From the category archives:

Basic Horse Info

Afraid To Ride

by Cowgirl on August 30, 2011 · 1 comment

In my quest to provide good advice to my readers, one of my most often incurred questions is how to overcome your fear of riding. While there are millions of people who love horses, a surprisingly large percentage of those people are actually afraid of them. Some are afraid because of a frightening experience in their past, and others have an instinctive fear stemming from an overall lack of experience with horses. Either way, the fear of horses (which has its own scientific term equinophobia or hippophobia), can be helped and sometimes completely overcome.

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How To Saddle A Horse

by Cowgirl on July 23, 2011 · 2 comments

This might be one of the more obvious posts on this blog, leaving some of my readers wondering about my credibility as a cowgirl, if I have to explain something so elementary. But one of my goals with my writing is to provide a resource for beginner horse lovers, and we all start at the same square one, so in this post I’m filling in one of those first blanks: how to saddle a horse properly. If you’ve never done it before, it’s not something you want to guess about, as saddling the wrong way can result in a bad accident and possible injuries. These step by step photos will show you what to do and what not to do when you’re wanting to learn how to put a saddle on a horse.

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Horse Safety for Kids and Beginners

by Cowgirl on May 24, 2011 · 2 comments

For those of us who had the opportunity to grow up around horses, responsibilities and safe horse-handling practices became lifelong habits. But there are a lot of families with children who are starting from scratch, buying their first horse, and have no idea how to go about handling one. Here are some basic guidelines that kids and beginners should know about horses:

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A Horse That Bites

by Cowgirl on March 26, 2011 · 5 comments

Writing in response to a recent question from a reader of my horse blog, I’d like to address the issue of how to correct a horse that bites you when you’re handling it. In this day and age of political correctness, what kind of discipline is acceptable to train a horse to not bite?

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Horse Sense

by Cowgirl on March 3, 2011 · 1 comment

Here’s a point to ponder for all of you horse lovers out there: Don’t get so horse crazy that you lose all common sense. Getting caught up in your enthusiasm and passion for horses can easily overshadow some basic truths that I would like to point out.

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Choosing A Trainer

by Cowgirl on February 12, 2011 · 1 comment

Whether you’re paying someone to train your horse, give you lessons, or simply choosing which trainer to watch and follow on RFDtv, it’s important to understand what you’re learning and make an educated choice concerning trainers.

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Horse Conformation Tips

by Cowgirl on February 6, 2011 · 2 comments

I’m no expert on horse conformation. I sometimes look at a horse and think, “Wow—he’s beautiful!” and totally miss that his shoulder is too straight or his stifle is weak. For the average horse lover, conformation isn’t a big deal. We just love looking at horses. But for a serious rider, it’s one of the most important things to look for in a horse.

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Gentling a Spooky Horse

by Cowgirl on January 29, 2011 · 1 comment

I had a reader contact me through my blog awhile back. She said that she and her family had acquired two yearling horses, and were having a little trouble getting them gentled down. These are just a few ideas to help you work through the first steps of gentling and training your horse.

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Herd Dynamics

by Cowgirl on January 21, 2011

Horses are funny animals. If I had a chance to sit out there in the corral all day and watch them, I would. I have five horses right now, and they are each so different, it is so interesting to see how they act and respond to each other. I believe in animal behaviouralist’s technical terms, this would be called herd dynamics.

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Winter Care for Horses

by Cowgirl on December 2, 2010 · 1 comment

I read a lot of horse magazines, and they’re always full of good ideas for my horses. Growing up on a horse ranch, you would think a girl would know pretty much everything about horse care simply from association. But if there’s anything I’ve learned, it’s that things are constantly changing and there’s always something new to learn. So I thought I’d pass along a few of the winter horse care tips I’ve been reading about.

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A Homemade Mecate

by Cowgirl on November 16, 2010 · 4 comments

I made myself a mecate the other night. No, it’s not some sort of South American recipe—it’s the rein and lead combination you see a lot of buckaroos and vaqueros use with a bosal or a regular bridle. The mecate dates back to the time of the Conquistadors, and is pronounced “may-kah’-tay”. They are commonly made from twisted or braided horsehair and cost a pretty penny.

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The Horse Husband

by Cowgirl on October 2, 2010

Next time you are doing math in your head and grumbling while you figure up how much money the horse, tack, hay, vet trips, etc., etc…are costing you, head out to the barn and just watch your wife or kids riding and working with their horses. Or even better, if it’s not normally your habit, why don’t you go on a ride with them? You may unexpectedly discover that you can understand why this is so important to them.

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The Hard-to-catch Horse

by Cowgirl on September 12, 2010 · 1 comment

There’s one in every bunch. The horse that keeps his eye on you and no matter what enticement you offer from your pocket, he won’t let you catch him. Is there a cure for the horse that is hard to catch? Well, here are a few tips that might eliminate some wasted time and frustration when you’re trying to catch your horse.

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Safe Fencing for Horses

by Cowgirl on September 10, 2010 · 2 comments

Fencing is always a problem when you’re dealing with horses. It seems like it doesn’t matter what kind of fence you have: wood, pipe, electric tape, electric wire, high tensile wire, mesh wire, or barbed wire—a horse can find a way to mess it up or get hurt on it. A responsible horse owner will provide the best they can for their horses and just pray that nothing bad happens, because a fence injury can often render a horse useless.

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The Vintage Horse

by Cowgirl on August 18, 2010

I’ve been musing recently on where the old-style horses have gone. You know the kind I’m talking about, the rawboned, high-headed, ewe-necked, long legged, full-stampede mode movie horses that captivated the world when TV made its black and white debut. The vintage horses nobody hears about anymore.

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Bridling Basics

by Cowgirl on July 13, 2010

Some readers really need a firm grasp of the basics before they are able to work with a horse, so I’d like to explain how to go about putting the bridle on a horse. This is how a normal scenario of how bridling a horse should happen, but I would always remind you that every horse is different, each will react in its own way.

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Cowgirl Essence

by Cowgirl on July 11, 2010 · 1 comment

I think it’s something you’re born with….the horse thing is something that’s so strong you can’t ignore it. Horses give you a reason to wake up in the morning, a reason to get outside and breathe in nature, and a power to look past the small stuff and realize all you’ve accomplished that you can be proud of.

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Common Sense at Horse Auctions

by Cowgirl on June 29, 2010

It’s a known fact that we horse people are a crazy bunch. But some of the stories I hear make me wonder if all of our common sense has been dropped in pursuit of gaining more horse sense, and the result is a bunch of daft idiots.

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In It For the Horses

by Cowgirl on June 25, 2010

Twenty years ago I was just getting into training horses, and other than following the examples of my older sisters, I had one strong influence in natural horsemanship training. My teacher at Sunday School just happened to be the best horse trainer I have ever known or ever will know.

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How to Buy A Horse

by Cowgirl on June 24, 2010

They say that it is easier for a woman to find the perfect husband than it is to find the perfect swimsuit. And I would say that’s about how hard it is to find the perfect horse. When you’re thinking of getting a horse, you need to know how important a “good fit” really is. So I’m sharing a few tips here to help a less experienced person find a horse that will be perfect for them.

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