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Horse First

Monday, January 29, 2024

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 One of the things that is most mind boggling in many various aspects of the equestrian world is that many people look at these animals as machines rather than as partners. Now I'm not saying that every horse person in the world who competes or uses these animals to make money is evil money hungry and ruthless. 

But many are. 

And that's one of the aspects of the horse world that I do not like. My own goals have been pushed back due to injury of my horses. And I could have rushed the healing process or not waited to ensure their longevity, but is that fair?

Or should we as humans adjust our timelines to ensure that our equine partners are better off in the long run? 

I think it's the latter. 

There will always be another race or rodeo or show or whatever it is. But that horse? There is one of them. There might be others similar, but, not withstanding clones, there is just one of that horse. I think that we can balance the business of horses with the best care practices of the animals that we rely on to make us this money. And it might mean making some sacrifices for riders, trainers, and owners...but didn't we get into this arena for the love of the horses? 

I have recently seen some really gross behavior for clout online with horses including a girl who threw a slushee at her horse for views. I see people yanking on their horses mouth or even a professional barrel racer whipping a horse in the head with an over and under at an event. Not to mention the woman who was shocking her horse when it was refusing the alley. I love my sport, and I love rodeo. But I love horses more, and ultimately I will always do what is best for my animal. 

And I will continue to call out this bad behavior, and hope that you will too. 

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Horse Fact Friday: Futurities and Derbies Oh My!

Friday, January 26, 2024

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The world of barrel racing can be confusing with all of the associations and options and events. This post is going to specifically talk about juvenile events, futurities, and derbies in the barrel racing world. There are other events that have juvenile, futurity, and derby events as well. 

These are less "rules" than general guidelines as each association governing the event is free to make their own rules, although most are fairly similar. 

A juvenile horse is a three year old that has not raced previously. Horses running in this event are unproven in the arena. 

A futurity horse is a four OR five year old that has not previously competed. In former years, these were all four year old. However, many organizations have begun letting people hold a horse back and still compete during its five year old year. There are many reasons a horse may be held back including injury, immaturity, rider health, etc. 

Derby horses typically have two years old eligibility either at their five and six year old year or their six and seven year old years. Derby horses could be horses that have not previously competed, but most move from competing at futurities into competing at derbies. Some derby entries offer incentive prizes to the horses that previously competed in their futurity. 

Regardless of the organization all juvenile, futurity, or derby horses MUST be able to prove their age. Most require breed registration papers, however there are some that will allow a letter from a licensed veterinarian verifying age of an animal without registration papers. If questioned, this must be corroborated by the event's veterinarian. 

There are also additional incentives that allow both juvenile, futurity, derby, and open horses which is an entirely different blog post. 

As a reminder, this is in no way a completely comprehensive blog post about all of the intricacies to navigate the world of futurity colts. This is a very general informative post for beginners to our industry. I have gotten some nasty rude messages from people indicating that I need to stop sharing information that is so basic. That is the purpose of the majority of my Horse Fact Friday posts that I cross post to Barrel Racer University is to be basic beginner information for those just starting out. So please, if you have something negative or nasty to say keep it to yourself. That's not what my mission is with this blog or BRU. 


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A Year of Big Goal Prep

Monday, January 22, 2024

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I can feel my old confidence coming back recently. I've been riding more, and it feels like the more I ride the more confident I feel. 

Some years ago I discussed with my therapist about "faking it until you're making it" as a way to combat anxiety, and it wasn't until now that I feel it's working. I still feel have the physical sensation of being anxious, but I've essentially tricked my brain into believing it's excitement rather than nervousness. 

I've also been fortunate enough to have a great friend who owns an arena and multiple different horses allow me to ride her horses while mine are in various stages of training or pregnancy and unable to ride. I think riding these different horses also helps because it's like every successful ride, especially on an unfamiliar horse, reinforces my knowledge that I am a good rider. 

I know that eventually that pesky little voice embedded in my brain by years of an ex telling me I wasn't a good rider or good enough will only pop up occasionally instead of constantly. I just have to work through it and not give up. I have to tell that voice to sit down and shut up instead of it belittling me into making myself smaller. 

I have big goals, and this year I am making moves to work towards those goals. Because by 2025, I want to be doing the damn thing. 

What are your goals?

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Financing Your Dream

Monday, January 15, 2024

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How do you afford to have all these horses and focus on your rodeo and barrel racing goals, Rhonda?

I think this is a question that gets asked of anyone pursuing their dreams when the dream is a pay to play game, like rodeo and barrel racing. No doubt it's tough as there is no guarantee payday. You have to pay to even have a chance to win money. No sick days, no paid vacations, the work is every single day of the year despite the weather or how you're feeling. 

Money was the excuse I used for a long time as to why I couldn't chase these dreams, and money was legitimately a part of it. I did not grow up in a rodeo family. A horse family, yes. But not rodeo or barrel racing. I also did not grow up in a rich family. Money was often tight. 

As an adult, there were times I was in survival mode. If you are in survival mode, please know that I am not speaking to you in this blog. When someone is in survival mode, they are only focused on the minimum needed to stay alive. I completely understand when people are worried about putting food on the table that they are NOT going to focus on side hustles or chasing dreams that don't have a guarantee. I hate when people preach a "pull yourself up by your bootstraps" to people who can barely afford shoes. Soapbox about that over! 

Now that I am not in survival mode, some ways I contribute to our household monetarily are starting my own businesses. This allows me to schedule my time around the horses. 

I am co-owner of a western + cowgirl boutique called Neon Daisy. Before this shop I did own a bookish themed shop that was quite successful, but I closed it down because of personal reasons within that specific niche that I could not take mentally anymore. I almost closed down Neon Daisy as well, but then I found a partner to help me and things are much better. 

You can shop Neon Daisy here! We are shopneondaisy on all social media platforms, and we have an affiliate program where you can earn commissions. 

I also am a brand affiliate for a few places (like you can be for Neon Daisy), so when people order using my code I earn a commission. I do this with Amazon, so when I create blog posts about products and link them I earn commission. You'll always see a notice about this on my blog posts. I suggest signing up for those with products you feel strong about. 

I also give beginner barrel racing lessons as well as some general riding lessons through Barrel Racer University (click for more info. and to follow us online) which is a program I started after noticing that beginners did not have a place to go to learn at a reasonable price in my local area. I also help intermediate to advanced riders trouble shoot with their horses. I started this a few weeks ago, and classes have been full. Eventually I hope to add an online paid program component as well. 

I also teach a homeschool horsemanship class for a homeschool program that I am part of. Follow that here. 

As you can see I don't have a SINGLE source of income, but rather several things that added together provide for me financially. And I am working on making the rest of our farm profitable so that we can qualify for USDA grants. This is something I am working on starting this year. Follow along here for that! 

I am fortunate enough that my partner takes care of things financially for our family. If I did not have him this would be harder as I would have to be working full time for someone else. But there are tons of ways you can earn extra money in addition to the things I already listed. I'm going to give you a list below! 

Ways to Finance Your Dream
        • re-do furniture you find on craigslist
        • sell things you make
        • sell artwork you make
        • sell digital items 
        • design and sell notebooks (amazon has a program for this)
        • do a print on demand apparel shop
        • monetize your YouTube
        • monetize your podcast
        • brand affiliate commissions
        • walk dogs (use the Rover or Wag app)
        • clean stalls for pay at stables
        • sell your knowledge
        • teach a homeschool class
        • give lessons 
I'm sure there are tons more ideas, and I believe in you finding something that works for you! If you're trying to figure out a way to just ride some horses, I suggest offering to trade labor for riding lessons. 

Thanks for being so supportive. 
Make sure to follow me on social media for more! 

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Horse Fact Friday: Bell Boots

Friday, January 12, 2024

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Bell Boots

Do I really need them on my horse?

The short answer for this is maybe. 

Not all horses overreach which is what the bell boot protects from. Overreaching is when the front of the hind hoof hits the bulb on the back of the front hoof which can cause injury, pull shoes, and be painful for your horse. 

There are certain sports that are prone to creating situations and movements of the horse that make the chance of an overreaching injury more common. Sports like reining, barrel racing, jumping, etc. that test a horse's athleticism it is recommended that bell boots be worn. 

Some horses need them in the paddock as well just because they are prone to this specific type of injury. 

Overall, whether the horse does or doesn't need them it does not hurt to have these on. There is no real negative consequences like we see with overheating in leg protection. Plus they come in a ton of varieties so you can play around and have the cutest colors on your horse. 

Just make sure they fit properly. You should be able to fit at least a finger between the bell boot and your horse's pastern. The bell boot should also nearly touch the ground when the horse is standing still. 

If you need help putting them on check out this video:


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Beating Anxiety

Monday, January 8, 2024

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Me + Spanky

I've been on a slight high when I realized that I had zero anxiety hopping onto my friend's stallion, Spanky, to do my first beginner barrel racing group lesson last week. I did not once think a single thought or let them get all tangled in my head picturing the worst that could happen. I just hopped up there, and he is the perfect gentleman.

I was anxious about giving the lesson because I wanted the kids to feel like they learned something, had fun, and found an appreciation for the sport. But that didn't translate to my riding at all, which I have struggled with recently, specifically with my red mare, PopTart. 

I did put into practice the thought process of telling myself that I was EXCITED rather than anxious to do the class and ride a new horse. I kept repeating that to myself, and then once the class got started I was so focused on helping the kids and answering their questions and giving them critiques and encouraging them that I completely forgot anything about myself.

Since PopTart is currently pregnant I don't really have to worry about riding her currently, so my goal is to ride a bunch of different horses. Just get on them and go because I know I have the skills in the logical side of my brain; it's just that pesky emotional side that wants to play a montage of everything that *could* go wrong as I start to swing my leg over. 

I do believe that repetition is the only way to truly master something and for me right now that repetition is just riding and riding again. Then getting on another horse and riding it until that emotional side of my brain accepts that I am a good rider and that I don't need to create a situation where there is none. 

I just need to drown out that voice that told me for years and years that I wasn't a good rider despite never actually seeing me ride. The voice that told me that I would never make it in the horse industry. The voice that made fun of my looks, my talents, my likes, my dislikes, pretty much everything about me as they tried to change me into someone completely different than myself. 

And personally, I think that the sound of hoofbeats as I do the thing that fills my soul with joy is the way to drown it out. 

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Horse Fact Friday: Leg Protection

Friday, January 5, 2024

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With all of the horse products on the market it can be hard to know what things you need and are good for your horse or what things don't really do what they claim and can be detrimental to your horse. It's really hard to get a clear opinion as if you were to ask 100 people about any given horse topic, you'd likely get 100 different opinions and answers. 

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I did a TON of research on myths and claims made about different types of leg protection for horses, and I'm going to share the results in this post. Please remember that this these posts are never to take the place of veterinary advice.

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First, let's talk about the claims that sports boots support the inner tendons of the leg or reduce shock to the bones. Every study that I found proved this claim as false except studies that were sponsored by sports boots companies and even those reports only used cadaver limbs of horses which means the lack of blood flow to the tissue means they already do not absorb energy well. I have linked all of the studies used to write this below. 

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The Superior Digital Flexor Tendon (SDFT), Deep Digital Flexor Tendon (DDFT), and the suspensory ligament in the horse have a combined strain of 1000 kg (more than 2200 pounds) when loping. Because of this high force it takes more than simply wrapping something around it to help. 

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The same goes for polo wraps or any type of wrap that is placed on a horse's leg. 

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Next, let's discuss the detriments of the heat that accumulates in a wrapped leg, whether in a sport boot, or a polo wrap. The study I looked at took temperatures of horse's legs at rest, after twenty minutes of lunging, both wrapped and unwrapped. 

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Unwrapped legs at rest had an average of 14.1 C with an +/- of 2.4 C while after working went to a 14.4 C with an +/- of 1.8 C. 

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Legs wearing sports boots were on average 15.3 C with a +/- of 2.6 C at rest, while after working went to 20.6 C with a +/- of 2.9 C. 

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Polo wraps were on average 15.3 C with a +/- of 1.6 C at rest, while after working went to a 24.8 C with a +/- of 3.6 C. 

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We can clearly see that having something on the leg increases the temperature of the leg especially after working. The theory is that sports boots are often more breathable than the layers of fleece polo wraps which accounts for those temperature differences. 

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But why is that important?

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It's important because higher temperature at the core of a tendon should be considered a risk factor for injuries. Overall, leg protection is helpful for strikes on the leg but not for tendon support on the internal structures. 

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Soooo, should you be putting leg protection on your horse?

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That's completely up to you. If you do put leg protection on your horse be sure to not leave them on too long, as you don't want to increase that internal temperature on the leg. I would also say it's dependent upon the type of riding or what sport you're doing. 

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I personally only put leg protection on when actually running the barrel pattern as I want them to have protection if they were to knock a barrel and it hits their lower limb. I do not wear them when just riding, trail riding, or in slow work because of that increased risk due to overheating. 

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Follow Barrel Racer University on social media!

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LINKS to articles - copy and paste into browser to read

https://doi.org/10.1016/50737-0806(00)70231.0

https://doi.org/10.2460/ajvr.75.4.375

https://doi.org/10.1055/s-0038-1632542



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2024 Goals

Tuesday, January 2, 2024

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Well y'all it's 2024.
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And I have some big goals this year. We also have some new horses coming this year to set some goals for them as well.
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My personal goals are to work on my rider fitness consistently. I need to have low, medium, and high energy days since I deal with some health issues and can't always do an intense work out. That tends to hold me back because I tend to lean to the side of all or nothing. And then when I can't do the all...I get disappointed in myself.
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As for the horses!
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PopTart: Since she's pregnant her goals are a little light because baby should be born in March, then we have nursing mama time which will lead us into fall. At which point we will work on legging up and re-starting the pattern. I'd really just like to get her style down and connect. For some reason, I have a mental block with this mare which keeps me from letting her run. I want to get over that. 
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PopTart baby: Literally it's only thing is to be born healthy and get weaned, halter broke, lead, and be used to being handled. 
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Bash: He has the big goals this year. He's finally being started under saddle and prepping for his five year old futurity year. He's been behind because of his injury as a two year old, but everything is fully healed, so we are ready. 
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Sandman: His goal is to get halter broke and get used to being handled. He's still so spooky and weary of us. 
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Pep: I'd really like her to recover to broodmare sound this year, so we will be working on that. 
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Disco: She is getting started under saddle to be ridden by my step kiddo. She is ready for a job and a human to love her.
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Sierra (new girl coming): We need to assess whether or not she's broke, and if she is then getting her in shape and started on something will be priority. If not, then we will go back and fill in the gaps.
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Zorro (new guy coming): He needs to gain a little weight, then get in shape. I plan to use him as an additional lesson horse for BRU. 
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Then we have the donkey crew. Currently we have Melvin, but three more are coming. I'd like them all to be halter broke, lead and tie well, and load easily. 
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What are you 2024 horse goals? 
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Make sure to follow me on social media for more in-depth insights into these goals as well as seeing me achieve them. 
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Click HERE to find all my links! 


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