Novelty: Key to Horses and Riders

New additions to my herd are Bug and Barry. Bug is a four-year old Utah mustang. During his young life, he’s been passed from one owner to the next, six owners in total, before landing with me. Barry is a ten-year old Tennessee Walker with […]

Close Encounters with the Amygdala

I live in a rural town and don’t travel much. But last month, I found myself driving my truck camper through St. Louis. In heavy traffic. In heavy rain. In darkness. I grew disoriented and nervous. My heart rate increased. My hands gripped the wheel […]

What’s NOT in your Horse’s Head

Horses are not people. We know this is true. But attend any horse event, enter any tack shop, open any horse magazine and you’ll come away thinking otherwise. You’ll be convinced horses have feelings, motivations, and goals. We tend to replace their simple needs with […]

Wobble Board Science

Most of us will not pursue a neuroscience doctorate in between trail rides and hay tossings. But we can skim equine neurology’s surface to improve our horse-human connection. We’ve talked about dopamine, the feel-good brain chemical. But there are scores of other chemicals in the […]