T3 Equestrian

21/08/2024

If you’ve ever envied our fun with the piggies? Now’s the time!

21/08/2024

AVAILABLE, Windsor NS: Perfect for first time pig owners.

We have an adorable pair of Kune Kune sisters looking for new fields to mow and weeds to trim. Rising 2 years old.
Breeding quality AKKPS38460 Kneudel (white/black) and pet quality EB (Eagle Bait) (ginger/black)

Wonderful personalities, well handled and electric fence trained.

Very reasonably priced to the right farm. Must go together if there are no other Kunes on the property.

11/07/2024

The challenge of the horse that WANTS to be sound.

I have two chestnut OTTBs. I got the gelding (ET) first from Southern Belle Thoroughbreds rehoming program. His temperament was so good that I hunted down and bought his only sibling (Fiona) from the same mare.

He’s a gem. Sweet, honest and I’ve always been able to put almost anyone on him safely. But he’s not tough. He’s going to tell you clearly that something doesn’t feel good. Or that it’s hot, that he’s tired, or that something is scary. Today’s a great example as he has declared himself broken, likely due to a brewing abcess. As a result, he’s inside with hay, extra bedding, nsaids, a fan and a moved water bucket because he cannot drink near the fan tyvm.

Fiona is an entirely different horse. Equally sweet and honest, but also tough and that presents challenges that are easy to miss.

She’s mentally tough, more inclined to march up to the new and chew on it than spook away. The hard part with these horses? They are brittle. They are fine until they aren’t. Then they are overwhelmed and they get themselves in trouble. And this bit us hard in the summer of 2021 when she pulled loose loading on a trailer. Her curiosity pulled her to the new, resulting in her getting on the road, then galloping off overwhelmed.

The injuries when we found her should have been the end of her. If it had been ET? It would have been.

Which brings me to the challenges of the physically tough horse. They hide pain. They hide weakness. You need to keep your internal radar on high with them, because the signs are small. Case in point, Fiona, who never actually took a lame step after the accident. Slow, careful rehab resulted in a horse I can and do ride. But there were small things that have worried me. Head tossing, some cross cantering and a canter lead issue, all of which are common in OTTBs. Most of which are chalked up to strength and straightness issues.

But the thing that has nagged at me most was her eyes. And that’s why I have the pics below. As long I can remember, she’s had the under eye wrinkles shown on the left. It always reminded me of a person wincing from a heachache. After a recent vet evaluation, we realized she’s been shielding and compensating some things. We’ve added an Adequan regimen, previcox and suddenly the under eye wrinkles are mostly gone. (Right pic)

Keep an eye on the tough ones. Because they’re the ones we need to watch, and the ones we get told are being ‘difficult’ and resistant when they’re already giving their all.

01/07/2024

From pole bending with Maritime Barrel Racing Association Sales, clinics, services to prancing at the Horses At Work annual canada Day dressage show. We’re so lucky to have Jill Barker and team host these shows. They are always a positive development experience and welcomed atmosphere ❤️.

Super pleased with today. Tension and spookiness because the woods are scary. But the overall forward is better than it’s ever been

Need to get him reaching more through the neck, but moments like these to build on!!!

A great day with friends, and already looking forward to Natal Day Dressage with the same crew ❤️

04/04/2024

A piece that makes me think about how I start on new horses now.
First time is often no more than a walk as I feel out the buttons. Maybe some trot, almost never canter or jumping. Go, stop, left, right, move the front end over, move the hind end over, how much leg, how much contact?

Is it caution brought on by age or is it that I consider it polite to have a get to know each other conversation before going deeper? Somewhere in the middle, I suppose

05/09/2023

That canter is going to be pretty cool when we build new strength so I can stay back at the canter, instead of lightening my seat to make it a bit easier for him.

25/08/2023

A super lesson with the amazing Cheryl Webber and a little bit of the 🔥rekindled.

Hearing the foundation is solid from someone with her experience? (up to GP) It brings me SO much joy. I’ve developed him independently from right off the track to now.

We have tweaks to work on, but that’s part of the fun! ❤️

26/07/2023

Absolutely my philosophy here 🥰. I did not always do better, but I’m always working on it.

27/06/2023

A 1000x this!

There are really two horse worlds. They are not completely separate, of course, but, in my view, if you’re going to understand the horse world – and the pleas and entreaties that come from it – you also have to understand the motivations of people who train, own, and take care of them. And, in...

25/06/2023

Gadgets in riding take a a huge amount of self honesty to use, and especially draw reins. It’s hard to admit we are using them because we can’t get the result without them. It’s hard to admit we are using them because they provide a multiplier of control.

But we use them less, and more carefully, if/when we need to use them. Be honest with the why. You’ll be a better horse person for it.

The words "never" and "always" leave zero room for compromise, and therefore should not be taken literally in every single case, and an example might be the use of draw reins on a horse.

What draw reins do----They give the rider enough leverage, because of the physics of basically the pulley principle, to force the horse's head into positions that can cause extreme pain, and can even cause long term damage.

They also can so thoroughly overwhelm a horse's ability to avoid them that some horses who have been ridden much in draw reins automatically come behind the vertical, like in this picture, even when ridden without draw reins, and once that happens, that the horse just "gives up," it is extremely hard damage to undo.

Now, sure, it is theoretically possible for an extremely gifted rider to use draw reins with extreme tact to correct extreme resistance without causing extreme damage or discomfort, just as some extremely gifted riders can use extreme bits without similar damaging results.

The problem, though, is that lots of riders assume that they are "extremely gifted," when they are not.

I read something that makes sense, "Draw reins should only be used by the most gifted riders in the world, but the most gifted riders in the world do not need draw reins."

So, yes, while there is theoretically a tiny window, a sliver, of wiggle room, it is probably a mistake for any of us to equate ourselves with riders so exquisitely gifted that we can use devices like these safely.

Which means, since many riders use these things daily, that there are more exquisitely gifted riders out there than we realize, or there are lots of arrogant riders out there who think they are, and which situation is accurate, I leave to others to judge----

21/06/2023

Summer boarding opportunity July 1 until September 30 with small group turn out. Windsor Forks NS

Quiet, private, laidback adult farm. Outdoor ring w/ jumps 10 acre field with riding paths and trail access across the road. 10 minutes from Hants County Exhibition grounds, 15 minutes from Horses at Work show series.

Trailer on site. Hind shoes not permitted in group.

30/05/2023

A good bye at 29 to the Queen, One Way Killeen.
Last summer she moved to Cliff Top where her family already had two other horses so they could see her every day. Yesterday she cleaned up her breakfast and marched out to her grass to be found lying down, peacefully gone.

I'm thankful for every day her family got to spend with her. She was deeply loved and the luckiest horse to have them. Thanks to Paul and Jan Hunter for taking such very good care of her from here until the end ❤️

28/05/2023

May 28. 5 stalls available for evacuation horses in Windsor Forks. 10 min from Hants Ex.

22/05/2023

It always lifts my heart to see the fresh mowed riding lanes in the back field. Its my favorite place to ride and be ❤️

10/05/2023

Finally, the grass introduction paddock is up and live! Not letting them disappear off in the 10 acres, refusing to be caught 😂

09/05/2023

There are reasons why horses thrive here after settling in. They tell us when they're not happy. We do our best give them what they need to be their most relaxed selves.

As an added, aside to the post that I made about stereotypical behaviours below, I just want to remark on the fact that if I were to stable my horse Milo excessively, I can almost guarantee that he would become a very aggressive and dangerous to handle Horse.

If this were to happen, it would not be an indicator that he is just a dangerous and aggressive Horse, it would be an indicator that the management is not sufficient for him to behave in a manner that people may like him to.

I think that it is very important to recognize the fact that many horses that we meet that have significant stress issues and end up being aggressive or “Mean” are simply reacting to the neglectful management practises that they are under.

Many horses can withstand neglectful management without resorting to the same level of aggression or problem behavior, but it is not an indicator that the management itself is adequate, some horses are just simply more resilient than others.

Milo is able to cope in the way that he does because the management that he is under allows him to do so. If I were to start neglecting his needs, I would see a negative change in behaviour as a result.

It’s important to attribute abnormal behaviours to the environment that the Horse is in, rather than just framing themas if they are solely related to personality.

Happy horsesdo not spend a ton of their time being aggressive and engaging in behaviours that display signs of displeasure.

The notion of this has only been created due to the high prevalence of stress behaviours we see in horses, and the number of aggressive horses that we see as a result.

It is far easier and more palatable for people to attribute aggressive behaviour in Horses to the Horse just being cranky, or another personality trait, but that doesn’t make it true.

A miserable horse that is displaying aggressive and miserable behaviour is simply an unhappy Horse.

We need to not normalize distress signals and attribute them to personality because it does these horses a disservice and seeks to blame them for how they respond to inadequate management.

There should never be an expectation that animals should have to cope well with neglect. It is our job to provide for them if we get them. And the lack of ability to do so should only reflect on us.

We should not continue to condone industry, mindsets that expect horses to cope with inadequate management or vilify their behavior if they cannot.

02/04/2023

I love this and it’s true. It’s a work in process with Mr Perfect because at one point his feet were far more sore than we understood. He learned that work could be uncomfortable, though he never stopped trying.

So he needs to learn differently, and that’s ok. We’ll get there. He’s never terrible to catch, but does sometimes say “I’d rather not”. It’s not his fault, it’s just communicating. Though he still needs to come along as well 🤷🏻‍♀️

How our horses are to ‘catch’ is indicative of the underlying nature of our relationship. This can be a very hard pill to swallow!

Once upon a time, back in our younger years, the family had many a high-mileage ranch horse who was next-to-impossible to approach and halter, on foot. They were safe to ride but our interactions were on a need-to-know basis, only. There was a guarded self-preservation to these horses and they did not welcome man—or woman—kind into their lives. ‘Jingled’ in on horseback, some could only be caught by being run into a smaller corral or alleyway. Others actually needed to be roped first, before allowing themselves to be touched.

Those wonderful horses had a high work ethic and an unmatched skill level when on the job. They were safe and who you wanted to be on when the sh** was flying. Sadly, the soft relationship part was where we'd let them down, a common enough occurrence back in the hard-scrabble days. Man and beast, we were all just trying to stay alive.

From those early years, I am very aware of how my horses greet me into their days.

I no longer aim to ‘catch’ my horses but rather, I want to them to meet me, partway. This can be a hard thing to instill in horses and ponies with negative prior experience, or those who have had a great deal of round penning. Some of us have taught our horses to need to be trapped in corners. Many of us have unwittingly taught our horses to require pressure to keep moving until they are ‘ready to face up’.

I have purchased a number of hard-to-catch horses over the years. If they come to me this way, I do not accept it as a done deal. This relationship building becomes the first thing I am aiming to change, once they come into my lives. The horse or pony who is avoiding me… who is leery of being touched… who wheels away if I am carrying a halter… who needs grain as a bribe… who must be trapped in a corner… who cannot be approached in a huge, windswept pasture… has a problem.

The problem, most likely, is me.

OK. What am I going to do about this, going forward? Do I accept it? Do I chase the horse around until he is tired enough to stop? Or, do I wish that he was happy to see me and actually welcomed my touch? If so, how do I change his or her mind about who I am?

This is the slow, unexciting but deeply rewarding, part of day-to-day horsemanship.

This is where I get out there enough to make myself a regular part of my horses’ lives. I will be out among them, visiting and watching, maybe petting but often, just standing around with them… just as they do, themselves. The horses who are very reserved, whether aloof or frightened, will sometimes be offered a hand treat but I am old-fashioned in that I aim to build something with each of my horses that transcends food rewards.

I’ll spend quite a bit of time teaching my horses to reach into their halters, rather than my pulling their halters onto their heads. Seemingly small, this one little thing makes a big difference in how we begin each day.

Friendship is a private but meaningful foundation and I cannot stress its importance enough.

To build this thing with our horses—to see them become happy to see us and therefore, make them ‘easy to catch’—requires commitment and kindness without any sort of plans of seeing what they can do for us. Some folks will disagree and that is fine; their horsemanship is frankly none of my business.

What matters to me is that my own horses and ponies will see me coming, without feeling trapped. They will walk up to meet us without being pushy, with their ears up and eyes sparkling. They will be wanting to know what plans I have in store for them! My goal is a warm and happy welcome, as seen in the eyes and ears of Brown Betty... neither of us pushing in, neither of us pulling away.

"How d'you do? Are you well today?"

The benefits of solving this, if a troubled horse is in our lives, seeps into all areas of our relationship, on the ground and in the saddle.

I may buy horses who are hard to catch… but I don’t own horses who are hard to catch! This, however long it takes, my friends.

25/03/2023

03/03/2023

An easy snow ride with Mr Perfect. Did he want to behave? No. Was he foot perfect? 100% as I giggled around the ring at his little (denied) requests to romp.

Tommorow, sir. You get to romp tomorrow ❤️

03/02/2023

I probably shouldn’t tell Wilbur that tostadas are excellent with carnitas (Mexican slow cooked pork). But he really loves them.

03/02/2023

Just in time, but we’ve gotten it done! Blankets and hoods for the youngers with a fresh round bale and a new weather breaking wall. It’s rustic looking but it holds against tropical storm force winds and let’s solar energy gather. The seniors have giant stalls and masses of hay.

The Kune Kune pigs are all together in the stall with the deepest bedding and their own heated water. The barn cats are too feral to put in the heated room but have an open round bale to snuggle into and a heated bowl of their own.

Massive thanks to our friend Mark for finding the missing part of the puzzle to get our oil furnace system working this week so we too can be warm and safe in the temperatures drop.

30/01/2023

The weekend weather forecast, and why we are preparing now 🥶

Here is another model that shows a forecast of some extreme wind chill for Saturday morning... Actual air temp in the -30's, winds sustained North West 40+ km/h. Wind chills in the -45 to -50 range in degrees C. This one is the ICON model, we also looked at a few other ones, such as the UKMO and UM models, and they all agree on the -40's to -50 wind chills.

Will be interesting to see how this pans out in the coming days! I want to make clear that, it is for CERTAIN that it will become VERY cold and gusty on Saturday, with air temperatures in the -20's in the morning hours, but the question is more on how far south does the cold travel... If it can travel far south like most of the models are suggesting, then -30's will be of reach for just the air temperatures alone, and winds will be sustained 40+ km/h, making wind chills to be possible in the -40's or colder, which is very rare for here in Nova Scotia...

30/01/2023

Its the depth of January and here comes a sudden deep freeze on Saturday. Its always a juggle to manage the needs of junior and senior horses in a weather flip. Here’s how Aaron and I are doing it for the 20-30 deg C temp drop and accompanying windchill.

Check wind direction, to see how it affects the 20’ x 40 barn overhang shelter for the young horses. West and North West means we are putting up a temporary wall of greenhouse plastic on one side of the shelter taking it from 2 side to 3 side protection. There’s already a temporary wall that we put up every fall ahead of rain and mud season to protect from the south east, where we usually get weather.

Why greenhouse plastic instead of something more permanent you might wonder? So many reasons! Solar energy gets through to help warm the area on cold days. The horses can see the outline of each other making it less startling when one pops out. Light coming through makes the area brighter in the day while the light reflection also makes the area better lit at night. In late spring, we can easily remove it and store away for a better cross breeze in summer heat. With a couple of lathe cross braces, it lets us adapt the area easily and cost effectively year round.

Back to the planning. Seniors stay inside together with good blankets, heated buckets and loads of hay. When I say loads of hay I mean at least a dump cart’s worth. Hay is heat, and encourages gut motility. Blankets to hold the heat in, hay to generate it from the inside out and complete shelter from the wind. The odds of a few treats tucked into the hay are high.
The juniors? They stay out, they’re just happier being able to move. They all get blanketed up including hoods, despite their disdain for them. They have a large heated water tub that always has several days worth of water tucked up against the main weather wall. A fresh round bale will be with them on the fluffy hay/straw base. Three best friends together to hang out, romp and eat to their hearts’ content.

No one gets grain during severe weather changes. After having a noticeable reduction in gas colic episodes in the senior horses doing this, its now our standard practice. We’ll float a little feed in the heated buckets to encourage more drinking though. That was a recommendation from our vet that also works very well. Beyond that? Everyone just stays bundled up, eating and drinking until the weather evens out and we keep on keeping on. Oh yes, and no riding in that severe sudden cold. Its too hard on their lungs.

26/01/2023

A lovely read with so much truth in it.

Calming aids for horses. We hear a lot about them nowadays and many are feed additives, euphemistically labelled ‘supplements’, added to the daily rations. These, in order to help the horse… or to help us handle our own anxieties, which is something else to think about.

I wonder, though. Many of us have grown used to going around in a state of anger and impatience. We’re forgetting that our horses—indeed, all animals—are empaths. Unwittingly, it’s easy to feed them a steady diet of negative emotions, which we then try to balance with an outward show of love.

Calming supplements, not to mention the practice of ‘aceing’ or outright drugging, are pretty common these days. I am told of many cases where they work well, without doing any apparent harm. But I ask this: Why have we forgotten the age-old calming wisdom from the era of our grandfathers? Why have we learned only what will benefit us, instantly?

Why have we forgotten the old ways, the knowledge that was such a practical help to our equine friends and to our own safety?

Pressing below the eye. Stroking over the eye, using our cupped hand. Pressure on top of the neck, in front of the withers. An open hand held in stillness, just back of the withers. Breathing. Stretching. Looking away. Stillness and solidarity, without touching at all. A still hand on the chest. Whistling, just under the breath.

Supplementing with oat, barley or wheat straw, rather than pelleted feeds or grain. Trilling under the breath in a downward fall. Turnout. Long trotting. Singing. Using a rub rag. Stopping the practice of pulling the mane. Knowing whether to ‘up’ the workload, or order a vacation.

Using our body language. Speaking in mind pictures. Building routine. Expanding our gaze with soft eyes. Being open to change. Replacing fear with a more useful, positive emotional response. Inhaling twice, before exhaling with a mindful sigh... and repeat.

Teaching whoa as an eleventh commandment. Teaching how to cope with spiked adrenaline and then, recovery, rather than complete avoidance.

Slowly, softly 'pulling' the ears. Rubbing the gums. Scratching under the belly. Scratching nearer the bag or sheath. Wet saddle blankets. Herd life. Teaching to hobble. Teaching to lead with the forelock. Repetitions of slowly pulling down along the tail. Gently rubbing the lower legs. Aloe vera tonics. Warm bran mashes. Changing blankets. Deep bedding.

Quietly watching them eat. (Don't forget about feeding some straw.) Mentorship from a wise and elderly horse. Silence in the barn means turning off the radio. Ditto, the hours of artificial light. Cats, pigs or chickens as regular company. Homegrown, simple food. Doing the work to seek serenity, ourselves. Being alone, just the two of us. Time. Trust. Empathy. Forgiveness. Friendship.

Or, we can stick with those calming supplements. The choice is ours.

***

Hey, if you’d like to buy me a virtual coffee, that’d be lovely. Here’s the link:

buymeacoffee.com/horsewoman

22/01/2023

“I’ll wake up when breakfast is served, thanks”
(see the ears? She was listening to Aaron and waiting for the food serving noises. As soon as the senior pony let out the “my dish is here!” whinney? Eyes snapped open and marching to the gate 😂)

22/01/2023

Sunday morning sunshine naps

18/01/2023

Denny Emerson (Tamarack Hill Farm) made this same observation years before when I first had gotten Essie. She was incredibly spooky at the time. It helped enormously, as did teaching her shoulder-in for when moving away from the object was unsafe. (like when riding on the road) The horses I've worked with since have all learned to stop and look, trusting I will wait for them to be certain. Its made all the difference in the world in how they react.

Believe the horse, they aren't making it up. They believe something is unsafe, regardless of whether we agree. Then they learn to believe us when we tell them they will be safe.

17/01/2023

(Located on Highway 14 by Martock Ski Hill) Part lease opportunity coming April 1! 3x per week, 1 ride must be a lesson. Ring with lights for evening and night riding. Competition opportunities to be discussed.

Part leases
ET aka Harry Poppins aka Mr. Perfect. 16.1h TB. He's a saintly push ride that practically anyone can enjoy. Beautiful gaits, soft snaffle mouth extremely broke with the nicest canter I've ever ridden. Will be competitive at 1st level dressage this season yet potential to move higher with consistent work. Confirmed on all lateral work except half pass. Flat and pole work only, he does not want to jump.

Send a message to learn more

13/01/2023

Love this and try to live it every day. Some days I fail, but we all do sometimes. May we show ourselves the grace and patience that we learn to give our horses.

The most common bad horsemanship action?

When I think back over all the things that I would do differently with so many horses, if I had one of those magic “do-over” buttons, the one that I realize I was most guilty of would be letting my frustration at not being able to achieve what I wanted have me get forceful with the horse.

I didn’t want to blame my own ignorance and ineptitude for not being able to ride well enough, so I figured out, in some convoluted way, that my horse knew what I wanted and was just too stubborn to do it.

The second that I shifted the blame from me to the horse, that the horse was “being bad,” it gave me “permission” to punish the horse for his “misbehavior.” The fact that I wasn’t skilled enough, or educated enough, or had the right temperament to be a trainer didn’t matter.

I suspect that all around the world, right this minute, there are any number of riders, drivers, horse handlers, who are able to convince themselves, the same way that I used to, that the problem is the horse. And once they flip that incorrect switch, look out horse, because you are going to get ground on.

It would be good if people would listen to advice so that they didn’t have to go through the same mistakes others have made, but most people have to figure it out for themselves, assuming they ever do.

You can get frustrated and get stronger, or you can stay chill and be gentle. The second way is so many light years better that you’d like to think more people would figure it out sooner, but actual experience tells us that there is plenty of blame shifting, coercion and force.

Force doesn’t work. It makes the horse more nervous, more resistant. The rider gets more forceful. The horse gets more scared---See where it ALWAYS goes? From bad to worse. But it’s your choice---

08/12/2022

Excellent observations from one of my favorite equine behaviorists

I recently wrote an article for the Winter 2022 edition of West Coast Veterinarian Magazine on a common issue faced in equine veterinary medicine: determining why unwanted behaviour may be occurring in horses.