Out of all the horses I’ve owned, few have been as rewarding as my senior horses. While baby horses in a field can stop traffic and our curly horses draw attention at horse shows, caring for an old horse is uniquely rewarding. In this piece, you’ll learn all about old horses- caring for them, knowing …
Horse
Training a horse to fetch a ball, a hat, or any object on command is possible- it just takes practice and patience! In this article, I’ll walk you through the steps I use to trick train horses to retrieve objects on command. Teaching a horse to pick up an object and bring it to you …
A pony is a type of horse that has been bred to mature at a smaller size. Ponies, with few exceptions, are horses that measure less than 58 inches (147 cm) when measured from the ground to the bump at the top of their shoulder where their neck meets their body. New horse riders and …
A four-strand braid is easy to learn! If you can braid with three strands of hair- you can braid with four- I promise! This easy 4 strand braiding method works on human hair, horse manes, and even the occasional friendship bracelet! Although braiding 4 strands adds a challenge – It pays off in “wow factor …
Teaching a horse to pull a cart can be tricky. Many trainers argue that breaking a horse to safely drive and pull a cart is more challenging than simple saddle training- and for good reason: many horses initially have a strong reaction to the sensation of the long shafts on the side of their body …
There are many ways to cue your horse when riding. One of the most popular ways, unique to the Western style of riding developed in the United States, is called neck reining. Neck reining is in some ways the “opposite” of what is called direct rein riding. What is Neck Reining? In direct-rein riding, the …
A gelding is a male horse that has had a procedure similar to neutering a male dog. When a horse has “been gelded” it means that they’ve had the equine equivalent of the neutering procedure performed routinely on dogs and cats. A gelding horse is much calmer and easier to train than an ungelded stallion. …
There are many crafts that can be made with horse hair! You’ve probably heard of braided bracelets made with long hair from a horse’s tail. You might not know that the fur horses shed in spring can be cleaned, carded, and used for any fiber products! In this article, you’ll learn all about fiber crafts …
A war bridle is a minimalist horse bridle made from a single continuous piece of rope. There are several variants of a war bridle, but the most common is a loop of rope that encircles the horse’s lower jaw. The loop of rope passes through the horse’s mouth and rests in the mouth like a …
When a horse won’t load in a trailer, it can be a stressful experience for both the horse and handler. In this article, I’ll be discussing the problem and describing specific training interventions you can use right now or gradually over a few days or weeks to get a resistant horse loaded on a trailer …