1. Start by leasing a horse and taking lessons. If you don’t know the first thing about being around horses this is the most important thing that you can do to educate yourself. It will give you the perfect opportunity to learn how to handle them safely on the ground and how to ride correctly. Doing this will also help you decide if you really want your own horse. Remember, horses take a lot of time, dedication, and money.

2. Never start with a baby horse. This is extremely important! There are too many ways a baby horse can go wrong with a beginner owner, such as aggressive behavior. Remember, a baby horse turns into a full grown, thousand pound animal in a short amount of time, especially for someone who doesn’t know what they are doing. This can become very dangerous very fast, horse kicks and bites do not feel good. Neither does getting run over or thrown off. Breaking out a spoiled, bratty horse takes a lot more time and knowledge than a horse who has been taught manners and boundaries. So, please leave the babies to the professionals.

3. Don’t buy a mustang straight from BLM land. Mustangs that come right off the range are frightened and confused horses who need a confident leader, not a beginner. Remember, any horse can learn bad habits, mustangs included. They also take even more time and dedication than a horse who is born in a domestic environment.

4. Never start out with a rescue horse. This is by far one of the worst beginner mistakes, one that leads to serious accidents. Rescue horses often take the most amount of time and effort, more than even a baby or a mustang. This is because not only do you have to start all over at the beginning with them, but you also have to erase all of the bad memories and naughty habits they will have. A rescue horse, more than anything, needs a strong, confident, and knowledgeable leader and not someone who is learning for the first time.

5. Do your research! What kind of horse will fit your needs the best? A beginner horse person should always choose an older horse, older than ten years old. Remember, a ten year old horse in good health still has a lot of good years left. There are most definitely certain breeds a beginner should avoid, such as Arabians, Warmbloods, and Thoroughbreds. These breeds tend to have lots of excess energy and become nervous very easily. A breed I like for beginners is the Quarter Horse. If you are older and just getting into horses, why not consider a Missouri Fox Trotter? This breed has very smooth gaits and will give you a nice, comfortable ride. Last, but not least, don’t forget to factor in size. If you are a bigger person, get a bigger horse. If you are a smaller person go for a smaller horse, you will be better off in the long run.

6. Always take an experienced horse person with you to help evaluate both the horse and the seller. It is very important to pay attention to the seller’s attitude too and not just the horse’s attitude. Ask the seller why they are selling the horse. If they won’t give you a straight, honest sounding answer, they are probably trying to hide something. They could be hiding the fact that the horse is actually psycho and that’s why they are getting rid of it, or maybe it has navicular. Remember, there are plenty of horses out there so don’t waste your time on the ones that don’t fit the bill.

7. Always have a vet check done on the horse before agreeing to buy it. Believe me, it is worth spending a couple hundred bucks to get a clean bill of health than to buy a horse and end up spending an arm and a leg on medical/vet bills.

8. Always make sure you can take the horse for a two week trial period. Remember, a vet check can give you a clean bill of health, but it can’t tell you if the horse is sound of mind. So make sure you can bring it home or to your boarding stable to see how it reacts in a different environment.

9. Be prepared to spend a good chunk of money on your first horse. A $300 horse could end up costing you a lot more money down the road in medical bills if you get hurt. Remember, horses are an expensive hobby, not a cheap toy. So if you are going to take the time to get into horses, suck it up and spend the money right off the bat, for your own safety. For many people horses are a luxury, so if you can’t afford to buy one, you probably won’t be able to afford the proper care that it will need over its lifetime. Oftentimes, the overall expense is not in the initial purchase of the horse, but in the years that follow. Think farrier, teeth floating, vaccinations, etc. Please, make sure that if you get a horse it will receive all of the proper care.

While in Maui, we plan to achieve a boundless understanding of the word relaxation, but we will still have to go to work. For me, work could possibly involve riding/exercising horses at an active and friendly stable or ranch, but it could also mean cleaning stalls or waitressing at a local restaurant.

Thank goodness for Craig’s List and technology as we have placed an ad advertising our willingness to work with horses/animals and do yard/garden chores in exchange for accommodations. We have already gotten a few inquiries! Being that we are both hard-working and responsible, this could give us a perfect opportunity to connect right away with the community and meet new people. Right now we have a possible lead in Makawao.

When we are not working, Gabby and I will be enjoying abundant amounts of physical exercise in many forms such as hiking and swimming, but mostly by biking. During our stay in Maui we plan to stay car-free, so getting to and from places will involve either a bicycle or our own two feet. How I wish that every place in town still had a hitching post… Needless to say, I should be in excellent shape.

Maui, HI

Our overall plan is to ‘live simply’ and use this journey as an opportunity to experience life. Right now we both have similar goals of going to school, perhaps Maui Community College, and eventually applying to the Peace Corps.

I’m looking forward to this new adventure in my life and will enjoy meeting enthusiastic horse people along the way!

Riding Buttercup at Pacific City, OR

Me and Buttercup at Sisters

At ten years of age Buttercup has officially moved on in her life to a new home in California. She belongs to a family with two twin five year old girls who absolutely adore her. This is the perfect home for her since she is such a gentle horse. I remember how I could sit down on the ground next to her feet while clipping her fetlocks, crawl under her belly, wave stuff all around her head and she never minded.

Even though I love Buttercup very much and miss her, I know she is getting the best of care and all the attention that she could want. With college and my life changing so much it was getting more and more difficult to give her the time she deserved. The expense of board, farrier, food, and other bills were difficult for me as a college student and as all horse lovers know, it is expensive to own a horse. Since Buttercup is only 14.1 hands tall and I’m almost 5’10” I know she is appreciating the lighter weight of the little girls and their 5’3” mother!

When Buttercup was vet checked for the sale she was unfortunately diagnosed pre-navicular.   Navicular disease is a chronic progressive forelimb lameness and is the final stage of an incurable clinical syndrome causing greater weight to be put on the back legs which in turn causes the heels to collapse. Check out this link for more information on pre-navicular horse hoof conditions. This requires her to have corrective shoes, hock injections, and joint supplements to stave off the disease’s progression. With proper care Buttercup can remain sound for her entire life. Fortunately the family still wanted her as they had completely fallen in love and they have the means to give her the best of care.

I am very grateful for the help of Marvin Pierce of Pierce’s Cow Dogs , who hauled Buttercup from Newberg, OR all the way down to Pleasanton, CA and to Susan Davies (www.horses-for-courses.com) , who worked with Buttercup daily until she sold, advertised and presented her to potential buyers, and took exceptional care of her.

I love and miss Buttercup – she is an amazing little mare who will always have a place in my heart. I had many fantastic rides and great times on her climbing mountains in Sisters, OR, camping in the Wallowa Mountains at Cornucopia Lodge , flying down the beach as fast as she could go, going to shows in my OHSET days and many other terrific adventures.

Drifter

It was quite the winter for me with my first year at Oregon State University and four clients to ride for. I stayed very busy! Now that summer is here (well sort of, just waiting on the weather) I have the time to keep up on my blog stories, thoughts, and advice. First, I’ll start with a short summary of the horses I worked with this winter.

My first client of the school year was a woman with a cute little four year old Appaloosa gelding named Drifter. I worked with Drifter on the basics. This included leg aides; submission to the bit or softness of the mouth; pressure and release while riding and on the ground; walking, trotting, and cantering on cue; and building back-muscle by having him stretch his neck down and round his back (also helped him learn to relax).

Also early on in the school year, I had a man call me with four Quarter Horses that needed riding. He had three geldings and a mare that just needed tuning up, exercise, a few manners, and miles. With these four horses I worked on basics with an emphasis on softening of the mouth and submission to the bit, because they were older and knew more. For this I did a lot of bending exercises during the walk, trot, and canter.

Sweetie

Winchester

Later in the year, a man called with a beautiful, big 6 year old Paint gelding named Miller who was mostly green-broke. Before I got on Miller, I would desensitize him by patting and rubbing him all over his body. This got him used to me and being touched, especially where my leg hit his sides and his flank area, because he tended to jump a bit when touched on his sides. When I did get on, I would start with bending his neck first before asking him to move his feet. This helped him to pay attention and it also helped with submission to the bit and teaching pressure and release.

Miller

The very first time I got on Miller he attempted to crow-hop and buck after we got moving. I pulled up and back on one of the reins to get him to stop by bending his neck around, making it harder for him to move forward and harder for him to put his head down to buck. I had to pull pretty hard because he has such a thick neck. When he stopped I continued asking him to move forward. Another thing I worked on with him was being caught; Miller could be hard to catch. The key is getting the horse in a small area. After he was in a space where I wouldn’t be pointlessly running to keep up with him, I would calmly walk toward him. If he ran I would shift my body and direction to cut him off. Eventually he would just get tired of moving back and forth along the fence-line trying to get away.

Miller

If Miller showed even the slightest attempt to turn toward me and look at me, I would stop and say “whoa” then walk toward him. After that it was only a matter of whether he decided to let me catch him or run until he was tired. Since he wasn’t all that keen on being worn out, he became easier and easier to catch when he figured out that there wasn’t any way to avoid me. I also liked to give him a small treat as a reward after I caught him.

Allegro

My fourth client in the Corvallis area called me to ride her Arabian Thoroughbred cross, named Allegro. She wanted me to ride him on trails to get him in shape and test him out for her and her daughter. He was always great on the trails and nice to ride.

I had a great time riding for these four horse-owners during the school year and enjoyed getting to know them and their horses. I look forward to working for them again when I head back to OSU in September. I also look forward to meeting new horse owners.

Keeping a horse in good shape is important for its life-long health and well-being. Chances are the better shape your horse is in, the healthier it will be and the longer it will live, too. There are a few telltale signs in an out of shape horse. For example, if a horse has a “u” neck, it is usually because it is not fully developed (as in a young horse that is still growing), it is under weight and malnourished, or because it is not being exercised properly.

When a horse is not exercised properly, muscle can develop in less than ideal places. For example, when a horse doesn’t learn to round its back and consequently lower its head it can build up more muscle on the underside of the neck, making it more difficult to control body movement. Horses with this problem will also have a tendency to toss their heads up.

A horse that is exercised properly will eventually have a thicker neck, a stronger back, and tighter stomach. Of course, every horse is different and a lot depends on the breed. A Quarter Horse and a Thoroughbred are going to build muscle differently because of the way their bodies are built. It may take longer to develop back muscle, a thicker neck, and a tighter stomach with some horses than with others. How long it takes for a horse to get in shape is also dependent on their age.

What I’ve noticed when getting a horse into shape is that the more they round their back and stretch their neck downwards the stronger their back will get because it isn’t hollow all the time, which eventually leads to a smaller, tighter stomach (think no hay belly). When a horse doesn’t use its back end properly (aka letting it drag along instead of pulling the back legs up and under them) it will have a hollow back. A hollow back can also come from the horse throwing its head in the air and straining against the bit. Luckily, these are two problems that can be fixed with proper exercise. If you are trying to fix these two problems and are still having trouble, I would suggest taking a few lessons. Proper exercise is a part of training your horse.

Remember that it takes hard work and time to get your horse into tip top shape and that it won’t happen in just a couple of rides or if you ride infrequently. A well-muscled horse is one that is used often and has had months and years of continuous proper exercise.

Sundance

Unfortunately, Sundance came down with a cough during the first couple of weeks from allergies. He had a running nose and hacking cough which the vet said could eventually break down muscle on the sides of his stomach permanently, so of course he was required to take some time off.

Later that summer I started to notice that Sundance was losing hair, it looked as though he were balding a bit around his tail, flanks, and sides and I could just start to see the pink skin underneath. I didn’t think this was normal so I discussed it with my mother, who knows a great deal about horses, and we came to the conclusion that Sundance and Deacon might not have been getting enough vitamins and oils in their diet. The horses were fed grass hay without any access to pasture and since it was the same every day it wasn’t providing enough vitamins and oils for their skin, coat, and health. Imagine only eating one food group for a period of time, you would of course notice a difference in your health.

Deacon

Horses need plenty of oils and vitamins and if they can’t get them in their diet then it is time to include supplements. I talked with the owner, and recommended putting the horses on some low fat grain and vitamins and feeding them less grass hay to make sure they didn’t gain more weight. Even though the grain is more fattening than just grass hay, it can provide necessary oils for a horse. I recommended Horse Guard as a good source of vitamins and EquiLux as a quality brand of grain.

A couple weeks after the horses were being fed grain and vitamins I began to notice a difference in their energy and the quality of their coat. Sundance’s hair began to grow back and both of the horses were more energetic, although this was most likely a combination of the new diet and the consistent exercise. At the end of September, both Deacon and Sundance were happy and healthy and not quite so fat. This shows how important variety, vitamins, and oils are to a horse’s health.

I have been supplementing my horse’s diet with vitamins for the past few years consistently and I really do notice the difference. She has a beautiful healthy coat and plenty of energy! I absolutely recommend supplementing with vitamins and quality grain each day for the long term health benefit of the horse.

I have been riding horses since I was eight years old taking lessons consistently from a variety of trainers and going on many trail rides! I am, in fact, horse crazy and I needed a job for the summer to pay off my car and save up for college.

While I was still in school, my mother and I were boarding our horses at a stable. The owner of the stable was in the process of selling a tall, lean Paint mare. However, she was not having very good luck because the horse, Angel, had quickly figured out that if she was a brat she would not be ridden and worked. The last potential buyer to look at Angel had been scared off when she refused to move forward and began to kick up her heels. I volunteered to ride Angel and show her to buyers in return for %15 of the sale. The first time I got on her, she pinned her ears and started to lift her butt to buck. Fortunately, I was expecting this. When a horse behaves in this manner I make a decision based on how comfortable I feel and how explosive the horse feels. I will either give them a good kick with both of my legs or I will stop as much movement as possible and try to calm them down before figuring out another tactic.I decided to give Angel a good kick because I knew her history of training. I was sure that if Angel knew I was boss she would likely behave, and I was right! A few disciplinary kicks (no spurs) later and Angel was moving forward at a beautiful trot.

Riding Angel in the round-pen

After only a few weeks of cleaning Angel up and riding out all the kinks she was sold! Because of this experience with Angel, I decided to create an ad on Craig’s List advertising my ability to exercise horses, tune them up, and help sell them. I was not actually expecting anyone to contact me, but sure enough the first week I had people calling and emailing.