Rancho del Soule Dressage

14/06/2024

Do you know which one is correct?

10/06/2024

"The quality of the seat determines whether we can even speak of “riding”, or whether the horse simply has to “deal with” the load on his back.” - Kurt Albrecht

10/06/2024

As you head down centerline, just breathe. Remember this is just another training session. Same horse, same rider, same goals, different venue. No one knows where you've been, how far your partnership has come, or what your goals for this ride might be. Rhythm and Relaxation are perfect goals. Enjoy the moment and dance with your horse!

08/06/2024

"Horsemanship is not merely a matter of bodily skills, but is based on scholarship and, therefore, is a matter of the mind and intellect. Good horsemanship is based on proper character development and, therefore, is also a matter of mentality and spirit. Without the correct attitudes and insights, there cannot be the right sport." - Charles de Kunffy"Horsemanship is not merely a matter of bodily skills, but is based on scholarship and, therefore, is a matter of the mind and intellect. Good horsemanship is based on proper character development and, therefore, is also a matter of mentality and spirit. Without the correct attitudes and insights, there cannot be the right sport." - Charles de Kunffy

06/06/2024

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!

09/05/2024

"Any lateral bend should always be obtained by stretching the outside of the bend, never by shortening the inside!"
(Dr.med.vet. Erich Kotzab, 2006)

06/05/2024

22/04/2023

https://www.facebook.com/100064810953169/posts/625947129575647/?sfnsn=mo&mibextid=6aamW6

📢The NEW 2023 WDAA Western Dressage World Championship Show sponsorship vending machine is up and running!! We are so excited for this new system, thank you WDAA IT Ops manager Una Shade for building this amazing tool!
Please visit this link to support WDAA and the World Show: https://wdaaworldshow.org/ In the upper right-hand corner you will see SUPPORT THE SHOW, in the drop down you have the choice between Class, Division, Special, Breed and Special Award Sponsorships. Breeds are already going fast!!🏇 Help us get this show fully sponsored! If you would like to make a bigger splash please look into our Corporate Sponsorship program, found on the same dropdown. Remember, we can't do anything, particularly grow, without our desperately needed sponsors! 💙🤎💙🤎💙

01/04/2023

Horse Facts:

If a horse gets too stressed out they can colic and die

If a horse doesn't eat enough they can get stomach ulcers

If a horse eats too much they can founder or colic and die

If a horse gets stressed out and doesn't eat at the same time they will get ulcers, colic and die

If a horse doesn't drink enough...you guessed it, they can colic and die

If they have a drastic change in diet, environment or routine they can indeed colic and die

If you ride your entire life it absolutely does not mean that you are a good rider

If you ask 100 equestrians the same question you will get 106 different answers all of which which will be told with 100% confidence especially from those who bought their first horse last week

Horses can live outside 24/7 and they also can not live outside 24/7

Horses eat hay, grass, grain, expensive supplements, apples, carrots and 100 dollar bills

The pants you wear to shovel s**t, fix fences and ride in the dirt are more expensive then any other pants you will own

Horses are athletes. Athletes that trip on nothing, fall while playing, need stitches from cutting themselves on something that is not visible to the human eye, colic and die under stressful (competition type) situations, are scared of absolutely everything and don't like to be told what to do

Rank, fresh, hot, spicy, wild all mean the same thing and describe a horse on a beautiful spring day when all you want to do is go for a relaxing ride to unwind

Beginner safe, schoolie, husband type, anyone can ride, Grandma's mount, kid safe normally means, this horse is bat s**t crazy but I'm hoping you'll buy it sight unseen if I describe it as a kids horse and then ghost you when you tell me it killed your Grandma

If you are riding a horse and they see a rock that wasn't there yesterday you are possibly in for a wild ride as they avoid this horse eating rock at all costs. Including the cost of your life

If you see a horse on the road slow down.. actually just turn around and go the other way. For some unknown reason a horse often jumps infront of moving cars in order to avoid the scary moving cars

If your horse comes up lame, no problem you just need to rule out a couple of the most common things that it could be. These include ulcers, kissing spine, founder, EPM, HYPP, Lyme, influenza, cushings, sharp teeth, broken teeth, rotten tooth, tooth abscess, knee chips, hairline fractures from head to toe, cancer, pulled muscle, hoof abscess, weak stifle, lice, worms, conformational defect, headaches, sinus infection, bruised sole, ribs or spine out of alignment, poor fitting tack, laminitis, dehydration, vitamin deficiencies, anemia, infection and strangles.

And they have a frog in their foot

If you aren't the one paying the vet bills these horse facts might seem funny but they are in fact, 100% accurate. So if you get a horse please also get yourself a good therapist.

CC:C.Steele

22/03/2023

Bill Steinkrause:

“No. 1. Get your tack and equipment just right, and then forget about it and concentrate on the horse.

No. 2. The horse is bigger than you are, and it should carry you. The quieter you sit, the easier this will be for the horse.

No. 3. The horse's engine is in the rear. Thus, you must ride your horse from behind, and not focus on the forehand simply because you can see it.

No. 4. It takes two to pull. Don't pull. Push.

No. 5. For your horse to be keen but submissive, it must be calm, straight and forward.

No. 6. When the horse isn`t straight, the hollow side is the difficult side.

No. 7. The inside rein controls the bending, the outside rein controls the speed.

No. 8. Never rest your hands on the horse's mouth. You make a contract with it: "You carry your head and I'll carry my hands."

No. 10. Once you've used an aid, put it back.

No. 11. You can exaggerate every virtue into a defect.

No. 12. Always carry a stick, then you will seldom need it.

No. 13. If you`ve given something a fair trial, and it still doesn't work, try something else—even the opposite.

No. 14. Know when to start and when to stop. Know when to resist and when to reward.

No. 15. If you're going to have a fight, you pick the time and place.

No. 16. What you can't accomplish in an hour should usually be put off until tomorrow.

No. 17. You can think your way out of many problems faster than you can ride your way out of them.

No. 18. When the horse jumps, you go with it, not the other way around.

No. 19. Don`t let over-jumping or dull routine erode the horse's desire to jump cleanly. It's hard to jump clear rounds if the horse isn't trying.

No. 20. Never give up until the rail hits the ground.

No. 21. Young horses are like children—give them a lot of love, but don't let them get away with anything.

No. 22. In practice, do things as perfectly as you can; in competition, do what you have to do.

No. 23. Never fight the oats.

No. 24. The harder you work, the luckier you get."

~Bill Steinkraus

09/03/2023

09/03/2023

https://www.facebook.com/155580004478594/posts/960956980607555/?sfnsn=mo&mibextid=6aamW6

05/10/2022

https://homesteadontherange.com/2015/01/29/conformation-free-download/

As you would expect from a veterinarian, Dr. Beeman’s emphasis is on the way a horse’s physical build and appearance affects the way it moves and perform

22/09/2022

Judging and the State of Dressage
By Jeff Moore.
In the early 1980’s, Elizabeth Searle and I conceived the USDF “L Program” for the training of future judges.
One of the things I wrote at the time was “Judges do not have the skill set or basic knowledge to do a good job, compared to judges in other sports . . . the horse’s basic biomechanics is not understood. Nor is the basic issue of the Psychology of Training. If judging is to improve we need to address Biomechanics and Psychology, as well as a standardized judging methodology for arriving at appropriate scores and placings in order to provide guidance.”
Hardly a new observation or complaint.
I wrote the teaching material for the L Program with that in mind. Sadly, 30 years later, I’d have to write the same thing today.
My friends and students tell me that judging has improved since the L Program became a requirement to get a judging license. Maybe. But not enough.
I recently read a new book by Dr. Thiel, in which I found a number of imminently quotable bits of wisdom.
“In order to control the horse like we would a marionette, he is subjected to a series of massive and non-stop negative stimuli from which he cannot escape. Many riders use their legs and pull on the reins almost at the same time, while leaning back and hanging with the upper body the vertical and clamping with their thighs”.
As a comment next to a picture of a successful international rider exiting the arena dramatically praising her horse, Dr Thiel said: “When we consider the horse’s pain, and his blue tongue, the pat from his triumphant rider is a ‘Judas kiss’.
She addresses, if obliquely, one of my favorite issues – “Escape Route”. The horse must always have an ‘out’ or ‘escape route’ so he can see a light at the end of the tunnel, when peace and ease will again reign, and the horse can give a sigh of relief.
Dr Thiel quotes the legendary Georg Wahl & Christine Stuckelberger: “Today’s riding is a little shocking, considering the lack of knowledge and ability and the harshness and forcefulness of the training methods”. “Riding has significantly worsened because the good trainers are gone”. “You can say that dressage riding has not progressed. Dressage sport has split into two schools: one that exercises “hyperflexion” and achieves questionable results, and the other that tries to follow the path of correct training, which is actually food for the horse."
Unfortunately, the latter is not recognized as well by judges because they too lack fundamental knowledge.
Col Alois Podhajsky (one of my teachers when I was too young to appreciate him, and Director of the Spanish Riding School) wrote a paper published in 1953 in ‘St. Georg” (Germany) and “De Hoefslag”(Netherlands) in which he blamed the trainers, instructors, riders, and judges for ‘spectacular’ riding, rather than correct riding “to make the horse quiet, elegant, and obedient through systematic work, so that he becomes pleasing in his motion and comfortable for the rider”.
That was in 1953, why aren’t we better by now?
In the intervening years we’ve managed to invent Hyperflexion/Rollkur, and ‘hold the head down’, and the Teutonic“ Push-and-Resist”.
30 years ago my friend Jaap Pot, the Olympic judge said something rather delightful. He said that if the dressage horse is properly trained, he should be an “after dinner horse” – one who will carry you home from a big dinner, in comfort. I remember staying at his home in The Netherlands and watching him scribble furiously at his desk night after night about the dangerous direction of dressage.
The Xenophon Society wrote to the FEI in 2010 about the ‘legalization’ of Hyperflexion/Rollkur in some sorts of variations. Klaus Balkenhol wentout on a limb to blame the FEI for ‘caving in’ to the currently popular Hyperflexion/Rollkur
Dr. Gert Heuschmann wrote a whole book on the subject of forceful dressage – called “Tug of War – Classical Vs Modern Dressage”.
So what to do?
Compete for fun if you like (and like dressing up and sweating), but remember that the judges may know less than you do, or your instructor does. A judging license is awarded for effort, glibness, and expenditure, not for knowledge or expertise. Take their ‘wisdom’ and pontifications with a grain of salt. Some of the most un-knowledgeable people I know are S or FEI judges. Some of the most knowledgeable people I know are ‘stay-at-homes’ who are more interested in learning than in scraps of taffeta.
Learn to ‘read’ your horse’s mind(“Empathy’). What does he get? What does he not get? What makes him experiment and learn?
Learn/feel what makes him more comfortable in his own body, and more comfortable for you (the ‘after dinner horse’)?
Go to my basic list and live by it:
Recognition
Separation of Issues
Prioritization of Issues
Empathy (or ‘Horse Think’)
SlowTime Down
Expectation
Patterning

29/08/2022

19/08/2022

17/08/2022

Andreas Hausberger

08/08/2022

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

Editing to preface this post with wise words from Caroline Larrouilh of ProudHorse Connections and Georgia Lillie of Wolbunya Equine:

"Read, think, agree or disagree, do more research, take an anatomy course or read a book...all food for thought!"

"FACT: You need to be aware of this information; how you act upon it is entirely up to you."

I was holding off sharing this one until I could write a longer piece, but with too many other things to do, the time never arrived. I'm sharing it anyway, in the hope it encourages others to learn and decide how they can apply these things in a way that works for them.

The post was inspired by the mare these bones belong to, who demonstrated how late even an average size horse can have open growth plates through the base of the neck. Just shy of her eighth birthday, she had caudal physes still open to varying degrees, all the way from C5-T3.

Along with several others in my bone library (and another post in its own right) she also demonstrated how asymmetry and crookedness can impact upon the lasting shape of the bone by warping the plates during closure. Asymmetry breeds further asymmetry.

Read the poster however it applies in your world and take what you wish; just keep it civil, please! These statements are not intended to be read any particular way; they are meant to make you think about how you can best preserve your horse's soundness in a way that works for both of you.

For the best full length piece out there on the topic of skeletal maturity in horses, please read Dr Bennett's "Ranger" Piece - the link is below, and you will find a wealth of free resources on anatomy on the www.equinestudies.org home page!

"All horses of all breeds mature skeletally at the same rate... No horse on earth, of any breed, at any time, is or has ever been mature before the age of six (plus or minus six months)."

~ Dr Deb Bennett, "Ranger" Piece
(Timing & Rate of Skeletal Maturity in Horses)
www.equinestudies.org/ranger_2008/ranger_piece_2008_pdf1.pdf

"Bones don’t move muscles; muscles move bones.
And if things are not moving properly, muscles will CHANGE bones."

~ The Secret Life Of Bones: Reflections on training, injury, and the equine skeleton as dynamic, living tissue
http://www.foundationsofsoundness.com/secret-life-of-bones/

Further reading:

Low Heel/High Heel Syndrome
http://www.drkerryridgway.com/articles/article-hl-heel.php

Ridgway/Mendez Clinic Report
http://www.foundationsofsoundness.com/ridgwaymendez-clinic-report-integrative-medicine-intuitive-training-accessing-the-mindbody-connection-through-the-fascia/

The Congenitally Crooked Neck
http://www.foundationsofsoundness.com/congenitally-crooked-neck

24/06/2022

"If the art were not so difficult we would have plenty of good riders and excellently ridden horses, but as it is the art requires, in addition to everything else, character traits that are not combined in everyone: inexhaustible patience, firm perseverance under stress, courage combined with quiet alertness. If the seed is present only a true, deep love for the horse can develop these character traits to the height that alone will lead to the goal."

Gustav Steinbrecht

18/06/2022

From @ Trenna Atkins "S" judge:

I've been watching a lot of Training Level trot Serpentines from the side and from "C" videos.

Did you know that 3 loop serpentines DO NOT go into corners, any more than a 20 meter circle would. Your horse should not be at K and H.

Did you know that serpentines DO NOT go through I and L? (that is between S&R and P&V). I and L are 18 meters from A and C, not 20 meters. You should pass to the X side of both of these by 2 meters,

Your change of direction/flexion and minimal bend should be on a straight line of 3-4 strides because you come out of 20 meter half circle a little early.

Try some cones to go through in area needed.

22/05/2022

No to the Pessoa

TRAINING AIDS......
Q re: PESSOAS
NO I do not recommend these for rehabbing from a KISSING SPINE diagnosis.
Research so far hasn't proven them to be of any great help in some key areas.

😏 The pessoa aims to encourage correct “rounding” while collecting the hindlimbs with the most popular placement leading between the front legs to adjoin to a ring on the girth of the roller, designed to “stretch the topline” while engaging the hocks.
Hmmmmm
👇👇👇👇👇👇👇
Walker et al. found dorsoventral displacement (topline and core) increased with pessoa use when set at shoulder level, with greater lumbosacral joint extension during hindlimb retraction, suggesting greater back movement. However, the highest point of the horse changed from the poll to the crest, suggesting a high degree of cervical ventral flexion, which is not ideal for horses with neck pain and, is not indicative of a more uphill, engaged, and collected frame.

Other research noted the pessoa on setting 1 on a treadmill did not increase core muscle use, which also supports previous research finding no increase in long back muscle use with a pessoa, it does not assist with spinal stabilisation, and a horse should already have good back and core musculature prior to use for collection.

Additionally, Mackenchnie-Guire et al. found high pressures below rollers with a training aid such as a pessoa, thus indicating use during kissing spine rehab may be counter-intuitive when pressures are highest at T11-T12 which are key kissing spine locations.

So do your horse a favour and learn ground work from someone reputable.

👉🌟You can also learn some techniques to help start your horse off correctly on my 2 day horse owners course. June is full but JULY & AUGUST dates added on the events tab on my page.
It's not a course specifically for horse owners with ks horses but I may organise one for the end of the year, however you will learn some very useful information and techniques as a horse owner whether competitor or happy hacker that will be invaluable.

Links:

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0737080618301035?via%3Dihub

https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/comparative-exercise-physiology/article/abs/effects-of-training-aids-on-the-longissimus-dorsi-in-the-equine-back/7A61B5273E88DBFD9FC1FEB8FB7DEE33

https://animaltherapymedia.co.uk/the-effect-of-the-pessoa-training-aid-on-equine-rectus-abdominus-workload-on-a-treadmill/

https://facebook.com/events/s/horse-owners-empowerment-cours/216833067598885/

Image from Google

10/05/2022

03/05/2022

Position precedes action.
Balance fosters movement.
Aids are meant to create, transform, restore, but never maintain what a horse is doing.
I will not let a horse make me keep using my legs.
Give without abandoning, connect without holding.
Withstand the urge to practice gaits that are harder to balance than the ones you are practicing now that still need improvement.
-- David Donelly

26/03/2022

17/03/2022

THE LEG - Introduction

Either the horse understands the leg, or he doesn’t. If he does understand the leg, there is no need to shout, and if he doesn’t understand the leg, it is stupid to shout.

Horses are not born with little accelerators in the ribs so that they run when you press them. It is quite the opposite; when you use your legs for the first time on a horse that has never been ridden before, he tends to slow down or stop and, sometimes, tries to bite your boot!

So the rider’s leg will draw all its power from conditioning.
After the horse has been given this conditioning he should never forget it, if the riding has been correct. Should he forget, a stronger action of the leg would not help, as it would not address the problem, which is that he forgot the meaning of the leg action. One then needs to refresh the conditioning.

If I speak to you in Greek and you do not understand me because you do not speak Greek, will you understand me better if I SHOUT? Either the horse understands the leg, or he doesn’t. If he does understand the leg, there is no need to shout, and if he doesn’t understand the leg, it is stupid to

www.xenophonec.com/single-post/2016/04/02/the-leg-introduction

17/03/2022

Is our riding breaking our horses?
Is how we keep them compounding the problem?
How is all of this linked to the hoof?

In a recent webinar Jillian Kreinbring discussed the subtle complexities of the horses natural movement patterns. How if we restrict them, we not only affect their performance but predispose them to musculoskeletal problems and affect their posture. Statically and dynamically. Also expressing the importance of understanding that what we do with the head, for example, affects the entire body.

This echoed a recent webinar with Maren Diehl where she discussed biotensegrity and the consequences of asking for an excessively open lumbosacral joint on the horses static and dynamic posture.

The principles of the interconnectivity of the horse along the myofascial lines was brought to us in a webinar with Dr Shultz. Then Tuulia Luomala, who outlined the further connection between horse and rider and how our myofascial systems affect one another. And our postures.

In a webinar with Dr Tabor we discussed how riding style, confinement and feeding protocols affected head, neck and spinal posture. Again, with the same principle running through it, that creating unnatural postures affect major proprioception centres namely the Poll, teeth and feet.

This of course beautifully explored in the webinar with Dr Gellman who outlined the affects of domestication on proprioception and posture. With another webinar comprehensively delving into the link between dentition, the TMJ and posture.

What does this all have to do with the feet!?

As I research further the abstract influences on hoof morphology it’s clear to see that what we impose on our horses affects their physiology. Posture becomes a mirror of that physiology and posture changes the loading on the hoof. Understanding the material science of the hoof explains why it’s a deformable structure between the weight of the horse and the ground.
Therefore it becomes subject to everything, from the amount of tension in your reigns to where you hang your hay net.

Posture becomes the functional link between what we see in the hoof and what is happening through the rest of the body. All of this begins to answer questions like what came first, negative plantar angles or the associated pathologies along the dorsal myofascial line!?

Read more..

https://www.theequinedocumentalist.com/post/physiological-implications-of-domestication-on-the-horse

Here are the links to the webinars listed above which when put together, with others as well, really begin to tell a story…

Jillian Kreinbring

https://equineeducationhub.thinkific.com/courses/functional-anatomy-training

Maren Diehl

https://equineeducationhub.thinkific.com/courses/lumbo

Dr Rikke Shultz

https://equineeducationhub.thinkific.com/courses/myofascialkinetic

Tuulia Luomala

https://equineeducationhub.thinkific.com/courses/horseriderconnection

Dr Tabor

https://equineeducationhub.thinkific.com/courses/quantifying-posture-webinar-2-hours

Dr Gellman

https://equineeducationhub.thinkific.com/courses/proandpos

https://equineeducationhub.thinkific.com/courses/Dentalandperform

17/03/2022

Diagram of facial nerves.

12/03/2022

"In The Journal of Veterinary Science Volume 14 No. 11, 1994, well known veterinarian and saddle fit expert, Dr. Joyce Harman, reported the results of a study using the Saddletech pad, she wrote:

'For the purposes of this study, saddles with pressures of up to 1.93 psi (psi is the unit for pressure or stress. It is also used to estimate pain, it is calculated as pounds per square inch) were graded an excellent fit; between 2.0 psi and 3.38 psi without persistent pressure points were graded fair; and saddles that exceeded 3.4 psi or had persistent pressure points throughout the session were graded poor. These numbers were derived from preliminary data indicating that it was difficult to find an English saddle with pressures below 0.75 psi, which is the highest pressure found in the capillary bed. Pressures that exceed 0.75 psi will close down the blood flow in the arterial capillary bed.'

What is the meaning and implication of a shut down of blood flow? A simple example most of us would be able to relate to is when we press on our skin and it turns white, or if we sit in an awkward position for a longer amount of time and we experience our leg or arm 'going to sleep.' Author, Mary Wanless, writes in her book For the Good of the Horse, 'Perhaps one of the horse’s saving graces is that squeezing the blood out of his tissues causes pain for the first ten to fifteen minutes of a ride, and then his back goes numb.'

Therefore, until we discover a way to lift saddles off the back of horses, even a saddle with an excellent fit, the best air/foam/wool stuffed panels and an average weight rider, will still have pressures which are more than twice what it takes to shut down the blood flow within the muscles of the horse. Dr. Harman goes on to state that in studies of canine and human muscles, sustained pressure of just 0.68 psi for over two hours causes significant tissue damage.

It is important to note the Saddletech sensor pad used in these first studies used sensors developed to evaluate the risks of pressure sores in bedridden humans, and only measured pressures of up to 4 psi. More modern sensor pads, such as the FSA (Force Sensing Array) system developed by Vision Engineering Research Group (VERG Inc.) of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada can record much higher pressures. In one test involving Western saddles with high priced pads, average peak pressures measured between 8.25 and 14 psi. (Wesley, E.D.; McCullough, E.; Eckels, S.; Davis, E.; Article #9329; 2007; “The Horse” magazine.) Let that sink in."

Excerpt from Stormy May's new book, Secrets Horses Keep: What horses teach us about being human. Support the creation of this work on Patreon. The first 10 chapters are available today. Learn more at https://stormymay.com