Fine Print Farms

22/07/2025

18/07/2025

17/07/2025

11/07/2025

10/07/2025

Movement should never be a punishment. Movement IS the reward- movement in balance, never away from the person but WITH them.

Quite often I encounter horses who escape the drive aid, are anxious about forward movement, or escalate when going up into the trot and canter.

If we want the horse to be both forward AND calm, we have to think logically about how we present the drive aid and movement. If the horse isn’t getting in the trailer and we run them around in circles outside the trailer, frantically out of balance, until they get in - how will they magically transfer this to balanced movement on the lunge line? If we spin them around in circles at the gate to make stopping here the “wrong” thing, how does the horse know when going back to work that movement is no longer adverse?

How is the horse supposed to parse out when we don’t care if they’re balanced and when we do? How are they supposed to know movement is a punishment one moment, but not another? How are they supposed to become calm and centered if we use the very thing we want them to do, which is move, as a way to put them off balance enough to “behave”?

A calm and balanced horse requires a calm and thoughtful handler- I try to take things one step further. After this horse in on the trailer, how will these principles apply later? After this horse is away from the gate, then what? Good training is layered in thoughtfully, one moment at a time.

04/07/2025

Sometimes the crash comes AFTER the stress

You bought a horse that seemed sound, well adjusted and well trained. You get it home and the poor thing is lame and crawling out of its skin.

Were you conned ?

Maybe

But there are two other possibilities

1- the horse was adjusted to a certain routine, manner and frequency of riding, diet, etc and is now struggling outside of that routine that has helped to keep going - now the horse might feel like a border collie in an apartment without enough opportunity for movement.
(lots of articles have been written about this and it’s well worth looking into)

2- the horse was under some form of stress that has now ended and turned into another -
The stress of decompressing.

Brains are wired to keep us alive. Bodies are made to keep going.
Horses are incredible survivors - they can keep going and being pretty athletic under incredible duress. They are wired to not stop and say ouch at every pain and tweak, even with lameness and developing dysfunctions - because they NEED to. They can look sound when they are under stress. All you need to do to understand this is imagine a lion chasing a horse and know they will run until they are caught or free - and if the lion is the training, the lifestyle, the expectation, they will hold together until they can’t anymore .

So then they are purchased and pulled from this intensive lifestyle and now living in the lap of luxury - they have no reason to be stressed, so we think -

Now they face the lengthy decompression period. Compensation mechanisms are falling away and the horse is left naked here. They don’t know what to do. What to expect. Everything is upside down. The compensations that have kept them tight kept them safe too, and now they are wobbly, insecure and naked.

This is where they need HELP, not just supplements and bodywork and kindness. They need time, sure, but they need guidance. Not knowing what to expect can drive a horse half crazy.

They need some form of structure. A stable herd. A stable guiding hand that can clearly show them the new ropes. Not too fast in expectations but don’t wait too long to show them the new ropes either.

Your language is likely very different. Maybe your goals totally upside down from the training they’ve had. You might be changing everything from head to toe, thinking you’re offering a soft landing, which you likely are - but think of the confusion in their upside down experience - help clarify, guide, explain, show, and support.

And of course, continue giving them supports- maybe the gut needs help right away, or some dietary changes. And of course it can take time, but there are some things that can be helped and should be helped right away.

02/07/2025

We have some more new additions at the farm.

Please do not try to approach or touch.

Enjoy from a distance!

❤️❤️❤️

02/07/2025

Muscle Monday - Longissimus Dorsi

The LONG-issimus dorsi is the longest muscle in the equine body. Although this muscle is the largest and most well know muscle of the back, it extends from the sacrum all the way up to the C4 vertebrae in the neck.

--- Function ---
The longissimus dorsi originates at the sacrum, ilium (pelvis), and along each lumbar and thoracic vertebrae. The longissimus dorsi inserts along the transverse processes of the vertebrae and the tubercles of ribs. Because the longissimus dorsi connects to the dorsal and transverse processes of all of the back vertebrae, it is the most powerful extensor muscle of the back.

- When both sides of the longissimus dorsi engage together, the spine is extended.

- When one side engages, the spine is flexed laterally.

- The longissimus dorsi also stabilizes the spinal column and transmits energy during movement.

This is one of the primary muscles to consider when fitting a saddle. Unlike the thin trapezius, which acts as more of a shoulder muscle, the longissimus dorsi is a large back muscle that can bear the weight of a saddle. I'll show a visual of this in the next post.

01/07/2025

26/06/2025

25/06/2025

Everyone ready to see some Jessie baby pics…?

Stay tuned …

😍

C**T OR FILLY? 💙💗

24/06/2025

🔥𝗟𝗲𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝘄𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗿𝘂𝗴𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝘄𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗮𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗼𝗺𝗲

Your horse doesn’t cool down by drying off - they cool by evaporation.

Scraping water off or trapping heat under a sweat rug undermines cooling and puts your horse’s health at risk. This isn’t opinion — it’s basic thermoregulation.

Sweat scrapers and sweat rugs are outdated dogma. And yet, disappointingly, some large equine clinics are still promoting their use today.

In 34°C heat, that advice is not just wrong — it’s dangerous.

Follow the science. Choose vets who understand equine physiology, not just tradition.

✅ Soak.
✅ Shade.
✅ Repeat.
❌ No scraping.
❌ No rugs.