Open Water Farms Horse Kindergarten and Training

11/13/2024

Is your young horse ready to go to Kindergarten? Maybe your older horse needs to go back to kindergarten?!🤣

What we do:

⭐️We specialize in giving young horses a confident start under saddle and help to change the lives of horses with behavioral challenges (bucking, rearing, stopping, bolting, spooking, hard to catch etc.)

⭐️We develop well-rounded horses that can hack out, are incredibly confident to the jumps and establish a base in dressage

⭐️We start from the ground-up to develop a personal plan for you and your horse! We use a variety of “natural horsemanship” techniques that inform our use of the classical system. Large knowledge of biomechanics and a penchant for figuring out that “wierd body quirk” that is keeping your horse from excelling in her job.

⭐️We help horses and owners feel confident in every step of the interaction from haltering, through your ride, to putting the horse away to winning in the ring

⭐️Exceptional facility in Petaluma with three rings, a cross country course, acres of private trails, lots of turnout and great care

Spot Available December 1.
🥶🥶🥶 Winter is coming and we want you to feel confident going to the barn!
Give us a call!

09/23/2024

The very sweetest horse is available to lease at beautiful Hawkwood Hill!

Gentle Giant Best Boi Available for In-Barn Lease!
18.2 hand hunk of love is looking for a partner that wants to do jump 3’ and below. Barn Favorite with nice natural rhythm excels in all three rings and also does dressage! Loves to trail ride and hack out. Four white socks and very flashy! Horsemanship centered program focuses on clear communication between horse and rider. Must be in full training. Petaluma, CA. If this sounds like it’s just what you’re looking for or you want to know more, text (nine2five) three3zero-four6zerotwo.

03/14/2024

In Barn Lease of the very best gentle giant available in Petaluma!

Gentle Giant Best Boi Available for In-Barn Lease!
18.2 hand hunk of love is looking for a partner that wants to do jump 3’ and below. Barn Favorite with nice natural rhythm excels in all three rings and also does dressage! Loves to trail ride and hack out. Four white socks and very flashy! Horsemanship centered program focuses on clear communication between horse and rider. Must be in full training. Petaluma, CA. If this sounds like it’s just what you’re looking for or you want to know more, text (nine2five) three3zero-four6zerotwo.

03/14/2024

Gentle Giant Best Boi Available for In-Barn Lease!
18.2 hand hunk of love is looking for a partner that wants to do jump 3’ and below. Barn Favorite with nice natural rhythm excels in all three rings and also does dressage! Loves to trail ride and hack out. Four white socks and very flashy! Horsemanship centered program focuses on clear communication between horse and rider. Must be in full training. Petaluma, CA. If this sounds like it’s just what you’re looking for or you want to know more, text (nine2five) three3zero-four6zerotwo.

11/05/2023

So excited for you both to have a saddle that feels good!

Hawkwood Hill Farms with the amazing Open Water Farms Horse Kindergarten and Training lovely Shawna & Lucia are all🦄smiles😋in their new Kontrol by Albion Saddlemakers Co. Ltd

10/17/2023

Happy Graduation Bravo!
What did Bravo learn at Kindergarten?!

✅ Comes happily to get caught out of the pasture
✅Leads like a pro
✅ Gives to pressure
✅ Stands Tied
✅Enjoys standing to get groomed and saddled
✅Picks up all four feet
✅Puts head down to Bridle
✅Stands for bathing
✅Ground Drives
✅Long Lines
✅Yields front end/hind end
✅ Backed!

Excited for what is next for you, buddy! Cheers to a long and successful career for you!🥂

02/03/2022

Those of you who know me, know that I place a high value on setting young horses up for success. This is a shout-out to River City Equestrian Events for a really well-executed schooling show! The little details like inviting courses in the smaller divisions are some of the things that help us set up our young horses for success in the rest of their careers. Nancy Gannon, Lauren Wasserman and Emma Hainze— thank you for this great show experience! THIS is how we develop young horses affordably in the US!

01/31/2022

Thank you to Ellen Eckstein, master of young horse development, for hosting Open Water Farms Horse Kindergarten and Training at your beautiful farm for a weekend of dressage lessons, life lessons, horsemanship and stories about Tom Dorrance. You are truly a gift to our sport. Thank you for the big movements and soft feels 🧡 So grateful for your patience and coaching. All the horses feel so good after riding with you!

08/23/2021

This is a great way to look at it…

"You've got to be fair to the horse, but it has to be a mutual respect. And sometimes people they'll be like, 'Well I love him, and he's my friend. I write poems about him and stuff. I just don't want to.... oh, gosh.... I just don't want to....'

You don't want to what? Do your job?

Horses that are disrespectful are not happy horses. You're not giving them a good life. It's a hateful, violent life. So by not stepping up and doing your job, you are being cruel. Because somewhere along the line, if he's ever going to be worth a damn for anything, someone is going to have to line him out, and then put him through 9 kinds of hell to get to where you change the behavior pattern he's been living his whole life. Well that's not very fair either. So you're better off to just have him behave."

~Buck Brannaman

06/26/2020

How lucky are we to have miles of trails in our backyard?! We are even more lucky to have a few rockstar western horses to chaperone the babies and help build their confidence. 🏆 @ Hawkwood Hill Farms

06/24/2020

06/13/2020

Playing in the water and having some fun with the newest addition to the OWF herd!

Eleanor Louise

05/17/2020

I am thrilled to announce the launch of Open Water Farms’ brand new website!: www.openwaterfarms.org

2020 has been an exhilarating year as the OWF herd relocated and the babies had a few adventures before shelter-in-place began. We are currently accepting new clients at our stunning location at Hawkwood Hill Farm in Petaluma!

Whether you have an unstarted c**t, a green horse looking to learn the ropes, a horse experiencing behavioral challenges, or an experienced veteran, OWF has a full training and care program for you. Call or send an email and and we will help you reach your goals!

Horse Kindergarten and Training in Northern California. Open Water Farms is committed to developing young horses and changing the lives of horses with behavioral challenges so they can reach their full potential. We are proud to be located in Petaluma, California at one of Marin County’s premier e...

12/03/2019

Several of our Expert Panel Members offer advice on how to get a young mare to collect the canter.

11/16/2019

How to avoid the most common mistakes of c**t starting? Manage your expectations, don’t have an agenda And don’t pick a fight! Love it!

Three common mistakes of starting c**ts according to lifelong c**t starter Jeff Williams. We caught up with Williams last year at Road to the Horse, the World Championship of C**t Starting, in Lexington, KY, where he’s one of five judges. Get your tickets for Road to the Horse 2019 here.

10/19/2019

Do you have young horses in Sonoma or Marin? Looking for a fantastic start for your hunter/jumper? Open Water Farms Horse Kindergarten is giving away a free week of training. Post a cute pic of your Unstarted baby horse and I’ll send you details 🧡🐴