From ex bucking horse to big ol’ puppy dog
This video doesn’t look like much. Theres nothing exciting going on, the quality is bad, it’s not scenic, and there’s obviously a smudge on my camera. In all aspects, this video isn’t “social media” worthy. But to us, what’s going on in this 17 second video makes the hard days worth it. If you stick with me, I’ll explain why. Buckle up, because it may be a long one.
One thing we haven’t really shared on our page before is the amount of rescue and rehabilitation work we do at Shadow Hills Ranch. We’re not an “official” rescue, and don’t do it to try and gain followers, donations (we have funded this 100% by ourselves for the 6 years we’ve been doing it), or for clout. We do it strictly because we care and want to help, and we believe these animals are deserving of it. We love a that social media is such an invaluable resource for many rescues/rescuers but we’ve just never sat down and shared our rescue stories virtually.
Currently we have 9 “rescue” horses in our care. Some of these horses were outside training horses that ended up being abandoned with us after it was determined the root of their behavioral problems was physical and they shouldn’t be ridden. Some of them had no place else to go, so we took them in and gave them sanctuary. A lot of them were rescued elsewhere but came with serious baggage and the thing they needed most was something their rescuers couldn’t allocate to them; time.
This big boy in the video came to us from a lovely client in Canada and he’s one of 3 ex rodeo broncs in our care. He was always such a gentle giant, but understandably terrified of people. He so badly wanted to trust, but he needed time. We fell for the big guy, and took him in. He’s been spending time in our 120 acre pasture, just enjoying being a horse for a while. Today we turned a few horses out in our hay field to let them eat it down, and he decided to leave his buddies and joined the baby and I on a little walk while we che
Technology and the Modern Cowboy
Not everything is solved by a saddle. Sometimes an old-school task needs a modern solution- such as checking spring calvings and herd locations.
With several pastures consisting mostly of wooded area, an aerial viewpoint can make a task that would take potentially hours into short work!
Once located, if further action is required, atleast a target location can be inspected thus making daily operations run more efficiently.
This one won’t be on the market long! Full ad coming soon!
When you’re bred to eat cows, but sheep is on the menu! 😂
We’re really excited about how both of our young colts are coming long! “Poco San Royale” aka Sancho is starting to get pretty fancy.
And no, he did not hurt our ram at all, Oreo likes to start crap and kept coming back for more! He’s great for desensitization 😂
#CowboyCat
Does your cat go on trail rides with you, or is it just ours? 😂
Shadow Hills Ranch has been at the spear front of a lot of things around Central Kentucky. From the first cattle clinics in a very long time to amateur-friendly buckle series in sorting, ranch rodeos, and never before seen Treasure Hunts- we have laid a path that many have followed and built on.
Every board, every grain of sand, every fence post here was placed by Sean and Hellena. Only the major projects such as the arena required contracting out, which is where NE Arenas worked their magic.
We have changed the lives of hundreds of client horses after four years in business, started many that moved on to do fantastic achievements, helped some become the very thing the rider needed, and helped others find more suitable situations to call home. We have gained lifelong friends and awesome clients.
We have incredible companies supporting us and honoring us with their brand, making lasting partnerships as we continue on the path we chose to follow.
Shadow Hills Ranch has grown as a brand, as a ranch, and we are grateful to everyone who has been there on our journey with us as well as will be in the future, which holds some scary, some adventure, and some exciting things.
Why am I writing all this? Because we have some big news coming down the track and things are moving faster than Flightline at the 2022 Breeders Cup. When the time comes, we will share but for now: happy Sunday!
UK Rodeo will be out later today, no cattle events after but will likely hold a few in the next month.
“Colt starting is dangerous, wear the super suit!”
Equine sports are all dangerous. We willingly hop onto an animal five to ten times the size of us in hopes they obey our commands! I would argue colt starting, If done right, is the least dangerous thing there is, and here’s why:
The young horse doesn’t know what is right and what is wrong, so any danger you find yourself in is because of YOU. You failed to show guidance and teach the appropriate reaction, hence got bucked or ran over. There is always exceptions to this as sometimes they react strongly no matter how much you prepare the horse.
This is why it is so very important to have several things squared away before the first ride, so that the indestructible suit is not needed! Build the trust, show the “how”, reward the “try”, and move onto other things.
If all else fails, remember: that suit was designed to save a human during a bear attack!
Tone and Approach
It has been a week since the last post. I took a step back from Facebook for several reasons this week and it has been the best thing I could have done. As many of you know, I am all about helping others and educating others if I have something I can share, especially if it will make a difference for their horses. The tone or approach to the words may be harsh which stems from a decade in the fire/EMS service where tough love is all you know.
This past week it was a fireworks post. Many benefit and learned, some fought tooth and nail. Others critiqued the tone of the post and overlooked the message. It caused for some reflection and thought on how our horses, especially young horses, read our tone and approach.
We start a lot of horses here at Shadow Hills Ranch. We fix a lot more, and we take pride in our ability to read the horse and find the best approach to remedy or objective. As any good trainer will tell you: not every horse is the same. Some require a very light and almost flighty approach, others can be more firm and brave. It is up to the horseman to quickly gauge which path (I make it much more black and white in this post than reality) will lead the horse to success. At the end of the day, the horse needs to progress and succeed long before we do.
Let’s take Rose here, a 3 year old Warmblood mare we are starting. We started the session with groundwork as we normally do. Groundwork is an overused term in my opinion, because it is becoming popular but more people don’t understand what is actually happening than do. It is not about moving around a circle, leading, turning the head, any of that really. Groundwork is about pressure. Anyone can chase a horse and force them to turn inward, and we see many posts doing exactly that. It does nothing, it accomplishes nothing, and moreso it backtracks because it becomes a negative experience. Groundwork, simply put, teaches the horse everything it needs to know prior to sitting on the ba
More than Circles
If you have followed the page long you are likely aware we are huge advocates for groundwork. It is the base of all horsemanship, it is also the most faked and overlooked subject there is. You see many videos of horses doing circles around someone, and often the individual or the viewer is not too sure what the purpose is or what they are doing!
Below is a video of Callie, a warmblood mare with a few holes in her initial training. One of these holes is she can be explosive when on the line, something you cannot have in the show level she is at. There are many reasons for this behavior, but I want you to watch the video and tell me the differences to help you better understand our work and thought process!
The first clip is after a thirty minute session after we already worked through much of her initial explosiveness the second day I worked with her. What do you see? We intentionally left out the parts of the video where she is more dramatic, as we want to try and share the more subtle cues the horse is giving.
The second is from last night, immediately after taking her from the stall into the roundpen. What do you see?
What are the differences and what do you as horsemen/horsewomen see in each clip, and the bigger picture!
It has been a very busy week for us on the ranch, but we are pleased to announce the second barn is (finally) operational!
Pastures are going in this week, the walker is online, and we received several of our newest herd additions. Each horse will get an introduction post at a later date, but today they spent some time on the walker where they will be exercised frequently. Between the workout program, ground work, and the best young horse feed: Pro Elite- Growth, we cannot wait to share their transformation from little yearlings to built performance horses!
#nutrenafeeds #proelite #ridetbebrand #lubrisynha #weaverleather #nearenas #shadowhillsranch
AND THEY ARE OFF!
The Shadow Hills Kentucky Derby Celebration raffle is underway, with Pepe taking the lead from behind!
…AND ITS PEPE!!
If you chose Pepe as the winning horse, stay tuned for Derby hat draw to see the winner of the prize package!
I wanted to share a video from our first session working with training horse horse Matti the other day! Mattisse is a 4 year old Warmblood gelding who, despite growing up in a wonderful setting, has become nearly impossible to catch. Matti is naturally a very suspicious horse, so I wanted to work with him, not against him, to allow for long term results. There were a few things I wanted to establish early on in our training:
-Boundaries- As you can see in the video I move him out any time he turns his hind end in my direction. This is something that horses do naturally with each other in a herd, it sets boundaries, and starts to develop the foundation of a hierarchy. If you’re not the leader, your horse will be. A horse won’t follow a leader they don’t think is strong or smart enough to keep them safe. However, make no mistake, just because you’re a horses leader doesn’t mean you can’t also be their friend and partner. Healthy boundaries are absolutely necessary when working with horses safely. **If anyone is interested in learning more about this, I highly recommend looking into “Join-up” techniques by Monty Roberts**
Next, and probably most importantly, I wanted to establish TRUST. I wanted him to realize that me coming up to him didn’t have to spark a chain of events (me catching him, leading to him having to work, or get his feet done, etc.) but instead could be a non-event that he didn’t have to shy away from. I also didn’t want to turn it into a game by chasing him. Using my body language and pressure and release, I draw him in, showing him that being next to me is desirable.
At the end of the 30 minute session I was able to scratch on him and pet him all over. In the next few days I will repeat this, amping it up slightly every time. Teaching horses confidence and that they can enjoy human interaction is one of my very favorite things to do! Stay tuned for updates on this handsome guy over the next month!
Got a little extra help desensitizing the weanling yesterday! 🤣 this sweet filly is here being gentled and learning that people (and roosters) aren’t so bad!
You know what makes our hearts happy? Seeing a 12 year old girl take a 4 year old horse that we started this year around a new arena like an old pro. Malachi really is something special; he has such an amazing brain and is mature far beyond his years. Whoever snags this guy is going to be very lucky!
We start horses with plenty of exposure and versatility in mind to set them up for success in a variety of disciplines. When Malachi showed us that he really enjoyed jumping, I knew I could count on Furba Equestrian to give us an evaluation of his potential as an English horse (because let’s be honest, we definitely spend more time working cattle than jumping fences here!) Meghan took him over some cross rails and saw a ton of potential in him as an ammy/kid friendly English horse! He’s spent some time with her gaining some amazing experience, and has been a total rockstar.
This coming 5 year old registered ApHC gelding is going to be someone’s dream horse. He’s young, sound, sane, easy, sweet, and going to be an outstanding all-around horse. Not to mention he’s an adorable mover, jet black, and has the cutest face ever. He’s currently available to an awesome home! Get him while you can and watch him turn into one of those highly sought after family friendly unicorns everyone’s always looking for!
WARNING: BLAST ZONE AHEAD
We are finding more and more pockets of gold out there... will you be joining us this Sunday to stake your claims?
If you are participating in the treasure hunt, I have compiled a small list of items that might prove to be useful on your journey:
1) Saddle bags
2) provisions (water bottles and a sack lunch will be provided)
3) compass
4) camp shovel or fixed blade knife
5) lead rope/halter for your horse
6) any other tool you think will aid your journey
When packing for your journey, remember: there are no rules. There are no limitations. You might be wading in a creek one moment and igniting the fuse of dynamite the next! This is YOUR adventure... whatever you choose to do, you will do!
