I finally, finally got a few free hours and some good afternoon sunlight to do some photo shoots for some awesome products to review this week! Nyls got to be my horsey model, and as you can see, he loved the job. He’s really very good at striking a pose in a faraway gaze and keeping it for an irregular amount of time. I’ve never had a horse that knows he’s being photographed and pricks his ears and stands stock still before, but then again, this is Nyls we are talking about. He knows the party is always his party, and he’s really just shocked you are taking pictures of anything BUT him!
U.S. Weekend Preview:
Rocking Horse Winter I H.T. [Website] [Entry Status] [Ride Times]
Full Gallop Farm January H.T. [Website] [Entry Status]
Fresno County Horse Park C.T. [Website] [Entry Status/Times]
News From Around The Globe:
The USEA’s “Evaluation of the Young Event Horse Prospect” Symposium is FREE for USEA members. Taking place in Ocala, Florida February 16-18, this educational event is ideal for anyone interested in breeding, handling, buying, riding and evaluating young event horses. A full schedule will be available the week before the seminar to those who pre-register. [Schedule of Topics] [Panelists] [Sign Up]
Dressage on an OTTB can be challenging sometimes, because of their original education as a racehorse. Steuart Pittman, master of all things recycled racehorse, has written this incredibly insightful article on exercises to help your thoroughbred understand the complex art of dressage. I recommend it for all thoroughbred riders, and just about anybody working with a green horse on the flat at all. We should all know how to do “jockey dressage”! [Dressage Exercises for the Thoroughbred]
Are you selling your horse and thinking of asking for first right of refusal with the sale? This is a common practice with horses, because we become so emotionally attached to them, but it’s also a tricky ground. More often than not, you hear of people finding out too late that the horse has been sold without their knowledge to a third party. What can you do legally when this happens? How can you ensure that your contract will be honored? [First Right of Refusal: What You Need To Know]
What about this horse in California that fell in a ten-foot sinkhole? Somehow, this chestnut escaped without being hurt at all! Firefighters spent three hours extracting him from a hole that appeared without notice. [Horse Rescued]
Best of Blogs: “Loss of Confidence…In Yourself Or Your Horse“
This kid: her saddle slips almost all the way off the side of the pony and she KEEPS GOING!