Amateur Training: Joe

Editor’s Note: Julie Kenney is an avid horsewoman, former Best Horse Practices Summit board member, and runs Blackberry Farm in Harpswell, Maine. She shares this multi-part reflection of work with three horses. Julie writes: Joe came to me at a time of upheaval in my […]

This is Therapy Empathy

Editor’s Note: Julie Kenney is an avid horsewoman, former Best Horse Practices Summit board member, and runs Blackberry Farm in Harpswell, Maine. Julie writes: My mind meanders during times of deep relaxation. At a recent massage therapy session, it floated like a kite tethered to […]

Katrin Silva: Feel for All of Us

Editor’s Note: Best Horse Practices Summit presenter Katrin Silva grew up riding dressage in Germany before moving to the United States at age 19 to learn to ride Western. She’s been riding both disciplines for the last 20 years and is a regular guest columnist […]

Bike Proofing

Read this Open Letter to Mountain Bikers Listen to Episode 24, with Mountain Biker Matt De Young Many of us ride on multi-use trails and may encounter hikers and bikers while riding. Then again, we may not. For instance, my area is renowned for its […]

Beasts of Being now available!

Maddy Butcher’s third book, Beasts of Being: Partnerships Unburdened is now available. Order here and get free shipping. The book, her third, is a collection of her work over several years. The loose parameter is “life with horses.” This book leads with the more academic […]

“Right to Food” Opens Door to Cruelty

Editor’s Note: Dr. Janelle Tirrell owns Third Coast Equine, a large animal veterinary practice based in Palermo, Maine. She is also the Legislative Committee Chair and a board member of the Maine Veterinary Medical Association. We welcome this guest column. Dr. Tirrell writes: This fall, […]

Silva Seeks Sustainable Work Ethic

Grandin Speaks at Hesperus Event

A steak-tasting discussion and stockmanship conversation? What’s not to like? Several dozen ranchers headed to Spring Hollow Ranch and Equestrian Park in Hesperus, CO, for a National Cattlemen’s Beef Association event on Stockmanship and Stewardship. Curt Pate and Dr. Temple Grandin were among the presenters. […]

Jec Ballou: Why We Stop for Kids

Editor’s Note: Jec Ballou is an accomplished trainer, teacher, presenter at the Best Horse Practices Summit, and half of the duo producing the Best Horse Practices podcast. In this guest column, she writes here from her base in Santa Cruz, California, on the topic of […]

Thumbs Up for Yoga for Riders

I like a book that feels good in my hands. If a book is manageable, well-sized, and easy to hold, chances are good that I’ll return to it time after time (assuming I like its contents, of course). Whether read from beginning to end or […]