My Bio & Personal Horse Journey
I grew up loving horses. From the time I could walk and barely talk all I wanted to do was be near a
horse. We lived next to a ranch with hundreds of them. When I was about 4, I took my first ride on a
big bay gelding. I was hooked. To this day I remember everything about that ride, the way the sky
looked, the way the saddle felt, the way the horse smelled, and most of all how I felt sitting on top of
that amazing animal. I was also aware of how the horse was feeling. He was happy to take me for
my first ride. For the next 4 years I would collect model horses, go on every pony ride possible,
look at every pony/horse book available to me, and remind my parents on an almost daily basis that
I needed a horse of my own. My parents were not ready to let me take the plunge but they did agree
to riding lessons. I rode every Saturday for the next three years. I lived for Saturdays, I lived for the
horse shows and the trail rides. It was great fun, but I really wanted a horse of me own. Finally at
age 11 my parents gave in, there was no way around it; we bought Smiley, a 10-year-old sorrel
pony gelding with a flaxen mane and tail. He was the real beginning of my obsession.
Over the next 10 years I had many horses, all ages, all breeds, mares and geldings. Any neighbor
horse that was no longer wanted or project horse that was too unruly, found its way to me. I spent
almost all of my spare time with my horses.
In my twenties my priorities started to change, getting married and having a family seemed to be the
thing to do. So I sold my horses one by one until’ I watched the last one leave. It was a pretty sad
day.
Horses never left my mind. I always went out of my way to see them, touch them, smell them; it was
a lot like when I was 4 years old. I always knew I would get another horse, I just thought it would be
sooner rather than later.
It wasn’t until my mid 30’s that I would buy my first horse as an adult. Things were very different
than I remembered. FEAR. As a child, teenager, and young adult I can’t say I remember ever being
afraid of a horse for any reason. As a new horse owner in my 30’s I was afraid of everything.
Irrationally afraid. It made no sense to me. I still understood horses, loved them, knew how to care
for them and how to ride, but things still seemed very different. I felt alone and somewhat
embarrassed about what I was feeling. I spent the first few months struggling and not enjoying my
horse to the degree I had expected. I knew if I didn’t get some assistance I would give up. So I
started looking on the Internet, reading books, talking to other horse owners around my age. To
my amazement people had stories similar to mine. They grew up with horses, took a medium to
long break from horses, and then got back into them; only to find that they now had an irrational
fear of the animal they once interacted with so naturally.
I decided the best way for me to get back on track would be to start from the beginning again. I
couldn’t just pick up where I left off some 15 years earlier. I had to re learn how to be around horses
in a way that suited me now. I surrounded my self with other adults in similar situations, I found a
supportive barn to keep my horse at and I found a good trainer to help me and I began to rebuild my
confidence step by step. I explored new ways and methods of working with horses. I embraced
the fact that I was older now and a different person than the teenager who once rode with no fear. I
rebuilt and am still rebuilding everything I know about horses and how I interact with them. One of
the biggest lessons this journey has taught me is that Isolation is my enemy. Had I stayed in
isolation and not reached out for help I would have given up on my dreams of living with horses
again. I discovered during this journey that most adults reentering the Horsey world after an
extended vacation are to proud or to embarrassed to admit they are struggling.
Sometime into my rediscovery I had the opportunity to purchase a Quarter Horse named Lotta. I
was in awe of her from the moment I saw her, 15.2 hands and about 1300 lbs she was a very stout
girl. Her previous owner told me that she had foundered once a few years ago. It didn’t bother me
at all, it probably should have, but it was love at first sight, not much could have changed my mind
about her. Just to dot my I’s and cross my t’s I scheduled a vet check. I wouldn’t say she passed it
with flying colors but she mostly passed it. The vet said she was slightly lame in her left hind leg on
hard ground, sometimes. That was the most she could tell me with out x-rays, nerve blocks, etc.
The sellers let me have her on trial for one week. Lotta turned out to be as wonderful a horse as I
had imagined. She had an awesome personality. She was sound that whole week except for one
morning towards the end. It didn’t matter I was hooked; there was no going back. I paid the seller,
signed the papers and we became family. Little did I know at the time that she would teach me
more about horses than I ever thought possible.
Lotta would be a little sore some days and not at all others. I was looking forward to doing some
trail riding and her hooves were looking a bit long so I called the farrier to come and put on a new
set of shoes. Shoes were something I had always done with all my horses. The “old horse person”
in me said, horses need shoes, box stalls, blankets, alfalfa twice a day, and a myriad of
supplements for coat, hooves, and bone. Lotta had the best of everything and I felt good,
unfortunately she didn’t.
Lotta was sound for a while but her mood was different. She was cranky, she didn’t want to play,
and she was dropping a little weight. I had the vet check her out and he said she was fine, nothing
wrong. Lotta didn’t agree, her body condition continued to change, her mood continued to
plummet. I had a sinking feeling her changes had more to do with her hooves than anything. It
was a gut feeling, a very strong one. The next time I had the farrier out I had him pull the shoes and
leave them off. I noticed right away that her hooves seemed awfully hot. I knew instantly that gut
feeling had been right, it was her hooves and she seemed laminitic. The next day the vet confirmed
my fears and recommended the usual, lots of bute, stall rest, shoes, pads, and Tape. I gave her the
bute that night but decided to wait just one day so I could think and do a little research on the
Internet.
None of the founder/laminitis triggers I new about had occurred. She wasn’t overweight, she didn’t
get into the grain bin, she hadn’t had any medication, she wasn’t out to pasture eating tons of green
grass, etc. I quickly found out that there are many opinions and many ways to deal with laminitis,
differing views on how it happens and why.
The information that resounded deepest for me and for Lotta was found on web pages containing
information on “Natural Hoof Trimming”. I won’t go into great detail on this page but suffice it to
say, Lotta is totally sound today. She is barefoot all the time, from the softest dirt to the hardest
gravel. She lives out in a pasture with her horse family, not in a stall. During the summer she has a
shinny healthy coat and during the winter she has a fluffy healthy coat and gone are the days of
alfalfa, grain and supplements.
My journey with horses culminated in the creation of “Harvest Moon Ranch”. A small private
boarding facility catering to each horse and each human’s individual needs.
A place where there will be no judgment, no preconceived notions or set schedules about when
horse or rider should be ready to take their next steps. A place where it is OK for the rider to take
there time, feel what they are feeling, and ask for help if they need it.
A place where each horse is listened to and cared for in a manner that enhances their lives as well
as ours.
I grew up loving horses. From the time I could walk and barely talk all I wanted to do was be near a
horse. We lived next to a ranch with hundreds of them. When I was about 4, I took my first ride on a
big bay gelding. I was hooked. To this day I remember everything about that ride, the way the sky
looked, the way the saddle felt, the way the horse smelled, and most of all how I felt sitting on top of
that amazing animal. I was also aware of how the horse was feeling. He was happy to take me for
my first ride. For the next 4 years I would collect model horses, go on every pony ride possible,
look at every pony/horse book available to me, and remind my parents on an almost daily basis that
I needed a horse of my own. My parents were not ready to let me take the plunge but they did agree
to riding lessons. I rode every Saturday for the next three years. I lived for Saturdays, I lived for the
horse shows and the trail rides. It was great fun, but I really wanted a horse of me own. Finally at
age 11 my parents gave in, there was no way around it; we bought Smiley, a 10-year-old sorrel
pony gelding with a flaxen mane and tail. He was the real beginning of my obsession.
Over the next 10 years I had many horses, all ages, all breeds, mares and geldings. Any neighbor
horse that was no longer wanted or project horse that was too unruly, found its way to me. I spent
almost all of my spare time with my horses.
In my twenties my priorities started to change, getting married and having a family seemed to be the
thing to do. So I sold my horses one by one until’ I watched the last one leave. It was a pretty sad
day.
Horses never left my mind. I always went out of my way to see them, touch them, smell them; it was
a lot like when I was 4 years old. I always knew I would get another horse, I just thought it would be
sooner rather than later.
It wasn’t until my mid 30’s that I would buy my first horse as an adult. Things were very different
than I remembered. FEAR. As a child, teenager, and young adult I can’t say I remember ever being
afraid of a horse for any reason. As a new horse owner in my 30’s I was afraid of everything.
Irrationally afraid. It made no sense to me. I still understood horses, loved them, knew how to care
for them and how to ride, but things still seemed very different. I felt alone and somewhat
embarrassed about what I was feeling. I spent the first few months struggling and not enjoying my
horse to the degree I had expected. I knew if I didn’t get some assistance I would give up. So I
started looking on the Internet, reading books, talking to other horse owners around my age. To
my amazement people had stories similar to mine. They grew up with horses, took a medium to
long break from horses, and then got back into them; only to find that they now had an irrational
fear of the animal they once interacted with so naturally.
I decided the best way for me to get back on track would be to start from the beginning again. I
couldn’t just pick up where I left off some 15 years earlier. I had to re learn how to be around horses
in a way that suited me now. I surrounded my self with other adults in similar situations, I found a
supportive barn to keep my horse at and I found a good trainer to help me and I began to rebuild my
confidence step by step. I explored new ways and methods of working with horses. I embraced
the fact that I was older now and a different person than the teenager who once rode with no fear. I
rebuilt and am still rebuilding everything I know about horses and how I interact with them. One of
the biggest lessons this journey has taught me is that Isolation is my enemy. Had I stayed in
isolation and not reached out for help I would have given up on my dreams of living with horses
again. I discovered during this journey that most adults reentering the Horsey world after an
extended vacation are to proud or to embarrassed to admit they are struggling.
Sometime into my rediscovery I had the opportunity to purchase a Quarter Horse named Lotta. I
was in awe of her from the moment I saw her, 15.2 hands and about 1300 lbs she was a very stout
girl. Her previous owner told me that she had foundered once a few years ago. It didn’t bother me
at all, it probably should have, but it was love at first sight, not much could have changed my mind
about her. Just to dot my I’s and cross my t’s I scheduled a vet check. I wouldn’t say she passed it
with flying colors but she mostly passed it. The vet said she was slightly lame in her left hind leg on
hard ground, sometimes. That was the most she could tell me with out x-rays, nerve blocks, etc.
The sellers let me have her on trial for one week. Lotta turned out to be as wonderful a horse as I
had imagined. She had an awesome personality. She was sound that whole week except for one
morning towards the end. It didn’t matter I was hooked; there was no going back. I paid the seller,
signed the papers and we became family. Little did I know at the time that she would teach me
more about horses than I ever thought possible.
Lotta would be a little sore some days and not at all others. I was looking forward to doing some
trail riding and her hooves were looking a bit long so I called the farrier to come and put on a new
set of shoes. Shoes were something I had always done with all my horses. The “old horse person”
in me said, horses need shoes, box stalls, blankets, alfalfa twice a day, and a myriad of
supplements for coat, hooves, and bone. Lotta had the best of everything and I felt good,
unfortunately she didn’t.
Lotta was sound for a while but her mood was different. She was cranky, she didn’t want to play,
and she was dropping a little weight. I had the vet check her out and he said she was fine, nothing
wrong. Lotta didn’t agree, her body condition continued to change, her mood continued to
plummet. I had a sinking feeling her changes had more to do with her hooves than anything. It
was a gut feeling, a very strong one. The next time I had the farrier out I had him pull the shoes and
leave them off. I noticed right away that her hooves seemed awfully hot. I knew instantly that gut
feeling had been right, it was her hooves and she seemed laminitic. The next day the vet confirmed
my fears and recommended the usual, lots of bute, stall rest, shoes, pads, and Tape. I gave her the
bute that night but decided to wait just one day so I could think and do a little research on the
Internet.
None of the founder/laminitis triggers I new about had occurred. She wasn’t overweight, she didn’t
get into the grain bin, she hadn’t had any medication, she wasn’t out to pasture eating tons of green
grass, etc. I quickly found out that there are many opinions and many ways to deal with laminitis,
differing views on how it happens and why.
The information that resounded deepest for me and for Lotta was found on web pages containing
information on “Natural Hoof Trimming”. I won’t go into great detail on this page but suffice it to
say, Lotta is totally sound today. She is barefoot all the time, from the softest dirt to the hardest
gravel. She lives out in a pasture with her horse family, not in a stall. During the summer she has a
shinny healthy coat and during the winter she has a fluffy healthy coat and gone are the days of
alfalfa, grain and supplements.
My journey with horses culminated in the creation of “Harvest Moon Ranch”. A small private
boarding facility catering to each horse and each human’s individual needs.
A place where there will be no judgment, no preconceived notions or set schedules about when
horse or rider should be ready to take their next steps. A place where it is OK for the rider to take
there time, feel what they are feeling, and ask for help if they need it.
A place where each horse is listened to and cared for in a manner that enhances their lives as well
as ours.
This is me on my
Arab gelding
Gran Dru Borr. I
think he was 5 at
the time this
picture was
taken. I was 14
or 15. I spent
many years on
Dru's back.
During the
Summer and all
school holidays,
we would ride
from sun up to
sun down, and
on occasion we
would ride until
late into the
night. He was a
spectacular
horse. There
wasn't anything
he wouldn't do.
Arab gelding
Gran Dru Borr. I
think he was 5 at
the time this
picture was
taken. I was 14
or 15. I spent
many years on
Dru's back.
During the
Summer and all
school holidays,
we would ride
from sun up to
sun down, and
on occasion we
would ride until
late into the
night. He was a
spectacular
horse. There
wasn't anything
he wouldn't do.
This is my mare
Lotta. She has a
great personality
and a wonderful
work ethic. She
is 20 years old
now (2009) and
shes still healthy
and happy. She
has some insulin
issues so we
have to be very
careful about
her feed and
hoof care, but as
long as I am on
top of it, she
does well.
Everyone should
be so lucky to
know a horse
like her.
Click here for
page 2
Lotta. She has a
great personality
and a wonderful
work ethic. She
is 20 years old
now (2009) and
shes still healthy
and happy. She
has some insulin
issues so we
have to be very
careful about
her feed and
hoof care, but as
long as I am on
top of it, she
does well.
Everyone should
be so lucky to
know a horse
like her.
Click here for
page 2