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I
have been working with horses my whole life. My first horse was a yearling buckskin mare that I got when I was five years
old. She was not broke and I started riding her bareback because I was too little to lift a saddle up on her back. I rode
her this way for two years until I got big enough that I could put a saddle on her. At the age of nine, I got a Shetland Pony
that I broke to ride and drive. That pony was real contrary, but I had a lot of fun training that pony because it was such
a challenge.
I
bred my buckskin mare a couple of times, and out of her I got a palomino colt and an albino mare. I broke both of them to
ride when I was eleven and twelve years old. I rode both of them in numerous parades during my Cub and Boy Scout years.
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| The next generation of horse trainers. |
At the age of twenty-three
I broke a Thoroughbred stud for a friend and realized I enjoyed the challenge of training horses, so decided that I would
pursue horse training as a profession. I enjoyed the challenge of figuring out what works for each individual horse. My next
two horses that I trained were wild horses that come from the B.L.M. I also spent some time at a Spanish Mustang ranch out
west working with some of those Mustangs that had been raised in roaming herds and were basically wild. I also worked with
a local Sherrif’s department training several Trotters that came of the track, turning them into dependable Mounted
Patrol horses.
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| Out for a family trail ride. |
Over the years I have
owned and trained several different breeds of horses, including Tennessee Walkers, Standardbreds (Trotters), Thoroughbreds,
Quarter Horses, Spanish Mustangs, and Hackneys. I have also worked with Draft Horses, Arabians, Paints, Ponies, Gaited Horses, and Grade Horses.
Each horse has had its
own distinctive personality and I have learned that what works with one horse will not necessarily work with another. I enjoy
the challenge of figuring out what each individual horse needs in its training program. My methods very from horse to horse,
depending on what their particular needs may be.
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| In Grandpa's image. |
Over
the years, I have developed methods that correct bad behavior yet do not involve abusive methods. Beating on a horse or using
other abusive actions only compounds the problems they already have. I specialize in working with horses with behavior
problems that owners or other trainers have not been able to turn into good, dependable horses. Most, if not all horses, want
to be useful and only need to understand what is expected of them; and to respect the person handling them, much the same
way a young child learns from their parents. In many ways, horses are like innocent children and can be guided into becoming
pleasurable mounts for their owners.
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