Don’t Tempt Those Horse Gods on Friday the 13th

Posted on May 13, 2011 by deserthorse

On Friday, the 13th of August 1993, the horse gods just might have been playing with me. I had been busy, managing the show barn where I worked – teaching lessons, schooling horses. The usual. In the early afternoon, when most of the clients had gone home to air-conditioned comfort, I was riding a green gelding through a grid exercise. A friend, former professional rider turned amateur, was helping me set the exercise. Lucky for me I wasn’t riding alone, which wasn’t uncommon at that time of day.

Because, for reasons neither of the humans present ever discovered, the usually quiet (okay, actually downright lazy) young horse bolted, running full out around the arena. Never a fun ride, but usually an experienced rider can gradually steer the horse in smaller and smaller circles to decrease the speed enough to safely bail or get the horse stopped. Not this time. This horse was full out with no steering or brakes when he veered off his shallow arc and headed straight for the arena fence.

He ran square into the three-rail pipe fence, hitting hard enough that he ejected me over his head while he bounced backward. That meant he landed in the soft arena footing and I hit on concrete-hard, summer-baked ground on the edge of the parking lot.

I lay flat on my back in the dirt with the sun beating down on me, thinking something wasn’t quite right. I had hit the ground many times in my life, but this time I didn’t have any urge to get right up. My helper asked whether I was okay and, on discovering I was lucid, set about gathering up the completely unharmed horse. But one of the pre-teen girls who had ridden in a late-morning lesson was still on-site, waiting for her ride home.

I’ll never forget this child coming to stand over me and saying, “Stacey, you know why this happened, don’t you?”

By now I’m starting to feel shocky, but I play along if only to keep her from getting worried or upset. “No, why?”

“Because it’s Friday the 13th and you were riding a horse named Lucky Number.”

Apparently, to her young reasoning, I had simply tempted fate and lost. That’s a good an explanation as any for why the horse lost his brain and his brakes. For my trouble I got to spend the rest of the afternoon in the emergency room and the next three months recovering from a broken shoulder blade.

A couple years later, I was riding another greenie on another Friday the 13th when I got another message from the horse gods. The mare threw up her head over a fence and whacked me right in the nose, not hard enough to break but plenty hard to start a gusher. I gave my roommate a scare by turning up in the barn covered with blood and was – based on that incident and my past history – from that day forward sharply forbidden to ride on unlucky Fridays. And with her reminders I didn’t, for a few years.

I’m sure I have inadvertently tempted fate and ridden on such Fridays many times since, but I still think of those incidents on the few occasions I realize the date. I thought of them today and didn’t sit on a single horse … but only because I didn’t have plans to ride today anyway.

Hope your Friday the 13th was safe and happy!

Posted in Horses | Tagged | Leave a comment

And the Crowd Goes Wild: The Horse as Entertainment

Posted on May 2, 2011 by deserthorse

Over the past year or so, people have been sending me links to this video with notes saying things such as, “This is incredible. I know you’ll just love it.” Yeah, well, except that I don’t. In fact, I get that punched-in-the-gut visceral response less than 30 seconds in and can’t make myself watch the rest. I have the same response to this one and this one.

Why is that? I’m not exactly sure. At least in the beach scenes, it all just looks like play and good fun. But these people do this training in order to perform in public with their horses and, I think, that’s where I start to get that strange sensation in my midsection.

I wonder, are the horses doing this because they think it’s fun to be together in this way with each other and their humans? Maybe. I hope so. But in my experience, people who teach horses to do tricks with the intention of showing them publicly are often more interested in applause and acclaim than they are in what’s good for horses. I’m not saying that’s the case here; I have absolutely no way of knowing. I just know what my very strong reaction is. My reason for working with horses and teaching their humans is all about making the world a better place for horses, and I just don’t know that this kind of performance does that.

It’s a bit like all the events that seem to be cropping up that challenge trainers to take unstarted or problem horses (seems like BLM mustangs are the trend) and come back in a set time period to show what they have taught the horses. It would make some sense to me if the trainers were happy to give the horses a good start on basic skills they might need on the trail or in a working ranch setting (and most of the contests do include elements of this.) But, for some reason I don’t quite fathom, at least some of the contest-winning freestyle demonstrations seem to run to crazy stuff – bizarre costumes and asking horses to do things nobody would ever logically need, like stepping onto a moving vehicle.

Unless these horses are destined for those cheesy rodeo sideshows or Hollywood movie sets, what exactly is the point of all that? Supposedly the reason for the contests is to raise awareness that these are good, trainable horses and to get more average, everyday horse enthusiasts to adopt them. I’d rather know that if I bought one of them after the contest that I could get the horse loaded to go home, turn the horse out in a pasture without him going through the fence, take him on a nice quiet trail ride or put him to work on a ranch, and generally just have what used to be called “a good usin’ horse.”

I would consider such skills as leaping thorough flaming hoops and cantering around and around while the rider shoots arrows at balloons as superfluous. And what’s with the whole standing up on the horse’s back thing?

Judging from the number of people who continue to send me links to these horse performances and the volume of cheers and applause at the mustang stunts, I might just be in the minority on this issue. Anyone else out there have misgivings about these entertainment-oriented horse trainers and events?

Posted in Horse Trainers, Horses | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Alexander: May 15, 1997-April 17, 2011

Posted on April 18, 2011 by deserthorse

 

Alex at about 10 weeks, a cute little furball.

We’re missing a family member in the ManeStream today. Alex, my nearly-14-year-old German Shepherd died quietly in his favorite napping spot yesterday.

Alex with his good friend Piggers at the lake where they went to swim.

We’ve known he was on borrowed time for nearly a year, since a fast-growing tumor was removed from his lip. He didn’t see or hear well and sometimes got confused about where he was in the yard, but he remained his mellow, happy self.

Sunday morning he went out for a woof session with his friend across the alley, but later came indoors seeming a bit short of breath. I sat with him to see whether he had just gotten too warm, but it became clear his breathing was labored and his nose was ice cold. He died a few minutes later, just after I had set a time for the mobile vet to come see him. No muss, no fuss for Alexander.

We’ll miss his sweet presence and his stories, which he always enjoyed telling with great enthusiasm to every new person he met.

Posted in Pets | Leave a comment

When I am Old ….

Posted on March 13, 2011 by deserthorse

I just read an essay written by my friend Amanda Madorno, a thoughtful and dedicated endurance rider based in the Pacific Northwest. I liked it so much, I asked for permission to reprint it here. I’m quite certain many of my fellow horsewomen will relate.

I know Amanda has had her share of problems, both soundness issues and training challenges, with her horses over the years I have known her. And I realize that she, like many of us, sometimes feels frustrated that she’s not meeting her riding and competing goals. I also know that in spite of all of that, she is one of those horse owners who understands what is really important — relationship, connection, love.

Here’s her account of a chance encounter that served as a wonderful reminder to her, and to us all, of why we make horses part of our lives:


When I am old, I will ride my old buckskin ….

Sometimes you have an experience that reminds you, in the end, love has a lot to do with where you end up, not where you start.

Last weekend my friend Beth and I were out riding. We cantered around Bridle Trails, enjoying no rain and the promise of sun. As we came around a corner of the trail, we saw the rough shape of a horse and rider ahead, so we slowed to a walk. At first I thought that perhaps the rider was out for a therapeutic trail ride, although we did not see walkers on the side of the horse.

As the horse and rider got closer, my curiosity shifted to amazement. The horse, an aged bay gelding, moved at a stately but somewhat stiff walk. He was well-kept, but you could see that Cushings had set in.

Amanda and her much-loved buckskin gelding Cato.

An old woman, who looked at least 80 years old, was on his back. She was padded with layers of winter riding gear and her white hair fluffed out from underneath her helmet. She rode hunched over and listed to the left, as if crippled from osteoarthritis. Yet, you could tell that this was a woman who had spent a lifetime riding and had spent a lot of those years with this particular horse. The connection between them was a deep, soft radiance, filled with affection and understanding.

“Hello” she said, her blue eyes rheumey and sparkling.

“Hello” we greeted her back. My voice had a funny catch to it. I felt tears stand in my eyes as Beth and I continued along the trail in silence. We looked at each other a couple of times, as if expecting the other to speak, but neither of us did.

Finally I managed to say, “When I grow up, I want to be like her.”

Beth’s eyes brimmed with tears. She nodded, “Me too.”

And that was all we could say about it, even though our hearts were full of admiration, gratitude and inspiration.

I have thought about that old woman and her wonderful gelding often since that trail ride. I hope they have a spring time of rides together. Thanks to them, I realize that years from now, it won’t matter how many endurance rides Cato and I completed or didn’t, whether we went 100 miles or 25. I will be well and truly blessed if, when I am 80, I can still get into my saddle and putter along with my old buckskin down the trail. Now, that will be saying something!

Posted in Healing, Horses | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Do You Know Your Own Horse?

Posted on January 12, 2011 by deserthorse

I have never believed in grooming and tacking horses for my clients, except in certain very rare, pre-arranged circumstances. I have caught some grief for that over the years, especially from adults. Couldn’t I make the kids groom and tack by themselves as a learning tool, but do those tasks for the adults who are too busy, distracted, whatever? Nope.

I believe that time is essential for any rider to make a connection with the horse, to assess the horse’s mental and physical well-being. And it’s a responsibility, just part of the lifestyle of horsemanship.

There are many ways to interact with your horse that will improve your partnership. But there are practical reasons for getting to know your own horse, too. Years ago, a barn where I worked had several wealthy clients who were novice horse owners. The policy for those clients was that they could call ahead and the staff would have their horses ready, groomed, tacked and standing in crossties when they arrived. They would come into the barn and a staff member would greet them and help them get organized, adjusted and out the door to the arena. Once, though, the wife opted to ride on her own on a day when the barn was closed. That meant she had to get her lovely bay mare out of its stall, groom it and tack it on her own – maybe for the first time ever in her riding career.

Luckily one of the training staff stopped in just as client wife had completed grooming and tacking. There was, indeed, a horse in the crossties, groomed to a shine and wearing the client’s tack. And it was a bay horse. A bay stallion. (!!) That belonged to another boarder.groomingbox

Yes, all the experienced horsemen and -women reading this are cringing at the little movie in their heads, the one in which novice rider thinks she’s getting on her quiet, well-mannered mare and instead mounts someone else’s not-so-docile stallion and havoc ensues. Yikes! Happily for all concerned, that was averted. But, really folks. Spend the time. Do the work. Get to know your own horse.

If you don’t go home from the barn dirty, you didn’t do it right!

Posted in Horses, People | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Happy Holidays!

Posted on December 24, 2010 by deserthorse

newsletterwreath

.

.

Wishing you all
a joyful and happy Christmas
and a healthy and prosperous
New Year!

Posted in Holidays | 1 Comment

Riding: Good or Bad? A Reader Question

Posted on December 11, 2010 by deserthorse

“I find myself going back and forth in a quandary of whether or not riding a horse is disrespectful to the horse and whether or not it can be done in a way that is not in any way painful for the horse.”

It’s such an interesting question you ask, one that in my experience most thinking people who have horses face at some point. I certainly wouldn’t presume to tell you or anyone what is right for you and your horse. All I can tell you is what I believe to be true about the reasons horses have chosen to stay on this planet and what they bring to their human partners.

Let’s face it, there’s no practical reason for horses not to be well on the way to extinction by now. Their natural habitat is pretty meager and humans have selectively bred for traits that don’t necessarily set them up to succeed in the wild. Their original usefulness to people, as means of transportation, is no longer relevant. So, by many standards, we should have stopped feeding and housing and breeding them decades ago. But we didn’t. Why not?

I think so many people find horses to be essential elements in their lives because the horses negotiated a new deal with the universe to be of service in a new way. We don’t need them to help us explore the frontiers or defeat an enemy or carry heavy loads. So they stuck around to help us face some other, less obvious challenges. To save us from ourselves, in a way.

Ichobod works with one of his riding students.

Ichobod works with one of his riding students.

Ask a person, horse owner or not, why they like horses and at first you’ll hear enthusiastic exclamations about how beautiful horses are, how graceful their movement, how fast they run. Foals and ponies are cute and fuzzy. Stallions are majestic. Mares are sweet and nurturing or fiesty and interesting. But let the question hang in the air a while, especially among people who really do spend time with horses, and you’ll start to hear the deeper reasons. Horses can help us feel our power (sometimes for better, sometimes for worse). They connect us to nature and the earth – just think, if you live and work in a city, the only concrete-free ground you ever touch might be the arena. And they hold up a big mirror and show us who we are, the good bits and the warts, in a non-threatening, judgment-free way that other people just can’t manage.

For those of us born with that mutant “horse” gene, they just make us feel good. We love the sound of them munching sweet-smelling hay and the feeling when they share their breath with us. We love the way they smell and how soft and fluffy or sleek and glossy their coats look and feel. We like the sounds their hooves make on various surfaces – the clippity clop on a paved road and the cushioned thud on green pasture and the thundering roar on a fast racetrack. They’re our friends, our therapists, our family members. They require us to focus, to learn to quiet our mental chatter and learn to just be, to intentionally choose to inhabit our minds and our bodies now, in the present. There’s even an interesting study, I think still ongoing, that shows the heart rates of a human and a horse entrain when they interact. So there is a definite physiological effect to spending time with a horse, even just sitting near one.

How do they choose to interact with us to accomplish all this? The answer to that is as diverse as the horses and humans. I’m lucky to have two horses who have chosen very different paths. Sport, the younger of the two, may never be ridden. He didn’t have a very good start in life and he doesn’t tolerate the feeling of being bound up around the middle of his body. Even the soft fleece “girth” of a bareback pad causes him to dissociate to the point he doesn’t realize when a person is standing next to him. He has other talents and skills and is a wonderful horse. He’s just not a riding horse.

On the other hand, Ichobod, my old gelding, has taught me many lessons that weren’t about riding at all while still making it very clear that he wants to be ridden. He chose and is very content with his role as teacher and he has brought along his riding students very effectively over the past few years. He has quite different lessons to teach each of them and has unique relationships with them that have very little to do with his partnership with me. At 27, you might think I’m overdue “allowing” him to retire. But he loves what he does, he’s good at it and I trust that when it’s time to change, he’ll let me know. I no more believe in forcing a horse to stop doing his job than I believe in forcing him to do a job he doesn’t like.

Sport helps a clinic participant overcome fear of horses.

Sport helps a clinic participant overcome fear of horses.

There is, in my opinion, absolutely no question of riding being disrespectful or cruel at all if you and the horse agree that’s going to be part of your relationship. They’re big, strong animals with reflexes much quicker than ours, so if a horse really, really doesn’t want someone on him the person is not going to stay on. (Not to say that every time a horse “loses” his rider, that means the horse doesn’t want to be ridden. There are many factors.)

Do I think you are capable, either physically or emotionally, of inflicting that kind of abuse on your horse? No, never. To do that you have to completely dominate and break down a horse – and that attitude would have to define your entire relationship with the horse, not just riding time. You’re not going to do anything like that, and I don’t think your horse is the type who would be likely to fall victim to it.

That doesn’t mean that if you decide that riding doesn’t feel right, now or at any time in the future, you shouldn’t choose to spend your horse time differently. There are certainly a lot of good choices – all kinds of fun and beneficial ground exercises you can do. To my way of thinking, you can’t make a wrong choice in this. Just different choices that lead down different paths.

Read a discussion of this topic on Facebook.


Posted in Horse Abuse, Horses, People | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

No Poker Face

Posted on October 26, 2010 by deserthorse

I admit it. I do not suffer fools well. And I have no poker face. So if you say something about horses and training that I find horrifying, you’ll probably know that by my expression.

Want to test that out? Just show me the latest, greatest head-setting gadget. Or tell me how much your horse loves the feel of that long-shanked bicycle chain bit in his mouth. Or lament the lack of rowels on your new crystal-encrusted spurs.

I try to stay neutral, I really do. I can nod and smile and say “oh, really.” But you don’t have to know me very well to tell that I’m thinking “How could you?!”  “What are you thinking??” “Oh, that poor horse!!”

Can you imagine my expression the first time I saw the “bridle” pictured here? Yes, I believe someone actually used this on a horse. I found it left behind in a trailer I acquired and one of the only things I know about the previous owner was she owned a gorgeous 18-hand mare who was considered unrideable because she flipped over backward. “Hmmm …” I say, trying not to grimace or jump to conclusions.

It’s not that I’m rude. Or offensive. I don’t insert myself when and where it’s not my business. Even though it sometimes makes me feel like I’m tying myself in big knots not doing so, I do not generally offer unsolicited advice about equipment choices, training methods or riding abilities. (I do, sometimes, say a little prayer to the horse gods that someone will ask, though!)

I just love those days at the barn when I’m surrounded by like-minded folks and their horses. One person might be doing groundwork S-turns as a pre-ride warm-up, physically and energetically connecting with her horse before she mounts. Another is longeing a horse in a TTEAM bodywrap to improve self-carriage. In an arena, a rider is bareback, perfecting her feel to improve her balance so seat aids flow with ease. And in a roundpen another person is practicing yoga poses supported by her horse, who is moving his body along with her.

Those are the days when I can breathe. Bliss! Guessing that probably shows, too.

Posted in Horse Abuse, Horses | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

When a Bad Horse is Really Good

Posted on October 16, 2010 by deserthorse

Yes, horse people are strange. And the oddest things make us happy. Take today for example. At my first lesson venue, I had the distinct pleasure of telling a client that her horse had been naughty yesterday. The announcement brought a big smile to the horse owner’s face and got a resounding “Woo Hoo!” from the small group of horsewomen within earshot.

“What?!” you ask (quite sensibly, I might add.) Why in the world would someone be happy that her horse behaved badly? Well, in this case, a spook sideways at barking dogs and two attempts to trot right past me on the leadline meant this mare is well and truly ALIVE.

The naughty horse in question is a 23-year-old mare who was bitten by a rattlesnake on her left hind fetlock on September 13. She is lucky to live at a boarding stable where the owner and staff pay close attention and she got the very best of care as soon as possible. Still, when I first saw her two weeks after the bite, she didn’t look so great and her owner feared the end was near for her beloved companion.

Her left leg was still significantly swollen from coronet all the way up the column to the gaskin and the fetlock joint seemed frozen in a position that made her stand and move on tiptoe. And the right hind was subject to a kind of tic – spastically lifting and setting down at seemingly random intervals, forcing the full weight of the hindquarters onto that tiptoe left hind. The vet was using dire words like “founder.”

After three weeks of her owner’s loving care, plus every therapeutic modality both conventional and complementary she could muster, the game old mare is showing great improvement. The leg returns to normal size after some hands-on drainage and a walk and the odd neurological symptoms have disappeared. The fetlock still wants to knuckle over some, but that seems to be resolving as well.

So, when this mare spooked and got silly on her walk yesterday, it was cause for celebration for all who have helped and supported her recovery. Woo Hoo!


Photo at left is before massage session five. Center photo is before massage session nine; right photo is after session nine.

Posted in Healing, Horses | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Fall Cleaning Tips From a Horse

Posted on October 13, 2010 by deserthorse

Cooler days mean it’s time for many of us to get the house and barn clean, organized and battened down for winter. In case you need a bit of inspiration to get you going, here’s some advice from Flash, a Morgan gelding who is very serious about the cleanliness of his home.

First, It's important to clean up all the litter that may have accumulated around your home.

If you have time, help your neighbor clean up around his house, too.

Finally, it's important to keep the vegetation around your home neatly trimmed so it doesn't provide habitat for predators or create a fire risk.

Posted in Horses, Photoblog | Tagged , , | 1 Comment