Rockwall Hills Equestrian Center

04/17/2025

The roses are in full bloom here at RHEC!

04/17/2025

We’ve not been good about posting updates, but Congratulations to all of these new horse owners that have purchased horses from RHEC over the past 7 months!!!! These horses have been sold:
Get the Job Done (Chip)
Call Sign Maverick (Maverick)
Autumns Rising Sun (Bea)
Everdance RSF (Dancer)
Canderas (Callie)
In Due Time (Izzy aka Esther)
Riding Cloud Nine (Nine aka Archie)
Fish
Tara Terror (Maisie)
Tin Delay (Casper)
Racin’ Rocks (Rocco)
Declare Justice (DJ)
Pachanga Patrol (Patches)

New owners, please send us pictures/videos of your horses thriving in their new homes! We love to see them!!! We also have several nice horses in for sale! Will post current sales list soon!!!

03/30/2025

🎉🎂 Happy Birthday, Sophia! 🎂🎉

From starting your riding journey with us at Rockwall Hills Equestrian when you were just 8 years old, to now being a confident and talented 14-year-old rider, we’ve loved watching you grow and thrive in the saddle! 🐎

Your dedication, kindness, and passion for horses inspire everyone around you. We’re so proud of everything you’ve accomplished and can’t wait to see where your riding journey takes you next. Here’s to many more years of joy, success, and amazing memories at Rockwall! 🌟

Wishing you the best birthday ever, Sophia! 🥳💐🎈

03/27/2025

702 reasons to NOT “bring your horse home”…
1.) horses are not meant to live by themselves, so having one by itself rarely ever works. If you have two they get so buddy sour you can’t do something with one without the other going nuts. Three is also inconvenient and gives few options for mixing pairs and preventing issues. So four is really the bare minimum to keep together
2.) Feeding twice a day is a minimum- even if they have access to hay/grass, plenty of water, and get no grain, you need eyes on them absolutely twice a day minimum. What if they are injured? Or a bird drowned in the water tank and it’s hot and the water is now full of bacteria?
3.) Horse care takes way more time than you think. If you think you’re going to save time by not having to drive to the barn, then I know how naïve you are on how much time it’s going to take to care for your own horse at home.
4.) Ever try self board?? Yay! That’s an adorable start, but you ain’t the one fixing fence, hauling out the manure pile, probably not ordering hay, and you ain’t making the tractor payment (doing maintenance on the tractor)
5.) think it’s gonna be cheaper??? 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 it’s not. I promise it’s not. Most boarding barns actually subsidize the cost per horse, and they are buying in bulk. Keeping one horse is way more expensive than keeping 20 when you look at the cost per horse.
6.) Do you like having ANY amenities???? stalls if a horse hurts themself, or it’s freezing rain for a week? A hot water wash bay? Or even just an area with lights so that you can even see your horse in the winter?
7.) Do you think you’re just gonna ride out in the pasture? Because that only works for about a month until you tear it up so bad that the footing is absolutely dangerous.
I guess it would work if you only ride twice a month during perfect weather days. Not only does a small basic outdoor arena cost about $30,000, but you absolutely need a tractor and a good quality arena rake if you want to maintain it.
8.) Did I mention Tractor payment? Small tractors that can barely do the job are dangerous. Get more tractor than you think need.
9.) Do you ever go away? Kiss that goodbye. Or expect to drop some serious cash on a quality horse sitter. Want to go out in the evening? You’ll need to schedule that around evening chores.
10.) Right now you might love when you get the arena to yourself, but when you are by yourself ALL the time, its easy to lack direction or motivation.
11.) You’ll miss barn culture and riding buddies, and getting away from your spouse for a couple hours. There’s a reason why time flies at the barn!
12.) Mud.
13.) The tens of thousands of dollars you spend trying to get rid of mud, just to have more mud.
14.) have fun dealing with a manure pile on small acreage. It’s not enough to get anyone commercial to haul it out, but way too much to not have a place to go with it. 
15.) Lack of instruction. It’s hard to get an instructor to come to you.
16.) No one to share farm call fees with…
17.) IF you can even get a vet or farrier to come to you!

I know I’m 685 reasons short, but I promise they exist!!!! This is just a start! (And I’m sure others will leave their reasons in the comments.)

03/25/2025

🐴 WIN A FREE WEEK OF SUMMER HORSE CAMP! 🌞🏇

Think you’ve got the most creative horse content? Show us your skills and win a FREE week of summer horse camp at Rockwall Hills Equestrian Center!

🎯 How to Enter:
1️⃣ Create a horse-themed post—this could be:
🖌️ A drawing or painting of a horse
🎥 A fun hobby horse video
📸 A photo of you riding or doing barn chores
🐎 Anything creative & horse-related!

2️⃣ Post it on Instagram or Facebook (or both for an extra entry!) and tag us!

3️⃣ Use the hashtag so we can find your entry!

You must be already registered for a week of camp to participate!
Register at tinyurl.com/RHECcamp2025

🏆 The post with the MOST likes & shares by April 30th wins a free week of summer camp!

We will pick a staffs choice winner to get 2 free lessons!!!

📍 Open to all horse lovers | Ages 5 - 14

The winner will be announced on May 15th —so get creative, tag us, and start racking up those likes! 🎨🎥🏇

03/24/2025

Spring camp 2025 photo dump!!!!!
Everyone had a blast!!!
Don’t forget to register for our summer camp!!!

03/09/2025

🚨 Early Bird Registration is LIVE! 🚨
Want an unforgettable summer full of horses, new friends, and adventure? 🏇✨ Our Summer Riding Camp offers riding lessons, fun barn activities, and the best summer memories!

💥 Early Bird Special: Save $50 if you sign up before April 15th!
📍 Limited spots available – Don’t wait!

Secure your discount!
Visit tinyurl.com/RHECcamp2025

📲 DM us ‘CAMP’ for details!

02/24/2025

🙌

Pull up a chair, it’s time for another chat 😅

I’m thankful that I don’t have to make a living from horses. It’s a hobby and interest for myself and Donal. I don’t know how people who do rely on it to live, deal with the stress these days!!

Most vettings have become absolutely ridiculous. Years ago I started refusing to take horses to vet clinics because the time taken for these vettings was often the majority of my day between travel and waiting around. There are many vets that cover our yard (including all the big clinics) so either your vet comes here or you choose another vet. I don’t have time for that.

If I don’t believe a horse will pass a vetting, I wouldn’t present it for one. I don’t want to waste my time nevermind your money!! My eye is good enough to see lameness and I can do my own flexion tests if I’m unsure. But what is a vetting? Is it a rigid test that every horse should have to meet the set criteria of? Or is it fluid based on whether the horse is suitable for the job? It should be the latter but the world of litigation is making it the former!!

I recently had a lovely “pony” day at a friends house with some of Jessica’s friends from school. The kids had a ball, the horses and ponies were saints and everyone was happy. Would any of those horses have passed a 5 stage vetting?! Probably not!! Are they suitable for the job and absolutely adored?! 100%!!

Uneducated buyers (and some educated ones….) view it as a lifetime guarantee 🫠 horses have minds of their own and can literally decide to kill themselves in the stable 🤷‍♀️ so when it was sound at the vetting and isn’t sound 4 weeks later it doesn’t mean the seller scammed you or the vet was incompetent (yes I’m sure both of those do happen occasionally) - more likely the horse has been a tw@t womble and injured itself!! Or developed ulcers as a result of stresses from moving and then compensatory movement/pain.

Why does a riding club horse need 5million X-rays?! Why does any horse need 5million X-rays…. But seriously…. So many horses will have less than perfect X-rays but are PERFECTLY sound for their job. If you need X-rays for Bob the cob because you want loss of use insurance…. do you really need it?! Insurance companies try to wangle out of paying LOU and the cost of the premiums you could put that money aside instead in case the worst happened.

I’ve banned vets from the yard not over sour grapes but for shocking treatment of their client, the buyer!! Had one proceed with 5stage vetting/more X-rays only to then “fail” the horse on an X-ray he didn’t like from an existing set we had provided prior to the vetting. Taking nearly £1000 from the client when he could have said that before coming to do the vetting and charging her a nominal fee. Needless to say multiple other vets didn’t agree with that finding and the horse was sold a week later!! As is the joy of X-rays when everyone has an opinion 🫠

Buying a horse is not a light decision. It is a very expensive purchase (whether it’s £5k or £500k) and the costs of keep/management etc etc are huge. The blame culture needs to STOP 🛑 as long as you haven’t been sold up the swanny when you bought it, accept responsibility for the living breathing liability that it is when (yes when, not if) something goes wrong.

Modern day management, unsuitable arena surfaces, egos, age classes, bad farriers, keeping up with the Jones’ all contribute to the breakdown of our horses. It’s very rarely one thing and it’s very rarely the fault of the vet or the seller!!

We need to start taking responsibility or we can kiss goodbye to this sport because I for one am getting very tired of doing it….

02/17/2025

🌞 Sunday Thoughts: Signs You’re a True Equestrian 🌞

If you know, you know… 👇

🐴 You’ve gone “just to check on my horse” and somehow spent 5 hours at the barn.
🐴 You can identify a horse from half a mile away (and get excited every time)
🐴 You have at least one piece of tack you don’t use but refuse to sell.
🐴 You’ve justified buying another saddle pad because “it’s a different shade of navy.”
🐴 Your car is basically a mobile tack room (and probably smells like one).

It’s not just a hobby—it’s a lifestyle. 💁‍♀️😂 What’s your biggest I’m definitely a horse person moment? Drop it below! ⬇️

02/15/2025

Spotlight Saturday 🎬✨

We have the BEST lesson ponies! Our team of safe, loving horses and ponies take care of our students from when they first learn to trot to cantering their first jumps, or going to their first shows!

Betty the unicorn 🦄 has been living her best life getting all the treats and love at birthday parties this week! Call or message us to book your birthday party with Betty!

02/13/2025

Throwback Thursday 🎉

Just going to leave these two pictures here…
Only a couple years separate this kids first event and her recent win at her very first training!

Contact us to schedule a lesson!

02/13/2025

So proud of the RHEC team this past weekend!!!
So many firsts happened at this show and everyone came away with homework to work on and accomplishments to celebrate!

Lilian Pham / Lady won 1st 🥇 at their very first training level event! It was a large open division and they ended on their dressage score 🎉

Victoria Udrys / Obie tackled their first novice event finishing in 2nd with just some time in the SJ.

Emma Lewis / DJ completed their first event placing 3rd!

Emerson Hall / Lucky finished their first event in 4th!

02/09/2025

Love this picture! Lucky and Emerson are waiting to go in and her sister had to show him some well deserved love. ❤️
Love our awesome lesson horses, they deserve all the cookies.

Loved this moment today between these two ❤️

02/06/2025

Want to improve your riding posture? A strong core is key! Focus on engaging your abdominal muscles while keeping a soft, flexible seat. Need more tips? Join one of our lessons this week!

Picture below is Ellen Sebanc and Wowee ❤️

02/03/2025

Motivational Monday!!!
🌟 “New week, new goals! 🐎 Whether you're training for a show or just enjoying a peaceful ride, every moment in the saddle is a step forward.
Love watching our young riders grow up!
Look at Zoey go!!!
What are your riding goals this week?
Let us know in the comments! ⬇️

”

02/02/2025

Taking a moment to reflect on this week’s wins and lessons. 🐎💭
What’s something you learned in the saddle this week? Let’s chat in the comments!