete Ramey and soon after contacted a hoof care specialist and begged her to come and look at Sally. And, if she had time, to check out Rose, who I had bought back 4 yrs earlier when a woman called me and asked if I knew what to do with this horse , starved and lame, purchased from an unscrupulous woman breeder, as a Christmas present for her young daughter. I said I’d buy her back from her, and brought her home with me. She began a life of retirement on 8 acres, which she shares to this day with her buddy Tetley.
The day Sal’s shoes came off, I cried tears of joy. Although it would take another 2-3 years of learning to trim through clinics, home study and trial and error, I would eventually learn several things about Sal and Rose’s feet that would relieve them of their constant suffering and allow the hooves to revert back to their natural form and function.
First of all, for several breeds, diet is very important. There are “easy keepers” who require very little to sustain them and who will develop significant health problems on high carb diets, one of which is laminitis. The sugars create toxins which break bonds in the live tissue of the lamina which connects to the hard coating known as hoof wall. With damage comes inflammation, with inflammation comes distortion of the wall, pushing it out and away from the bone deep inside. Once this swelling is under control and the separated hoof wall is trimmed away and new connected hoof wall is allowed to grow down from the hair line, the foot will recover. Founder is not forever! A hoof must be trimmed from the bottom, balancing the heels and toes, allowing the natural concavity of the hoof to form from a thickened callus sole, not carved by a farrier’s knife. Shoes that artificially realign the bone in the foot with the pastern bone are just that-ARTIFICIAL. But laminitis and separation occurs more often than we think and is the result of unnatural forces pulling the hoof wall away from its attachment. It is the most common condition seen in horse’s feet. Cracking and splitting similar to what Rose would have, was not caused by white feet. It was because her hoof walls were left too long, in order to accommodate a shoe. Every time she stepped on a hoof wall that was abnormally long, the forces against her hoof pulled the hard covering away from the lamina. Try standing on long fingernails and not break one as you balance yourself, walking on your hands.

Hoof Wall Separation

Second, anyone who tells you that all trimming is the same, has not studied the horse’s foot in depth. Even those who study and choose to trim as nature shows us, may continue to project their own vision of the hoof based on their studies, instead of working with the hoof in front of them. That is to say, if the trimming is not improving or it is not maintaining a healthy, sound horse, then you must step back and reassess your trimming or your trimmer.
Finally, I learned exactly WHY Rose couldn’t walk on her heels and what exactly had caused her “navicular syndrome”. And, best of all, I was able to trim her myself and eliminate the problem altogether, just as Pete had claimed.
When Rose was 2 yrs old, someone decided she needed shoes in order to begin training. (I bought her when she was 8) When horses wear a shoe, the frog at the back of the foot does not make consistent contact with the ground. In addition, the shoe can potentially squeeze the back of the foot and “contract” the heel so that part of the frog, which should be up to 2 inches wide, is folded up into the foot. Underneath the frog is a mass of tissue called the digital cushion. It is soft and mushy when the horse is young and under 300 lbs. As the horse matures, and makes repeated contact at the frog with heel first landings, this digital cushion will harden and on top of it is the tough frog with a surface much like the rubber tires of your car in which the horse can push off with each step. It creates a secure, non slippery surface that is able to step over uneven ground.
Rose’s digital cushion never developed entirely. Year after year, shoes “protected” her feet and her heels remained soft and mushy. As she matured and began a life as a cutting horse, she was asked to use her heels to slide and stop rapidly. But, without solid, hardened, wide frogs to absorb the concussion of her feet to the ground, she became sore. She would then attempt to relieve her pain by attempting toe first landings. This would further inhibit the development of a solid digital cushion and if she were to put weight on the heel, she would experience more pain. And on and on….Rose has now gone 4 years without shoes and pads. She is 29 years old and suffers from arthritis in her right shoulder from walking on her toes and running abnormally in shoes for years. She stands and walks straight up with a heel first landing and her frogs, wider and harder than ever before. She never suffers from splits and cracks-her white feet as hard as any black feet in the herd.

Sally's Foot on the Mend

Sally continues to need careful monitoring of her diet to insure that she does not suffer from recurring bouts of laminitis. With correct barefoot trimming I’ve been able to grow a well connected hoof, with a thickened callused sole and ever widening frogs. Sally suffers from pain in her hocks as well as in her back and hips, no doubt from unnatural shoeing that placed stress on her joints. She is now benefitting from massage and stretching before we exercise. I ride Sal on hard road, with gravel and uneven surfaces now, but in the beginning, I used boots until her soles thickened and she was able to tolerate the ground we rode on. I highly recommend boots and anyone who trims and does not recommend them is not being realistic with the owner about what it takes to transition to going barefoot.
So much of what we do to our horses is the result of ignorance. We see and hear what others are doing and saying and figure, it must be right, otherwise, why would they do something to harm their horse? But nowadays, there is so much information available to us. There are people who are out there with answers and if we care about our horses, we’ll keep looking. Don’t go to one source, or read one book. Learn as much as you can. Question those who claim to be experts. Don’t take my word for it-learn first hand from several people who’ve struggled with the same conditions. But, most importantly, listen to your horse. The lameness you see today is usually the result of damage done YEARS earlier. Today is the day to find out if those feet can handle the demands we put on them from now on!
If you go to Pete Ramey’s website www.hoofrehab.com you will find an incredible list of resources, including his videos on trimming. You can buy them from him or rent them at www.yourhorsematters.com

NOTE: I apologize for not having any current pics of Sal but have not taken any of them recently. I will update this article with photos and discuss BRIEFLY some more specific issues in future newsletters-C.M.

Carry Your Hands, Carry Your Hands, Carry Your Hands

Over the weekend I had another opportunity to work with an amazing teacher, Dawn Ruthven, a Level 4 Centered Riding Instructor . What did I learn from this clinic you ask? You got it! When was the last time you had to think about carrying your hands? Well, frankly, when there is a horse’s head at the end of those hands! But, it turns out when you use your elbows flexed at about 90 degrees heavy enough to “dig post holes” you don’t have to worry about it. Your hands should be floating, with a light quality, light enough to write your name. The elbows support while the hand gives the aid that you need.


Does your horse always feel light in your hands?-well, maybe for a short time and then for awhile he may ask you to hold him up. Your job is to support your horse, to give him something to balance on. So, raise the outside rein until he feels weightless in your hands, hands that should be like a sponge, elastic and playful. Keep the thumbs tented to allow flexion at the wrist. Your pinky fingers should be closer that the index fingers. You should be able to look into your hands.

When the elbows are NOT doing their job, the hands become heavier. Anytime you feel weight in your hands-remind your elbows to take up the weight, which lightens your hand. And, when there is activity behind, the hands will lighten, so keep the engagement of the hindquarters with a lower leg long and shaping the horse’s body. If you keep the connection in the elbow, your horse will develop greater SELF CARRIAGE, as he strengthens his hindquarters.

This all must start from a quiet, relaxed attitude from the moment you begin your ride. We must get organized and comfortable and “find our elbows”. Don’t forget to explore your position and contact. You are responsible for the quality of your horse’s pace, so remain steady on the outside rein for support while using the inside rein to flex and lower the head and ask your horse to step forward. It is the anatomy of the horse’s muscles in the neck that allow the horse to drop his head when it is flexed to the inside.

It all becomes a balancing act between support in the front and energy from behind. Imagine going through a stream on slippery stones and instead of getting a steady arm from your friend to keep you from losing your balance and falling, you instead find shaky and inconsistent contact with what should be a supportive hand. It would be distressing and that’s exactly what your horse experiences every time you drop your hands. Give the support he needs and he will use himself with energy. Impulsion comes from the hindquarters, so remember to not let the horse start off from his front end. That seems contrary, but try it by kneeling and “walking” on all fours and then pulling yourself with your “front legs” (hands). It leaves the “back legs” dragging behind and feels very awkward. Instead, initiate the forward movement with your BACK LEGS. Don’t drive the front end away but energize the hind end. It is the ENGINE that drives the horse and it is in his hindquarters!

When your horse is balanced, tracking up with his nose just in front of the vertical, there should be no tension in your back or his. Tension will lock the muscles. Keep equal weight in both stirrups and as you post, don’t push off the stirrups. Come up at the post, centered over your horse, and imagine “dropping the ball” from between your knees-this will lower your center of gravity to keep the weight over your horse’s center. Falling forward will only put you and your horse off balance as the posting gets faster and faster, followed by your horse increasing his pace to keep up with you.

This all became very clear to my students this week, when, fresh from my own learning experience, I presented this information to them. I really like the image of helping a friend or spouse (two of my students happen to be a married couple) through a stream of slippery rocks. I took them to my favorite park and had them go up and down hills, all the while, maintaining contact with the horse's head flexed at poll (which means the back is up,the hindquarters are taking the weight) with soft, quiet and controlled pace. The more unbalanced a horse is, the more they need our help "crossing the slippery rocks."

It was a fantastic clinic and I am looking forward to going back in May for another opportunity to work with Dawn and show her how well I can CARRY MY HANDS!
MOST OF ALL: HAVE FUN and ENJOY YOUR HORSE EACH AND EVERY DAY!


4/5/2010: Dawn wrote me after reading the YHM newsletter and this blog and said, "Thank you for your very kind remarks ,really happy that you got such a
good feel.just keep reminding yourself that the elbow is the natural
buttress,the hand the communication center,through the communication the
hand becomes a love affair".cheers Dawn

"Habitual Tension"

Just that phrase, "habitual tension" sounds uncomfortable. Who would make a habit of being tense or why would you allow it to continue day in and day out? As a health care professional, I see the results of "habitual tension" on my patients. People with headaches, stomach pains, heart palpitations or racing hearts, pelvic pain, sleep disorders, and on and on. At first they don't connect their physical symptoms with the stress that triggered it. But, the more I delve into their history including work and home life, as well as their own personal and family health history, the more it becomes apparent that their physical symptoms are part of the big picture, which is stress and tension. Sometimes, they become so accustomed to the feelings in their neck, back, stomach or head that it becomes "normal." They may take medication to dull the sensations, until nothing works and it affects their daily life. What may seem like something new in their health history, may have begun months or even years earlier and living with it has simply become habit.

What does this have to do with our horses and my recent trip to a Peggy Cummings clinic? Well, actually, a lot! We've all heard of horses who have colicked or developed ulcers from stress and if you've seen the physical signs in person, you know how uncomfortable the horse appears; rolling and pawing, standing with stomach bloated, reaching back to poke at their belly as if to say "what is that I'm feeling and how can I make it go away?" But, what about stress and tension in our horse that presents as something subtle like walking with stiffness in a left front shoulder, not turning or bending on a lead rope either towards you or away from you? How about swinging their head toward you back and forth while standing or walking next to you. Is this disrespect, is it resistance or attitude or is it our horse's way of saying, something hurts, please help me?

Unlike the human patient, we can't elicit a detailed history from our horses, and may never pinpoint the exact moment when it began, but what is now apparent to me after spending the weekend watching Peggy Cummings "connect" with horses, is that much of the tension that we see and feel in our horses starts the minute we put a halter on them. What? That would mean that even as early as the first day of imprinting, if you are so inclined to engage with your foal in this way, you may have begun to create tension in your horse.

But how the heck can you handle a horse, move them from point A to point B or direct their movement, if you can't put that physical restraint on them? Well, apparently, it isn't the rope and halter that creates the tension, it's the "jerk" at the other end. (chuckle, chuckle). Seriously, if you've been around horses long enough, you've either personally pulled on a horse or seen someone else do it. Many "natural" horsemanship trainers advocate quite a bit of pulling and jerking, especially if the horses behavior includes running, turning, kicking or lifting themselves off the ground in response to their handlers' requests. I thought that it was necessary to show the horse who was in charge and because they were big strong animals, that it couldn't be that painful or harmful. But, it begins a pattern of tension and resistance that can occur even when there is no direct pull on the horse.

Horses know what happens before what happens happens, which is to say, they are able to anticipate something about to happen, once they recognize the event that occurs just before that something. So, if every time you walk into your horses area with a halter and lead rope, you then put it on them and pull them or take them out to the round pen, arena, trailer, etc, the horse soon learns to anticipate the activity outside his stall with the lead rope and halter in your hand. If the experience is one of physical stress and strain to the horse or their handler lacks the confidence and skill to create a sense of safety and comfort for the horse, it learns to associate those experience with discomfort or even fear. Muscles tighten, the head and neck recoil, the acids in the stomach flow, tension builds. Now you add riding and you put a poor fitting saddle on the horse with a rider who has little or no balance and a whole lot of her own tension. Day after day this scenario is repeated and "suddenly" you've got a horse who is difficult to handle, lame or shows problems under saddle. If they could talk and drive themselves, they'd be in my office looking for help.

That's where wonderful people like Peggy Cummings can help. Her methods of "Connected Groundwork" use soft, slow techniques that create a way to release tension and overcome bracing. At first, it seemed as if she was holding a horse too close to their face and head on a halter with fleece cushions that would encourage leaning and pushing, but when done correctly, it gives the horse the skills to carry himself and connects the hindquarters which create the power, to the rest of his body. It was subtle and elegant. There was a dramatic improvement in several of the horses, most evident in a big warmblood, whose tension in the neck and poll had created a very dangerous habit of swinging his head rapidly and vigorously towards his handler. Peggy very calmly explained that he was looking for a place to push against to release the tension. Skeptical, I couldn't stop thinking that this horse was using his head to push Peggy away and avoid being asked to move his body, which is true, but it was because he felt tension and pain. He was perfectly happy to move, once the brace and tension was out of his body. With just two 15 minute sessions, Peggy accomplished exactly that. BEAUTIFUL!

The riding just flowed from these wonderful beginnings and now I have yet another way of enriching the relationships I have with my horses and the horses of my students. If this has helped me to relieve some of the tension in their lives as they've helped me relieve stress in my life, then it will be a fair exchange. Breaking a habit is not easy, but the first step is in recognizing it and doing something different, hopefully improving on the situation. Next time your horse acts up, resists, pulls to the right, trips, moves out slowly or any host of "issues", ask yourself, where is the tension? What is my horse trying to tell me?

P.S. One thing that was not addressed was the horses feet. Several of the horses were shod and both shod and unshod horses showed signs of heels that were too low, toes too long in the front with obvious low coffin bones and subsequent toe walking. The effect this has on their knees, shoulders and back cannot be minimized and creates its own tension and resistance when left unchecked. Assessing hoof health is another part of the "big picture". C.M.

Spring in Paradise

Just when I thought that all of the rain was going to get me down, the weather has been magnificent (60 and sunshine yesterday). My daughter was home from college and it was a rare treat to be able to take Sal and Chanty out to the beach and ride with her. She doesn't get on the horses very often and she commented that she was not used to using her inner thigh muscles to ride....and she's only 20 years old! Is it any wonder that those that begin riding over 40, go through a great deal of physical strain to get it right. It just proves that it is not about "just sitting" on the back of the horse. If you're doing it right, you are exercising and when it goes well and you get off without being sore, then you really know it's working for you!

I had been riding up and down the driveway at the new stables, while the arena dries out and the surface settles. At first I thought that it would not be the type of workout that I was looking for-I was wrong. Riding straight lines, then curves in the road (this is a LONG driveway) with the change in surface height was perfect for strengthening and balancing my horses' bodies. There was one very big puddle that Chanty did not want to go through. We worked on it several days in a row and she is now much braver and able to trot through. She is doing circles around the pile of gravel and the uneveness and change in surface, really challenges her to keep her balance and stay at the same gait with speed and rhythm maintained. Who knew that riding on the driveway would be the best workout she's had yet!

But, the real dream is to complete a "Paddock Paradise". This is an idea and a book, first published by Jaime Jackson, a natural hoof care specialist who is now the executive director of the AANHCP (Association for the Advancement of Natural Hoof Care Practices). The idea is to keep your horse in as natural an environment as possible. Jackson based his ideas on observations made with the wild horse. He was able to determine that the horse normally travels along particular paths that take him past feeding areas, shelter and watering holes. In the process, his movement creates constant wear and tear to the hoof that creates the perfect foot, designed to travel over the terrain they live on. The hoof wall develops a beautiful "mustang roll", the soles are thickened and callused for protection and the frog is wide and toughened-just what we seek in our trimming to keep our horses moving and sound.

He also observed how well the horses maintained their weight and muscle tone. They were moving constantly with very little time spent in large grazing areas of lush green grass, that we consider optimal for horses. Their interaction with each other was that of typical herd behavior and he was able to see first hand how the hierarchy of the herd is established- lead mares and their young, stallions with their bands and all of the dynamics of the group. Their emotional, mental and physical needs were all being met! Surprisingly, the total area that they travelled in was not enormous. They simply moved in a clockwise direction, along a winding path, that switched back and forth. Sounds like something you could recreate on your property, right?

I am especially interested in the idea of putting my horse on a "Paddock Paradise", as they have both had significant laminitis/founder and need to have as little grass and grazing as possible. They need to move and exercise their mind and body. Sally was especially stiff yesterday after being in her stall/run for the previous 3 days, while I worked. I now warm her up with a quick massage, stretching and then light movement on the ground to get her to move her hindquarters on a circle, asking her to step under. But, she needs daily movement to keep her joints and muscles in shape. She will be 20 this year and it is time for me to give her the environment she needs to get out and about. That's where the PP becomes important. I've picked up Jackson's book again and have reviewed the important features. He now has a website that gives even more info and links to several sites that will be helpful, including one that has videos of REAL PPs. I highly recommend both sources. (Note: If you are a member of Your Horse Matters , you can receive a free copy of Jackson's book-find out more at the "Members Only" page).

I am going to start small, with an area that I can reasonably afford to fence. I'll need to reduce the amount of grass on the trail and add some sand and rock along the way. It will be for Sally and Chanty initially but I'm hoping we'll be able to expand it over time and add different features, like bridges and obstacles, as well as shelters along the way. This is going to be a challenge, but I think it's worth it. It just isn't natural to make a 900 pound horse stand in area smaller than most dog runs. There happiness and health is in our hands and I'm ready to make their days better. Look at that....another sunshiney day outside. Gotta go!

It's Like Breathing Out and Breathing In

It's time to go to a few new clinics and get the cobwebs out of my brain. It just isn't enough to read a book or watch a video to improve my horsemanship and riding. It's fun to listen to someone and watch actual demonstrations or if possible ride in a clinic with an experienced instructor. In preparation for a Centered Riding Clinic I have read a small, but very powerful book by Tom Nagel, called Zen and Horse Backriding. Tom is an instructor and advanced practitioner of Zen bodytherapy and his book is his special approach to riding that combines posture, breathing and body awareness. He especially emphasizes the use of a very powerful muscle, the psoas, which allows us as riders to lengthen our lower spine, tone the seat and inner thigh muscles and provide stability over the horse. It is that stability that gives a rider the confidence to take their horse through greater physical and mental challenges.

I've been working very hard on improving the quality of my transitions, especially my downward transitions and I think this approach to it with its practical steps, is going to make the difference. We've all probably heard about the technique that involves exhaling to get our horse to slow or stop. But, did you know why this works so well? Recently, I started suggesting to my students that if they wanted to drop their lower spine into the saddle, they could simply cough each time they felt like they were hollowing their back, as a way to remind them. There is no way to cough and keep your back hollow and your lower abdomen expanded. A cough is just an exhale that lasts seconds. The psoas in its attachments below the diaphragm pushes the air out as the muscle lengthens downward. At the same time the upper back and spine at the neck is lengthened upward as the muscles at the neck allow the head to move at the atlas joint just between your ears. Try coughing and feel how your back lowers, your buttocks make better contact with your seat.

When you practice the inhale and exhale to slow or stop your horse, you are practicing a means to make contact with your seat and inner thighs, as this same psoas muscle connects from the lower back through the front of the pelvis and on to the top of the femur or leg bone. I've tried the inhale and exhale exercise and with practice have been able to slow my horse within the same gait, what dressage riders call a "half halt" or what western riders might call "rating" your horse, especially in barrel racing, described as a deep relaxation or "melting" into the saddle to slow your horse down.

Can it really be as simple as breathing in and breathing out? Well, this is horse backriding and if you are in it for the long haul, then you've noticed that there's nothing simple about being a good rider. It occured to me recently that there is no other physical activity that involves 2 living creatures in direct physical contact with each other, requiring each of them to be in balance while being strong and flexible enough to move as one- except maybe dancing and pairs skating. But that's TWO HUMANS. We're talking about being on a very large 4 legged creature, with all of its emotional and physical attributes, anyone of which can alter the course of things in or out of the saddle.

So, if you want a great little book that teaches you how to use your breathing and your posture to improve your riding, check out Tom Nagel's book. I'm looking forward to seeing him in person and learn just how "simple" it is to use a breath to control a horse.

Guardians of the Horse

Hello horse lovers! Is it spring yet? Yikes! It is taking a lot more effort this year to get the enthusiasm going. What do you do to get yourself moving? This past month I literally moved, horses, that is, and now have the girls out at my friend's place. They have their own personal run out back of their stalls and we've noticed a couple of things. First, the horses seem to like standing outside in their paddocks rain or shine, day or night time. Two of the horses, especially like the outdoors-one who had spent the first 4 years of his life in a round pen, knee deep in his own manure. He seems to feel comfortable out and about and loves to peek into the stall next to his where my mare Sal lives. The other gelding has spent the last 7 yrs in a very small stall and was developing swelling in his front legs as a regular occurence. He now stands outside all day and his owner closes his door at night as she thinks he'll stay out in the rain.

The other thing I've noticed is that my gal Sal's coat has become shiny again with no fungal infection in the mane and on the legs. Turns out that the high level of iron in the well water at our previous facility, mixed with the iron in her hay and low starch feed, triggered ongoing insulin resistance that raised her blood sugars. I might as well have skipped the change in feed. I had been trying to bring my own water in, but when the horses were in their paddocks out on the property, there was no way to haul fresh water to them and so they drank fresh water in their stall and well water in the paddocks. I've continued to search the internet for more info, but as was true just 5 yrs ago when my horse foundered for the last time, there is just not enough known about the triggers for laminitis. The average vet doesn't learn enough about hoof care and laminitis at school and any vet more than 10 yrs out of school is clueless unless they keep up their education or they are especially interested in hoof care. Of course, I always look to Pete Ramey's site for the most updated info. His videos now feature particular cases of hoof disease and how to care for the horse through diet and correct trimming.

When it comes to diet, even the horses who've never had laminitis or founder can go out on pasture and eat themselves into laminitis. Their feet will even feel a little warmer than usual, as my friend so astutely noticed when she went to pick her mare's feet, after spending several hours on grass in her newly fenced pastures. Another young horse at the stables is struggling with a case of colic which started before the move.

It all reminds me that we are the guardians of our horse's emotional and physical well being. We ask them to eat and drink what we give them, but is it more than they need? In the wild, horses are grazers that move constantly, eating a lot of forage and dried vegetation, not grain and high sugar foods like carrots, apples and sweet treats. They move about 20 miles a day and drink fresh water in different locations, interacting with a large herd of horses, yet we house them in small pens or paddocks isolated from each other. Exercise comes in small spurts and I've noticed that Sal's muscle tone has suffered from the lack of activity when I felt that her hock arthritis was severe enough to limit how much I rode her. She still needed to keep MOVING!

So, as usual, I begin to beat myself up for keeping my horses in an environment that is convenient for me, not my horses. I have to keep my promise to make each day with the them as stimulating as possible. I've begun learning some massage techniques, allow them to run in a very large outdoor arena and ride them as much as possible, even if it's up the long driveway of the new facility.

Our hope is to build an obstacle course this summer and my DREAM is to build a paddock paradise, that allows the horses to move constantly around an area that simulates the movement in the wild that takes them in a loop through their natural territory, able to slowly graze on small amounts of food, interact with other horses and most of all, stretch their legs and stimulate their feet to wear their hooves naturally. Sounds ideal!

Now that I'm energized, it's time to get out and spend time with my critters. They can't do it without us, so don't forget to be the best guardian possible. And enjoy your horse!

A New Year of Horsemanship

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Wow, has another year gone by! It doesn't seem possible. I've been looking through my previous blogs to see just how far I've come as a horsewoman (and a person) and as I continue to watch the latest or recently acquired video in my collection, I'm able to quickly see how much progress I've made with my horsemanship. As I've become a better student, so will I become a better teacher both to my horse and students.

At least, that's the goal. It is an ongoing process that should never end. For so many though, it never starts and so the frustration of horse ownership sets in pretty quickly. On these cloudy, rainy, cold winter days, it can be difficult to muster up the enthusiasm to go out and engage with your horse, let alone ride. We tend to think that as long as their stalls are clean and they have enough food, water and a few hours outside, that our job is done. For those of us in it for the long haul, it takes more energy, enthusiasm and imagination to keep the interest alive and to make the horse's life more mentally and physically stimulating. Yes, it's a challenge. So, I keep on watching and learning.

I've even started putting together a mental checklist when I see someone new or evaluate previously viewed trainers/clinicians. I have noticed something interesting in western riding or "natural horsemanship". It is my observation that there are very few men who address the issue of correct riding. Their focus is usually on the horse's behavior and training. The riding instruction comes from women trainers mostly. Many Western trainers will actually omit any specific instructions to the rider as if it is only the horse who exists in the relationship. We are merely a passenger. The horse is being difficult and speeding up or kicking out simply because we haven't executed the right one rein pull or used our leg and rein pull to move the horses hindquarter. Maybe a more severe bit is necessary for that "dull" horse. And there is a lot of pulling going on in Western riding including the "seesawing" that is so common in Western Pleasure with two reins that makes me cringe!!!

English or classical riding instruction videos tend to forget that the horse is part of the picture and that many riders can be given instructions on correct hand, seat and leg position and yet, not have a clue how to get their horse to stand still when they mount, cannot lead their horse from the paddock without holding close to the halter, do not know how to ask their horse to quietly stand to be groomed or for hoof care and a whole host of groundwork issues that show up. It is very common to have someone "hold your horse" while you get on, fully expecting them to pace and turn away and walk immediately once you mount. I, on the other hand, fully expect my horse to stand quietly, even when not tied while I groom, trim, saddle and mount.

As a well rounded horsewoman I need to be aware of BOTH parties in the relationship. We both have a responsibility. For the rider, she must understand what makes a horse tick, their behaviors, their personalities, their innate characteristics. Don't assume that a horse is being "disrespectful" or that there are previous abuses causing the current problems. Learn to recognize physical signs and symptoms of horse's difficulties with movement that influences behavior and their ability to respond to your training or riding. In short, EDUCATE YOURSELF.

But does the average horse owner have time for this-unfortunately the answer is no. We all have jobs, families, outside commitments and interests that sometimes place our horse at the bottom of the priority list. This week I worked extra hours to help increase our savings for future unexpected expenditures. I haven't seen much of my horses this week and I haven't ridden but once in a week. I've tried to spend a few moments looking at some books and videos in preparation for my next lesson with students. It helps to have a mental checklist and find the information that most consistently appears; tips to make my riding and my students riding enjoyable for them AND their horses. I've found that there a several things to look for when reviewing new material:

1) Is the material given in a structured, simple educational format or is it just an informational video that says WHAT is being done, but not WHY or HOW or what to do if it's not working for you? Can you easily repeat what is being done, when you work with your horse or ride?

2)Does it show well behaved, trained school horses with experienced riders only or do they use any untrained horses with inexperienced riders.

3)Are they encouraging safety in riding and working with the horse. Do the riders wear helmets or explain why they do not? Do they emphasize safety ONLY on the ground?

4) Do they explain techniques that can be used for ALL disciplines or is it strictly for "western" or "english" and what does that mean? Shouldn't good riding and horsemanship be applied across the board? Are the techniques easy to duplicate?

5) Do the trainers explain how much the horse's physical abilities or lack of contribute to difficulty with training and riding and behavior issues? Is stubborness, dull mouth, lack of respect or difficult personality for example, used to explain away behavior problems, solved only with more tools or severe handling of the horse's mouth and/or body for control of overall movement?

6) Does the trainer/clinician understand and utilize the idea of balance in the rider AND the horse and explain how these can be achieved separately, then together? Are there specific exerises given to practice and improve balance and movement for both? Do these methods work consistently for you and your horse when you use them?

Of course, I'm sure it's difficult for one person to include both training of the horse from the beginning on the ground to under saddle as well as help for the rider in one video. There are many who try to cover it over a series of videos. They sometimes share the task with their partner, one knowing more about the horse (presumably) and one knowing (hopefully) more about the rider.

But, knowing how much it cost to purchase these videos, you might say that it can be very expensive to take a chance on what you may or may not get out of the videos. Many clinicians and trainers are also good promoters, salesmen/women and have been able to get more attention for their videos. That doesn't mean they are giving you what you need to make your horsemanship experience fun and rewarding. It just means they've got your attention and/or your money.

My advice in the new year is to do whatever you can to make the best of your days with your horse. Buy, rent or borrow books and videos. Take a friend and go to a three day expo and learn whatever you can, go to a clinic, watch programs on cable or satellite TV. Find a good instructor (get references and take a few lessons to see if you like the instructor), ask an experienced horseman/woman who you know has great results and treats their horses with kindness and respect, to help you. Do SOMETHING!-and enjoy the coming year. If you're in the small minority of people who own horses, you may still be a horseowner in 2011. I know I will!