When I bought Silver I knew exactly what I was going to do for Halloween this year. I didn’t get to compete in the local horse show costume contest but I still wanted to do a little dress up and photos, and he didn’t really mind one bit.

Recently I’ve come across ppl online talking about the misogyny mares face as they are branded to be stubborn and moody.
What are your thoughts on this?
I find mares to be more sensitive, if they are annoyed it’s usually because I’m off center, too quick or not present. Coming back to the moment and attuning is in my experience extremely helpful.

I just wanted to share this, as I think it is funny and cute, and maybe someone else could get a little chuckle from it.

Whenever my youngster tries something new that he likes, you can litterally see his mind getting blown, and I personally think it’s hilarious! In this case it was an apple, that apparently was so amazing, that he stopped functioning for a couple seconds haha

I'm considering trailering my horse from Maine to the Ocala, FL area for the winter and would love some advice from people who've make the trip.

I'm going down to be close to my family while my dad is dealing with some medical issues. I'd love to have my horse with me for a little emotional support and some normalcy. Convenient they live close to Ocala! So many lovely boarding options. Tho we will miss skijor season this year 😢

First, trailer setup: I have a 3-horse slant-load bumper pull. I've heard a number of different opinions on what's best for a horse long distance. Some say slant is best, box is best, straight is best, stock is best. I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO BELIEVE.

Regardless, he travels nicely. He's most used to a slant but also goes nicely in any setup. He's very used to traveling we haul 1-3 times a week. BUT our longest was only 2 days 5hrs each.​

I could remove one of the dividers to give him the front two stalls? Its still not wide enough for him to turn but would give him more space to put his head down? Hay in first stall and him in back two? Or remove both dividers and make it more of a stock? Or is that royally dumb? Anyone done something like this? My dividers come out and I have dealer-made soft covers for the remaining hinges.

I'm certainly not opposed to keeping him in his normal slant stall! Just trying to figure out what would be most comfortable for him for a longer trip.

Truck's towing capacity is 12k and the gvwr on the trailer is 7k. Anticipating max 5kish once loaded. Had the rig serviced and setup confirmed by the dealer that we're more than comfortable to make the trip.

Second, the trip itself: I'd love to hear from others who haul from New England to Florida. I've never made the drive with a horse before. I'm considering either three 8-hour days or four 6-hour days, resting at a layover place each night. Thoughts?

Good layover barns? Preferred route? Probs avoid NYC and DC? How often for water and rest stops? December 1st is planned leave.

Third, would a professional hauler be a better option? I've also considered hiring someone to transport him. It makes me a little nervous since I like being the one responsible for him, BUT also know an experienced hauler with a larger rig might ultimately be more comfortable for him.

I'd also love any advice on things I might not be thinking about when bringing a horse from Maine to Florida.

Appreciate anyone who's read this whole thing!

How does this fit look? Boot touches the bottom of my knee cap. Wore them at home for a few hours they felt decently comfortable.

Any tall boot reccs? The back of my heel and ankle were a bit rubbed by the boot.

My mare suddenly started urinating every time she is in the cross ties / grooming area. I’ve had her for over 10 years and she has never done this before but since this week she will do it the second she is tied.

Monday i took her from the field, immediately to the cross ties and she urinated within a couple minutes. I thought maybe she just had to go really bad so the last 2 days i kept her in her stall for 45-60 minutes before taking her out. I connect the cross ties, give her a kiss, grab my stuff and be back in 30 seconds and she already urinated. My locker is only a couple meters away from her when she is tied and i don’t hear or see her (nervously) moving around or anything. She stands completely still and just lets it go.

Is this something that should worry me or something that needs to be looked at by a vet? I tried searching for it online but the only things showing up was that she was very relaxed?

The urine is also pretty cloudy/milky. The picture is from monday, she didn’t urinate a lot that day. The other two days she urinated 2-3x more. Those days the puddle was maybe 70% cloudy/milky. The rest of the puddle was clear yellow urine.

Some extra information that might be good to know: we moved to this barn about 2 months ago and she has shown a (positive) change in behavior since then. A lot more confidence and a lot more relaxation. Maybe this change caused the urinating?

I came across this account yesterday and scrolled a few videos to see one of this man smacking the shit out the horses face with the lead rope for no reason other than it looks green and he has no idea what he’s doing. He proceeds to get on the horse, the horse acts accordingly, and the rest I couldn’t watch much of. I did see him yanking the absolute shit out of the poor horses face and at one point what looked like a hackamore being halfway up the horses face almost in its eyes. Fucking terrible. The comments were stupid af of course of people laughing saying “that’s a bull”, “that horse is crazy”, and “don’t let this get to the yt side of the internet”. Idk y’all go look at it for yourself and tell me if I am being overly sensitive to this! If not someone please report this place because WTF.

How do you store your blankets both while you are using them and at the end of the season? I have 2 horses at two different boarding barns and 2 more at home- all with fairly extensive wardrobes. I’m managing 4 turnouts (0g, 100g, 250g, 400g ish), a stable sheet, and a cooler per horse give or take. Most of those have necks too. I have labeling individual blankets under control but I’m struggling with how to store them. Thanks!

I recently received an email confirming my positive academic preread status at one of the colleges I am applying to, after attending a recruitment weekend where I was able to ride in a clinic with the coach.

The email basically stated that I was strongly urged to apply early decision and that I was being granted conditional admission. They are offering me a financial preview as well that will allow me to get an estimate for aid that I will get.

My question is, can I still be “recruited” to a college if I apply regular decision? I would say this school is among my top few, but I really would like to keep my options open. I am also in the position of trying to be very careful about the financial decisions I make since I am from a lower income household and am trying to minimize debt from college. I know that whatever financial aid review they give me will just be need based aid, as the D3 colleges can’t give athletic scholarships.

Welcoming advice from anyone who might have experience with this!

So I might be getting an 18hh warmblood which is a big plus for me because I'm a little over 6ft,

I've been with horses for years and this is the first time I'll be able to get my own horse without people bugging in.

My very own, personal horse.

I've taken care of countless horses before and also had one when I was little but I had to sell it eventually.

Thankfully I now have my own place to keep it and a much much better barn to go, however I've heard that taller horses need much better care because of the hoofs, back, etc.

I can get a bigger trailer, that won't be an issue.

What type of saddles are best, tack, everything?

And what's your personal experience with tall horses?

I'm sorry if this turns out to be a bit of a rant, but it's been really bothering me lately.

I have noticed a decline in people that hack with their horses, especially ones that are trotting and cantering outside as well. Now, what people do with their horses is none of my business and everyone can do what they like, I'm not here to judge, but I enjoy hacking tremendously. I trot, I canter and I gallop, sometimes we even race other people (shocking, I know).

We do what I call moderate hacks, mostly around the two hour marks, but we've been outside for 5 hours as well, going up and downhill. Usually I aim for twice a week, since I have the feeling that being outside helps her clear her head and helps her to be able to concentrate more in the arena. She's 9 years old, healthy and can be quite fresh, so I personally never thought that there was a problem with our hacking.

Then today somebody called me a horrible person for hacking such long times and that I am ruining my horse by doing so. They also specifically mentioned how terrible it is that we race other horses (I wanna mention here that it was an occasional race against people we hacked with, all in good fun) and that I even filmed it. Now I was completely caught off guard, since I honestly don't see the issue. I have a lease horse who is 30 by now, I've known him since forever and was hacking out with him even before I got my own horse and we still hack once a week, of course less distance and more walking than in his younger years, but sometimes also well over two hours. So I didn't think anyone would bat an eye about a 9 year old horse going out twice a week.

Well, I was wrong. After being chastised by this one person, I asked around a bit in my stable and realised that most people regard the hacks I do as incredibly long and extremely strenuous, so they would; and quote; 'never do that with their horses'. That surprised me. Honestly, most people on my stable say that they hack out often, but I found out that the longest, most exhausting hacks they do is walking on asphalt for 45 min. No trot, no canter, especially no gallop.

Now, I don't want to throw any shade, confidence, medical issues or simply not wanting to are all perfectly normal reasons as to why you choose to only walk. Thing is, in my head at least, every horse should be able to go 45 min in a walk on even ground, since they are literally standing on their feet 24/7. Sure, they have to carry you, but then again, if your horse is exhausted after having you on their back for that time, you are probably too heavy. Going for a hack like that is fine, but in my opinion it's not something that really exercises a horse, provided the horse is healthy of course. Fine for an off day or a chill day, but definitely not something that will keep your horse satisfied forever.

And yet some people only do that. Eventually, their horse bolts or buck and then it's suddenly too dangerous to go out anymore since they are unpredictable. Our arena is pretty small, you can work on it, but you have to go slow. If your horse bolts, you'll be introduced to the fence pretty quickly, so basically no one uses the arena for riding anymore as well.

The stable owner himself has complained multiple times that no one rides anymore, but, the fun part is, he himself doesn't ride either. It's just crazy to me, since some of my best memories are from hacking. Saddling up our ponies, riding into the woods or racing in the fields, going for a swim in the shallow parts of the river, filling up our saddlebags with snacks and just exploring our surroundings, riding to the local bakery and eating cake and ice cream. These were the things that I was so excited about when getting my own horse, getting to do that again with new friends. But it feels like that is impossible to do now. If even 2 - 3 hour hacks are considered too much for a horse, being out a day doesn't seem feasible. Sure, I can do it alone, but hacking out is so much fun with friends. I did find another girl to ride out with, but she's now got problems with the owner of the horse she leases, for being out too long.

I just feel very out of touch, I never considered that hacking was something that people regarded so critically, since I find it to be the most beautiful thing you can do with your horse and I think I've never met a horse who didn't enjoy hacking. Sure, you can't take a horse out for hours without preparation, but even then, getting off and leading or letting it graze a bit before getting on again are options as well, if you miscalculated and the hack is too strenuous.

I don't know, it's just absolutely flabbergasting to me.

Do you hack? If yes, how long/ how much do you usually hack for? Did you ever get shade for it?

Like the title says - any particular oils or conditioners you recommend?

Fitting a new (to me) bridle on my horse, should I drop the bit down a hole? I feel like the wrinkles around his mouth might be too much but I’m not entirely sure…

Also ignore his halter on the ground, I picked it up after this photo😬

my favorite POV

The Treat Fiends... (gotta click to embiggerize)

These 3 share turnout with my guy. He'd had his fill of cookies but his buddies felt quite differently.

They swore they were all starving for both food and attention because nobody loves them!

That's Zadago, Chance, and Ricochet from L to R.

Would really like to have that uniform hunter/jumper pulled mane look WITHOUT ACTUALLY PULLING his mane or giving him layers, he’s a horse not barb with the fresh bob.

I don’t want to pull his mane for personal reasons.

Dahlia is my percheron mare she was estimated to be in her late 20's. I rescued her from a bad situation in August and I could see her ribs and her hips were slightly prominent and so we're her shoulders. It became clear that she had no teeth to speak of because she was quidding her hay so I put her on orchard/alfalfa mix pellet mash with senior feed and some beat pulp mixed in to help put some weight on her. She is fed her mash mix 3 times a day and given access to what little grass we have in the pasture which isn't much because we are in a drought. It's pretty much down to dirt now. I was looking at her the other day and wondering if maybe she has now become too chunky and could benefit from having her feed amounts adjusted a bit. I can still just barely see her ribs at some angles though so I'm not sure. She has definitely become rounder and has dapples and a much better coat. I think she looks better than when I got her but I don't want to over do it and end up with a obese draft horse. I'm trying to keep her as healthy as possible at her older age. The 2nd and last pics are her when I first got her and the 3rd and 4th are her now after a couple months of rehab.

Basically, we were trotting over poles, and everything was fine. We were both like, "Weee, this is fun!" Then I felt him really go "WEEEEEEE THIS IS FUN" and his body just exploded into a full-on gallop, which I think surprised him. He took me outside the arena (no fence), up a hill, down a hill and into a parking lot where I turned him really hard to the right (which I couldn't do before because I would have fallen off a ledge; hard to explain the terrain here). He stopped really short and, hold the applause, flung me right into a GMC Sierra, whose hood my body crushed, leaving a human-shaped indentation I will probably have to pay for. But I slid down the hood and landed on my feet so ... bravo?

It was far more embarrassing than it was scary for some reason. My trainer rode him for a bit after that (he had a lot to say to her, too) and then I got back on and just walked and stopped. Walked and stopped. I wasn't seriously injured, thankfully. In fact, the truck probably broke my fall. This is the first time he's ever done this and is ordinarily incredibly sweet (was even sweet through this and when I fell of, stood with me instead of running away).

Anyway, I know this is normal. This is a horse. When you ride a horse, sometimes you fall off a horse. I'm not afraid now, per se, but I am like, questioning myself. How did I let that happen? What about me or the way I was riding didn't feel safe, or made him think he could just take off? Am I a worm?

I know I'm taking it personally and I would like to not do that, which is why I'm here! Tell me your stories of falling off? How did you recover? Did you also feel embarrassed/ incompetent? Looking for support but also let's all laugh and cry at ourselves together.

Got her in august, started lunging her and noticed loads of wrongs here. For context she’s an ex trotter (harness racer), which is why she carries her head so high and trots a “certain way”. Shes 8 years old and
not properly trained under the saddle. It’s hard to ride her in trot because it’s so fast and un-collected. Just bouncing all over the place and she struggles to use/bend her entire body in the corners/turns. She’s also clearly struggling when lunging on her “bad” side. Ive tried poles to make her lower her head more, but she mostly just tries sprinting over them without even looking or concentrating on the distance. I want her to be round and collected, naturally lower her head and feel relaxed.

I want good results, not quick solutions. Im not gonna use any tack to forcefully lower her head or force her into position. Im looking for honest advice even if it takes long in practice. And please point out any wrongs/mistakes you see in this video, i know it’s short but I’m bad at recording while lunging.

PS she does look a little lame in the left back leg (?). The video is a month old, didn’t really figure it out but its gone

I started with that cheap elastic bit belt that everyone has. It got caught on something and bent. So I bought another belt and it's just...not it.

So jumpers, do you have a favorite belt? Bonus if it's a smidge extra.

I ride English, and I am currently in a pair of Ariat paddock boots size 7B. Thanks to a yet-to-be-diagnosed issue, I have pretty persistent edema in one foot that makes my already high instep higher and my foot wider. My regular boots are tight on my foot, and with going into winter I know there’s no way I’m getting decently thick socks on. Ariat 7C fits ok, but I’d prefer a little more room for those plush winter socks and I’m having a heck of a time finding a used pair (I’d prefer to buy used if possible). I read that Mountain Horse run wide, so I bought a pair and they’re really snug, so they’re getting returned. I know men’s boots run wide, but I’m not finding any in my size (I think I’d be a 5/5.5 in men’s). I’m not opposed to tall boots, but I’m short and I’d have to be really careful about shaft height so paddock boots are just easier for me. Please help me figure this out.