1. How old should a horse be to start training? Updated: January 19, 2012
2. How should I condition my horse for eventing type work? Is there any way to do so quickly? Updated: January 05, 2012
3. How can you tell when a colt's knee joint closes? My horse is a yearling. Updated: January 04, 2012
4. My horse gets overexcited when we start out on a trail ride and fights to be in the lead. What can I do? Updated: January 04, 2012
5. I've been trying to train my horse to pivot on the ground for my 4-H showmanship class. She'll pivot when I use rhythmic pressure, but without it, she gets frustrated and starts backing up. She can pivot when I'm riding her, but not from the ground. Updated: January 04, 2012
6. Growing Entrepreneurs: The EDGE Program Updated: December 14, 2011
7. How do I prune and train my grapes? Updated: March 01, 2011
8. I have a 6-year-old mare. I use a folded wool saddle blanket. After I put the saddle on and before I cinch it, I pull the front of the blanket up. I saddled her, and she threw her head around like she was going to bite. I elbowed her, and that ended it. Since then, she looks at me but doesn't do much. I cleaned the pad. The actual cinching has never bothered her. What could cause this? Updated: July 20, 2010
9. If you have a horse that has a short, choppy step at the walk and trot, what are some ways to help extend your horse? Updated: July 20, 2010
10. What is a Mikmar bit? Updated: June 21, 2010
11. Can horses tell the difference between genders of humans by smell? My Ladybelle never lets any boys ride her. I even put my brother in my clothes to test it, but she still balked. Updated: June 21, 2010
12. My 19-year-old daughter has a beautiful mare that is sound and 18 years old. My daughter no longer has time to ride as she is in college out of state. How do we find a loving home with a family who will give her good care? She'd be great for a intermediate rider. Updated: June 21, 2010
13. There are some excellent videos posted on Youtube that I've watched over and over. They are presented by Gary Stauffer and Monte Stauffer. I would like to know if I can get video copies of these? Are they for sale? They are excellent training videos, and I would love to own them. Updated: June 21, 2010
14. I own a very interesting Thoroughbred gelding. One day he'll be super good and do everything I ask and the next he will be insane and rear, buck, and try to run off right when I get in the saddle. I understand his little tricks now and can handle anything he throws at me when I'm on him, but now I have a leading problem. Recently, he has been rearing and trying to bite me when I am leading him to the arena. Today, he even struck out at me when he reared! I have tried different techniques to get him to stop but none of them have worked. People have told me to smack him but I know he'll respond horribly to that, and I hate hitting him. Please help! Updated: June 18, 2010
15. I have a 6½-year-old mare that has been in training for 120 days each of the last two years and has advanced to neck reining. The trainer had my daughter (who has intermediate riding ability) use a correction bit for all riding. The more I have learned about horses, the more concerned I became about using a correction bit all the time. Updated: June 18, 2010
16. My daughter has mentioned lately that her 11-year-old Trakhener mare has been a little resistant when having her girth tightened. Three days ago and then today the mare dropped to the ground and was difficult in getting up once her girth was put on. The girth is never tightened right from the start but rather is tightened in stages. We are wondering if these symptoms are significant. Updated: January 19, 2010
17. We have a 5-month-old orphan foal that has begun to lay her ears back and try to kick us at feeding time. Updated: January 19, 2010
18. I have a three-year-old gelding that has never been taught any ground manners. I am working on him not following me in my space. How can I get him to turn away when I turn into him? Any ideas on how to gain his respect? Updated: January 13, 2010
19. Why does my horse move when I try to mount? Updated: January 13, 2010
20. My pony kicks me when I put on the saddle. I just got him, but he has been ridden before. I don't know what to do. I really would like to ride him next spring. Updated: January 11, 2010
21. I live in northern Florida. I have had my mare a year and a half approximately. In December 2008, she started behaving badly, culminating in an accident where she reared, and I fell off. This year a trainer has been highly involved. The mare has been doing quite well, although she is a very dominant alpha mare. However, starting in December 2009, she started being difficult again. This week she was aggressive when the trainer went to get her from the paddock. When she went to ride her, the mare refused to go forward (same thing as last year). She then reared up. The timing is identical to last year. Is it possible that December/January is a transitional period here in Florida and that this behavior is due to her getting ready to go into heat? My trainer thinks she should be donated and can't be sold. I purchased her last year for $18,000. I want to reveal her background but try to sell her. I want to see if I can find the cause of this behavior. Updated: January 11, 2010
22. I have a nine-month-old colt. When I castrated him, he became nervous about us picking up his back feet. It has now been three months, and he has gotten worse and worse. He will let me pick his foot up with a rope and run my hand up and down his leg. But when I go to pick it up, he kicks. If I punish him, he gets worse, I am not sure what to do. Updated: January 06, 2010
23. My horse doesn't like too much tongue pressure but needs a bit that is dressage legal. Which bit should I use? Updated: January 05, 2010
24. What is meant by the terms periodization and tapering with reference to equine training programs? Updated: January 05, 2010
25. Thanks for your clear instruction on these videos! Will you be doing one on a turn on the haunches? Updated: January 05, 2010
26. Where can I find printed material on how to properly fit a western and English bridle? Updated: January 05, 2010
27. I usually ride in spurs, but unfortunately I give my horse spur rubs on either side. I know he needs to be sharp to my aids and move away from pressure even without spurs. Is there an exercise that I can do to learn to ride with spurs and use it as a tool and not an aid to stop giving my horse spur rubs? Updated: January 05, 2010
28. How do I stop my horse from pulling back when tied? Updated: November 20, 2009
29. We have a three-year-old horse that is halter broke, and we now want to start training him to be ridden. Are there tips or guidelines for ground work and other preparation for riding? Updated: November 19, 2009
30. What is the one-rein stop? Updated: July 17, 2009

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