Painted Faith Equestrian

08/26/2024

I’ve been asked a few times how much a horse costs per year. Benefab has a great article about it. There are a LOT of factors involved so the cost can vary greatly. (Don’t forget dental, supplements if needed, deworming, and more that they don’t mention)

If you’re a horse lover, then you know that horse ownership is a dream come true. As exciting as it may sound, it also comes with a significant financial commitment. Understanding the costs involved in horse ownership is crucial before you take the plunge. From purchasing a horse to the daily ongo...

08/25/2024

Just some pics from the past couple weeks.

08/12/2024

Yesterday was a beautiful day for a trail ride with some great friends! Hoping to get some more of my students out back on the trails at the barn this fall when the weather gets cooler.

08/03/2024

When you jump on the horse your little sister was riding to make him canter. Now I know what I look like when I get on a horse in my students saddles 😂

08/02/2024

I have to brag on 2 of my lesson horses for a minute. Now, mind you, these 2 were both spooking at the invisible monster on the rail last week and the one had a yeehaw moment and bucked a kid off another day 🤦🏻‍♀️ (she was fine, just ticked at the horse). But, yesterday while in the indoor, my students were stopped as we were talking about some things. Next thing we hear a VERY loud boom. We all jumped but the horses only flinched. A tire blew on a piece of equipment in the indoor. Those horses handled it perfectly and we continued the lesson after. So proud of them both having a brain for once 😂

Horses are prey animals with their own brain. You can prepare for everything but that doesn’t mean something unexpected won’t happen. We just always hope for the best and handle what comes our way. 💙

07/26/2024

Each horse has something to teach you. You will never stop learning.

A small stab in the heart is what you feel when you put up the day's riding list and you see riders sinking heavily in their shoulders when reading which horse they are assigned for the lesson. A small stab in the heart for that horse that for an hour will carry around a rider who has already decided that he does not like his horse. A small stab in the heart for the horse that did not choose the rider himself but still does his best, lesson after lesson.

Riding is a privilege and something you have chosen to do. If you chose to ride at a riding school, your instructor assumes that you actually want to learn how to ride. The instructor's highest wish is that you get good at it.

Often there is a plan and a thought as to why you are assigned to that exact horse. Before you mount up next time, ask yourself "what can this horse teach me today?" All horses have something to give, a feeling or a new tool in the box.

The art is actually in being able to get a lazy horse to move forward, to get an uncertain horse to gain confidence, a naughty horse to focus or a tense horse to be released. It takes work. If you think a horse is boring, it's more likely that you don't ride the horse as well as you think! It's not easy to be confronted with your own shortcomings, but it is in that very situation that you get the chance to truly grow as a rider.

The excuse that "it's not my kind of horse" is actually a really bad excuse. A good rider can ride any kind of horse. A good rider has trained many hours on different types of horses to become a good rider. A good rider can find and manage the gold nuggets in every horse.

If we absolutely want to ride, it is our duty to strive to do it as best as possible, even if it's only for fun. We owe it to every horse that carries us upon it's back.

Copied and shared with love for all of our horses, ponies and riders 🐎❤🐎

07/18/2024

07/17/2024

Birthday ride for A yesterday. Didn’t go completely as planned thanks to some surprise deer, but the girls had fun which is all that matters!

07/01/2024

I know I haven’t posted in awhile. June has been a crazy month! 🤪 Lots of trail rides and lessons. Yesterday was a show across the street. It was Cash’s first contest show and F’s first show also. All of them did SO good. I’m so proud of them all! It was a VERY long day.

06/17/2024

It’s powerful and worth it 💙

Loving a horse is inherently risky. They'll never be here long enough. And so, far too often, I meet people who keep a little wall around their hearts, protecting themselves from falling "too in love" with their equine friends.

It's not done intentionally. It's not a conscious decision to shield themselves from the intense connection and intimacy that comes with the horse-human partnership.

But when we really stop in a moment of connection with a horse, our hearts start to swell. The emotions come flooding in. We feel, for a moment, that our entire soul exists outside of our bodies. And, for most of us, the innate response is to shy away. To change the subject. To pat their neck twice and then move on to the next thing.

When was the last time you stood next to a horse and simply rested your hand on their neck? Truly just stood there in a beautiful moment in time that exists only for the two of you?

When I ask people to do this, they typically last about 5 seconds and then they start moving their hand... or they turn away... or they look around. It's so hard for people to stay truly present in that moment because the emotions that come flooding to the surface are overwhelming. They're powerful.

It's this beautiful, soul-encompassing intensity that makes you realize just how much of yourself you've given to this fragile, yet powerful, animal standing before you.

It makes you feel things you haven't felt in years. Levels of love and connection that you didn't know existed. True, heartfelt, all-consuming intimacy.

Loving a horse is inherently risky. Yet, I've never met a single person who says, after their horse leaves his/her body, "Wow, I wish I would have loved him less."

Instead, they always say:

"I wish I would have spent more time just being there. Smelling her. Listening to her chew her hay. I wish I would have spent more time in those small moments."

So, my advice for you? Love them. Fully.

Let it happen. Let it all in. Get lost in those moments when your heart starts to swell and the tears start to fall. Choose to embrace the feeling.

This is what it's all about. This is the magical thing that exists between horses and humans. 🫶🏻

06/07/2024

With the patterns I’ve been giving some of my students this past week, I know they can relate 😂

06/06/2024

Gunner and Cash were in the New Franklin Memorial Day parade along with Gunner and Stormy’s BFF, Aussie.

06/06/2024

I wish all my students would read this. I couldn’t agree more with this, all of this!!! 💙

Things your riding instructor wants you to know:
1. This sport is hard. You don't get to bypass the hard…..every good rider has gone through it. You make progress, then you don't, and then you make progress again. Your riding instructor can coach you through it, but they cannot make it easy.

2. You're going to ride horses you don't want to ride. If you're teachable, you will learn from every horse you ride. Each horse in the barn can teach you if you let them. IF YOU LET THEM. Which leads me to…

3. You MUST be teachable to succeed in this sport. You must be teachable to succeed at anything, but that is another conversation. Being teachable often means going back to basics time and time and time again. If you find basics boring, then your not looking at them as an opportunity to learn. Which brings me to…..

4. This sport is a COMMITMENT. Read that, then read it again. Every sport is a commitment, but in this sport your teammate weighs 1200 lbs and speaks a different language. Good riders don't get good by riding every once in awhile….they improve because they make riding a priority and give themsevles opportunity to practice.

5. EVERY RIDE IS AN OPPORTUNITY. Even the walk ones. Even the hard ones. Every. Single. Ride. Remember when you just wished someone would lead you around on a horse? Find the happiness in just being able to RIDE. If you make every ride about what your AREN'T doing, you take the fun out of the experience for yourself, your horse, and your instructor. Just enjoy the process. Which brings me to...

6. Riding should be fun. It is work. and work isn't always fun.....but if you (or your rider) are consistently choosing other activities or find yourself not looking forward to lessons, it's time to take a break. The horses already know you don't want to be here, and you set yourself up for failure if you are already dreading the lesson before you get here.

7. You'll learn more about horses from the ground than you ever will while riding. That's why ground lessons are important, too. If you're skipping ground lessons (or the part of your lesson that takes place on the ground), you're missing out on the most important parts of the lesson. You spend far more time on the ground with horses than you do in the saddle.

8. Ask questions and communicate. If you're wondering why your coach is having you ride a particular horse or do an exercise, ask them. Then listen to their answer and refer to #3 above.

9. We are human beings. We make decisions (some of them life and death ones) every day. We balance learning for students with workloads for horses and carry the bulk of this business on our shoulders. A little courtesy goes a long way.

Of all the sports your child will try through their school years, riding is one of 3 that they may continue regularly as adults (golf and skiing are the others). People who coach riding spend the better part of their free time and much of their disposable income trying to improve their own riding and caring for the horses who help teach your child. They love this sport and teaching others…..but they all have their limits. Not all good riders are good coaches, but all good coaches will tell you that the process to get good is not an easy one.

*thank you to whoever wrote this! Not my words, but certainly a shared sentiment!

05/23/2024

One of my biggest frustrations in this industry is the lack of understanding and consideration for the role that lesson horses play. So often, I see riders complaining about lesson horses for a huge variety of reasons: for their perceived lack of quality or value, for having to ride one they don’t like, for not getting to ride the one they do like, for their trainer not having enough lesson horses, or for the lesson horses not being available at their convenience when their personal horse is out of commission. I’ve dealt with all of the above and I know I’ll continue to do so, but I think it’s important that people understand the reality of lesson horses, and that’s that they aren’t here for your kid to ride forever and climb the levels with your one or two lesson a week commitment. They’re here to get you started, safely and productively, while you decide just how far you want to take this.

Lesson horses are incredibly special creatures. They have to be easily caught by beginners who don’t know how to properly approach a prey animal. They have to stand like statues on the crossties while tiny kids take the better part of an hour to get them clean. They have to hold their head still while beginners jam the bit into their teeth for the fiftieth time in a row to put the bridle on. They have to stand still at the mounting block while someone stands for too long with all their weight in the left stirrup and then slams down on their back with no consideration for their comfort. They tolerantly teach riders who are unbalanced, uncoordinated, and unclear, who catch their mouths and bounce on their backs and kick at their sides, and every single time, they are expected to just come again without so much as a swish of their tail or pinning of their ears. And any time one of these horses has a moment where they act like a regular horse or force the rider to really ride, they’re labeled annoying or rude or bad or lazy or whatever.

Lesson horses are not intended to take you up the levels and jump big jumps and win all the classes. If these horses were this beginner-friendly and this tolerant AND the hack winner with an auto lead change, you couldn’t afford them! That’s not to say these horses can’t be winners if you ride them well and pull your weight, but their ability to win in the show ring is not where their real value lies. Lesson horses exist to bring new riders into the sport. To teach them the ropes and get them started, lay a foundation and prepare them to make a bigger commitment to the sport by leasing or purchasing the next step horse. Lesson horses are not responsible for chasing your Olympic dreams for you. They’re responsible for getting them started in the first place. For riders to act like a lesson horse isn’t valuable because he isn’t the winner in any company is ignorant and unfair.

Every horse you ride has something to teach you. Whether it’s the crotchety old school pony who likes to root when you’re not paying attention, or the younger lesson horse who will only pick up the right lead if you ask *just right*, or the ultra reliable skip-change king, they all will add to your toolkit that you can one day apply to the fancier model you get to take you to the next level. Don’t forget about all the lessons you learn along the way and remember that without lesson horses, you wouldn’t be riding at all!

**Credit to Maddy Brown for writing this**
**Pic is property of Painted Faith Equestrian**

05/22/2024

Not just barrel racer problems. Equestrians in general 🤪

05/22/2024

This week we had a couple firsts. K’s first lesson with me and A and D’s first trail ride with me. All the kids have done great with the heat (horses too). Hopefully the storms hold off today so we can have another great day of lessons!

05/20/2024

Thought some of my students would like to see this. A video of Stormy and I schooling jumps with friends a few years ago. While she’s no longer allowed to jump like this due to injuries, she sure would try if allowed!💙 Took a lot to keep her head up between jumps so she wouldn’t buck out of excitement hahahaha No video of XC jumping.

05/20/2024

With the weather getting hotter, please keep this in mind.
-After you dismount, loosen the saddle some.
-After you put them back in crossties, you can take your helmet off but then tend to them right away.
–If you are hot, they are hotter as they carried you and all your tack. Take their saddle off, then go get a drink of water.
-They rely on you to help them cool down.

05/16/2024

I don’t know anything about this but it looks like a fun opportunity to go check out. HorseFest in Lake Metroparks.

05/11/2024

A couple laughs on this rainy day.

05/08/2024

Tuesdays lessons were a little different this week. 2 were challenged to use only their legs to steer the horses (they did very good). The other 2 worked on all sorts of balancing and control weird ways at the end 😂

05/07/2024

It’s almost SUMMER!☀️ I wanted to post a reminder of my policies as I know how busy the summer can get for all of us. 🤪
Also, as a gentle reminder, this business helps my family pay our bills. I plan on this income from month to month and greatly appreciate as much advance notice as possible if your situation changes and you don't plan to continue lessons. That way I have time to plan accordingly. Thanks!

05/05/2024

Gunner and his buddy Jasper after our trail ride. 💙 Gunner and Willow’s pasture (she’s grazing off to the side). We need more color in that pasture 😂

05/01/2024

We surprised B that one of her favorite horses is back last night. When she realized it was him she gave him a big hug 💙 We took a nice trail ride afterwards.

04/29/2024

Can’t believe this girl is 24 today!! Every year she gets sassier I swear. She’s not slowing down anytime soon and will make sure we all know it at times. 🤪 Happy Birthday Stormy!! (Last pic is her and Diesel, her son, at 1yro. They share a bday)

04/25/2024

How to make your farrier hate you 😂

04/25/2024

Trail rides at home and away, In-hand lessons, and LOTS of shedding!!