"Your horse is normal”, I said. My client explained, “I’m scared when she runs around loose in the arena and throws a buck.” I responded, “So maybe she wants to run around a bit, go ahead and let her free-school. It’s okay if she throws a few bucks, it’s healthy and normal.”

The horse world is cluttered with feeds, supplements, and remedies all promising a better, “new and improved” horse. While many such products do in fact improve horses’ health and condition, there are certain basics that every horse needs, regardless of breed, age, condition, or purpose. Even seasonal or regional changes do not alter these foundational principles. Water is the most important nutrient.

By Sarah Milicia

 Endurance riding is an equestrian sport based on controlled long distance races. There are two main types of long-distance riding: Competitive trail riding and endurance rides. In a competitive trail ride, riders cover a marked trail for a distance usually between 15 and 40 miles per day.

An Arab mare arrived for retraining with a disturbingly common problem of fear and distrust of people.   My barn is often the last stop for horses before being sent to auction or euthanized due to dangerous behavior, and this mare was facing the same fate if I failed at connecting and retraining her.  The owner of this beautiful horse was grief stricken and disillusioned after bringing her once sweet, trusting mare home from a six month stint with a professional trainer.  She now has a dangerous horse that spooks, bolts and is afraid of her owner and people in general.

Is your horse truly submissive and obedient? Is your horse truly forward and does the action of the rein go through his whole body equally on both sides. If the answer to these questions is a resounding yes, then the rein back will be easy to achieve and show artistry and engagement. It is an extremely beneficial exercise for the horse when correctly executed as it engages his core, strengthens his top-line and develops strength in the gaskin and suppleness through the hips. It also increases flexion of all joints in the hind end. All these benefits are of immeasurable importance as you develop your horse to piaffe, passage, pirouettes and expressive flying changes (all of which topics are covered in the recent issues of Horse Bits Magazine). The rein back is also used in training other English disciplines and also in Western training.