Open Water Farms Horse Kindergarten and Training

04/16/2026

Open Water Farms Horse Kindergarten and Training has a couple spots coming available!
Here’s a little bit about us:

🦄 We are a horsemanship-based hunter/jumper program at a top notch facility in Petaluma, CA with:
⭐️Excellent footing in all rings
⭐️Indoor Arena
⭐️Round Pen
⭐️Turn out!
⭐️Kind People you want to hang out with!

🦄 We specialize in giving young horses a great start and restarting horses with behavioral challenges BUT

🦄 We also help regular people with regular horses 🤣🤣🤣communicate clearly so the horses and humans can build beautiful relationships 🥰

🦄 We do well when we horse show but our emphasis is on horsemanship and developing the relationships and communication between horse and rider. We do a lot of groundwork and we have a jovial to goofy atmosphere. If you want to do right by your horse AND horse show, we are your program.

If you are ready to be supported by a program that values horsemanship as the foundation of (and not in contradiction to) your riding, Give us a call! 925 330 4602

Come Ride With Us!

Don’t have a horse? We have a couple of lease horses available!

09/07/2025

This is so true! Horses just want to be out, be social, graze and move.

It's easy to get caught up in the details and endless schedules of lessons and shows. But Geoff Teall cautions against forgetting the most basic truth: horses are still horses. He reminds riders that giving horses real downtime is just as important as training them in the ring.

Teall believes riders too often project human preferences onto their horses. We may love a hot shower at the end of the day, but horses don’t. We may value polished manes and tails, but horses don’t. “I’m quite sure that they don’t like braiding and pulling and twitching and trimming and all of the nonsense,” he says.

Instead, horses thrive when they can live more naturally with turnout, room to move, grass to graze, and other horses to socialize with. Allowing them this downtime is not indulgent; it’s a crucial part of keeping them sound in both body and mind.

One of Teall’s strongest pieces of advice is simply to stop. “Stop picking at him. Stop clutching the reins. Stop smothering him. Stop fussing. Just stop.” Horses don’t need to be micromanaged every second. Constant fussing creates tension, not progress.

Instead, Teall urges riders to make time in the saddle count. Be clear, specific, and fair when you ride, then reward the horse with release, rest, and time off. A horse learns far more from short, focused training sessions followed by downtime than from endless drilling.

Teall even builds deliberate rest periods into his horses’ lives. He likes to pull shoes, let manes and coats grow, and give his horses time to get dirty and relax. This isn’t laziness; it’s an investment in longevity. Horses that are allowed to recharge come back fresher, happier, and more willing to work.

“No work for a period of time makes the horse more willing the rest of the year,” he writes. That willingness is what sustains long-term performance and prevents burnout.

🔗 Continue reading this article at https://www.theplaidhorse.com/2025/09/03/downtime-matters-letting-horses-be-horses/

08/07/2025

Open Water Farms Horse Kindergarten and Training has two spots open for full training September 1 in Petaluma, CA.

Integrative boutique program specializes in starting and developing young horses and helping horses with behavioral and/or nervous system challenges.

Paddock living with three-sided, bedded shelter and turnout on grass. Excellent care.

Our vibe is supportive and fun. We value learning, enjoying the process and a bit of horse showing.

Text or call for more info. 925-330-4602.

11/13/2024

Is your young horse ready to go to Kindergarten? Maybe your older horse needs to go back to kindergarten?!🤣

What we do:

⭐️We specialize in giving young horses a confident start under saddle and help to change the lives of horses with behavioral challenges (bucking, rearing, stopping, bolting, spooking, hard to catch etc.)

⭐️We develop well-rounded horses that can hack out, are incredibly confident to the jumps and establish a base in dressage

⭐️We start from the ground-up to develop a personal plan for you and your horse! We use a variety of “natural horsemanship” techniques that inform our use of the classical system. Large knowledge of biomechanics and a penchant for figuring out that “wierd body quirk” that is keeping your horse from excelling in her job.

⭐️We help horses and owners feel confident in every step of the interaction from haltering, through your ride, to putting the horse away to winning in the ring

⭐️Exceptional facility in Petaluma with three rings, a cross country course, acres of private trails, lots of turnout and great care

Spot Available December 1.
🥶🥶🥶 Winter is coming and we want you to feel confident going to the barn!
Give us a call!

09/23/2024

The very sweetest horse is available to lease at beautiful Hawkwood Hill!

Gentle Giant Best Boi Available for In-Barn Lease!
18.2 hand hunk of love is looking for a partner that wants to do jump 3’ and below. Barn Favorite with nice natural rhythm excels in all three rings and also does dressage! Loves to trail ride and hack out. Four white socks and very flashy! Horsemanship centered program focuses on clear communication between horse and rider. Must be in full training. Petaluma, CA. If this sounds like it’s just what you’re looking for or you want to know more, text (nine2five) three3zero-four6zerotwo.

03/14/2024

In Barn Lease of the very best gentle giant available in Petaluma!

Gentle Giant Best Boi Available for In-Barn Lease!
18.2 hand hunk of love is looking for a partner that wants to do jump 3’ and below. Barn Favorite with nice natural rhythm excels in all three rings and also does dressage! Loves to trail ride and hack out. Four white socks and very flashy! Horsemanship centered program focuses on clear communication between horse and rider. Must be in full training. Petaluma, CA. If this sounds like it’s just what you’re looking for or you want to know more, text (nine2five) three3zero-four6zerotwo.

03/14/2024

Gentle Giant Best Boi Available for In-Barn Lease!
18.2 hand hunk of love is looking for a partner that wants to do jump 3’ and below. Barn Favorite with nice natural rhythm excels in all three rings and also does dressage! Loves to trail ride and hack out. Four white socks and very flashy! Horsemanship centered program focuses on clear communication between horse and rider. Must be in full training. Petaluma, CA. If this sounds like it’s just what you’re looking for or you want to know more, text (nine2five) three3zero-four6zerotwo.