Channel Archives: Learn

Last week I wrote about the hocks and subsequent ailments thereof. Whilst researching the words I came across a passage from Shakespeare’s Taming of the Shrew in which he lists...

It’s a universally accepted truth that every equestrian wants to improve their riding. We all want to feel confident in the saddle, have a horse that responds to our aids...

Horses are stoic animals, especially when it comes to dental pain. They often show us only minor signs of discomfort, which can quite commonly show up as behavioral problems. For...

Spring. It’s been windy here, and my Dutch Warmblood True is presently in a small paddock while the spring grass gets a good healthy start. What this means in three-year-old...

Some of the names given to common blemishes and limb ailments our horses acquire due to wear and tear, conformation faults and/or hereditary misfortune are odd, as is everything in...

You’ve probably heard the phrases: “she’s just being moody,” “that’s classic mare behavior,” “you caught her on one of those days.” They’re typically used to explain unwanted behaviors in mares,...

As you can see from my Horse Network posts so far, new baby horses offer a million details to consider. We’ve talked about catching, tying, settling in, approaching from behind,...

I became familiar with the crupper when I was five because my fiendish pony Winsome needed one. She also required side reins as I lacked the necessary power to prevent...

Question: I read in one of your interviews that horses don’t have the capacity to show off. But they do have a capacity for fear. Can you talk a little...

As long as it’s a calm day at the barn, my three-year-old Dutch Warmblood True naps through most of his grooming, eyes half shut while I brush. But lifting the...

There are a lot of crazy horse names in this world and racehorses, for some reason, seem to have a monopoly on some of the strangest. There is a good...

My new three-year-old Dutch Warmblood True cross-ties well in the barn and likes to be groomed. But even after a few weeks, he’s still nervous about his position. Which, I...

Why do donkeys have such big ears? The answer is painfully simple, and I suppose had I put any thought into it prior to beginning my research I might have...

Greetings! Last time, we talked about teaching a young horse to tie. It takes time and patience, progressing only a little every day to give her gradual experience. “Snubbing” a...

We’ve all been there—on the horse who pokes his way around the warm-up ring, needs leg, leg, leg coming into the combination, or brings up the rear on every trail...

When you come across a bit with a strange name it isn’t surprising to learn that it’s likely the surname of its creator. The interesting part is discovering the mastermind...

Sometimes in our riding career, we elevate to the point where we’re required to wear a tailcoat. It’s a rarely worn riding jacket but when we get the chance to...

Question: Top riders often say they can feel when a horse “tries” extra hard for them in a class (i.e. puts in extra effort to jump clear at a wide...

One key to horse training is that it’s better to prevent problems than correct them. So, always test a new horse’s knowledge of tying before fastening her to something. The...

Bucephalus was Alexander the Great’s favourite horse, and apparently, according to many, one of the most famous horses in history. His story, surprisingly, is similar in nature to most horse...