An excerpt from Secrets of the Horse, by Shelby Dennis If you’ve been yearning for a better understanding of your horse, the answer lies in learning more about how horses function as a species and the science behind their behavior. Developing more ethical training practices requires reflection on how the … Read More
Progress Comes One Small Step at a Time I may have found the secret to getting through hard seasons with horses — and honestly, with life in general. I call it: just do what you can do. Maybe that sounds overly simple, but it’s helped me more than almost anything else … Read More
Progress Comes One Small Step at a Time I may have found the secret to a well-lived life. I call it, “Do whatever you can do.” Okay, maybe this just works for me, but I want to share it with my fellow horse people who might also struggle to get … Read More
Helping Horses and Riders Find Success What is your name and what is the name of your business? Grace Keese; Graceful Horsemanship LLC Where are you from? Florissant, Colorado What disciplines are you involved in? I have extensive experience in both English and Western riding, with a wide variety of … Read More
How to Help Your Horse Feel Safe The most important characteristic of a safe, well-trained horse is trust. Horses who trust people are far less likely to behave in erratic, explosive, or aggressive ways and are a joy to handle and ride. Creating trust in horses is the responsibility of … Read More
Leadership Means Looking Inward, Offering Grace, and Building Trust A boss instills fear, assigns blame, and controls others. A leader inspires confidence, takes responsibility, and empowers others. Those words have rung true across every chapter of my life, whether I was serving in the Marine Corps, navigating high-stakes bank mergers … Read More
Finding Peace and Classical Dressage at this 18th Century Portuguese Estate In May 2025 I attended an immersive educational opportunity for working equitation judges in Portugal. Following the training, many of my fellow judges and other attendees planned to participate in some of the riding and training opportunities horse people … Read More
Find and Fix the Pieces that Make Up the Whole Situation Last month in Part 1, I discussed the tendency some riders have to excuse their lack of motivation for education by stating that they are “just a trail rider”. This mindset suggests that these folks aren’t serious about learning … Read More
A Safe Trail Horse Feels Free to Think For generations, the goal of horse training was to get a horse “broke.” Broke to ride, broke to lead, and broke to behave. But what if I told you I disagree with the whole premise? Historically, breaking a horse meant precisely what … Read More
Don’t Use a Love of Trail Riding as an Excuse to Avoid Learning and Improving There’s a phrase I often hear when talking to horse people. Usually, I hear it at the start of my clinics, when we all introduce ourselves and tell a little about what we do with … Read More
