horse care

Last week I gave a private clinic to three wonderful clients. Only one of them had ridden when young, the others started riding after their own children had grown. Age isn’t an impediment to catching horse fever, and they all seriously had it. Not long after getting in the saddle, […]

Grooming For Happiness

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Tonka had four days off last week, and when I got back on him he was gimpy. He mostly worked out of it, but if you looked closely you’d see a small head bob when he tracked left at the trot. This intermittent lameness is so frustrating! It’s difficult to […]

Not Quite Sound

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I have a client who is new to horses. She started riding lessons in her 50s, was immediately enthralled, and only a few months after first sitting in a saddle she purchased a horse. She found a horse (let’s call him Bo) who looked to be safe to be around, […]

Flip the Perspective

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Tonka and I had a jump lesson on Wednesday. He knew what was about to happen and enthusiastically warmed up, but that was interrupted when he coughed a couple of times. Horses, like us, cough to clear our throats. It can be jarring when you’re on top of a horse […]

Tonka Had a Cough

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A couple of new horses arrived at the barn and it was decided that it would be best if Tonka moved to a different stall so that a young filly could be stabled between two mature mares (and so that Tonka didn’t have to live between the girls!) Tonka was […]

Tonka Moves Stalls

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It’s now officially spring. But we horse people already knew that. The shedding!   Here in the north our horses’ manes are waxy with gunk, their bodies remain dusty and grimy no matter how much grooming we do, and their white hocks (for those of us “lucky” enough to have […]

Bathtime

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Tonka had something sticky on his nose, so I used his favorite soft curry on it.   Seven years with Tonka, and I never knew that he liked this. Now he wants me to curry his nose everyday.   A relationship is never static if you pay attention to what […]

Something New: Nose Grooming

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Yesterday we had a fresh snowfall of about 5 inches. This is Maine, so it’s not a big deal. Our power is on, our water still flows, and the plows have cleared the roads. However, conditions were such that the horses couldn’t be turned out safely. One reason I like […]

Snow Day

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It’s that time of year. Your significant other is in search of a gift for you. Not just any gift. A romantic gift. Despite the fact that Steve and I have been together for about 30 years, he still gets stressed out when February rolls around. I assure him that […]

Valentine’s Day Gifts For Horse Women

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