Julie Goodnight stops a horse from threatening to kick the handler. … [Read more...]
1018: Serenity Now!
Julie Goodnight stops a horse from threatening to kick the handler. … [Read more...]
Have You Ever Been Kicked?
Have You Ever Been Kicked? Dear Julie: This may be a very odd question, but I was curious how many times have you been kicked or caught in the crossfire in your training career? I’ve been kicked three times, but tonight I got kicked square in the pelvis by a dominant mare who was going after my mare while I was putting a halter on her. I saw it start to happen, but couldn't … [Read more...]
Q & A Move Forward Into The Canter
For No Apparent Reason: Learning to understand why horses behave the way they do
When folks tell me about problem behaviors, I hear one phrase often. I admit I’ve even said it myself when I was a young trainer. “For no apparent reason, my horse….” You can fill in the next part with any frightening horse behavior. Choose from a list such as: bucked me off, kicked me, bit me, ran away, spooked, refused to get in the trailer, refused to go in the arena, … [Read more...]
Off To A Good Start
Off To A Good Start Are you raising a foal or young horse? Make sure you’re setting up a good relationship with respect from the start. To start your young relationship off on the right path, you’ll need to consider how a young horse thinks and envision how you want your horse to act later in life. All that training starts now. Your expectations must be clear and you must … [Read more...]
Horses That Kick
Expert advice to quell a kicking horse’s bad habits. http://americashorsedaily.com/horses-that-kick/#.VGaGnU10xet … [Read more...]
Veterinary Visits “The Best Patient”
If your horse is well-trained, well-behaved and easy to work with, you’ll make your veterinarian’s job much easier and more effective. Even the best veterinarian must struggle to examine a horse that’s stomping, biting, moving away or just not cooperating. While you might blame your horse’s “sudden” behavioral problems on sickness or pain, chances are, your ill-mannered … [Read more...]
About Face
Dear Julie, My Rocky Mountain/Arabian horse cross is five months old—I’ve had him for two months. He is calm and usually well behaved. However, he’s starting a new and scary behavior. He turns his rump to me when he’s in the paddock or when I enter his stall as he eats. Today he kicked at the man who owns the barn where I board. Please help—how do I stop him from doing this? I … [Read more...]
Acting Up On The Trail
The Questions You Ask Most This Issue: Why does my horse act up on the trail? Julie Goodnight takes on topics you want to know more about in her weekly blog. Here, in this excerpt from her blog, she helps you understand more about how horses interact when you’re not around—and why it’s important to your safety on the trail that their fraternizing behavior be outlawed when … [Read more...]
Kicks At The Canter
Ask Julie Goodnight: Help, my horse kicks at the canter! Question: I have 3 horses, all of which do the same thing. They walk and trot quietly, but when you cue for lope, they will kick up in the back. I know it's probably a training issue, but I don't know what to do next to try to get them into a canter without the kick up. I am a senior and have been riding all my life … [Read more...]
Issues From The Saddle: Must Be In Front On Trail
Question Category: Issues from the Saddle Question: Dear Ms. Goodnight, I have a 15-year-old quarter horse, MAX, who decided he does not want to be the second horse out on the trail. I ride alone most of the time but do enjoy the company of others. When he feels any competition from another horse he starts to arch his neck sets his head. He is not on the bit at all. After … [Read more...]
Issues From The Saddle: How Do You Stop A Horse When He’s Running Backwards
Question Category: Issues from the Saddle Question: How do you stop a horse when he's running backwards? I was trail riding over the weekend, and my horse took a dislike to the horse behind him. I saw the symptoms (making faces) and tried to get his attention on me, but he would have none of it! That awful equine behind him clearly needed to be taught a lesson (he … [Read more...]
Issues From The Ground: Desensitizing To Touch In Sensitive Areas
Question Category: Issues from the Ground Question: Hello Julie, I recently purchased a 13 yr QH mare about six months ago. I had been riding her for about eight months with an additional two-month lease. I decided to purchase her. She is my first horse. She was formally a western barrel horse but we have converted to English riding for several reasons. While I'm … [Read more...]
No Fraternization!
This is the subject of this week’s episode of Horse Master which airs today at 5:30p EST on RFD-TV and for you night owls (or DVR users) it comes on again Thursday morning at 2:30a and Sunday morning at 1:30a EST.For the next five weeks, the shows will be original airings of the episodes we filmed here at my ranch back in June. It was a tough week to film because two of the … [Read more...]
