It’s about 30 years too late but I may have finally discovered what might have interested my daughter in horses. She never caught the bug from me. I sometimes despaired over the historical perspective that many of my friends were offering her their outgrown ponies, while when I was a kid I desperately hoped to even get to touch a pony. ...  READ MORE

My thought was that if the products of such a successful training program felt that much different than my own horses, I’d want to know why. Is there something I could learn to improve my training, to create a better performance?...  READ MORE

One might say I’m on a soapbox, but I’m beginning to question the weight of everything I put on my horse. I’m watching my own level of fitness, as always, and being very careful that my horses remain fit. (Actually, there are days I wish someone would muzzle me. Why do so many people think they’re cruel?)...  READ MORE

Take a good look at this 14-hand 12-year-old Appy pony mare. Flashy, isn’t she? Now picture her with a little more training, so she’s round and ...  READ MORE

I have three equines who can be considered founder-prone. Sugar, the older donkey had foundered mildly sometime before she joined our family. Spice, her daughter, foundered a couple of years ago during a very lush spring. Frodo, the mini horse, is founder-free so far but certainly on the list of potential candidates....  READ MORE

In his Practical Horseman column this month, Jimmy Wofford argues that we’ve saved the classic-format three-day event, a competitive format that seemed about the go the way of the dodo bird eight years ago. Today I’m going to second his opinion ....  READ MORE

Real silver, both sterling and silver plate, seems to be disappearing from our lives in general, not just in show prizes, except maybe for jewelry....  READ MORE

Black Jack is 3 years old and little (10.1 hands). He’s cute and moves nicely (fancy little trot!) and might be great for driving. He needs someone to ...  READ MORE

In my view, no horse is ever “trained.” There are always things to improve about your own technique and your horse’s performance. Training a horse is like climbing a mountain whose peak always remains in the clouds above you, and you’ll never reach it. But you will always have a higher view of the valley you’ve left behind....  READ MORE

Whenever I teach a clinic or start working with a new student I look first at the rider’s position in the saddle.  Of course, this is ...  READ MORE