Terry Golson

World events getting you down? Feeling overwhelmed? A small-town agricultural fair in Maine can replenish what the news has depleted. It’s a place where girls in tutus and cowboy boots feel right at home.   It’s where well-loved animals ask strangers for nose scratches.     (Note that if that […]

A Day At A Maine Agricultural Fair

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I want Tonka to enjoy our excursions off the farm. To get to them he has to go in the trailer, and I want that experience to be positive for him too. This is how Tonka feels about going on a trip. Relaxed and eager.   There are carrots in […]

Horse Trailer Hacks

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Today’s blogpost is a public service announcement 🙂 It’s the time of year to wear high visibility gear. If you’re on a road, even a dirt one, it’s best to have a on. Mine has a message. Once in awhile I know that someone has read it because they actually […]

High Vis for Riding Safety!

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When your horse is worried, it’s never nothing. I’ve written about this before. Tonka and I have ridden here a gazillion times. From the field, he can see his barn and his friends in their paddocks. It should be a worry-free place to do conditioning sets up and down the gentle […]

Tonka Knows More Than Me (continued…)

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When it comes to taking medication, Tonka is cooperative. It’s no problem giving him injections, or squirting paste wormer into his mouth. But, these are behaviors that have to be maintained. A couple of months ago, for the move to a new barn, Tonka was on a one-week course of […]

Training For Oral Med Dosing

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Note: This is one article in a series about horse vision. I’ve compiled all of them, including more information and references, in this blogpost: Horse Vision. I’ve been looking into horses’ eyes lately. Literally and figuratively. In November, l’ll be talking at Equine Affaire about the horse’s senses, how their view of […]

Your Horse’s Vision

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Tonka and I have been jumping. Granted, the “jumps” are this high.   I’m at a hunter/jumper barn, where there are always jumps out, including the easiest of cross-rails.   But my little dressage horse isn’t ready for those cross-rails, and honestly, jumping over them isn’t a goal of mine. So, […]

Tonka is Enjoying Raised Pole Exercises

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Behavior doesn’t happen out of the blue. Spooks don’t happen for no reason. You – the rider – might not see, hear, smell, or otherwise notice what your horse is reacting to, but it’s there. Sometimes what the horse is worried about is something harmless. If you have a good […]

Spooking Is Communication. Listen!

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The weather was perfect. It was a good day to go for a ride at Kim’s. Tonka didn’t know where we were going, but when I led him out of the barn and he saw the trailer with the ramp down, he practically led me on. It’s an easy twenty […]

My Horse Likes Trailering

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