Pro-Turned Ammy: Burned Out and Wondering What’s Next
BY SOPHIA JURGENS
And then it was over. The dream I had since childhood, since I was that little horse girl running around in muddy paddock boots and a glittery “I LOVE PONIES” t-shirt, was...
20 Things That Scare Adult Amateurs Way More Than Goblins and Ghosts
BY LAUREN MAULDIN
It's officially spooky season, and that means a lot more to riders than the average person—especially us adult amateur folks. We're on the lookout for "spooks" all year round. But it's not...
Quick Intervention Helps Foal Return to Loving Family
By Jump Media
A new life is something to celebrate, but when a newborn foal has complications and a fever of unknown origin, the fear can be overwhelming. For Robin Hogan, of Myrland Stables in...
Who Said Old is a Bad Thing?
BY JACKY FRIEDMAN
Why don’t more people seek out an older horse for the inexperienced rider? Learning to ride is a challenge, so working with a young horse often just makes it harder. When my...
It Happens! Stephanie Bowers, Julie Winkel, Catherine Tyree and Lisa Wu
We all make mistakes. But horse people, as a group, aren’t always the best at handling them. So TPH reached out to some top riders to share their own show ring bloopers to prove,...
Seven Stress Management Strategies for the Saddle
BY LINDSEY ANUZIS GAGE
I think we can all agree that there are some serious stressors in the world right now: a global pandemic, problems in the middle east, political polarization... all heavy topics thrown...
Honoring Your Mental Health is Good Horsemanship
BY ANONYMOUS
Outside of the horse world, the predominant Olympic buzz was about Simone Biles. Despite some of the comments directed at Simone Biles for withdrawing from the team and individual Olympic finals, the overwhelmingly...
Catching Up with the Herd (of Zebras)
By Forest Franzoi
We can’t believe it’s been four years since our first ever blog post in The Plaid Horse! The Herd has come a long way since then, and we’re excited to fill you...
Remembering Kip Rosenthal
Rider, Trainer, Judge, Horsewoman (1951–2020)
BY JUDY RICHTER
Kip Rosenthal’s lifelong passion for horses began officially at age 10 when she began taking riding lessons once a week from Anne and Frank Grenci at Fox Hill...
The Draft Cross That Had Never Jumped Becomes the Perfect First Horse
BY MOLLY CLUTTER
Like many of us, I have always loved horses. When I was around six my grandpa took me to a riding lesson to try something new, and I instantly fell in love...
Djuna-Bear Lauder On Winning, Learning, and the Illusion of Perfection
BY RENNIE DYBALL
Junior rider Djuna-Bear Lauder has had many show ring successes competing in the 3'6" Junior Hunters and the Children’s Jumpers. But it was a recent not-so-spectacular moment in the ring that she...
Unpacking Your Horse’s Origin Story
BY DUNCAN MCINTOSH
Every domesticated horse was created by a human decision, and ultimately most come to the most important decision that’s made for them—to be sold.
People who sell horses for a living must have...
‘He Is Happiest at the Horse Shows’
Hadley Zeavin on Why Her 27-Year-Old Horse Griffin Is Still Thriving
BY HADLEY ZEAVIN
The eighteen months before I got Griffin in 2013 were the hardest of my life due to a bad riding accident and...
A Pony, A Girl, And 100 Miles of Trail: Kyla Law And Flash Tackle...
BY JESSIE LOCHRIE
You know the story.
It’s the plot of The Black Stallion, National Velvet, and the dream of countless horse-crazy little girls: a young rider forms a powerful bond with an opinionated horse, and...
Carly & Hercules: The Senior Horse Project
Photographer Jessica Sanders started the Senior Horse Project to showcase the special, long-standing relationships between riders and their senior horses. Featuring seniors over 25 years old, she shares the photos of the partnership. These stories share some...
F you, cancer. Thank you, CZ.
By Janina Lagemann-Doné
This is the story of a horse and a diagnosis. The horse, Cayenne Z (CZ for short), is a 16.2 gelding I’d never met before. The diagnosis—a 6-centimeter tumor I didn’t know...
When you’re at Mechlin Farm, You’re Family
BY NINA FEDRIZZI
Barbecue is serious business in the Midwest, and St. Louis, Missouri might well be the capital. At Mechlin Farm in Wright City, less than an hour from St. Louis’s iconic downtown Gateway...
The Invisible Fault: How do you Talk to Your Riders About Mental Health?
BY JENNY SWANSON
Mental health needs a more open and diverse discussion with the professionals in our industry that juniors and amateurs regard as leaders. As a mental health professional, I have recently spent a...
Valuing Your Team: More Than a ‘Thank You’
By Kara Pinato Scro/Jump Media
As an owner, trainer, or manager of an equestrian operation, your team extends beyond your day-to-day staff. Veterinarians, farriers, bodyworkers, and part-time help all play an integral part in...
Horse Show Husband and Dad—Dressage Edition
BY GORDON BALLANTYNE
To jump or not to jump—that is the question facing my family’s senior equestrian.
“He doesn’t like to jump,” Mama declared emphatically one day.
“Did he tell you that? He is a top three...
Finding the Right Mindset for Riding
Halie Robinson shares her journey from working student & top junior rider to a professional running her own business, Huntridge, LLC. After years spent learning from mental skills professional, Tonya Johnston, Halie discusses the...
It Happens! Pony Edition
We all make mistakes. But horse people, as a group, aren’t always the best at handling them. So TPH reached out to some top riders to share their own show ring bloopers to prove,...
