Darn Tough suits us

I remember our laundry room way back when. On its wall hung sock stretchers, metal frames to stretch out ragg wool socks. One errant toss in the dryer and those socks were goners. Shrunk beyond use. The special care seemed like a big hassle for […]

Breaking Bad and Horse Success. Really.

With open minds and a few decades of experience, we can begin to see patterns, common developments across geographies, species, and time. It happened to me while listening to an interview with Peter Gould, a writer and producer for Breaking Bad, one of the most […]

RTT instructor among nation’s best

Congratulations to Kate Davis McKelvy of Riding To The Top Therapeutic Riding Center in Windham, Maine. The long-time instructor has been named Region 1 Instructor of the Year by PATH (Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship International). She’s been a certified instructor for 13 years and […]

Riding To The Top hosts Triple B event

Therapeutic riding centers come and go. Staff changes, funding issues, and public enthusiasm all tend to wax and wane over the years for these high-overhead facilities and organizations. Riding To The Top Therapeutic Riding Center in Windham is the shining exception. Since its debut 20 […]

NickerNews moves forward with you

Five years. 300 newsletters. 400 articles. 500 blog posts. 50 videos. Subscribe Now NickerNews & BestHorsePractices have come a long way from our 4-page original website. Since 2008, we’ve — Sponsored film documentaries, clinicians, non-profit events, and rescue organizations. Assisted law enforcement in successful convictions […]

In the name of horse-friendly open space

Horses need space. Riders do, too. If you look at Swisher, Iowa by satellite, you’ll see lots of open space. When I moved here from Maine, I was excited to explore the 14,000 acres of nearby Hawkeye Wildlife Management Area. I did. It was wonderful. […]

War and a Horse Death

Combat stress and horse death don’t often collide. But it appears that’s what happened when Ryan Grafft, a 32-year old captain in the National Guard, allegedly shot three horses, killing one of them. Read more. After admitting to the shooting, Grafft told the Johnson County […]

Jodi makes progress, too

It’s been a year since we acquired Jodi, the hefty, unstarted paint mare from Wisconsin. Steve Peters has taken his time with her and it looks like the calm, deliberate approach is paying off. We headed out to Pleasant Creek State Park for a […]

Baby Mule Steps

What’s the most striking difference between the new mule, Jolene, and her horse herdmates? Not how she moves. Not how she looks. It’s how she eats an apple. When you give Jolene a chunk of apple, she will: Smell it Take it in her mouth […]

Evidence-Based Horsemanship returns to Northeast

Lois Dietrich will host neuropsychologist Dr. Steve Peters and horseman Martin Black at their first seminar of Evidence-Based Horsemanship on the East Coast, November 15-17. The pair will conduct lectures, demonstrations, and Dr. Peters will dissect a horse brain at the Mountain Springs Arena facilities […]