SaddleUp Pony Academy

03/23/2025

Tack Room Update! Painting next then move back in next week🙏🤩

03/23/2025

03/23/2025

Busy Lesson Day, bookings are up!. Contact us for Pony Rides and Lesson times available

03/18/2025

03/16/2025

🥰 Raise Her in the Barn

Put your daughter in the barn, where the air smells of hay and hard work, where the lessons are unspoken but will be deeply understood.

Let her find her footing in the dust and dirt,
learning that balance isn’t just for the saddle but for life itself.

Watch as she earns trust from something bigger than herself, as she discovers that patience isn’t passive...it’s the quiet persistence of trying again and again.

Let her feel the weight of responsibility
with every flake of hay she tosses, every bucket she fills, every wound she tends with her tiny gentle hands.

Put your daughter in the barn, where she’ll learn that effort matters more than luck, that showing up every day builds more than muscle...it builds character.

Let her see that respect is earned, not demanded, that failure isn’t final, and that sometimes the best lessons come from falling off and getting back on.

Give her a place where she can be strong and soft, bold and kind, independent yet deeply connected.

Let the barn shape her, and when the world calls her forward, you’ll see a woman who knows who she is, because she was raised in the barn.

💕 Michelle K
Born in the Barn

03/15/2025

Our Tack Room expansion and remodel started today with removing all the Tack & Supplies. Thank you volunteers for all your hard work. Contractor arrives Monday! So excited🤠Goodby gold carpet🤣

03/14/2025

Why $50 to $80 for a Riding Lesson is the Bargain of a Lifetime! 🐴

At first glance, $50 to $80 might seem like a lot for a riding lesson. After all, it’s just 30 minutes or an hour on a horse, right? But here’s the kicker: that price doesn’t even begin to cover the full value of what you’re getting.

Let me break it down for you:

When you pay for a riding lesson, you’re not just paying for the time spent in the saddle. You’re paying for decades of knowledge, years of training, and an entire operation dedicated to creating a safe, fun, and rewarding experience.

You’re paying for an incredible partnership between horse and human—something most people only dream of experiencing.

You’re paying for the *generations of knowledge and skill* that went into breeding or selecting a safe, reliable horse—a horse that can teach a beginner to steer or build confidence in an intermediate rider.

You’re paying for the *thousands of hours* that trainers and instructors spent educating that horse, putting on the miles, and teaching it to be patient, forgiving, and downright saintly.

You’re paying for the tack: saddles, bridles, bits, saddle pads, girths, and all the fittings—carefully selected for comfort, fit, and durability. You’re also paying for the endless supply of grooming tools, from curry combs to hoof picks to detangling spray.

You’re paying for feed: hay, grain, supplements, and the occasional treat. You’re paying for veterinary care, including vaccines, deworming, dental work, and emergency visits. Don’t forget the farrier—someone has to keep those hooves in tip-top shape.

You’re paying for the blankets: rain sheets, winter rugs, coolers—whatever is needed to keep the horses happy and healthy in every season. You’re paying for the halters, lead ropes, and fly masks that keep them comfortable and safe.

You’re paying for the facilities: the arena footing, jumps, fences, barn, and tack room. You’re also paying for the equipment that maintains it all—tractors, ring drags, hoses, water buckets, muck rakes, shovels, and the never-ending repair bills that come with running a stable.

You’re paying for the labor: the early mornings and late nights, the endless stall mucking, the feeding, and the hauling of hay bales. You’re paying for the nights someone walks a colicky horse until the vet arrives.

You’re also paying for the *risk*: every time a lesson horse takes a rider, there’s a chance they could end up hurt or permanently lame. These horses are worth their weight in gold, and it’s my job to keep them safe, healthy, and happy. That’s why they’re only worked a certain amount, jump sparingly, and have strict limits on their workload.

So when you hear, “$50 to $80 for a lesson,” what you’re really getting is the result of years of dedication, hard work, and care. You’re getting a piece of a much larger puzzle—the kind of puzzle that most people don’t see but that makes those 30 or 60 minutes possible.

It’s not “just a lesson.” It’s a lifetime of expertise and a whole village behind it.

I am grateful to my team and the incredible horses for all they bring to people’s experiences. 💙💛

If you are looking for a riding facility here are some tips 📣

1. Do your due diligence before selecting just any facility for you or your child to ride at

2. If it doesn’t feel safe, trust your gut!

3. Any given day, someone wakes up and decides to become an instructor bc they have horses and want to make a buck. Unfortunately, most of them have a little to no prior experience.

4. Instructors/trainers should have references and insurance! This is a business at the end of the day and everyone should be protected.

5. Accept the word NO. Trainers have lesson horses and your best interest at heart. They are not trying to hold you or your horse back to be mean. The amount of students we have received from other programs that are riding or surviving beyond their capabilities is horrifying. What may take you one week may take another rider a month. Everyone needs to go at their own pace to do it properly and safely, This is not a race but something to enjoy at your own pace 🐴🦄🐔🐥

03/13/2025

The goal isn’t to give your kids an easy life.

It’s to give them the tools to build a great one.

Many parents spend their time making sure their kids never struggle. They shield them from failure, hand them everything, and clear every obstacle out of their way. But life doesn’t work like that.

One day, your kids will leave your house and face the real world—a world that doesn’t hand out participation trophies. If they haven’t learned responsibility, discipline, and work ethic, they’re going to struggle. And if they don’t know how to handle money, they’re going to be broke.

That’s why I always say, “More is caught than taught.” Your kids are watching how you handle money. If they see you swipe a credit card every time you want something, they’ll think debt is normal. But if they watch you save, budget, and live below your means, they’ll learn how to win with money before they ever make their first paycheck.

The best thing you can do for your kids isn’t to make their life easy. It’s to teach them how to handle challenges, work hard, and make wise financial decisions. Because if you don’t teach them, the world will—and the world is broke.

03/12/2025

Please welcome tiny Sugar 🐻 Bear to our farm❤️He will be our Therapy Pony on site and available to travel . 29 inches of pure LOVE ❤️

03/12/2025

Getting organized for our 3rd Season, Horse Hair will be flying soon! We open for Lessons and Rides in April

03/02/2025

Responsibility, work ethic, team building, we don’t just ride. We are learning to become better at life and growing up.

02/28/2025

Spring is in the air! Come ride with us in March🌻🥕🌼💫

02/12/2025

Peanut Therapy, little 💞 connecting

02/12/2025

We have the best students❤️❤️❤️

02/12/2025

All any of us wanted when we were children was unconditional love from the people around us.

And, when that love failed to come our way sufficiently, many of us turned towards animals, sometimes needing to cling to the family pet for dear-life in order to survive and receive enough warmth and acceptance to keep us going.

Animals give us unconditional love and through always welcoming our presence they give us the vital acceptance and validation that, who we were, and still are now, matters and is enough.

The dog who raced to greet us every time we returned home. The cat who always chose our bed to cuddle and sleep. The pony or horse who was always there and always happy for us to nestle our face into their neck and mane, as we allowed our tears of sorrow to flow.

I’ve lost count of the number of people who’ve relayed such stories, myself included, with the oft-heard phrase being that, animals and especially horses or ponies, literally saved our lives.

I'm so thankful to these gracious beings who simply loved us as we were and demanded nothing from us except our pure love, bonds and affection in return.

For some, again myself included, it was these safe, secure and joyful animal-bonds and attachments, so utterly lacking in the human-realm, which laid down the templates for the capacity for more genuine relationships, trust and sense of security. And which filled the holes left painfully gaping by those people who were meant to pour love into us.

I for one am utterly grateful to the dogs, cats and ponies who sustained me during those early, critical years, and know for sure that I wouldn’t have made it through without them and the life-raft they so generously and loving always provided for me..

Angela Dunning
The Horse’s Truth

01/28/2025

Why $50 to $80 for a Riding Lesson is the Bargain of a Lifetime! 🐴

At first glance, $50 to $80 might seem like a lot for a riding lesson. After all, it’s just 30 minutes or an hour on a horse, right? But here’s the kicker: that price doesn’t even begin to cover the full value of what you’re getting.

Let me break it down for you:

When you pay for a riding lesson, you’re not just paying for the time spent in the saddle. You’re paying for decades of knowledge, years of training, and an entire operation dedicated to creating a safe, fun, and rewarding experience.

You’re paying for an incredible partnership between horse and human—something most people only dream of experiencing.

You’re paying for the *generations of knowledge and skill* that went into breeding or selecting a safe, reliable horse—a horse that can teach a beginner to steer or build confidence in an intermediate rider.

You’re paying for the *thousands of hours* that trainers and instructors spent educating that horse, putting on the miles, and teaching it to be patient, forgiving, and downright saintly.

You’re paying for the tack: saddles, bridles, bits, saddle pads, girths, and all the fittings—carefully selected for comfort, fit, and durability. You’re also paying for the endless supply of grooming tools, from curry combs to hoof picks to detangling spray.

You’re paying for feed: hay, grain, supplements, and the occasional treat. You’re paying for veterinary care, including vaccines, deworming, dental work, and emergency visits. Don’t forget the farrier—someone has to keep those hooves in tip-top shape.

You’re paying for the blankets: rain sheets, winter rugs, coolers—whatever is needed to keep the horses happy and healthy in every season. You’re paying for the halters, lead ropes, and fly masks that keep them comfortable and safe.

You’re paying for the facilities: the arena footing, jumps, fences, barn, and tack room. You’re also paying for the equipment that maintains it all—tractors, ring drags, hoses, water buckets, muck rakes, shovels, and the never-ending repair bills that come with running a stable.

You’re paying for the labor: the early mornings and late nights, the endless stall mucking, the feeding, and the hauling of hay bales. You’re paying for the nights someone walks a colicky horse until the vet arrives.

You’re also paying for the *risk*: every time a lesson horse takes a rider, there’s a chance they could end up hurt or permanently lame. These horses are worth their weight in gold, and it’s my job to keep them safe, healthy, and happy. That’s why they’re only worked a certain amount, jump sparingly, and have strict limits on their workload.

So when you hear, “$50 to $80 for a lesson,” what you’re really getting is the result of years of dedication, hard work, and care. You’re getting a piece of a much larger puzzle—the kind of puzzle that most people don’t see but that makes those 30 or 60 minutes possible.

It’s not “just a lesson.” It’s a lifetime of expertise and a whole village behind it.

I am grateful to my team and the incredible horses for all they bring to people’s experiences. 💝

01/23/2025

Our Sweet Blu loves the Kiddos, 2 Blue Eyes that kiss your soul🥰

01/12/2025

Our first Ground Work Clinic was a hit! More to come🌟🌟🌟