I agree with FH and CG: let her be. Twenty-five is WAY too old for breeding, and horses are NOT baby factories to breed until they die with no thought about their sanity or well-being. I'm not going to be diplomatic about this like FH: the fact that you even had to ask this question shows what you think about your horses' lives. Why did it take a vet to tell you the mare was blind? Like CG said, put a bell on a pasture mate, NOT a foal you're insane enough to hope to get from the mare

I agree with My Gracie when she says you should be doing the same thing that you're asking your horse to do. Henrik Johansen--a dressage clinician who visits the US from Sweden 3 times a year, and with whom I ride--always tells us to do that: do what you want your horse to do. That's how the horse knows the difference between a canter aid and a bending aid, b/c what you are doing when you offer those aids is different even though the aids are similar. In the same vein, I suspect that you're

Good tip, Frizzle! I just ordered an asst. pack of Horse Quenchers. I have electrolytes in my horse 1st aid kit, but the Horse Quenchers sound like a sure thing. I'll put a couple in my trailer just in case.

I just signed the petition, but I didn't have the stomach to watch the video of Scandic. Rollkur has appalled me from its inception. I thought that the FEI had already banned rollkur, but they must have just made a statement about it and still allowed it. What is it going to take: sitting on the shoulders of the delegates as we ride them around and around an arena with their chins duct-taped to their chests? I SO wish the horses could take revenge for the use of rollkur.

Asharri-- I suspect that it is not the bit itself that he's objecting to--b/c he's fine on a long rein--but it's worth a try. See if you can beg, borrow or steal a Boucher--pronounced bo-SHAY--b/c that bit is made to be very stable in the horse's mouth, unlike any kind of loose ring snaffle. If you're afraid the Boucher exerts poll pressure--as many people believe, erroneously--it does not, that's not even physically possible with a Boucher. It's just a kind, gentle snaffle

you should have gotten it by now. Try emailing me: whodunit@q.com

Horses are prey animals and they are very attuned to their surroundings. For good reason: their lives depend on that. They're going to spook at the smallest thing, IF that thing is new to them or even if it's something they've seen a hundred times but it's in a different position or is being approached from a different direction. You'll never completely cure a horse of those spooks: they're hard-wired to be vigilant. But as you get your horse more used to the trail you'll

I just watched the video of Z winning the Breeders Cup. Wow! I was focusing on her ears: pinned for most of the race, but it appeared as soon as she took the lead, THEY CAME FORWARD! She must like being in front!

You say he was still chomping on the bit when he had the Happy Mouth on. Did he chomp with the owner, also, or just with you? If he only chomped during your test-ride, he may not like your hands or the feel of a different rider on his back. But if he chomped on it all the time the owner rode him, too, he might be working your bit rather energetically, to figure it out. You said that the Happy Mouth and what you have for him are the same, but they are not. The Happy Mouth has rubber covering the metal

Yes, a friend said that the jumper rider was a polo player at some kind of trade show. That explains the rider not hanging on the reins: he was giving the horse her head even when he was erupting from the saddle. I hadn't known that when posted the link. I am SO glad that the rider was not the usual rider for that horse: she must have been mortified to feel what was happening on her back. He even landed on her neck once, IN FRONT OF the pommel!