Any horse is capable of developing bad habits and vices, and most of the time we humans are to blame for these problems. Sometimes horses show that they are in pain by refusing to perform as we would like them to, and sometimes they refuse to perform simply because we are not providing them with clear, consistent messages. This can cause us to become frustrated, irritated, and even angry – but none of those emotions are helpful in dealing with bad habits as they arise. Here are some more effective strategies.
First, Understand Your Horse
Often easier said than done, understanding horses and realizing why they do certain things the way that they do is the first step to curing problems. Understanding comes with experience, and it is also the product of faithful studying and observation. Natural horsemanship clinics are great places to learn more about how a horse’s mind works, and horse training books can also provide excellent insight. Once you understand the way your horse’s mind works, you’ll be in a better position to solve problems.
Second, Identify the Habit You Want to Change
If your horse has a lot of bad habits, you’re going to need to correct all of them; most are the product of careless handling at the hands of caretakers. Go through your horse’s undesirable habits one at a time. Write them down, and then write down the desired outcome. Watch your horse and try to understand why he does the things he does; in some cases, he might be in pain, or he might be frightened. if this is the case, making simple adjustments can sometimes stop problems immediately.
Third, Work on Each Problem in a Calm, Matter of Fact Way
Various problems can be corrected with different methods or combinations of methods. Depending on the bad habits you are hoping to correct, you may need to make changes to your horse’s feeding regimen, or you may need to make changes to the way he is housed.
Other factors to consider include grooming issues, hoof care, body condition, and even under or over exercise. In some cases, you will need to work on modifying behaviors step by step using recognized training methods, and in other cases, you may need to call the vet to provide a medical or surgical solution to the problem.
These three basic steps to correcting bad horse habits look simple on the surface and in fact, they are, so long as you don’t let negative emotions cloud your response to those habits. Horses are very intelligent, plus they are extremely perceptive. Some really want to please their handlers, while others are resentful and do not want to cooperate at all. Getting to the root of the problem and handling it calmly and in a matter of fact way will prevent you from causing further psychological damage, whether a mistake you made caused the problem or whether a mistake someone else made caused it.
In some cases, problems caused by mistakes made while horses are very young become permanent and irreversible bad habits. Sometimes horses have neurotic tendencies, in the same way that some humans and other mammals do; these tendencies can be genetically inherited, although sometimes they are developed due to experiences with trainers, with their dams or with other horses they are exposed to, or even due to trauma or disease.
If you are faced with a neurotic horse or a horse that is so psychologically damaged that his habits cannot be changed, do what you can to reduce exposure to factors that cause those undesirable habits to be displayed. Try your best to keep things positive and always try to end a training session on a good note by asking your horse to do something he does well and enjoys doing. By providing firm, understanding leadership, you can help almost any horse feel more secure and in turn, display more desirable habits.
No matter what your discipline, your saddle is one of the most important pieces of equipment you’ll ever own. There are many important factors to be aware of when purchasing saddles; here are some tips to help you make the right choice.
Size
Besides being the right size for you, your saddle needs to be the right size and shape for your horse. In some cases, you might be able to get away with purchasing a treeless saddle or a saddle with an interchangeable gullet system, and in others, you’re going to have to be very careful about fitting your horse.
Horses with high withers are notoriously difficult to fit, and if you are very tall, or if you are a large person, you might have to try several saddles before you find one that fits you and your horse both.
Consider having your horse professionally fitted, and consider having a custom saddle made if either of you are hard to fit. An ill-fitting saddle can hurt your horse’s back and adversely affect his performance, and it can cause you to look and feel ill at ease while riding. A properly fitted saddle, on the other hand, helps both you and your horse to perform as a team.
Material
Once upon a time, all the best saddles were made of leather, and while you can still find excellent leather saddles from top saddlers, don’t be in a hurry to turn your nose up at synthetics, particularly if you are hoping to save money, or if you want a light saddle that is easy to transport.
Synthetic saddles are made from many different materials, including the following:
• Cordura – An extremely durable material that is very easy to clean and maintain, cordura comes in a variety of different colors as well as in brown and black natural tones.
• Biothane and Beta Biothane – Sometimes simply referred to as Beta, this material can have the look of leather. Made from nylon webbing and covered with thermoplastic polyurethane, it is durable, flexible, and scuff-resistant.
• Equileather and Equisuede – this brand name has a leather or suede like appearance, and like other synthetic saddle materials, it is lightweight and easy to keep clean.
Discipline
Be sure to choose a saddle that will do what you need it to do. If you mostly ride trails, for example, pick a saddle with a secure seat.
If you do many different things with your horse, then you might need to buy more than one saddle; a lovely dressage saddle is great for the show ring, but will be ruined after a few trips through the woods.
Buying New vs. Buying Used
Buying a used saddle is a great way to save money, so long as you get the saddle from a reliable source, such as from someone you know or from a reputable saddle shop.
Be careful about purchasing a saddle in an online auction, and if you do, be sure you can return it if it doesn’t work out for you. Check the seller’s reputation before bidding, no matter how attractive the deal looks! Secondly, be careful about purchasing saddles that have been heavily used, and be sure you check all leathers and other rigging before you even think about riding.
Buying a brand new saddle, especially one that has been carefully selected to fit you and your horse both ensures you’re not going to be sitting in somebody else’s wear pattern, and it ensures that you are getting exactly what you want and need rather than settling for second best or compromising. Remember, in many cases you get just what you pay for.
Most horse farm owners can spot a good conformation a mile away or tell the difference between an original Stubben saddle or Billy Cook saddle and an imitation. In fact, most horse farm owners have a wealth of knowledge on their equine friends but have no idea how to go about marketing this knowledge.
To run a successful horse business you need to not only know horses, but also how to market your skills and services. In the last decade, marketing techniques have changed drastically to include digital forms previously not in existence. To stay competitive in the industry it’s necessary to know what the popular channels of marketing your business are and how to use them.
Video Marketing
Most people watch TV, and this form of media has conditioned us with short viewing attention spans. Keep this in mind when considering video marketing for your farm. A good video is easy to watch, interesting, honest and relatively short. There are many instances where one might consider a video.
If you breed horses, having a video of your stallion is a great idea. Also, having videos of your foals or weanlings for sale is beneficial. In these cases videos will enable you to expand your sales territory, as someone in another state may be willing to purchase a weanling based on a great video.
If you offer horse training at your farm, having a video to showcase your talents will put you ahead of the competition. What if you own a boarding facility? Take a video of your top of the line boarding facility, giving a tour of the barns and pointing out all the amenities. Then post the video on YouTube and/or your website. Show prospective customers something that catches their eye and they will remember it.
Social Media Marketing
Social media marketing is basically the digital form of “word of mouth” using social networking platforms, and is a must for any business owner today. The beautiful thing about social media marketing is it usually won’t cost you a dime!
Set up a Facebook page for your horse farm and send out friend requests to everyone you know-even your non-horse friends. They may know other people who have horses who would be interested in learning more about your business. Link your Facebook page to your website or blog.
Also, sign up for a twitter account and tweet about the latest happenings at your barn. Spending just a small amount of time on this daily can greatly increase your customer base and get your name out there.
Web Marketing
If you don’t yet have a website for your farm, consider getting one. The first thing everyone wants to know if they can’t immediately pay a visit to your facility is – if there is a website to look at. If you do have a website, update it frequently and keep things fresh. This will keep customers coming back to your website.
Also, consider starting a blog and linking it to your website. Your blog can be anything you want it to be and you can write about anything you want. Use it as a means to connect with your customers. Blog about the new horse you just bought or blog about how you unexpectedly hit the dirt and fell off a young horse for the first time in years.
Blogging is a great way to help you appear personable and approachable to your clients and customers. If you have the funds, web advertising is a great web marketing too. Put an ad for your facility on a popular horse website. This will draw more potential customers to your website.
Word Of Mouth
No matter how digital our world becomes, word of mouth will always be an important marketing tool. People will still always ask friends if they “know” someone who could give their daughter riding lessons and people are always more willing to try a known over an unknown.
The most important thing to remember about word of mouth is that it is based purely on reputation. No matter how many dollars you can pour into advertising and marketing, your reputation and how you treat your customers will still be discussed and talked about. Treat all your customers like VIP’s and you will succeed greatly with word of mouth marketing.
It almost feels like you need to clone yourself to keep up with the daily management requirements of a horse business. Progressive Business Solutions (PBS) is here to help alleviate that feeling of not enough of you to go around. Here is a short interview with owner Carol Aldridge who will explain just how PBS can help manage your horse business so you have more time to enjoy the ride!
LaRaedo: Can you tell us a little bit about your background and why you decided to create Progressive Business Solutions? PBS: I graduated with a Bachelors Degree in equine business management and have over 15 years experience in administrative and event management for an international equine organization, plus an additional 10 years of hands on experience in the horse industry. I created Progressive Business Solutions to better utilize my skills and to help fill a need in the equine industry and in small business in general for offsite business support. The present slow economy and the continuing need for alternative sources of business office support, have created a demand for professional assistance designed to streamline business processes while saving the client money.
LaRaedo: What type of services do you provide your clients? PBS: As a business support specialist, the services provided are customized to meet each client’s individual needs. However, in general, I use a variety of software products and online applications to provide administrative services such as client contact management, special project management, business consultation, e-newsletters, website updates, document preparation, desktop publishing, calendar and email management and other services designed to maximize efficiency and increase profits.
LaRaedo: How do you determine what administrative work the clients need? Do you have an interview process that gives you an idea of their requirements? PBS: Yes, I like to provide a 30 minute phone consultation to help determine the client’s needs and expectations and also provide the client with a questionnaire designed to further outline their goals and business needs. These tools allow me to better analyze the client’s business and provide a customized proposal for how we might best move forward together to meet their needs and goals.
LaRaedo: Do you charge by the job or by the hour? PBS: Most of my clients prefer to secure my services on an ongoing monthly retainer basis. This usually entails 10 or more hours a month providing a discounted rate and allowing for consistent support and effective results. I occasionally also provide services on an hourly or per project basis.
LaRaedo: What have you noticed are the top items that clients want in an administrative service? PBS: Although each client has specific, individual needs, most want services that will support their marketing efforts such as website updates, social media services, writing and distributing press releases, contact management, e-newsletter distribution, etc. General organizational support services are also in high demand. These services include calendar and email management, online file management, scheduling and record-keeping to name just a few.
LaRaedo: How does PBS differ from its competitors? PBS: Although there aren’t many direct competitors operating within the equine industry, my years of experience, attention to detail, professional skills and dedication to the highest customer service standards make Progressive Business Solutions the best choice for anyone’s small business administrative needs.
LaRaedo: What inspires you most about working in your own business everyday? And what are a few challenges that you have faced? PBS: I love the freedom, responsibility, and creativity that is entailed with owning and operating a business. I also enjoy the intellectual stimulation of continually learning new things. But ultimately, it’s my clients and associates that make each day worthwhile. I love the people. My greatest challenge is finding the time to learn all that I want to and build relationships in addition to all the tasks that go along with operating a business.
LaRaedo: What parts of the administrative work do you enjoy doing the most? PBS: I particularly enjoy project management, research and reporting.
LaRaedo: Communication must be vital in your business. What methods do you use to keep your clients informed? PBS: My main method of communication is email, but I also use Skype for quick conversations or meetings and try to touch base with my clients by phone every few weeks.
I am always interested in learning about new ways to use technology to help make life a little easier. So when I found a website that offered those that love to ride horses a techy way to improve their riding techniques, I had to find out more.
Here is an short interview with Rhonda Malone who talks about how she and her business partner, Shelly Morita, came up with a couple of great mobile based equestrian apps. These apps are fun, informative, interactive and they will help you and your horse become better partners. You can download them from iTunes and they run on iPhone, iPad and iTouch.
These two ladies don’t waste any time either. They have plans for several more equestrian type apps that should we available soon. Keep an eye on their website at Hollywood Horse Clubfor more details.
I generally do not talk directly about LaRaedo Horse Farm Management Software in a blog post but today I decided to go ahead and blast away.
Have you ever been so passionate about and idea and watch it grow and become more? Well that is the way I feel about this product. It started out as an idea stemming from basic observation and a desire to help those that own and care for horses.
I want to share with you a video created by Mandee Widrick owner of Horse Family Magazine. She has done an outstanding job summarizing the value of a software that not only helps the horse business owner but reaches out to their horse boarding customers too.
This is a software that can pay for itself, keep horse farm owners organized and increases their customer satisfaction – all in one simple, easy-to-use, on-line package.
Recently, my friend Linda Houston and I went to the Michigan Stallion Expo in Lansing. We decided to interview one another and post it on our blog sites. Linda is an extremely talented photographer and one of her areas of expertise is equine photography. I love listening to her vividly descriptive way she explains how to capture the beauty of the horse and rider in a photograph.
Linda is an extremely generous person, in business and friendship. I met her when I was looking for someone to photograph me for my website and business card. We hit it off right away as we started talking about our many similar experiences supporting our children’s horse sport involvement.
The next thing I knew, she was right there with me filming my short video describing LaRaedo and how it can assist farm owners. She never asked for a dime and we spent many hours fine tuning the film to make it just right.
Check out her website where she displays numerous equine related photos and a variety of other fine art displays at Houston Photography.
Here is a short clip of our easy going interview with Linda as she describes her passion. Enjoy!
We live in a time of great abundance. I know that to some people this does not appear to be the case. I have found recently for me that abundance can be more of a feeling than anything tangible. Don’t get me wrong, it is great to see and touch the tangible effects of abundance but I have come to realize that some times I have to believe in the having of it before I ever get even a glimpse of it.
Especially now, in the business world we tend to look at the economy as going down hill where in fact it is really doing quite well. I did a some research on the horse industry and obtained some very uplifting information that I want to share with you. This data was obtained from the American Horse Council. It is extremely encouraging information as it indicates that the horse industry has a very large effect on the economy as a whole. Far more than I suspect many have realized. Here are a few statistics:
There are 9.2 million horses in the United States
4.6 million Americans are involved in the horse industry as owners, employees or service providers
2 million people own horses
The horse industry has a direct economic effect on the U.S. of $39 billion annually and a total impact of $101.5 billion on the U.S. GDP (gross domestic product)
This industry pays $1.9 billion in taxes
It supports over 1.4 million full-time employment jobs throughout the U.S. which includes racing, showing, recreation and other types
When it comes to horse economics, which end of the stick are you on? Is it the end that shouts great abundance or something less than that?
Here are a few quotes that I found which I especially resonate with:
There’s nothing so good for the inside of a man as the outside of a horse.
- Ronald Reagan
A horse doesn’t care how much you know until he knows how much you care.
- Pat Parelli
Horse sense is the thing a horse has, which keeps it from betting on people.
- W. C. Fields
If the horse does not enjoy his work, his rider will have no joy.
- H. H. Isenbart
A pony is a childhood dream; a horse is an adulthood treasure.
- Rebecca Carroll
God forbid that I should go to any Heaven in which there are no horses.
- R. B. Cunningham Graham
It is not enough for a man to know how to ride; he must know how to fall.
- Mexican Proverb
Many people have sighed for the “good old days” and regretted the “passing of the horse,” but today, when only those who like horses own them, it is a far better time for horses.
- C.W. Anderson
The essential joy of being with horses is that it brings us in contact with the rare elements of grace, beauty, spirit, and fire.
- Sharon Ralls Lemon
If your horse says no, you either asked the wrong question, or asked the question wrong.
- Pat Parelli
Horses – if God made anything more beautiful, he kept it for himself.
- Author Unknown
Riding a horse is not a gentle hobby, to be picked up and laid down like a game of Solitaire. It is a grand passion.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson
Horses are predictably unpredictable.
- Loretta Gage
I found these off of a horse supplies forum and really got a chuckle – hope you do too!
Ten Ways To Get In Shape To Own A Horse
Drop a heavy steel object on your foot. Don’t pick it up right away. Shout, “Get off, stupid! Get off!”
Leap out of a moving vehicle and practice “Relaxing into the fall”. Roll lithely into a ball, and spring to your feet!
Learn to grab your checkbook out of your purse/pocket and write out a $200 check without even looking down.
Jog long distances carrying a halter and holding out a carrot. Go ahead and tell the neighbors what you’re doing. They might as well know now.
Affix a pair of reins to a moving freight train and practice pulling it to a halt. And smile as if you are really having fun.
Hone your fibbing skills. “See hon, moving hay bales is fun!” and ” I’m glad your lucky performance and multi-million dollar horse won you first place – I’m just thankful that my hard work and actual ability won me second place”.
Practice dialing your chiropractor’s number with both arms paralyzed to the shoulder, and one foot anchoring the lead rope of a frisky horse.
Borrow the US Army slogan; “Be all that you can be…(add) bitten, thrown, kicked, slimed, trampled.”
Lie face down in the mud in your most expensive riding clothes and repeat to yourself: “This is a learning experience, this is a learning experience…”
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Most horse farm owners can spot a good conformation a mile away or tell the difference between an original Stubben saddle or Billy Cook saddle and an imitation. In fact, most horse farm owners have a wealth of knowledge on their equine friends but have no idea how to go about marketing this knowledge.
