Innholdsfortegnelse for Winter 2025 i Horse & Rider

➞ Some horses are born eager to hunt a cow, while others—no matter how broke—would rather conserve energy and hang back. A horse that’s dull to your leg or slow to react can make working a cow frustrating and unproductive. The goal isn’t just to get through the run—it’s to teach your horse to drive up into a cow with purpose and maintain forward momentum without constant kicking or nagging from you. In this exercise, you’ll learn how to wake up a horse that’s slow or reluctant to engage by using the cow itself to create energy and accountability. The focus is on making your horse push forward, follow through each stop and turn, and close the gap between stopping and re-engaging. The result? A more responsive, forward-thinking partner that’s…

When the weather keeps your child out of the saddle, here are tips to keep their interest and knowledge growing. ➞ Unless you live in a state with a mild winter, the season’s harshest months can mean less time in the saddle. While it might not be exactly what your child wants, it can be the perfect time to grow their knowledge about their horses, care, gear, and nutrition. Grow Their Horse Knowledge There’s a good chance your rider is still learning all the parts of the horse. This is the perfect time to master their knowledge while still having fun. We work on learning the parts of the horse in a few ways. We can hand them a stack of cards with double-sided tape and ask them to place…

Have you ever heard this one? One sock, buy him Two socks, try him Three socks, doubt him Four socks, do without him! Yep. It’s true. Old-time horsemen were known to advise against purchasing a horse with four white socks. Why? Because white socks meant white feet, and white feet were “weak.” Of course, these days, any horse you purchase is likely to be subjected to a thorough prepurchase examination, including not just a physical exam but also radiographs and maybe even ultrasound or MRI. And guess what? There’s been many a successful high-level performance horse with four white feet. So if you wouldn’t turn to ancient advice when purchasing a horse, why would you depend on worn-out traditions to help you manage him once you bring him home? The…

When weather doesn’t cooperate, don’t let a small indoor arena stunt your growth. ➞ For many riders, winter means you might be stuck riding in a small indoor arena when the weather doesn’t cooperate. That doesn’t mean you take a hiatus; it means you learn to work with what you have. Here I’ll share six tips for making the most of your smaller riding area. Tip 1: Work at the Jog/Trot Working at a jog makes you slow everything down so you can refine it. Work on small circles and arc exercises, moving off your leg, and turning/rolling back at a jog or trot to dial-in your correctness. Tip 2: Square Your Corners It might seem counterintuitive, but making square corners can improve the roundness of your circles. When you…

Evaluate and place these 2-year-old reining mares. Then see how your choices compare to our expert judge’s. ➞ WHEN JUDGING CONFORMATION, sometimes the top horse will be the most obvious, but if not, I may reverse the process and start with identifying which horse in the class shows the least positives. That was the case with this class of young reining mares. The first and second-place mares were more difficult to separate than the second and third-place pair, so I determined my third-place horse first. Then I looked carefully at my top two and applied the judging criteria of balance, structural correctness, breed and sex characteristics, and muscling. The first and second-place mares are alike in many positive traits, but also enough different that the first-place mare became clear. Her…

I wasn’t looking for a life partner when I saw the first photos of him—“Magic”—while following his neglect case from the kitchen table of my friend Deb Noem, owner of Sunrise Ranch in Morning View, Kentucky, where I’d been riding horses for several years. She helps horses out of bad situations and finds them new homes by volunteering her talent and horse trailer to rescue groups like Speak Up for Horses with the goal of saving just one more animal. I was blown away by Magic’s stance and beauty. I asked Deb if she was bringing him to the ranch. “Probably not,” she replied. “He isn’t even gelded yet, and I don’t need that kind of nonsense at a barn with kids. I’m going to focus on the babies, and…

TRAVEL Fort Worth, Texas WHAT Cowtown Showdown Benefit Ranch Sorting WHEN Jan. 19, 2026 $500K The Facts The money the event plans to raise. Supporters can contribute by purchasing spectator tickets, bidding in the Calcutta, making an online donation and bidding in the auction. If you can’t be there in person, watch it live on Ride TV. Ranch Sorting to Raise Money for Cook Children’s Kiddos Fighting Cancer Entries to ride at this inaugural benefit ranch sorting sold out in just two hours, but tickets are on sale to watch teams compete for $100,000. The event will also feature a Celebrity Sorting with guest appearances from Hollywood actors, top professional rodeo athletes, perhaps a country artist or two, and more. A private, in-arena concert is planned to conclude the night,…

To boost confidence, Eric Priest takes the horse and rider back to the basics. ➞ When you and your reining horse aren’t connecting, start by looking for signs of a lack of confidence displayed through his actions. He might look worried, or he might be trying to take advantage of the situation. In both cases, the root cause is the same—unclear communication. Your first step is to recognize those signs and re-establish clear, confident communication from the saddle. From there, it’s time to go back to the basics and complete a drill that will boost your confidence, leaving a positive mental impact in the saddle. Back to Basics To get both horse and rider on the same page, always start with the basics. I focus on four essential elements: forward,…

“There’s really no set style in the ranch classes — and that’s one of the great things about these events. Ranch means something different to everybody. All my horses have different styles, and I show them differently because of it. All that plays into what this ranch horse look is going to be.” —Steve Meadows, on the evolution of ranch horse events and what it means for the industry, on The Ride, a podcast by Horse&Rider, available to stream or download wherever you listen to podcasts.…