Best Horse Practices Podcast

Maddy Butcher
  • 5.0 (81)
  • NATURAL SCIENCES
  • UPDATED WEEKLY
Best Horse Practices Podcast

The podcast is an enlightened place for riders and horse owners of all disciplines to learn best practices and discover ways to connect better and make progress with their horses. We interview people who are actively engaged in improving the lives of horses and their owners through best practices, be it directly through riding or through products, research, education, policy, or facility management.

  1. JAN 15

    Daniel Dauphin on Bits and BHPS

    This is Episode 7 of Season 5 and in it, I talk with Daniel Dauphin about bits and the upcoming Best Horse Practices Summit. I met this Louisiana man several years ago when we were considering possible presenters for the Best Horse Practices Summit in Lexington, Kentucky. Since then, he’s come on the show several times to talk about a range of horse issues. Learn about his bit course. Visit his website and sign up for his newsletter. Most recently, he’s stepped up to the Board of Directors for the Best Horse Practices Summit. He will also present at the mini Summit in Santa Fe in April with Katrin Silva, Jec Ballou, and Ben Longwell. All of the presentations will be collaborations – a rare thing in the horse industry nowadays! We’ll have panel discussions and even a special presentation on mental health.  Speaking of which! Get yourself registered now before all the spaces fill up. There are just 70 spots available. For more information on presentations, schedule, venue, check out Best Horse Practices Summit for more info and to register.  Thanks to our title sponsor, Lucerne Farms, producers of quality forage feeds, extremely handy and healthy bales of alfalfa, timothy, and grass blends. A great addition or substitute for your hay or grass and way better than grain. They also make products for your stalls and chickens. Check them out at lucerne farms com We also would like to welcome Renegade Hoof Boots to the show. The team at Renegade has been crafting hoof boots for years and has an excellent customer service reputation. Renegade is the official hoof boot of the Tevis Cup, the renowned 100-mile race in California. You may find that Renegade boots are the perfect pairing with barefoot trimming and many miles. Thanks to Redmond Equine for generously sponsoring our show. I’m finding two of my horses really, really love the Rock on a Rope this winter. They are going through it enthusiastically. Considering hanging one on the fence or in the stall. We think they’ll love it. Order a box at Redmond equine dot com. That’s it. Another episode in the can and out of the barn. Thanks for listening y’all.

    30 min

  2. 10/10/2024

    Gillian Higgins on Anatomy and Biomechanics

    Our show is a space for riders and horse owners of all disciplines to learn best practices and to discover skills, strategies, tools, ideas, and insights for better connecting with their horses, with all horses, and for getting work done.  We love to hear from listeners and contacting us is easy here.  We offer these shows for free. If you think it’s worthy of a small contribution, we sure would appreciate it. This is Episode 6 of Season 5 and in it, Jec interviews Gillian Higgins, an expert in horse anatomy and biomechanics. She’s known internationally for her painting of horses’ muscles and skeletal system on the outside of horses. Her programs are called Horses Inside Out and she has a huge amount of online offerings. Oh, and just a heads up if you’re not inclined to do the kilo / pound conversion: Gillian mentions a 500-kilo horse. That’s an 1,100-pound horse. Check out this short interview with Gillian by the BBC Visit Gillian’s website. Thanks to our title sponsor, Lucerne Farms, producers of quality forage feeds, extremely handy and healthy bales of alfalfa, timothy, and grass blends. A great addition or substitute for your hay or grass and way better than grain. They also make products for your stalls and chickens. Check them out at lucerne farms com We also would like to welcome Renegade Hoof Boots to the show. The team at Renegade has been crafting hoof boots for years and has an excellent customer service reputation. Renegade is the official hoof boot of the Tevis Cup, the renowned 100-mile race in California. You may find that Renegade boots are the perfect pairing with barefoot trimming and many miles.  My favorite takeaways: that the canter is a good sit-up type of exercise for your horse and that a canter improves the trot for free. Also, that we can be blinded by what we know, an idea which has a lot in common with what we know as confirmation bias.  Thanks to Redmond Equine for generously sponsoring our show. With the turn of the season, make sure to have Redmond’s salt available free choice for your horses. We think they’ll love it. Order a whole box! And welcome back to Pharm Aloe, the gut and immune support supplement. Did you know that Pharm Aloe products all come from a USDA certified organic farm in Texas? Check out the pellets for horses. They have aloe options for dogs and people, too.  Also thanks to Patagonia WorkWear for their continued support. I hope you can check out their long sleeved waffle tee. It is the perfect swap out for a short sleeved t shirt as the weather gets cooler. Give us feedback, suggest a topic or guest, or make a donation and you’ll be automatically entered to win a free Patagonia WorkWear item that we give away every month. Redmond Equine is sending a complimentary syringe of Daily Gold Stress Relief to everyone who drops a tip in our donation jar. Pretty cool and a $15 value. If you get something of value from our podcast, please consider making a donation. We sure would appreciate it. That’s it. Another episode in the can and out of the barn. Thanks for listening y’all.

    38 min

  3. 09/14/2024

    Carl Bledsoe and Help for the Gaited Horse

    We love to hear from listeners and contacting us is easy here.  We offer these shows for free. If you think it’s worthy of a small contribution, we sure would appreciate it. This is Episode 5 of Season 5 and in it, we welcome back my colleague, Jec Ballou, for her first show of our fifth season. Yay! We’ve heard from several folks who have suggested discussions on gaited horses and people with expertise around gaited horses, so Jec has done a great interview with Carl Bledsoe, from Talking Rock, Georgia. I was really excited to produce this interview as it’s clear Carl has been on a journey, from show ring to clinician, and has the horses’ best interests in mind, and isn’t afraid to call out less than best practices so that we can get to better places with our equine partners. I think you’ll enjoy the talk, regardless of your discipline or horse type. Find Carl Bledsoe Horsemanship here. Check out anatomy of thoracic sling. Before it starts, just one note about something they discuss which is the thoracic sling – that’s the group of muscles, tendons, ligaments and fascia that connect the front legs to the chest and support the weight between the front legs. Thanks to our title sponsor, Lucerne Farms, producers of quality forage feeds, extremely handy and healthy bales of alfalfa, timothy, and grass blends. A great addition or substitute for your hay or grass and way better than grain. They also make products for your stalls and chickens. Check them out at lucerne farms com Thanks to Redmond Equine for generously sponsoring our show. With the warm weather and the turn of the season, make sure to have Redmond’s salt available free choice for your horses. We think they’ll love it. You can hang the Rock on a Rope on a fence or in the stall. Order a box full at Redmond equine dot com. Also thanks to Patagonia WorkWear for their continued support. I hope you can check out their hemp full zip sweatshirt. It’s probably the softest, yummiest sweatshirt I’ve ever owned. And it comes in a buttery yellow that makes me smile. Also, check out the tough hemp canvas vest – extremely handy for all seasons but especially fall. Give us feedback, suggest a topic or guest, or make a donation and you’ll be automatically entered to win a free Patagonia WorkWear item that we give away every month. Redmond Equine is sending a complimentary syringe of Daily Gold Stress Relief to everyone who drops a tip in our donation jar. Pretty cool and a $15 value. If you get something of value from our podcast, please consider making a donation. We sure would appreciate it. That’s it. Another episode in the can and out of the barn. Thanks for listening y’all.

    28 min

  4. 08/24/2024

    What Does Abuse Look Like? A Talk with Daniel Dauphin

    We love to hear from listeners and contacting us is easy here.  We offer these shows for free. If you think it’s worthy of a small contribution, we sure would appreciate it. We’re dedicating another show to horsey intellectualism. Intellectualism roughly means thinking, studying, and/or discussing complicated ideas without getting emotional. I guess what we do on this show is a sort of low-level intellectualism, redneck intellectualism, because we’re not consulting great philosophers or significant texts. But we are bouncing around ideas that are complicated and less straight forward than a lot of articles or social media posts seem to make them.  I think owners and riders inevitably come across these ideas in their time with horses. I know I do, sometimes as I’m riding along, sometimes as I’m lying in bed, pondering a life with or without equines. Not much is black and white. There’s a lot of grey area to consider when it comes to, well, everything, but in this case, horse care and management. Doesn’t it seem like there has been a lot of outrage and side-taking lately? Maybe we could be doing more listening and show a little more curiosity? Anyway, for episode 4, I invited Daniel Dauphin, the Louisiana horseman whose specialty is bit function and design and horse mouth anatomy.  Thankfully, he’s not one to shy away from what he calls ‘career suicide’ by saying things that might not be in step with the latest money-making trend or attention-grabber. I was happy to bug him for this continuation of a related chat with Nina Fuller last week in which we talked about livestock and our agrarian lives. Daniel and I bounce around the ways in which people perceive the treatment of animals. What does abuse look like? Certainly, it looks different to different people. How is that so? And, what does the horse want and need? Can we decipher that objectively or do we get misdirected by questionable motivations? Thanks to our title sponsor, Lucerne Farms, producers of quality forage feeds, extremely handy and healthy bales of alfalfa, timothy, and grass blends. A great addition or substitute for your hay or grass and way better than grain. They also make products for your stalls and chickens. Check them out at lucerne farms com Watch Daniel Dauphin's BHPS presentation.  Visit his website.  Check out his YouTube channel.  As I mentioned in the last episode, horses are livestock. When it comes to laws and policies, that puts them in roughly the same category as sheep and cattle, not dogs and cats. Over the last few generations, however, as an increasing percentage of horses are used for exclusively recreational purposes. In popular culture, barn culture, in a materialistic and consumer-driven world, the species has moved into a fuzzy space between livestock and pets. American laws, for instance, are sometimes at odds with prevailing attitudes. It can be messy. And, yes, we know that the practicality of putting horses together at Olympic events is probably problematic. But why not, for instance, put them in with other horses they know? Seabiscuit traveled with a companion. Rodeo horses are put together. I could be cynical and say it’s all about money, but can we think outside the box – even if it is lined with locally sourced shavings? We can’t wait to hear from listeners. What do you think about animals in our society? How do we balance old standards of agriculture and animal treatment with where we are now and what we know now and, for us horse owners, what we need and want from our equine partners? It doesn’t escape me that Daniel and I live rural existences, maybe more rural and old fashioned than many listeners. Our points of view come from cumulative observation and interaction with land and animals. Your days and interactions are not our days and interactions. That’s one reason I’m interested in hearing from your shared or different perspectives. Watch Dan

    35 min

  5. 08/19/2024

    Life and Death of Livestock and Pets, a Short Conversation with Nina Fuller

    We love to hear from listeners and contacting us is easy here.  We offer these shows for free. If you think it’s worthy of a small contribution, we sure would appreciate it. This is Episode 3 of Season 5 and we’re dedicating the next few shows to some horsey intellectualism. I like to look up words, to make sure I’m saying what I mean. Intellectualism roughly means thinking, studying, and/or discussing complicated ideas without getting emotional. I guess what we do on this show is a sort of low-level intellectualism, redneck intellectualism, because we’re not consulting great philosophers or significant texts. But we are bouncing around ideas that are more complicated, less straight forward, say, than which muck rake is best or how hay prices are looking this summer. I think horse owners and riders inevitably come across these ideas in their time with equines. I know I do, sometimes as I’m riding along, sometimes as I’m lying in bed, pondering a life with or without horses. Anyway, for episode 3, I invited Nina Fuller of Lily Brook Farm in Hollis Maine to join me. Nina is a heckuva accomplished woman. About 14 years ago, she got in touch with me and wrote a few guest columns for what was then my new website, NickerNews. She is a farmer and raises sheep. She’s an award-winning photographer. But until about 10 years ago, we hadn’t met. That was when I was driving cross country, from Utah to Maine. I stopped, off a state highway, in a desolate section of northern Colorado and was just about to let my dogs out for a break when two lambs came rushing up to me. They were very young, maybe a week old, with shriveled umbilical cords, and in the middle of nowhere. I picked them up and searched in vain for a rancher, a ranch, someone or some ewe who could claim them. To no avail. So, they joined me cross country and – long story short – they ended up at Nina’s farm. Find Nina on Facebook.  Order her book, "Where's Hope?" from Cayuse Communications.  Listen to the cross-country story here.   So, yes, back then when I called her for help, “What should I do with these lambs? How can I save them?” Nina and I didn’t know each other except through email. I’m indebted to her for her kindness, her expertise, and for taking the lambs. I think she has been happy with the lambs, who she named Emma and Pearl and who have given her many lambs over the years. Pearl died last week. Our conversation ties into a broader conversation around pets and livestock, animals in our modern world. Next up, Daniel Dauphin, who has been doing some pondering over the recent hullabaloo with suspended Olympian Charlotte Dujardin. This has gotten Daniel and I and I’m sure many of you thinking about what folks consider wellness, if it belongs in the livestock world, and with what different people consider abuse, horse welfare and wellbeing. Let’s just say what Charlotte Dujardin did pales in comparison to what Brett and Alexis Ingraham did at the tragically ironically named Fair Play Farm in Maine – something I reported on years ago. We’ll consider the broad spectrum of standards in horse communities, amidst the many disciplines and cultures. Horses, of course, are livestock. When it comes to laws and policies, that puts them in the roughly the same category as sheep and cattle, not dogs and cats. Over the last few generations, however, as an increasing percentage of horses are used recreationally, in popular culture and especially women’s barn culture, the species has moved into a grey area between livestock and pets. American laws, for instance, are sometimes at odds with prevailing attitudes. It can be messy. Thanks to our title sponsor, Lucerne Farms, producers of quality forage feeds, extremely handy and healthy bales of alfalfa, timothy, and grass blends. A great addition or substitute for your hay or grass and way better than grain. They also make products for your stalls and chickens.

    29 min

  6. 07/15/2024

    J.B. Zielke - The Lost Cowboy

    Our show is a space for riders and horse owners of all disciplines to learn best practices and to discover skills, strategies, tools, ideas, and insights for better connecting with their horses, with all horses, and for getting work done.  We love to hear from listeners and contacting us is easy here.  We offer these shows for free. If you think it’s worthy of a small contribution, we sure would appreciate it. This is Episode 2 of Season 5 and in it, I interview J.B. Zeilke, a writer, music video producer, and most of all, a cowboy. JB has cowboyed on six continents and written about it in The Lost Cowboy. This book, with a drawing of a cowboy riding a bucking reindeer on the cover,  recently one two Spur awards, prizes given out by Western Writers of America. He won the Best Contemporary Non Fiction and Best First Non Fiction Book. Find him on Instagram at the.lost.cowboy! He had returned from the awards ceremony in Tulsa, Oklahoma when I talked to him last week. I was so pleased to talk with J.B. but decided to leave the details of his trips for listeners to check out on their own. So, yes, please check it out. You can find it on The Lost Cowboy.com and on Amazon. Read about his making connections, meeting folks, dodging bullets, and trying to get along in Australia, South Africa, Sweden, Argentina, Mexico, and Mongolia. Great stuff!  I thought listeners would love to hear what JB has learned over his many years of travel, specifically things that apply to horsemanship, riding, and partnership building. He does a great job of articulating some essential elements of the horse – rider connection, things he found somewhat universal, across the contients. It’s a delightful interview that I’m happy to share. Thanks to our title sponsor, Lucerne Farms, producers of quality forage feeds, extremely handy and healthy bales of alfalfa, timothy, and grass blends. A great addition or substitute for your hay or grass and way better than grain. They also make products for your stalls and chickens.  How has your summer been going? As I’ve returned to podcasting responsibilities, I’ve been thinking about our title. Best Horse Practices. Do you have any best horse practices that are top of mind lately? Do you have any worst horse practices that are top of mind lately? Thanks to Redmond Equine and Pharm Aloe – for generously sponsoring our show. Check out Pharm Aloe’s aloe pellets which you can simply sprinkle on your horse’s feed and Redmond’s Rock on a Rope which you can simply hang on a fence. We think you’ll love ‘em. Also thanks to Patagonia WorkWear for their continued support. Give us feedback, suggest a topic or guest, or make a donation and you’ll be automatically entered to win one of two free Patagonia WorkWear items that we give away every month. Redmond Equine is sending a complimentary syringe of Daily Gold Stress Relief to everyone who drops a tip in our donation jar. Pretty cool and a $15 value. If you get something of value from our podcast, please consider making a donation. We sure would appreciate it. That’s it. Another episode in the can and out of the barn. Thanks for listening y’all.

    36 min

  7. 07/03/2024

    Worst Horse Practices and News

    We love to hear from listeners and contacting us is easy here.  We offer these shows for free. If you think it’s worthy of a small contribution, we sure would appreciate it. This is Episode 1 of Season 5.  For this show, I’m speaking on behalf or maybe I should say as half. Half of the interview crew for this podcast. Jec and I have had a hiatus and Jec is still doing her thing and enjoying summer. She’ll be back later this season.  I thought I’d make this a short episode to let you know what I’ve been up to and to ask you what you’ve been up to. As I mentioned, we love hearing from listeners and, as always, folks who get in touch with us with feedback or suggestions for guests and topics are in the running for freebies. Thanks to our title sponsor, Lucerne Farms, producers of quality forage feeds, extremely handy and healthy bales of alfalfa, timothy, and grass blends. A great addition or substitute for your hay or grass and way better than grain. They also make products for your stalls and chickens. Check them out at lucerne farms com Also, a shout out to a clothing company that’s putting a trot in our steps lately: Dovetail, a women-owned maker of tough, very horse-rider friendly pants. Try the bootcut jeans – stretchy, durable, and they look good.  Since our last episode for Season 4, I’ve been working on several projects. I have been day working for a rancher here in Montezuma County. That means I do a bit of everything. Lately, there has been a lot of fencing and moving cows. My go-to gelding, Ray, has an injury, so my younger, greener horse, Table, has been relied on quite a bit. There is a silver lining in Ray’s injury, I try to tell myself, because really, as a young horse in training, Table should be ridden a lot.  We have had our circus moments, but mostly I’m very pleased with his progress. He’s becoming more patient and confident. And he’s able to do more, like open gates, side pass, move through thick brush without freaking out, and ride away from buddies without freaking out. We took a spill the other day when, in the midst of trotting a big circle, we went down in a big gopher hole. I hurt my cheek (it looked like I got into a bar fight) but anyway, I was really pleased that Table trotted a few steps and then waited for me to collect myself. Way better than a few months ago, when I think he would have bolted and headed for the next county. So, even though it was painful and unfortunate, I counted that moment as a win! Table has been behind cows several times and while he’s not “cow-y” (like cow-bred quarter horses who pin their ears and love to boss around cattle), he’s engaged with what’s going on and, surprisingly, is not flustered by the process of moving cows, fetching cows, and all the things you tend to do when handling cattle in open spaces and then smaller confines, like pens and corrals. He does get more stressed and more excited when other horse and rider pairs are involved. I think some of that can be attributed to me getting more amped when there are other horse and rider pairs. You know how that goes, right? Many of us horse owners are also dog owners, so I’ll let you know that I’m also bringing up a young dog this year. His name is Chuck. He’s mostly border collie and he’s eight months old. He’s seeing some cows and has come along when we’re working them a few times. He knows down. He comes when he’s called. And he’s pretty excited about the cattle. I’ve been watching Chuck as he watches my adult dogs work. It’s pretty cool to see and be part of this on-the-job training. My job, as I see it, is to keep him safe and give him a long leash, figuratively speaking. That is, to not scold him too much when he does something wrong and to really praise him when he does something right, like staying in a down position even when he’d rather be getting after cows or moving a cow correctly and not overdoing it.   Ho

    11 min

  8. 04/04/2024

    Season Finale: On the Fence with Jec and Maddy

    We love to hear from listeners and contacting us is easy here.  We offer these shows for free. If you think it’s worthy of a small contribution, we sure would appreciate it. This is Episode 27 of Season 4. In it, Jec and I have a fun On the Fence conversation in which we talk some about identity and, mmm, maybe a bit of barn politics and shenanigans that we sometimes see in horse communities. The topic came up when I was listening to an interview that Ezra Klein did with Agnes Callard, a professor at the University of Chicago. Oh, and we also give a nod, or maybe a shake of the head, to the cover art for Beyonce’s new country album, which has, of course, a horse on it. Thanks to our title sponsor, Lucerne Farms, producers of quality forage feeds, extremely handy and healthy bales of alfalfa, timothy, and grass blends. A great addition or substitute for your hay or grass and way better than grain. They also make products for your stalls and chickens.  Also, a shout out to two clothing companies who are putting a trot in our steps lately: Kuhl and Dovetail. We’re trying out a stretchy jean jacket as well as a fleece-lined vest from Kuhl. And we are absolutely loving the boot cut jeans from Dovetail.  It's been a good season! We’re one of the top horse podcasts and we consistently rank well in the natural sciences category of podcast. Thank you so much for your enthusiasm, for recommending us to friends, and for being in touch. Jec and I really love the many connections we’ve made with listeners and appreciate what we see as two-way conversations. Thank you! Thanks to Redmond Equine and Pharm Aloe – for generously sponsoring our podcast. Check out Pharm Aloe’s aloe pellets which you can simply sprinkle on your horse’s feed and Redmond’s Rock on a Rope which you can simply hang on a fence. We think you’ll love ‘em. Also thanks to Patagonia WorkWear for their continued support. Give us feedback, suggest a topic or guest, or make a donation and you’ll be automatically entered to win one of two free Patagonia WorkWear items that we give away every month. Redmond Equine is sending a complimentary syringe of Daily Gold Stress Relief to everyone who drops a tip in our donation jar. Pretty cool and a $15 value. If you get something of value from our podcast, please consider making a donation. We sure would appreciate it.

    22 min
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The podcast is an enlightened place for riders and horse owners of all disciplines to learn best practices and discover ways to connect better and make progress with their horses. We interview people who are actively engaged in improving the lives of horses and their owners through best practices, be it directly through riding or through products, research, education, policy, or facility management.

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