LK HorseSense

05/30/2026

What’s the hurry? Today was a day for slowing down and working on “the basics” or what I like to call a round pen day, my favorite place. So many horses are missing fundamental things in their groundwork education that will start to bring up problems under saddle. So every horse I worked today got turned loose first, then roped and rolled their hind back and forth until the sticky spots were gone or at least felt better. Riding isn’t always what’s needed, often times this other work needs to get cleaned up and the fundamentals need to feel smooth, then the riding is effortless.

05/19/2026

Alice getting some work in!

05/14/2026

“The horse responds to comfort, they respond to peace better than about anything else you could do. So if the horse responds to you and you give him a little peace and comfort that means more to him than anything.” Buck Brannaman

This has been a topic of conversation during my teachings lately. While some horses absolutely need to be firmed up on, when it is done without feel, timing or understanding, it does nothing for the horse but create braces. It doesn’t make them want to try harder the next time, it doesn’t make them want to be with you, if anything they try to find ways to escape. They want us to help them feel safe.

Photo of Alice and I by

05/14/2026

05/09/2026

Do you know what your horse needs? Can you tell when to turn up the heat or when to back off and let them think? So many horses need more support than most people realize. "Oh that horse needs to get pushed, just ride through it, get after them..." but what if the horse just needs a little comfort? Maybe that particular horse has never liked being around people or supported in a way by a human that made them feel safe. Perhaps people moved the horses feet in a way that didn't make sense to the horse or allowed them to be comfortable. It takes years, hundreds of hours and countless horses to be able to read the situation just a little and figure out what each particular horse needs. Some need to move their feet and get busy, some need to stand around and take a nap and blink and chew and yawn, some require both at different times. It's our job to read the horse and help them with whatever they need.

05/05/2026

“It’s the control of the feet through the mind that a person should be after. If you’ve missed that on the ground, from the start, why you’ve missed the part that means the most to the horse. The person should be focused on getting the best possible connection with the horse on the ground - through feel - if they want to have those parts of the horse available to them when they ride.” - Bill Dorrance

05/02/2026

THIS is why getting a young horse that has been handled well since the day they were born and continuing to handle them correctly, is so important. Sapling will be two at the end of July. Naomi has been diligently doing groundwork with her since getting her in November, introducing her to ropes, tarps, and the flag. She lives in a herd of several other mares that keep her in check and is expected to have good manners at feeding time and beyond. She has never been hand fed, allowed to be pushy or rude, and she will be a dream to saddle at the end of the summer. This is how a young horse should behave. Another good baby from