Anybody have a subscription to Horse and Rider On Demand, Dressage On Demand or Equus Prime? Each of these subscription services offers its members access to a select group of videos on riding/horse training/horse care. For many of us going into Winter in colder climates, the change in weather will soon mean less riding time.… Continue reading “On Demand” Equestrian Video Subscriptions

Last week in my area, a period of unusually warm weather was coming to a close. I managed to squeeze in one last ride before the more seasonable weather returned. I decided to take Shiloh out for a little walk in our South pasture with our only agenda to enjoy the weather. I don't often… Continue reading Just Enjoying The Ride

So my horse, Bear, wants to know! Have you visited The Backyard Horse Blog over at Pinterest yet? When I began The Backyard Horse Blog in January 2020, I chose a free WordPress program to host the site. I have nothing to compare it to since this is the only blog I have started so… Continue reading Visited The Backyard Horse Blog over at Pinterest?

Last weekend, I completed another field trip with Shiloh and Bear. We went over to the nearby training/boarding/lesson barn again. I mentioned in previous posts that I have been trying to tick off several items on my riding "to do" list. My goal for this trip? To ride Shiloh with another horse. For most people… Continue reading Another Horse Field-Trip Report

Say it ain't so! Horse Illustrated magazine is going from a 12x a year format to a 10x a year format. This comes after I featured their October issue in a recent post at https://thebackyardhorseblog.wordpress.com/2020/10/09/read-horse-illustrated-lately/. I mentioned in that post that HI was still one of the few horse magazines that published monthly. Well sadly… Continue reading More About Horse Illustrated and More Contests to Enter!

The windy Fall weather in my neck of the woods must bring out the artist in my horse, Bear. I am not sure if this photo is "life imitating art" or "art imitating life" or "life imitating life"? Hmmm. Whatever the case, I think Bear did a bang up job of getting his tail to… Continue reading Bear as Artist

Last week after three frustrating days of having my riding plans thwarted by a bunch of windy, wet days, I finally managed a ride. It's a different experience riding in the cooler weather. Each year, I forget how much preparation is involved. I track the forecast like a meteorologist to pinpoint the exact time of… Continue reading Banter About The Canter

Found this photo out there on the internet. Anybody know who is the photographer? I would love to give them credit for this clever set-up! I think this is what can happen when we reach an impasse with our horse regarding trailer loading. Someone missed the opportunity to change course or seek help earlier in… Continue reading Waiting TOO Long?

As the start of each Winter season draws close, I try to check off a few things on my riding wish list before the wicked weather arrives. One of those items was riding Shiloh in a bit again. At https://thebackyardhorseblog.wordpress.com/2020/09/02/bitted-or-bitless/, I wrote about the reason I started riding him in a bitless bridle in 2018.… Continue reading Briefly Back to the Bit Again

Horse Nation is one of my favorite websites. It is a nice mix of informative articles about horse care/riding and op-eds about happenings in the horse world. It also includes some "newspaper comics" material with its "Idea of Order" series and other light-hearted features. Here is a roundup of my recent article favorites: Ashley Francese… Continue reading Checked Out Horse Nation Lately?

Whenever I hear the word "horse" inside a song, it catches my attention. Of course often the horse mentioned in song is used to represent something else entirely. Even folks who have never touched a horse find powerful the imagery and emotion that horses conjure. It sometimes turns out the song isn't really about a… Continue reading Horses and Music

Here is a photo of my ponies Pumpkin Spice and Bear when we lived in Colorado. Definitely "two good things". 🙂 Horses are incredible creatures. It is a marvelous thing to be in the presence of a horse. They manage to inspire all kinds of dreams in us without even trying. If you spend enough… Continue reading Focus on Two Good Things- Balancing Your Feelings When The Going Gets Rough With Your Horse

I took the above photo when four horses graced my backyard. From left to right is Pumpkin Spice, Bear, Fate and Blue. If you have been reading The Backyard Horse Blog, you may recognize that my twenty-five year old gelding, Bear, is the only current living-member of that group. I am one of the millions… Continue reading Book Review- Strands of Hope: How to grieve the loss of a horse by Susan Friedland

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQs-oEuDzSw I was reminded this week of a funny video clip. It is a one-minute commercial that I linked in a previous blog post (see https://thebackyardhorseblog.wordpress.com/2020/04/20/need-a-laugh-watch/). Of all the tricky things about driving a horse trailer, backing up is pretty high on the list. I took my horses, Bear and Shiloh, on a field-trip this… Continue reading Backing Up The Horse Trailer

Quote From A Poem by Antonio Machado ( In Spanish ) "... caminante, no hay camino,se hace camino al andar.Al andar se hace camino,y al volver la vista atrásse ve la senda que nuncase ha de volver a pisar..." And English Translation (Wikipedia's version)- "... wayfarer, there is no path,you make the path as you… Continue reading There Is No Path . . .

If you are looking for a step by step "how to" for working with horses, this book is not it. Getting Along With Horses is laced with some specific hints and tidbits, but it is mostly a philosophical book. By sharing stories of her own experiences (repurposed in part from her blog), the author encourages… Continue reading BOOK REVIEW- Getting Along With Horses: An Evolution in Understanding by Crissi Mcdonald

Thanks to Rupixen.com for the use of this photo via Unsplash I have to say that I am not much of a shopper. I mean, yes I shop. Having food, clothes, tools and accessories comes in handy for humans and critters alike after all. But I don't usually find particular joy in accumulating stuff (the… Continue reading Master Plan For Cyber Monday: prepping for all that horse shopping 🙂

If you haven't checked out the magazine "Horse Illustrated", you might want to give it a look. As a subscriber for many years, I have generally found it to be a meat and potatoes kind of magazine with solid, basic horse care and riding articles. If you are looking for hyper discipline-specific or detailed "how… Continue reading Read “Horse Illustrated” Lately?

I know I am not the only person out there who likes to write about their horses, especially their senior horses. If you like writing, photography and entering contests, this opportunity might be for you. The magazine Northwest Horse Source recently announced the guidelines for its 2020 Senior Horse Essay Contest. This is an annual… Continue reading Enter The Northwest Horse Source Senior Horse Essay Contest!

Fall is my favorite season. The cool, crisp air. The turning of leaves. Everything pumpkin spice. Unfortunately, Fall also presents some challenges for me in riding my own backyard. My property is situated on flat ground without a lot of tree cover. Nothing blocks the strong winds that often pass through during the Fall season.… Continue reading Riding Through Fall

In a previous post at https://thebackyardhorseblog.wordpress.com/2020/09/30/shiloh-and-i-make-our-virtual-horse-show-debut/, I detailed my first-time entry in an online horse show. I had another kind of "online first" in 2020. I attended a virtual horse fair. The Art of The Horseman online fair took place in late Summer at https://www.becauseofthehorse.net/. It offered access to dozens of online horse training and… Continue reading Attend A Free, Virtual Horse-Fair!

Ever heard of online horse showing? I get the impression that virtual horse show participation increased in popularity this year due to COVID19. The organization FOSH, Friends of Sound Horses, is in its third year of hosting the "Gaits Wide Open" virtual horse show in conjunction with the North American Western Dressage organization. FOSH shines… Continue reading Shiloh and I Make Our Virtual Horse Show Debut

I have a Wahl corded clipper that is still working just fine after almost twenty years of use. I probably would have stuck with it and never bought a cordless clipper if not for my barn electricity issue. Sometime before the year 2010, the electricity in my barn area stopped working. After consulting with a… Continue reading What Are Your Favorite Cordless Clippers?

Recently I ordered another pile of sand for my horses' paddock. After Bear's diagnoses of PPID and EMS as well as suspected hind-limb arthritis, I began a few years ago keeping him on a small section of pasture that essentially then became a semi-dry lot. For ten plus years, Bear was healthy with 24/7 pasture… Continue reading Sand Pile Doubling As Equine Sleeping Bag and Trail Obstacle

Using cat-litter containers is a simple and practical barn hack that fits on the reduce-reuse-recycle continuum. I like to carry water when I travel with my horses for three reasons. (1) I want to have water in case of trailer break down If I have a trailer issue and am stuck on the side of… Continue reading Barn Hack- Cat Litter Containers As Water Storage While Traveling

A brand-new Tiger's Tongue on the right and, on the left, the Tiger's Tongue I have been using since Spring. Have you tried the Tiger's Tongue from Epona Products? I got one of these in a gift box last year and finally brought it out to use towards the end of shedding season this Spring.… Continue reading Have You Tried the Tiger’s Tongue Horse Groomer From Epona Products?

This quote is from the AskAnnie Podcast Facebook page. Part of the online offerings from Horse and Rider Magazine, you can find the AskAnnie Podcast at https://horseandrider.com/podcasts/askannie. While I don't feel like this all the time, I certainly HAVE and no doubt WILL feel like this sometimes. What I like about this quote is that… Continue reading The Highs and Lows of a Horseman’s Journey

When you are not riding or otherwise with a horse, what is the next best thing? Do you like to think about them, watch a horse-related video, listen to an equestrian audio book/podcast or read about horses? Or maybe talk to a friend about them? For me, hands (or hooves!) down, the next best thing… Continue reading What Horse Books Have You Read in 2020?

Thank you to Ralph Ravi Kayde on Unplash for use of this photo. My heart goes out to folks whenever I hear in the news of severe weather events. The first thing I think about is how are the horse owners. I once evacuated with two cats at the last minute ahead of a hurricane… Continue reading Severe Weather Preparation Resources From The Horse.Com

Thank you for the use of this photo by Chema Photo as seen on Unsplash I ran across a website that lists the word for "horse" in many foreign languages at https://www.indifferentlanguages.com/words/horse#region-5. It is not an exhaustive list, but it is still an interesting read with about 80 languages featured. Just think, there is someone… Continue reading Thought For The Day- How to Say “Horse” in Different Languages.

This is one of my favorite obstacle ideas that is simple to set up yet challenging to execute well. It is a great exercise for Shiloh and me, especially as the back up and turn on the hindquarters are difficult for him. As with many other things, Shiloh came to me already knowing how to… Continue reading Obstacle Idea For Practicing the Back Up, Turn on Forehand and Hindquarters

Last week, I saw my husband for the first time in over a year! We weren't separated because we wanted to be but rather for economic reasons. If you are wondering what this has to do with the title of this post, please bare with me for a minute while I give you some background.… Continue reading Bear’s Meeting With A Colorado Brand Inspector

I found this out there on the internet, credited to @iamnotanartist. I smiled with a knowing nod when I saw it. By most measuring sticks, I am a conservative rider. I am cautious when it comes to being on the back of a horse, trying to set up my rides in the safest way possible.… Continue reading Horse People and Power

"Does anyone agree on bits? No. Is riding bitless the perfect solution? No. I've been asked for some bitless information, and I'm not sure I can even do that without talking bits, too. Even then, it's idle chatter if there is no horse in the conversation." - From the book "Going Steady: More Relationship Advice… Continue reading Bitted or Bitless?

With my pinto-colored gaited horses in my backyard, you may be surprised to know that I am a Thoroughbred fan. As a child/pre-teen, I rode my fair share of Half-Thoroughbreds in huntseat and jumping lessons at various barns and camps. My aunt also bred her Appaloosa mare to a Thoroughbred stallion. The resulting foal went… Continue reading Gotta Love Those OTTB’s

As we come towards the last days of August, I thought a final "Summer" themed post would be apt. Fall is my favorite time of year, and while a change of calendar does not necessarily correspond with cooler weather, the arrival of September gives me hope. Where I live, this past week has been a… Continue reading Ending August with More Products From The Great British Equinery

I call bingo with the line: Swam with a horse- Competed at a show- Took a selfie with a horse- Have shared secrets with your horse- Have canceled plans to ride your horse instead. How about you? With what line can YOU call bingo? Sidenote here- I couldn't find a named credit for the creator… Continue reading Let’s Play Bingo

I am often taking stuff from my house to my barn for re-use. Kind of easy to do if your horses are in your backyard. But even if you board your horse(s) elsewhere, most household items can still be a simple car ride away from the barn. One of my favorite items to bring to… Continue reading Barn Hack: Using Bed Sheet Cases to Organize

The first The Backyard Horse Blog contest for Summer 2020 has come to a close. I drew the winning email last night. Congratulations to the winner J.H.!!! As it turns out, J.H is international. Per the contest parameters, J.H asked that the prize box be awarded to the USA horse rescue Forever Morgans. This is… Continue reading The Backyard Horse Blog Summer 2020 Contest Winner Announced

August 13th marked my two-year anniversary with Shiloh. I was able to do a field-trip over to the local training/boarding/lesson barn to mark the occasion. The weather was a little on the hot and sunny side so I opted to ride in the indoor this visit. Got some video footage and was pleasantly surprised to… Continue reading A Foxtrotter Fox Trotting

Photo taken from the HAY PILLOW website Makers of the HAY PILLOW and Dr. Getty have teamed up to offer a contest for a free HAY PILLOW and a free book. Enter the contest here at https://www.thehaypillow.com/blog/august-2020-hay-pillow-giveaway-enter-to-win by August 31st, 2020. I have never used a HAY PILLOW, but I am a big fan of… Continue reading Check out This HAY PILLOW Contest!

This moment of equine illustrated inspiration is brought to you by The Backyard Horse Blog featuring "Night Bear". 🙂

HORSE PLAY ON AN AUGUST MORNING Crisp morning air revealing hints of Autumn before heat of late Summer day Pastured horses energized by the coolth From a complete standstill, one charges off into a section of tall grass The first laying down a path for his herdmates to follow Hooves and hearts pounding, but I… Continue reading Equine Inspired Poetry- Horse Play on An August Morning

I found another contest to enter so thought I'd spread the word here. This contest is for a year's supply of various Cowboy Magic products with three winners selected! What fun! Go to https://horseandrider.com/page/cowgirl-magic-giveaway. Last day to enter contest is August 31st, 2020. I have used Cowboy Magic products off and on throughout my horse-keeping… Continue reading Win A Cowboy Magic Prize Pack via Horse and Rider Magazine