What do we mean by Senior Horsemanship?  How is is different from horsemanship in the first half of life? Paul describes how your horsemanship can change in the senior part of life IF you learn to use  your mind more and your muscles less on your path to better horsemanship.  If your horsemanship is defined by your success in the show ring or in lessons, you're probably not on the senior horsemanship journey.  If you've learned to work on building a trusting relationship with your horse, you probably are. Horsemanship is a creative process in the senior part of life.  ..read more

In this episode of the Senior Horsemanship Podcast, I talk about planning for after us. That is planning for our horses' care if we can't care for them anymore. One possibility is to adopt a horse from a rescue like Bluebonnet Equine Humane Society. Bluebonnet retains ownership of the horse and will always take the horse back if the adopter can't care for it. Bluebonnet will also provide training and fostering to make the horse more adoptable. If you don't live in Texas, perhaps there's a rescue with similar policies. Another option is to provide for your horses in your estate plan. We'll be ..read more

There are many good reasons for seniors to volunteer for Bluebonnet Equine Humane Society in Texas or at similar horse rescues in other areas. According to Dr. Jennifer Williams, Executive Director at Bluebonnet, the top reasons are: Seniors fostering horses can do that for a limited time and get a fostering stipend to offset some of the costs of having horses. Seniors volunteering in other ways can be involved in promoting the welfare of horses without the responsibilities and costs of owning horses. If you have a skill or interest, there's probably something you can do to help horses in res ..read more

So in summary, here are four good reasons why you should consider adopting from Bluebonnet if you’re a senior living in Texas. #1 - You get an honest health and training history for the horse you adopt. Anything Bluebonnet knows, you will know.  #2 - You get a 30 day period to try the horse at your barn and if the horse doesn’t work out, you can return the horse and get your adoption fee back.  #3 - If your circumstances change and due to finances or health, you can’t keep your horse Bluebonnet will always take that horse back and find a new good home for it.  #4 - You get the s ..read more

It comes back to whether or not we accept that definition of a good horseman or horsewoman: “A good horseman or horsewoman is someone who, in an educated way, always puts the best interest of the horse first and foremost.” This is a quote from the book, Begin and Begin Again - The Bright Optimism of Reinventing Life with Horses, by Denny Emerson. Welcome to the Senior Horsemanship Podcast. Which was the Second Half Horsemanship Podcast. We'll be talking about better horsemanship in the senior part of life. For most of us that means horsemanship for the love of it.  That means horsemansh ..read more

A burden of these years is to allow all the stereotypes of old age to hold me back. To hold me down. To stop the flow of life in me. A blessing of these years. Is that they give me the chance to break the bounds of a past life. And to create for myself, a life more suited to what I now want to be.  This is a quote from the book, The Gift of Years, Growing Older Gracefully, by Joan Chittister. Do you want to be able to ride for years into the future? Do you want your horse to be healthy for years into the future? Do you want to be able to care for your horse as you get older? If you can ..read more

I’ve also become increasingly aware of how challenging it is to age. Our bodies change, grief finds us more frequently, we listen as our doctor tells us about invasive health screenings we must endure. Health insurance goes up and energy goes down. But along with all of that, I also notice the frost on a horse’s whiskers in the winter. How on a chilly morning, the wind catches the mist of their breath. How standing beside them allows me to calm down and experience a grounded sense of peace. The rhythmic sound of horses chewing. Watching them gather hay into their mouths. Feeling their warm hu ..read more

A burden of these years is to fail to get beyond the bitterness of having been displaced, and to not see that being moved quietly off all the platforms of life is also to be free of the stagecraft that goes with them. A blessing of these years is to wake up one morning and find ourselves drunk with a very thought of being alive. Then wherever we go, we will spread the joy we have finally been able to find in ourselves. This is a quote from the book, The Gift of Years, Growing Older Gracefully by Joan Chittister.   Welcome to the Senior Horsemanship Podcast, which was the Second Ha ..read more

The Second Half Horsemanship Podcast has its roots in much earlier efforts. About 12 years ago, I launched a Yahoo group and a website called Mature Riders which was intended for horse people in middle-age. I was in my late fifties so the timing seemed about right.  Then in 2015, I launched a website called Saddle Up Again for riders in midlife and beyond. That attracted some interest, but it seemed to be targeting a group that didn't identify itself as midlife and beyond. That made it a marketing challenge.  So earlier this year I launched the Second Half Horsemanship Podcast, aga ..read more

When I was a kid, I was largely taught by more experienced horse people. My mentors owned a riding school and I worked casually for them in exchange for lessons. They taught me everything from how to tie a knot to how to perform a half halt and position a horse in front of a jump. All the basic skills that a person needs to know at the beginning began by religiously following the instruction of my two mentors. I didn’t think too much about what I was told or why things were done that way. It was what it was because my mentors said so. So today 90% of my new knowledge comes from horses and thin ..read more