B AL-right Equine

10/27/2024

Halloween show at Heart of Illinois Arena today! ❤️
Josie and Maya did awesome!

10/12/2024

Open to everyone who's been a student of ours this year or in the past. Come on out for some games and hang out!
Potluck style- bring a dish to pass!

10/12/2024

Sign up for our 2024 Fall/Winter Lesson Series!

🐴On and off horse lesson activities are pre-planned for this six week course- no cancelling for weather!
🐴Great introduction to our program!
🐴Monthly challenges providing a friendly competition between students.
🐴50$ per lesson due at time of service or prepaid for the 6 weeks.

Contact:
Alana: 608 289 9684
Maggie:615 545 8847
For questions!

09/02/2024

September 16th-22nd our horses will be getting the week off. They have been working really hard this year and deserve an extended break!

We'll be going into winter this year again until the weather gets too bad!

The week of Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years there will be NO lessons.

Thank you all for a great summer of play days, shows and lessons!

07/19/2024

These girls did fantastic at the Heart of Fun show this past weekend! Always a great place for them to start out showing.

06/25/2024

Our first Youth Learning Day was a success last month!
We did a short riding lesson in the morning, everyone got a horse shoe to paint and take home, and we used paint to learn more about anatomy on our horses. This day is always such a fun mess!
Our next one is July 15th and we will be making key chains and learning how to identify some tack and equipment.

06/06/2024

There is still room to sign up for one of our Play Days/Youth Learning Days this Summer! We have openings for July 15th and August 3rd. We will do a different craft activity every day.
Message us for more details!

05/17/2024

05/17/2024

Trying something new... Who wants merch?!
I will be making a new design every year!
When you buy a shirt, hoodie, etc, some of the profit goes back to the program! All items are shipped directly to you.https://www.bonfire.com/b-al-right-equine-2024/

05/09/2024

For many people, it is difficult to talk to others about their mental health. Before I was diagnosed, I refused to talk to anyone-including my therapists- about the bad symptoms I had that probably should have been dealt with by giving proper medication.
What got me through it instead was my horses. They gave me a great distraction from my mental illness. At the time, I didn't realize how much of an impact they truly had on me.

"All horses are a mirror to your soul-and sometimes you're not going to like what you see in the mirror" -Buck Brannaman

I have found horses have 2 super powers:
They are completely unbiased to your emotions and actions.
They can demonstrate empathy.

Why is that important?

If you are mad, upset, nervous, or anxious your horse is going to react and match those emotions.

If you are happy, excited, calm, or content your horse is going to react and match those emotions.

They don't think about the reaction they are going to give you. They mentally cannot do that. But, humans can. We can control our emotions and decide how we are going to act. We can decide to manage our emotions and become better.

Actual equine assisted therapy is when a licensed therapist and an equine specialist get together to help a patient during a therapy session. Emotional awareness can be a very difficult thing to master. Horses can help show us when our emotions are getting too big. The therapist and equine specialist can guide the patient through their emotions with help from visual ques offered by the horse.

While we do not offer equine assisted therapy here, horses themselves can be therapeutic. They can be a great starting point to WANT to learn more about ourselves and pursue talk therapy.

Horses were my reason to keep bettering myself before I decided I needed therapy. I continue to go to a therapist so I can make sure I am managing my emotions properly- and in between- I make sure I listen to what my horses are telling me about myself.

05/02/2024

Updates to our Youth Play Days!
Extended time and activities!

May 30th is also available for a youth play day in the evening.

04/27/2024

To those struggling with depression and anxiety- two of the most common mental illnesses running rampant in our modern world- you do not have to settle.
You do not have to just deal with it.
There is a way out.
It WILL end....

However, unpopular opinion, YOU will have to take action.

You will have to talk to people. A simple "hey, whats up?" text to a good friend might go a long way.
You will have to force yourself to get up and do small basic tasks. It doesn't matter how long it takes to do those basic tasks or what it is. It could be as simple as cleaning one dish, taking out the trash, taking a shower.

Do it, build on it, and fight for the life you know you can have.

I've been there. It's exhausting. It's all consuming. It's terrifying.

No its not easy to get out. Nothing worth having is.
But- it is worth it to start living instead of just surviving.

My horses keep me going. Not in the way you think... most days I don't ride. Most days I'm cleaning stalls or scraping dry lots or moving hay. I'm doing physical labor and feeling accomplished at the end of the day.
I'm giving lessons and forcing myself to interact with people. Inspire people. Continue learning for people. I'm keeping my brain focused on things that make me happy.

Having livestock to take care of and lessons to do are my constants. It gives me another thing to look forward to when I get home from work. I am blessed. I have a supportive husband and a full time job I like. For some people, that's enough. If you have those things and you are still struggling, I challenge you to find something you are passionate about. Something that you can find joy in setting goals and accomplishing them.

Find the thing that makes your life worth living.

04/14/2024

💥Spread the Word!💥
I am looking for 2 volunteers (age 12+) who have little or no horse experience to try out our upcoming clinic on May 11th for FREE. If you are on the fence about starting lessons, or want to learn more about horses and how they can help us learn more about ourselves, here's your chance!

Here's what you'll get from the experience:

🐴work directly with our horses on the ground!
🐴Learn about horse behavior and some simple training techniques that are used.
🐴introduction to confidence building, leadership skills and emotional awareness.

What I will need from you:

🐴be willing to be recorded working with the horses and engaging in conversation
🐴be okay with having the videos of yourself posted on social media in the form of reels, YouTube videos, etc
🐴sign a liability waiver

This is open to TWO participants ONLY. Anyone else participating- auditing or working with the horses- will have to pay for the 4 hour workshop.

$20 to audit
$75 for participating with horses
3pm to 7pm

04/04/2024

A taste of one of Maggie’s Mobile Riding Instruction Saddle Disassembly clinics from last year! We took apart 2 English saddles during this one. This is hands on and all parts and saddle fit on different horses will be explained in detail. Check out her page to see when this year's are scheduled!

03/29/2024

This is the most common misconception about bipolar disorder. My moods don't change in a split second, they change over weeks or months.
Previously, Bipolar was known as Manic Depression. We all know of depression, but manic episodes will be the complete opposite of this. When manic, you will experience feelings of euphoria, maybe feel super strength, decreased need for sleep, irritability, and in some cases substance abuse to keep the "high".
To be diagnosed Bipolar 1, the person has to experience at least 1 Manic episode and maybe multiple depressive episodes.
To be diagnosed Bipolar 2, you have to have at least 1 hypomanic episode lasting 2 weeks, with long periods of depression lasting months.
Being Bipolar 2, I have never had a fully manic episode. Severe manic symptoms can go as far as psychosis and hallucinations. My mania has only gone as far as delusions, which is still frustrating.
I will be continuing to spread awareness by explaining my experience with my personal illness. I would love to hear other experiences from other illnesses so I can accurately explain on this platform! I often talk with friends who have ADHD and have found similar symptoms. It really helps to not feel alone with all of these weird and annoying symptoms!

10/14/2023

In Kewanee today for the first annual Buddy Walk for Down Syndrome Awareness!

08/07/2023