Phoenix Farm

01/31/2024

So big news.

As most of you know, John suffered a stroke in his brain stem 17 months ago. In the realm of things, we got very lucky. Most people with his type of stroke in that location do not survive, and most of the survivors are severely incapacitated. To have him back at the level he is, is pretty miraculous. But he isn’t who he was. And neither am I, though I am enjoying my return to the saddle and the horsey life. In December he suffered a riding accident that left him with a fractured sacrum, separated shoulder, and a concussion. It was the impetus for us to have a serious conversation about what the future looks like and what we’ll want and will be able to do in the future.

And so it is with both joy and sadness that we announce that Phoenix Farm as a business entity is closing effective immediately. This was a difficult decision, as we’ve had a good 17-year run, and we’re proud of all the people and horses who have come through our program in that time. But, its time to take a step back. We’re pleased that our clients have found a good landing spot with our former assistant at another facility and we wish them all the best.

John and I will continue to enjoy our beautiful farm (once we repair the storm damage we’re currently experiencing), and our personal horses and of course, the goats. Our eventing days are likely behind us, except at perhaps the lowest levels, and we are looking forward to exploring other opportunities with Bucky, Sq**rt and Zara, our lovely riding horses. Trails? Dressage? Working Equitation? Who knows. But it’s time for us to take a step back and enjoy our horses and embrace who we are now. The other horses on property are the beloved geriatric ward (age range 22 to 28) which belong to us, and to two students whose oldies will get to live out their days with us.

I’ve got a fabulous job with Windsor Unified school district, and John will be retiring, but also returning to some freelance work (so if anybody needs any written stuff, you know where to find him, LOL). Wesley starts high school in the fall, so that’s a big “gulp.” But we are so lucky to have our amazing kiddo in our lives.

We want to thank all of our friends, customers, and fellow horsey folk for their support and partnership over these 17 years. And to say, we aren’t leaving or disappearing, so don’t ever hesitate to reach out and say hi, ask for advice or anything else.

All our best,
Heather & John

PS: We’ll be keeping our PF Facebook open for goats and just fun farm posts.

04/01/2023

02/10/2023

I’m very pleased to announce that, effective immediately, my assistant, Jazmin Holguin, is beginning her as trainer here at Phoenix Farm, as I slowly back away.

Jazmin has been my assistant for the last two years, after being a working student for several years before that. She has been been training with me, and with Heather first, for the last 10 years. While she is short on competitive experience, she has extensive experience in working with the different kinds of horses that we’ve had here over the last decade, as well as dealing with horses in difficult situations, like the fires from which we evacuated in 2017 and 2019. Consequently, she’s a knowledgeable and confident handler and trainer of horses, on the ground and an their backs. And she is a lot of fun to be with and to talk to!

Certainly a primary reason for this change is facing the realities of my stroke, which happened now five months ago. While I’ve made a fantastic recovery from a potentially fatal condition—I’ve been riding my beloved mare Alba for two months now and I’ve been teaching again for more than two months too—but I will no longer be able to ride young or green horses for other people again.

But I’m not disappearing! I still have two wonderful horses to ride, and Phoenix Farm is our home. So I’ll be continuing to coach, advise and probably annoy Jazmin as she helps people accomplish their goals with their horses, which may be just to just enjoy riding.

If you’d like more information, please feel free to contact me.

12/06/2022

Another big day today—for the first time in five years, I rode Alba, whose been retired for that time. If the name doesn’t jog your memory, I competed he for eight years, from beginner novice to intermediate, under the show name of Firebolt.

Alba, now 20, was one of my two best event horses, and she was always wonderful to ride. So I decided it would be fun for the two of us to dotter around together, starting today.

And it was great to look between those little red ears of hers and to do a few leg-yields at the walk. I think she liked being back in work too.

Thanks to Bentley for riding Alba for a few minutes before I did, because she was a bit too on her toes at first!

11/26/2022

Today was a big day. We’re observing the golden three-month mark since my stroke, and so today I rode for the first time since the end of August. And it was tremendous success, and I feel on top of the world, as you can imagine.

My mount today was Fable, 19, whom my sister, Karin, bred and was the first horse we started when we started under saddle when we opened our business in 2006. My assistant, Jazmin Holguin, has owned him since 2014 and helped me today.

I was able to walk and trot, and I’m very pleased to say that I was neither out of breath nor exhausted by the effort! I was actually ecstatic and feeling good!

10/31/2022

I thought many of you might be interested in a stroke update:

It’s now been 10 weeks, and I’m very much improved and able to do things, thanks to physical, occupational and speech therapy and to the support of my wife and son, Heather’s family, and friends.

Yesterday was a very big day: I fed all of animals on the farm by myself for the first time. And I was exhausted. But I did it. And I managed to help Heather feed at night and then did about a half hour of tractor work spreading the new footing in the indoor arena. And I didn’t hit anything with the tractor or the Mule that we use to feed!

The biggest problems are lack of endurance and my memory. I have about a 45-minute window to do anything, and then I’m out of breath and exhausted. No one can tell me when, and if, that will get better. And I find holes in my memory, especially in things people say to me. I guess that’s not completely new?

The next step is to try riding again. Coming soon. . .

09/05/2022

Look. Who’s. HOME!

John got sprung today from Santa Clara. We’re still at the beginning of his journey rather than the end, and next week starts home health, more kinds of therapy than you can shake a stick at, and figuring out next steps, but for now we’re grateful he’s home with Wes and I. And of course he wanted to go see his girls right away (and they surpringly cool about the wheelchair). John Strassburger

08/30/2022

So I didn’t update yesterday because everything was just uncertain. And I’ve learned in the last 48 hours to not get attached to any plan, because they are very much in flux. But. As of right now the plan is for John to go to acute rehab in Santa Clara tomorrow. They are expecting him to be there about a week, and then he’ll come home to do more therapy in home and out patient.

He’s continuing to have improvements, though they aren’t coming fast enough for Mr. Achiever 😜 so we’re fighting some low spirits. I keep telling him, this too shall pass.

A few shout outs. First, my fantastic employer, Windsor Unified School District for their compassion and assistance as I’ve had to navigate these waters. Love my work family.

Second my amazing family. I love you all and am so lucky to have you.

Finally, our barn family has stepped up helped to such an amazing degree. We couldn’t do this without you.

Please keep a good thought for us, there’s still aways to go.

08/28/2022

Today’s update shows what a rollercoaster this can be. First the good news: We had some definite improvement today and he was able to make a full lap of the ward with his walker, and was able to feed himself. And, one way or the other, he’ll be leaving the hospital tomorrow. Now the less good: because of how far he was able to walk today, he may be “doing too well” to get accepted at the facility in vallejo. His local team is advocating hard for him due to the deficits he is still experiencing with his hand and speech, but ultimately they may still reject him. If that happens he will be discharged home, with home health and therapy visits daily. It’s a less intensive regimen, so in that sense not as good an option, but I’m confident that John’s work ethic can make it work. I keep trying to remind both of us it’s a marathon not a sprint. Love to all of you keeping up with us and keeping the love going.

08/27/2022

Short update tonight, because I won’t lie, I’m exhausted. But, it looks like John will go to the acute rehab on Monday, and will stay in the hospital until then. His spirits were a little lower today, but we had lots of good conversations with doctors and therapists and he feels good about the plans we’ve made. More tomorrow. John Strassburger

08/26/2022

Hi everyone. First I have to thank everyone for all the kind thoughts and words. I read them all to John and he was incredibly moved and thankful.

So, today’s update. This morning was a mixed bag as his leg was stronger but his speech seemed more affected. However, the neurologist said that waxing and waning of symptoms over several days is common with brain stem strokes. He was assessed by a speech therapist and occupational therapist and we’re still waiting on the physical therapist.

However, the consensus so far seems in favor of him going to an acute rehab for a period of time. The one they want him to go to isn’t local (Vallejo for those in the area) BUT it is apparently the gold standard in stroke rehab and they feel that if he goes he has an excellent chance of a full recovery. Exactly when he would go and how long he would be there is still unknown until the physical therapist sees him. So he’s got at least another night in the hospital and we’ll see what gets decided tomorrow.

Thanks again to all of you bear and far who have sent their love and care. It means the world, truly.

08/25/2022

So, could use some good thoughts. I’m sorry to have to report that John has suffered a stroke in his brain stem. He is in the hospital and receiving care. It’s early days still and we don’t have a full picture of the future, but his chances for a full recovery are good. We’ll know more in the next 24-48 hours. Wes and I are Ok, and have family helping out, and our amazing barn family is pulling together to help get all the critters cared for. I will keep everyone posted. But we’ll take all the positive vibes we can get.

06/10/2022

It was in the summer of 2018 that we acquired two chestnut off-track Thoroughbreds, one a 4-year-old mare I named Althea and the other a 6-year-old gelding named Argo. Each showed great athletic promise, although Argo—we were told and could certainly see—was clearly an unpredictable type.
Their development was certainly hampered by the dislocations caused by the 2019 Kincaid fire and then by COVID-19, but they still weren’t progressing like they should. There were sparks of brilliance and moments of success, but they were not becoming the reliable jumpers or riding horses they should be maturing into.
Argo was particularly frustrating, but my assistant, Jazmin, adored him, and a year ago she bought him from me for $1. That didn’t mean he went any better, though, and he began to become actually dangerous to lead.
While Althea was continuing to have what I called her “red-headed s**t fits” under saddle, in October she went beautifully at beginner novice at Fresno and earned third place. I thought, “We’ve turned a corner!” And entered her in her fist novice there in November. About two-thirds of the way through cross-country, she simply dropped me on the ground—she dove to the left about 10 strides before a jump and spun out from underneath me.
I didn’t think her action was related to the jump. It felt like she was reacting to something else. So my friend Andrea Pfeiffer suggested x-raying her neck, and on the very first x-ray we found a large spur on her C-1, pressing against her skull.
Having found a physical reason for Althea’s behavior, I suggested to Jazmin that we x-ray Argo. And we found he had a very serious case of kissing spines. After trying several therapies with no lasting ffect, we decided we had no choice but to euthanize him, which we did in March.
Meanwhile, after two months of shock-wave and laser therapy on Thea’s neck, she started acting sore in her right hind leg. And then she became lame. Again, after trying a couple of normal therapies, my vet, Dr. John Kaufman, x-rayed her leg and found a rather advanced case of degenerative joint disease, in her stifle and hock.
The reason for this long post is that today we euthanized Thea too. I wanted her end to be quiet and peaceful, which it mercifully was.
And so ends the chapter of the two chestnut Thoroughbreds, two horses who many times caused me to wonder if I’d lost it, if I had any clue what I was doing. But now I know that they each had serious physical problems that caused them to be so difficult, and even dangerous.
I believe that every horse comes into our lives to teach us something, to prepare us for another horse or circumstance in the future. Thea and Argo have taught me that, when a horse isn’t progressing or acting like they should, that it’s time to look for physical causes. But sometimes the answer isn’t what you want.
RIP, Thea (pictured on the left) and Argo (pictured on the right).

03/21/2022

On Saturday we adopted a 2-ear-old Doberman (our fourth Doberman) from a nice family near Sacramento that could not keep him. When we got there, we discovered that, to our surprise, he hadn’t been neutered—and that he had an injured front leg because “a few weeks ago” he’d tried to jump over the fence to a female in heat.
And now I’ll launch into a rant: I absolutely cannot understand why people think castrating male dogs or spaying female dogs is so distressing or cruel. It’s cruel NOT to neuter them—because their lives are then governed by hormones that they cannot control. And this dog is a prime example. When Heather took him to the vet yesterday (to get him neutered and to have his leg examined), x-rays showed that he had a fractured ulna. Isn’t that cruel, that their reluctance to neuter him caused him to fracture his leg? (And he still has to be neutered, because the vet didn’t do that yesterday, as a result of dealing with the fracture.
The dog came with the name Rex, but we’ve renamed him Borius. That’s because our 9-year-old Doberman is Zephyr, the West Wind. Borius, Heather tells me, is the North Wind. He seems to be a lovely dog, and here he is with his cast.

01/01/2022

All of us at Phoenix Farm wish you a Happy New Year—at least that 2022 be better than the last few years! Myster (our 21-year-old Paint) and Stevie Nicks (our Miniature Sicilian Donkey) took a few minutes out of their celebrations for a photo shoot to send their best wishes.

12/24/2021

A very Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night. . .

From all of us at Phoenix Farm

11/11/2021

I need someone to braid my horse at next week’s Fresno Horse Trials. She stands well and has an easy mane to braid. Can be either thread or bands—she just needs to have braids in her mane. Competing novice, so could do it Thursday evening or Friday morning. Please private message me. Thanks.

04/23/2021

Yesterday I took my 3-year-old filly, Grace, to Red Bluff, Calif., to be started under saddle. I’ve had Grace in work for just over a year—longeing and ponying her, and, since we’ve been at our new farm, free-longeing her in the round pen. So she’s ready to take the next step. Still, the last few weeks have felt a lot like I was getting a kid ready to leave for college: she had a dental, vaccinations, worming, mane pulled, feet trimmed, etc.
Grace is the Thoroughbred filly Heather purchased in the November 2018 online dispersal sale of a Thoroughbred breeding farm in Southern California, as a not-yet-weanling. The price was so low that it cost more to ship Grace here than she paid for her. We chose her because of her pedigree (which screams grass and endurance—her sire won races from 7 furlongs to 2 1/2 miles), and because we liked the way she was built. She’s turned out be extremely athletic and, so far, has demonstrated an extremely workmanlike temperament. I can’t wait to ride her (and especially to jump her). I do hope, though, that she grows another inch or two, since she’s barely 15.1 hands now.
The name of the cowboy horse starter is Cameron Buckingham, and he came highly recommended by my former farrier, Mike Piro. (He’s only “former” because he moved to Seattle last summer.) I enjoyed meeting Cameron; it felt like we could have sat down with some beers and talked horses all night long.