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Saddles based on Goodnight design used in Carter funeral procession

“As seen on EquusMagazine.com” Inspired by the traditional McClellan saddle, the modified model offers Army’s horses improved comfort and fit January 31, 2025 – Edited Press Release Over the past few years, the Caisson Detachment of the

January 2025 Horse Report

Winter Time in the Rockies Like most of the country, here in the Colorado Mountains, we’ve been battling extreme winter weather. For us, that means temperatures well below zero F, night after night, with even

Press Release for Julie Goodnight January 2025

Julie Goodnight Horsemanship FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 01/13/25 Twyla Walker Collins, Business Manager Phone: (719) 530-0531 Email: twyla@juliegoodnight.com Julie Goodnight Proudly Watches as Saddle Based on Her Design Is Used by U.S. Army Caisson Detachment

Perfecting Saddle Fit Skills

Analyzing traffic to our website and the direct questions we get from you, the end-user, we see significant interest in tack and equipment and its appropriate use and adjustment. I love this because it tells

Horse Report: Mission Accomplished, Sort Of

Annie and Cathy Brown Rip turned six months old mid-November; all the signs indicated both mare and foal were ready for weaning. Rip mainly spent his time with the older geldings and was increasingly independent.

Neck Rope Instructions

December Blog 2024

Turning your horse without reins Riding Without Reins: It’s not as hard as you think! To listen to the audio version, click here and look for the title “Blogpost: Riding without Reins.” Most riders can’t

Halter Instructions

November 2024 Horse Report

Rip’s first snow day! A Foal Becomes a Weanling Lately, I’ve been busy washing, drying, folding, storing, and organizing all the blankets in the barn. Our horses have a lot of apparel for all four seasons. No

Rips first time at the tie wall

An Investment in Training

T. Cody investing time in the training of a long yearling sport horse.

Horse Report October 2024

Rip And Annie With The Herd Annie’s colt, Rip, is now five months old. He continues to grow like a weed and eats hay and grain enthusiastically, just like his mom. Soon, it will be

October 2024 blog

Could you Stop a Runaway Horse? Proper Rein Handling I’ve just returned from teaching clinics at the C Lazy U Ranch, where I always work with attendees on rein holds, rein length, and stopping aids.

Horse Report: Life is Good for Rip

The Herd, from left to right: Abner, Casper, Tomcat, Rip, Annie

The Emergency Dismount: When All Else Fails

Photo Credit: Heidi Nyland Melocco When the going gets tough… you may wish you knew how to get your feet on the ground, quickly and safely, at a moment of your choosing. In most instances,

Horse Report: Gettin’ the Band Back Together!

Here on my ranch, we now have a herd of five horses. Three geldings, plus Annie and her prized foal, Rip. I am happy to report that they are now all running together again as

Jealousy & Possessiveness in Horses

Annie warning Tom to stay away from her foal, Rip. Horses are emotional animals. Like humans, horses feel and display the six basic emotions. Fear, anger and surprise are overtly expressed, and easily recognized. Displays

Horse Report: Summer Days with Annie & Rip

Here in the Colorado mountains, the lazy days of summer are an exquisite time of year. Warm sunny mornings, followed by afternoon thunderstorms that cool things off at night. The serene view of my beautiful

The World Awaits!

My new colt was born at the most convenient time of day, about the time most people are arriving at work. Most foals are born in the wee hours of the night. It’s Mother Nature’s

Horse Report: Waiting On Baby

It’s hard to believe that Annie’s due date is almost here. As I write this, she is now 332 days into the 340-day average gestation of a mare. All systems are ready for launch! How

March 2024 Horse Report

My sweet little mare, Annie, is now 3/4 of the way through her pregnancy. She’s only 14.0 hands and very compact (short-backed), and the baby (I like to think of as a colt) is making

How Much Does a Young Horse Really Know?

There are a multitude of reasons why people might end up with a young horse in their lives… You’re raising a foal from a beloved mare. You’ve been riding “made” horses for some time and

January 2024 Horse Report

In the last month, most of the horse activity around my ranch has centered on the weather. January can be fickle up at 8,000 feet above sea level. We usually get some warm, sunny days

How Horses Learn to “Read” Humans

If you’ve ever ridden with me in a clinic, you’ve heard me talk about how clever horses are at determining a person’s level of intention and determination, or lack thereof. Although it is a super

December 2023 Horse Report

Winter is finally upon us, and as most of you know by now, Annie is in foal to Bet Hesa Cat. Her due date is April 28th, so she is about halfway through her pregnancy

A Look Back: My 2023 Horse Goals

My crew is always coming up with big ideas for helping riders and horse owners live their dreams. Like me, they are all on their own personal horsemanship journey and seeking new information and better

September 2023 Horse Report: A Lesson in Letting Go

Many of you have followed along with my plans to breed my AQHA mare, Annie, to a top cow horse stallion, Bet Hesa Cat. At first it seemed highly likely that Annie would conceive, even

When Horses “Shut Down”

A horse owner recently reached out to me asking for guidance with a 3-year-old colt that came to her completely shutdown. His eyes glaze over and he statues-up in response to [any cues] … as

Annie and Juliie cantering in the outdoor arena with mountains in the background.

Should I Let Someone Else Ride My Horse?

Photo Crredit: Melissa Arnold Should you let someone else ride your horse? There are two common points of view that I run into on this subject: “No! I do not want someone interfering with the

July 2023 Horse Report

As I mentioned last month, my plans to breed Annie didn’t go the way I hoped, and I’m shifting gears with her this fall to my #2 goal⁠—going horse camping! In the meantime, my other

Horse Goals Or Bust Part 8: Mental Strategies to Manage Day-Of Anxiety & Perform at Your Best

Whether your equestrian goals involve a competition, a trail adventure, or building the confidence to try something new, it’s likely that you will experience periods of anxiety and moments of doubt in your journey. This

June 2023 Horse Report

My Horse Goals or Bust! plans have taken an unexpected turn. My big horse goals included breeding my mare, Annie, which turned out to be an exercise in patience. It has been a rollercoaster of

View of an arena through a horse's ears.

Horse Goals or Bust Part 7: It’s Go Time!

We are now 7 months into Horse Goals or Bust—setting goals, planning, training, practicing, and preparing. It’s prime riding season in most areas, so now is the time to put into action all the activities

May 2023 Horse Report

It was disappointing to find out that my beloved mare Annie did not settle into pregnancy after her second round of breeding and a month at the mare-care facility about 75 miles from here. We

Horse Goals or Bust Part 6: Your Trailer FAQs Answered

It’s been a lot of fun to hear about the goals, skill assessments, and training plans that we’ve all been working on this year in our Horse Goals or Bust! endeavors. Hopefully your plans are coming together,

April 2023 Horse Report

I was planning to write a much different report this month, hoping to announce the pregnancy of my sweet mare, Annie. Instead, I am reminded that nothing worthwhile is ever easy. In lieu of a

Horse Goals or Bust Part 5: Grooming Tips from the Trail to the Arena

Whether your horsemanship goals for this year involve gaining confidence, an overnight trail ride, or competing in any given discipline, your horse’s appearance speaks volumes. Not only is grooming another way to bond with your

March 2023 Horse Report

With any luck, my sweet little mare, Annie, will soon be living her dream. If you’ve been following along with Horse Goals or Bust, you already know that I made the decision to breed Annie

Horse Goals or Bust! Part 4: Rider Skill Assessment & Training Plan

We are now four months into Horse Goals or Bust!, and we still have half a year left to fulfill our dreams and achieve our equestrian aspirations! Last month, we addressed horse and rider fitness,

February 2023 Horse Report

I am happy to report that my plans for breeding Annie this year are well underway! So far (*knock on wood*) everything is going according to plan. Annie hasn’t figured out what’s in store for

<i>Horse Goals or Bust!</i> Part 3: Rider Fitness & Conditioning Plan

We are three months into Horse Goals or Bust!—my nine-month plan to help you accomplish your horsemanship goals and live your dreams. Many of you have jumped onboard for this ride, including most of my

January 2023 Horse Report

This year, my horse life is taking an abrupt turn in a direction that surprised even me⁠—and it all started with a piece of paper. A year ago, when my team first presented me with

Horse Goals or Bust! Ready, Set, Go!

It’s that time of year to hit the reset button, look forward, and set new, impactful goals for yourself. We started this journey last month in my blog and podcast, Ride On with Julie Goodnight.

Julie's arena blanketed in snow with the mountains in the background.

December 2022 Horse Report

Around my barn, we shift into a lower gear this time of year, based on surviving winter. Here in the high mountains of Colorado, winter comes early and stays late. We had plenty of sub-zero

Check Your Rearview Before You Get in Gear Next Year

It’s true. The older you get, the faster the time goes by. The past few years have been topsy-turvy, and a roller-coaster ride of emotions. During this time, three friends unexpectedly passed away⁠—all of whom

Julie training on a horse in English tack.

What Does it Mean to Have “Realistic” Training Expectations?

Whether your young horse is ready for saddle training, or your adult horse needs to be restarted, has developed undesirable behaviors, or is ready for a higher level of training, there may come a time

horseback riders at the beach in the water in Ireland

October 2022 Horse Report

After two weeks of clinics and tours, I arrived home from Ireland to the peak of fall weather here in the Rocky Mountains. One day I was riding horses on the Wild Atlantic Coast of

Artificial Aids: Training Tool or Crutch?

Horses are amazingly adaptable creatures, and over thousands of years they have partnered with us and found ways to make themselves invaluable to human society. Since before horses were even ridden, humans have attempted to

September 2022 Horse Report

With heavy hearts, we laid our old friend “Doc” to rest this month. Doc was a talented performance horse, and taught every one of us something special. He finished his days being the faithful mount

How to Get a 5-Star Rating From Your Farrier

As a kid, I rode show hunters, and back then most of them were off-the-track Thoroughbreds–notorious for their shelly, thin feet and the tendency to lose a shoe right before an important show. I learned