How to be a Good Student

Editor’s Note: Amy Skinner is a regular guest columnist and has been a horse gal since age six. She will present with fellow trainer and rider, Katrin Silva, at the Best Horse Practices Summit. Skinner rides and teaches dressage and Western. Skinner has studied at […]

Mud Management

This week, we hear from 2019 Best Horse Practices Summit presenter Alayne Blickle. Alayne travels internationally to promote her work around Clean Water for Horses. At the Summit, she will present on an array of concerns surrounding horse property management. Here, she writes on dealing […]

Whit Hibbard: Low Stress Livestock Clinic

Whit Hibbard, a fourth generation Montana rancher and protégé of the legendary Bud Williams, will conduct a one-day, intensive workshop on Low Stress Stockmanship. The day-long class will be held May 16 at the Dolores Public Library and is hosted by Tim McGaffic and Ginny […]

First Aid Essentials: Skills and Stuff

It helps if the horse is haltered. That’s what I was thinking when driving along a Maine state highway years ago. Two big Belgians had just dashed across the road. Partners in crime, you could say. They trotted through one yard and began helping themselves […]

First Response Tips

Years ago, I shared Canadian trainer, Lauren Fraser’s, equine field emergency to Cayuse Communications readers. It provided such fun and valuable information that it ended up in my book, A Rider’s Reader. Aside from a fully stocked first aid kit, she reminded readers facing an […]

Learning Schools and How to Avoid Tribalism

Cayuse Communications has published many articles on horses’ learning processes. We’ve featured pieces on optimal learning and long-term potentiation, the role of attention, dopamine/reward cycles, and negative reinforcement. Our article on the cons of clicker training drew a lot of attention from the training method’s fans and detractors […]

To Catch A Horse

Editor’s Note: Amy Skinner is a regular guest columnist and has been a horse gal since age six. She presented with fellow trainer and rider, Katrin Silva, at the Best Horse Practices Summit. She rides and teaches dressage and Western. Skinner has studied at the […]

WiseAssWallace on Colt-Starting Competitions

Editor’s Note: WiseAssWallace is a beloved guest columnist for Cayuse Communications. From his Colorado pasture, he’s on a quest to improve horse-human connections and make lives better for his fellow equines. In this latest installment, WAW weighs in on colt-starting competitions. Read more from WiseAssWallace […]

Sun, Snow, Snoozing

I have a pet theory on snow-and-sun-induced snoozing: During a winter storm, horses get a bit stressed. It’s windy. Visibility is poor. Conditions are in flux. Afterwards, the sun comes out and everything is quiet, peaceful, and bright. The sun warms horses’ coats. The birds […]

Cribbing: What’s Good to Know

What is a smile or a handshake? The answer is like a Matryoshka doll with another doll inside it and then another doll inside that one. Sure, they’re gestures of welcome. But neurologically speaking, they are the manifestations of a bundle of voluntary and involuntary […]