Bowman Performance Horses

Bowman Performance Horses Training, selling/consignment, and showing. Specializing in reining, cow horses, and western pleasure.

05/22/2025

Horse love runs deep—silent, strong, and true. ❤️

I am going to make my own post on this soon, but until then here’s some helpful info!
05/22/2025

I am going to make my own post on this soon, but until then here’s some helpful info!

Blistering and peeling on pink skin are signs of a serious and painful reaction to sun exposure. Read up on it now to be prepared for the sunny season ahead. >>>https://bit.ly/EQPhoticReactions

05/22/2025

Success is 𝙣𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 accidental.

📣NOW ACCEPTING📣 a select few horses in for training over the summer. 10+ years experience and referrals available. Pleas...
05/22/2025

📣NOW ACCEPTING📣 a select few horses in for training over the summer. 10+ years experience and referrals available. Please check out my website (www.bowmanperformancehorses.com) or DM me for rates, more info, and to get on the books!😁
• c**t starting
• tune ups
• desensitization
• finishing/fine tuning and more
CANON CITY, CO

At the young age of 4 years old I got my first horse. A palomino welsh/quarter cross mare, that my parents traded my aunt a television for. She was the best teacher and fueled my love for horses even more. From there I went on to taking hunter jumper lessons for years at Willowbrook Stables in Calif...

05/05/2025

It starts with believing in what you're capable of becoming.

Invest in the work, the growth, and the journey—because you are your greatest asset. 💜

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05/05/2025

04/29/2025

Take a moment to feel proud of yourself for every goal you've reached, no matter how small—each one represents a step forward and a testament to your hard work and dedication.

It's easy to get caught up in the hustle and forget to celebrate the journey, but remember that every achievement, no matter how minor, builds the foundation for your future successes.

Your 13-year-old self would be bursting with pride, cheering you on for your courage and perseverance. Embrace the process, cherish the moments, and acknowledge your progress, because every step you take is a victory worth celebrating!

04/29/2025

**Announcement reminder for NRCHA members**
The NRCHA Foundation Reined Cow Horse Association
~ We have been informed that our Ace of Spades Mouthpiece original version is now considered illegal by the NRCHA.
~ We have made some modifications and have gotten official approval that the updated version is NRCHA Legal.
To get your mouthpiece modified to meet the new NRCHA requirements:
1. Ship it to our shop. Be sure to REMOVE all tack (headstall, curb, reins, etc.)
Tom Balding Bits & Spurs
655 Riverside Street
Sheridan, WY 82801
2. Include your name and contact information INSIDE the box.
3. Once it is ready to ship back, we will contact you for the $30.00 fee plus the shipping cost.
4. Please allow a 2-week turnaround time.

04/29/2025

The bridle horse is the ultimate expression of refined horsemanship and it all begins in the hackamore.

In The Art of Hackamore Training, my late friend, and renowned hackamore man, Benny Guitron and I share the time-honored traditions of the old California vaqueros—techniques passed down from horsemen who believed in patience, feel, and the pursuit of true partnership with a horse.

This book covers everything from groundwork to advanced maneuvers, with a deep dive into the history, use, and purpose of the bosal, mecate, and more. Whether you're starting a c**t or refining a seasoned horse, this is the kind of knowledge that never goes out of style. www.AlDunning.com

Hackamore Horse | Vaquero Tradition | Bridle Horse | Al Dunning | Benny Guitron | True Horsemanship | WesternHeritage |TheArtOfHackamoreTraining

04/26/2025
What a trip!!! Beyond thankful to everyone that helped us out and gave us a warm meal and a place to stay along the way♥...
09/13/2024

What a trip!!! Beyond thankful to everyone that helped us out and gave us a warm meal and a place to stay along the way♥️ I’m exhausted, but had a blast and am so happy to finally have my girl home!

08/24/2024

"New Home Syndrome"🤓

I am coining this term to bring recognition, respect, and understanding to what happens to horses when they move homes. This situation involves removing them from an environment and set of routines they have become familiar with, and placing them somewhere completely different with new people and different ways of doing things.

Why call it a syndrome?

Well, really it is! A syndrome is a term used to describe a set of symptoms that consistently occur together and can be tied to certain factors such as infections, genetic predispositions, conditions, or environmental influences. It is also used when the exact cause of the symptoms is not fully understood or when it is not connected with a well-defined disease. In this case, "New Home Syndrome" is connected to a horse being placed in a new home where its entire world changes, leading to psychological and physiological impacts. While it might be transient, the ramifications can be significant for both the horse and anyone handling or riding it.

Let me explain...

Think about how good it feels to get home after a busy day. How comfortable your favourite clothes are, how well you sleep in your own bed compared to a strange bed, and how you can really relax at home. This is because home is safe and familiar. At home, the part of you that keeps an eye out for potential danger turns down to a low setting. It does this because home is your safe place (and if it is not, this blog will also explain why a lack of a safe place is detrimental).

Therefore, the first symptom of horses experiencing "New Home Syndrome" is being unsettled, prone to anxiety, or difficult behaviour. If you have owned them before you moved them, you struggle to recognise your horse, feeling as if your horse has been replaced by a frustrating version. If the horse is new to you, you might wonder if you were conned, if the horse was drugged when you rode it, or if you were lied to about the horse's true nature.

A horse with "New Home Syndrome" will be a stressed version of itself, on high alert, with a drastically reduced ability to cope. Horses don't handle change like humans do. If you appreciate the comfort of your own home and how you can relax there, you should be able to understand what the horse is experiencing.

Respecting that horses interpret and process their environments differently from us helps in understanding why your horse is being frustrating and recognising that there is a good chance you were not lied to or that the horse was not drugged.

Horses have survived through evolution by being highly aware of their environments. Change is a significant challenge for them because they notice the slightest differences, not just visually but also through sound, smell, feel, and other senses. Humans generalise and categorise, making it easy for us to navigate familiar environments like shopping centres. Horses do not generalise in the same way; everything new is different to them, and they need proof of safety before they can habituate and feel secure. When their entire world changes, it is deeply stressful.

They struggle to sleep until they feel safe, leading to sleep deprivation and increased difficulty.

But there is more...

Not only do you find comfort in your home environment and your nervous system downregulates, but you also find comfort in routines. Routines are habits, and habits are easy. When a routine changes or something has to be navigated differently, things get difficult. For example, my local supermarket is undergoing renovations. After four years of shopping there, it is extremely frustrating to have to work out where everything is now. Every day it gets moved due to the store being refitted section by section. This annoyance is shared by other shoppers and even the staff.

So, consider the horse. Not only are they confronted with the challenge of figuring out whether they are safe in all aspects of their new home while being sleep deprived, but every single routine and encounter is different. Then, their owner or new owner starts getting critical and concerned because the horse suddenly seems untrained or difficult. The horse they thought they owned or bought is not meeting their expectations, leading to conflict, resistance, explosiveness, hypersensitivity, and frustration.

The horse acts as if it knows little because it is stressed and because the routines and habits it has learned have disappeared. If you are a new human for the horse, you feel, move, and communicate differently from what it is used to. The way you hold the reins, your body movements in the saddle, the position of your leg – every single routine of communication between horse and person is now different. I explain to people that when you get a new horse, you have to imprint yourself and your way of communicating onto the horse. You have to introduce yourself and take the time to spell out your cues so that they get to know you.

Therefore, when you move a horse to a new home or get a new horse, your horse will go through a phase called "New Home Syndrome," and it will be significant for them. Appreciating this helps them get through it because they are incredible and can succeed. The more you understand and help the horse learn it is safe in its new environment and navigate the new routines and habits you introduce, the faster "New Home Syndrome" will pass.
"New Home Syndrome" will be prevalent in a horse’s life until they have learned to trust the safety of the environment (and all that entails) and the humans they meet and interact with. With strategic and understanding approaches, this may take weeks, and their nervous systems will start downgrading their high alert status. However, for some horses, it can take a couple of years to fully feel at ease in their new home.

So, next time you move your horse or acquire a new horse and it starts behaving erratically or being difficult, it is not being "stupid", you might not have been lied to or the horse "drugged" - your horse is just experiencing an episode of understandable "New Home Syndrome." And you can help this.❤

I would be grateful if you could please share, this reality for horses needs to be better appreciated ❤
‼️When I say SHARE that does not mean plagiarise my work…it is seriously not cool to copy and paste these words and make out you have written it yourself‼️

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Canon City, CO

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