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A rescue Palomino named Santiago helps a rider rebuild trust after a traumatic fall while Gabriella Madeiros shares how to run a lesson program that protects school horses first. We dig into nutrition, workload caps, heat strategies, farrier pivots, and frugal supplements that work.

• Santiago’s temperament turning fear into confidence
• Rescue to reliable lesson horse care path
• Firing a farrier and shoeing thin soles with pads
• Workload limits and two consecutive rest days
• Heat and humidity scheduling, hosing, and fans
• Forage-first feeding with quality hay and wet feeds
• Electrolytes and salt year-round for hydration
• Saddle fit, dentals, fascia massage, and bodywork
• Cost-effective HA, beta-glucan, aloe, and herbs
• Ulcer and respiratory protocols without rebound
• Adapting programs during washouts and slow seasons
• Services at Cadillera Equine and how to reach us

Cavalier Equine, where spirit and sport intertwine. Gabrielle Menieros is located in Warren, Texas. She teaches in-person lessons on school horses or with your horse at her ranch or at yours. She also has clinics available and virtual instruction. And we will link her website below. Please reach out to us if you'd like to be on the podcast.

https://cataliraequine.wixsite.com/catalira-equine

If you have any ideas on how to help a school horse or you help school horses yourself, like Gabby, you can contact us by emailing us at emmajenkinsondressage@gmail.com

or at the contact section below

emmajenkinsondressage@gmail.com

https://youtube.com/@emmajenkinsondressage?si=Zt9ma9vtpMK2iZV7

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We dive into how Jessica Cardillo built a sustainable, beginner-focused lesson barn by teaching full horsemanship, empowering teen volunteers, and setting firm business boundaries that protect horses and people. Clear systems, patient school horses, and themed lesson plans keep riders progressing without breaking the barn.

• therapeutic riding roots shaping step-by-step teaching
• beginners learning grooming, tacking, safety, and etiquette
• lunge-line starts and criteria for joining groups
• teen volunteer pipeline with incentives and expectations
• sourcing quiet school horses across disciplines
• turnout scheduling and pasture rotation for soundness
• realistic limits on jumping and competition goals
• auto-billing, unmounted makeups, and 30-day notice
• monthly themes to streamline lesson planning

https://www.facebook.com/foundationseq?

https://www.foundationseq.com/?fbclid=IwVERDUAN3DaxleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHrWlSOCoimvald7FbdQSDYxrkgf3tP_w9GXsJagMUCS0tfkItly7IDyUH8sc_aem_CIEz7lIfXml-CXscsdkOoA

https://horsesenselearninglevels.com/learning-levels/the-levels-curriculum/

emmajenkinsondressage@gmail.com

https://youtube.com/@emmajenkinsondressage?si=Zt9ma9vtpMK2iZV7

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https://kensingtonfarmonlinehorseshows.com/

What if your next horse show didn’t require a trailer, a hotel, or a 3 a.m. alarm—and still gave you real scores, thoughtful feedback, and a shot at year-end prizes? We sit down with A‑circuit rider and trainer Stephanie Bowers to explore how Kensington Farm Online Horse Shows is opening the gate to riders of every budget, ability, and barn setup.

Stephanie shares the origin story of taking shows online and details the growing slate of divisions: hunter, jumper, equitation, western dressage, minis, and therapeutic classes with assisted and independent options. We dig into how clear, rider-friendly specs reduce anxiety, why affordability matters in a tight economy, and how video-based entries create stronger learning loops. From monthly deadlines to series points and a free Kindness Award open to anyone, the focus is on a kinder, more accessible competitive experience that still values sound judging, horsemanship, and progress over perfection.

We also talk practicalities: how to enter via QR code and Google Drive, what to film, and when to submit. For riders seeking deeper coaching, Stephanie offers optional one‑on‑one feedback consults to review your test or round together and turn notes into an action plan. We look ahead to para-friendly classes and invite the community to help shape new divisions so more people can participate—whether you ride, lead in-hand, long-line, or work with a mini. If you’ve ever felt priced out, burned out, or boxed out by tradition, this conversation offers a hopeful, concrete path forward.

Ready to compete from home, learn faster, and feel included? Subscribe, share this episode with a barn friend, and tell us which class you want to see next. Your input can build the next division.

emmajenkinsondressage@gmail.com

https://youtube.com/@emmajenkinsondressage?si=Zt9ma9vtpMK2iZV7

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Most lesson barns sit at a crossroads: teach deep horsemanship at a humane pace, or rush riders toward ribbons and bigger invoices. We open the tack room door on the real decisions behind a sustainable program—who you serve, how you price, what your horses can handle, and the policies that protect everyone involved.

We start with the core dilemma: groundwork and handling take time, repetition, and attention that don’t fit casual, once-a-week habits. From there, we explore practical pathways that build real skills without breaking your herd or your calendar. Volunteering at rescues gives new riders repetition with haltering, leading, and behavior. Vaulting teaches balance, confidence, and teamwork on a single well-managed horse. Therapeutic riding centers provide structured, safety-first experience and a service mindset. Each model scales differently, and each sends a clear message about what learning looks like in your barn.

We dig into leasing as a smarter commitment tool—especially horsemanship leases for students who want depth beyond saddle time. We map how online learning—Zoom classes, recorded homework, and live-coached rides with headsets—keeps progress steady through weather, travel, or injury. Then we get blunt about business: set terms by sessions, cap makeups, align ages with insurance, and stop saying yes to one-off pony rides if your horses and staff aren’t built for it. For barns in tourist areas, we talk fit-for-purpose operations and why many trail strings rely on leased horses to prevent sourness. Finally, we look outward: join local associations, meet trail and snowmobile groups, and pursue grants with 4-H and therapeutic programs to build arenas and multi-use facilities that actually serve your community.

If you care about sound school horses, clearer policies, and students who become capable horsepeople—not just passengers—this conversation is a blueprint. Subscribe, share with a fellow instructor, and leave a review with your best lesson-program policy that actually works. We’ll feature the sharpest ideas in a future episode.

emmajenkinsondressage@gmail.com

https://youtube.com/@emmajenkinsondressage?si=Zt9ma9vtpMK2iZV7

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https://vtdigger.org/2025/06/19/39-horses-seized-from-townshend-farm-in-latest-animal-cruelty-investigation/

https://vtdigger.org/2025/07/06/fourth-seizure-of-horses-from-townshend-farm-highlights-animal-welfare-systems-ongoing-gaps/

https://vtdigger.org/2025/09/17/martha-stewart-provides-forever-home-to-two-horses-seized-in-vermont-animal-cruelty-case/

https://www.reformer.com/local-news/a-good-thing-martha-stewart-adopts-two-rescued-vermont-friesians/article_d59ee263-5e61-4954-8b84-f3a78c624204.html

https://equiery.com/gentle-giants-draft-horse-rescue-takes-in-31-friesians-seized-in-vermont/

What happens when a millionaire buys 70 Friesian horses without understanding the tremendous responsibility of equine care? The results can be catastrophic, as revealed in this eye-opening conversation with Emma Jenkinson, who worked as an intern at the notorious Friesians of Majesty breeding farm in Vermont.

Emma takes us back to 2013, years before authorities began seizing horses from the property. She describes arriving in January to knee-deep snow and negative temperatures, working 12-hour days for just $300 a week – barely enough to afford groceries. The dangerous working conditions included walking valuable stallions down treacherously icy hills and managing dozens of nearly identical black horses with inadequate fencing. When horses frequently escaped their electric fence enclosures, staff scrambled to separate and return them with minimal safety measures in place.

The farm's owner, a successful businessman who sold his quarry operation to start the breeding farm as a "hobby," created an operation that quickly spiraled beyond what the staff could reasonably manage. Despite having four interns, a barn manager, two trainers, and maintenance staff, the farm struggled to properly care for its approximately 70 horses. When Emma decided to leave after a dangerous incident where multiple horses knocked her down, the owner refused to provide transportation back to Boston, leaving her to find her own way home.

The conversation broadens to examine the systemic issues in equine care regulation. Unlike other livestock industries, horse breeding lacks meaningful oversight, with no central registry tracking horse numbers or welfare. This regulatory gap becomes particularly problematic in harsh climates like Vermont, where winter conditions demand substantially more resources for proper horse care than milder regions.

Fast forward to today, and authorities have seized horses from Friesians of Majesty four separate times since 2023, with 74 horses taken by Dorset Equine Rescue alone. Despite multiple seizures and animal cruelty charges, the operation continues to struggle with adequate care. This compelling story serves as a stark warning about the consequences when ambition exceeds expertise in the world of horse bre

emmajenkinsondressage@gmail.com

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Andrea Pabel Deane shares her journey developing Equine Essential Touch, combining the Tellington TTouch method with essential oils to create deeper connection and cooperation with horses.

• Trained directly with Linda Tellington-Jones in the early 1980s as an alternative to traditional domination-based horsemanship
• T-Touch communicates directly with cells using circular movements, creating new neural pathways for horses
• Groundwork focuses on quality of movement and thoughtful choices rather than simply completing tasks
• Essential oils enhance effectiveness by engaging multiple senses and creating "aromatic anchors" for calm states
• Understanding freeze, fight, flight, faint and fidget as stress responses rather than stubbornness transforms training
• Three principles guide the work: connecting, cooperating, and using our brains instead of relying on instinct
• Approaching horses with the belief they're "doing their best" creates compassion instead of resentment

If you have stories about school horses or special techniques for working with them, please reach out to Isabel or Emma for our upcoming "Soft Spot for School Horses"

https://www.andreapabeldeane.com/

https://www.facebook.com/andrea.pabel?

emmajenkinsondressage@gmail.com

https://youtube.com/@emmajenkinsondressage?si=Zt9ma9vtpMK2iZV7

Send us a text

emmajenkinsondressage@gmail.com

https://youtube.com/@emmajenkinsondressage?si=Zt9ma9vtpMK2iZV7

Send us a text

We discuss Emma Jenkinson's online clinic program. She explains the R+/clicker training to change the horses mindset.

Isabeau talks about her 4 yr old thoroughbred resale project. And how prioritizing the horses sense of 'being seen' improves the R+ training.

Emma discusses her mustang, Panic at the Disco. His recent struggles with emotional regulation & behavior regression. Emma talks about going back to exercises that had helped him a lot when she first got him. Mainly focusing on changing Disco's mindset before working to change behavior.

We discuss the challenges of domestic herd management, especially in small groups. And finally some information on herd dynamics from feral horse bands in Alberta, Canada.

emmajenkinsondressage@gmail.com

https://youtube.com/@emmajenkinsondressage?si=Zt9ma9vtpMK2iZV7