Once again, it’s time for Thankful Thursday! I hope this post inspires you to consider the things in your life that you are grateful for. If you have a blog, consider posting about it there and link back here. If you don’t have a blog, please feel welcome to comment here on what you are grateful for in your own life. If you don’t feel comfortable sharing, then just take a few moments to reflect on all that you have. If you’d like to tag other bloggers that participate, feel free to do that.

People come into your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime.
When you figure out which one it is,
you will know what to do for each person. – Author unknown

This statement holds a lot of truth and the events of the past two weeks have certainly dumped me smack in the middle of deciding exactly which I’m presently dealing with:  a reason?  A season?  Or just maybe a lifetime?

I returned from my trip to Columbus refreshed and inspired, full of possibilities and hope.  The BlogPaws event I’d just attended had placed a huge focus on the plight of rescued and abandoned animals, and the week of the 12th was buzzing with news of the “Be The Change” challenge – a call to raise funds for Pets Without Parents, a non profit chosen at random during the conference.  I really do believe that things happen for a reason and that sometimes things are put into our paths at certain times for certain reasons, and this has never been more true for me than that April afternoon.   I’d returned home from Columbus late Sunday night and had left Slobber Dog with my friend Luke for one more night.  I left work on Monday, headed to Luke’s house to pick him up and along the way I noticed this dog sniffing around on the side of the road in a residential area.  In many circumstances I might have shaken my head at the irresponsibility of some pet owners, letting their dogs wander loose near a busy roadway.  But on this day, I was compelled to stop.  Was it the solidarity of the pet bloggers devoted to helping unwanted animals that I’d just experienced?  Was it the bones protruding from this dog’s spine and hips and the way she cowered at the traffic passing by?  It was probably some combination of the two that forced me to pull over on the side of the road and approach her.  It took a few minutes for me to gain her trust enough to get close but when I did, “Hazel” placed her head on my shoulder and stole my heart.  I promptly put her in my car and drove off with her, having no idea of how my decision would play out in the coming days.  To be honest, I still don’t.

From left: Photo courtesy of www.AmazonCares.org; Right: Photo courtesy of Tony Alter, flickr

Hazel has passed her vet exam – she just needs about 10 lbs (about 25% of her current body weight) to be in normal condition;  no heartworm or any other diseases.  She has accepted the other animals and they have accepted her.  She has proven to be a resilient and loving dog, and looks like she will make a full recovery from the likely abuse and neglect she suffered.  I have absolutely no doubt that this dog was in my path for a reason on that afternoon.  She has ignited a spark that I’ve been missing for a long time and I remember how helping rescue dogs has had such a profound impact on my life.   So why do I question her role in my life?

My current living situation dictates that I cannot keep her with me.  I am unable to have any more animals in my apartment, and her needs at this time are far greater than what I can provide for her.  My situation will be changing in August, but what to do until then?  I have been searching for options over the past few weeks and I want to do what’s best for Hazel.  She deserves a loving, stable home.  I have come up with a few options and I will remain hopeful that if this dog is meant to share my life, it will all work out.  Regardless of whether Hazel is here for a reason, a season, or a lifetime, she has shone a bright ray of sunlight into my life and I am so thankful that we crossed paths.

Each of these beautiful dogs is awaiting their forever home at Pet Rescue by Judy, photos courtesy of www.petrescuebyjudy.com

Please check out the Be The Change challenge and pass along the word to your friends.  It’s not too late to donate to the cause or to focus your own efforts in some way to help a rescue of your own choice.  April is Prevention of Animal Cruelty Month and Hazel has been a reminder to me that there are many animals out there that need help.

I hope you all have a wonderful, happy Earth Day Thursday and please visit these other sites that frequently participate in Thankful Thursday:

 Akal Ranch, Enlightened Horsemanship Through Touch, The Pony Expression, and Tired Dog Ranch.

This week’s challenge is to photograph barns.  Here is my contribution…

Check out Sunday Stills for other entries, as well as Laughing Orca Ranch, The Skoog Farm Journal, All Horse Stuff, and Baba Yaga’s Mirror,  all of whom frequently participate in the challenge.

Image courtesy of lulinhapato10, Photobucket

Once again, it’s time for Thankful Thursday! I hope this post inspires you to consider the things in your life that you are grateful for. If you have a blog, consider posting about it there and link back here. If you don’t have a blog, please feel welcome to comment here on what you are grateful for in your own life. If you don’t feel comfortable sharing, then just take a few moments to reflect on all that you have. If you’d like to tag other bloggers that participate, feel free to do that.

Happy Earth Day everyone!  This is the 40th anniversary of the Earth Day celebration, developed to inspire and encourage people to embrace sustainable living.  Here in Central Florida, we celebrate Earth Day with festivals and concerts to raise funds for environmental awareness.  For Earth Day this year, I’m going to spend some time working on my balcony garden.  Thanks to a great coworker, I now have a few more plants to add to my collection.  Grady and I will make a run to the local nursery, where we can enjoy being outdoors in this gorgeous weather and peruse the offerings.  Do you have an Earth Day tradition?  Do you celebrate the holiday?  Let me know what your tradition consists of!

I hope you all have a wonderful, happy Earth Day Thursday and please visit these other sites that frequently participate in Thankful Thursday:

Akal Ranch, Enlightened Horsemanship Through Touch, The Pony Expression, and Tired Dog Ranch.

John Lyons discusses collection of the horse at Equine Affaire 2010

John Lyons is a well known clinician and horse trainer, especially in the western stock horse world.  He has been active in the horse show community for many, many years and has won numerous accolades and awards for his riding and teaching abilities.  I was very excited to see the number of John Lyons clinics offered at the Equine Affaire this year.  His “U-Pick” system of training provides a number of exercises geared toward a particular goal and the rider can choose which exercises appeal to and work for each horse.  In addition, each exercise has a few variations that can provide varying levels of challenge as the horse progresses.  There were a number of Lyons clinics I was interested in seeing, including ones for developing better control, controlling speed, and improved stopping.  The first one we made it to was the speed control clinic. 

The arena was packed with spectators, and seating was tough to find.  We were lucky to have some folks offer us their seats as they left and we got front row.  The one hour and fifteen minute clinic began with John coming out and talking a bit about his experience and then introducing the three men that were on horses riding around the arena.  It turns out that they were not “students” as in most clinics we watched – they were John’s two sons Josh and Michael, and a man that began the Lyons training certification many years ago.  John proceeded to talk about the unnatural manner in which we ask horses to remain collected and illustrated his points with a horse he led around as he spoke.  During the entire monologue, his two sons were mounted on horses and were riding around the arena behind him doing their own things.  It sort of looked like a warm up arena at a show, with John Lyons wandering around in the midle with a microphone.  To say it was a bit distracting would be an understatement. 

Finally John mounted up and the exercises for speed control began.  The first one he chose to talk about was doing a directional change – as you walk around the arena and your horse increases speed, stop and do a 180 degree turn and walk off in the other direction.  Each time your horse speeds up, change direction.  Simple enough, right?  Well, it felt like he spent fifteen minutes discussing this exercise, how to increase the difficulty (change gait), or include variety (turn on forehand versus hind).  The whole time he talked, his sons were riding around the arena doing their own thing – reining spins, loping, lead changing.  Finally he finished and moved on to Exercise #2, one of Josh’s choosing.  Unfortunately, Josh did not have a microphone and so John had to translate everything he said to the audience.  This one involved spiraling off into smaller circles if the horse speeds up; however there was some confusion as to how the exercise began.  At one point John seemed to be indicating that the rider should hum to the horse to slow it down.  I found the lack of microphone to be particularly troublesome, as Josh would lope off to demonstrate the exercise, but the audience was unable to have it narrated as it happened.  Once again, the other son was off doing his own thing, adding to the chaos.  I also felt that John wasn’t clearly explaining his techniques to the audience.  Maybe someone that has completed his video series would have understood him better, but I found instructions such as “Move his tail back” unclear and confusing.  This scene repeated for the first four exercises, but eventually I felt that the clinic was not serving the purpose I’d hoped it would and we left. 

In summary, this clinic was not well organized.  All three riders should have had microphones, or at the very least, the one demonstrating the exercises should have been narrating.  All the riders should have been demonstrating the exercises being discussed or they should have been waiting quietly for their turn, in my opinion.  All the activity had the effect of appearing chaotic and was a distraction to the exercises at hand.  Finally, I felt that the demonstration was very commercial.  In his defense, I had that same feeling at several of the clinics we went to and it’s a feeling I don’t recall having had at previous Affaires.  There was a lot of self promotion of the Lyons name and product line, and I felt that took away from the point of the clinic.  I would have liked to see students participate and learn the exercises with the audience, so we could grasp what issues the horses may come up with.  The exercises were that were provided were useful, albeit a bit basic for my own riding level, but a good refresher.  All in all, there was some good information there but I had higher expectations from a clinician of his caliber.

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge was a Potluck:  the only instructions were to shoot something fun and interesting.  So here we go!

This shot is one I’d taken for last week’s challenge titled “Hands.”   Unfortunately, trip preparations got in the way and I just didn’t get time to post it before I left for Columbus. 

Grady and his friend Skeeter are great beggars!

I love this shot of Tiny under the arena spotlights

Check out Sunday Stills for other entries, as well as Laughing Orca Ranch, The Skoog Farm Journal, All Horse Stuff, and Baba Yaga’s Mirror,  all of whom frequently participate in the challenge.

I left the balmy warmth of Florida  and arrived in Columbus, Ohio last Thursday to a dreary, cold day.  My dad had somehow managed to time his arrival by car (he traveled from his worksite in North Carolina) to meet me at the airport and we headed immediately off to the Ohio Expo Center at the Ohio State Fairgrounds to commence the horsing around.  Thursday was the day that Sharon Camarillo was doing a series of clinics on improving barrel racing horsemanship, and I was desperately hoping to make it in time to watch some of them.  Fate was once again on our side and we managed to get to the Fairgrounds, find parking, purchase our tickets, and make our way down the long, long stretch to the Cooper Arena just as the announcer finished his introductions.  Perfect timing! 

Food vendors lined the streets at Equine Affaire

 Thus began our four day weekend filled with clinics, seminars, shopping, and visiting with old friends.  As I’ve mentioned before, Columbus was a frequent horse haunt for my family when we lived in Pittsburgh.  The Quarter Horse Congress, as well as the Equine Affaire, were regular yearly trips where we stocked up on items we needed for the barn.  You can literally find anything horse related you could possibly want at these events.  As soon as we stepped through the gates, I was right back there.  The long road lined with food vendors welcomed us to the event, and the sights and smells continued to draw us further in.  It didn’t take long for us to find the vendor behind one of our fondest memories – the cinnamon bun stand!  I can still remember savoring a warm, gooey cinnamon bun while watching a class at the Congress or even while relaxing after one of my own classes during the years we had the App Nationals there. 

Young riders perfect their technique

Once we made it past the food vendors, the fun really began.  There were clinics and seminars going on simulataneously in no less than eight arenas at a time.  The hardest part was choosing just one to watch.  Throughout the weekend, we caught clinics taught by Sharon Camarillo, John Lyons, and Tommy Garland and presentations on caring for senior horses and equine photography among other things.  There was an entire building devoted to representing various breeds of horse and  I enjoyed wandering through and learning about some horses I’d never seen or heard of before.  The trade show was spread over several different buildings and was just as expected – exhausting and exhilerating.  Any horse person would probably agree that the smell of a tack store is one of the defining aromas in the horse world.  This trade show was no exception – the rich leather, the tang of fly spray, the heady pine shavings.  I was in horsey heaven.  One of the things I love so much about Equine Affaire’s trade show is that it caters to horsepeople, not stock horse people or horse show people.  You can wander through tack stores with draft halters big enough for an adult to step through and peruse the tiny, glittery headstalls that are designed for the always adorable Minis.  Every breed, every discipline, and every horse person is represented there; and for someone like me, that means an awful lot to observe and learn about our four legged friends and the people who love them. 

Wood carving was just one of the crafts on display

Over the next week or so, I’m going to share with you some of the tips and tricks I learned in the clinics, talk about some of the cool new products I saw, and discuss the super exciting Extreme Cowboy Race that we watched.  That spawned some fantasies about a career change for Tiny and I, it looked like so much fun!  In addition, I will be sharing a lot about the BlogPaws convention that was being held simulataneously at the nearby Westin hotel on my other site, The Slobber Dog.  All in all, this was a fun and productive weekend and I’m so glad my dad and I had the opportunity to attend.

I’m back in warm and sunny Florida, and Dad and I have survived the shopping, networking, and learning extravaganza that was Equine Affaire.  He did a fairly good job of restraining me, so my wallet is only a tiny bit lighter than it was when I left!  We had a blast, and really enjoyed our weekend of horsing around.  I can’t wait to share some of the great riding tips I got and try (and report back) on some of the new products I bought.

Now, for the important news!  I promised you all a celebration last week, in honor of my 100th (and some change) post!  It got delayed a bit, by a skinny little dollfaced mutt that Fate dropped in my path on Monday to welcome me back to Florida.  More on that as it develops, but suffice it to say that I am a sucker for a sorry dog.  Anyway, I want to thank everyone who commented on my celebration post, and the lucky winner selected by the random number generator is………

Paint Girl from Adventures of the Painted Creek Farm!!!!

Paint Girl, email me with your contact information and I’ll send out your horsey surprise!  Thanks so much for playing, I had fun doing it.

Once again, it’s time for Thankful Thursday! I hope this post inspires you to consider the things in your life that you are grateful for. If you have a blog, consider posting about it there and link back here. If you don’t have a blog, please feel welcome to comment here on what you are grateful for in your own life. If you don’t feel comfortable sharing, then just take a few moments to reflect on all that you have. If you’d like to tag other bloggers that participate, feel free to do that.

This week I’m so very thankful that I’m heading off to Columbus, Ohio today for the Equine Affaire.  I haven’t attended an event like this in years and I’m so excited to see all the vendors, demonstrations, and horses that will be at the Expo Center!  I will be sure to take careful notes and report back on all the fun for everyone who won’t be making it.  

In a twist of fate, I found out about another exciting event taking place in Columbus during the same weekend!  Just by accident, I came across a blog advertising the BlogPaws convention, held in Columbus at the Westin hotel on Saturday (and Friday evening).  This convention is built around networking and educating pet bloggers – sounds like a dream come true, right?  There are seminars on topics like building traffic, SEO optimization, doing product reviews, and raising money for pet rescues and charities.  I am so excited that I found out about this, and that I have the chance to attend.  I hope to make lots of new friends and learn all about making my blog even better!

I really want to thank my dad, Ron, who has offered to take some time off work to come up to Columbus with me and keep me company.  My dad has always been a source of support in all things horse related – especially impressive when you consider that he was never an “animal person” (at least not til Mom got ahold of him!)  I am so excited that he’ll be coming along.  We’ll have a great time together and he can keep my repressed shopaholic in check for me.   Finally, I want to thank my friend Luke who will be babysitting the SlobberDog while I’m gone.  Not just anyone would take the Drool Monster (or the Snore Monster, depending on who you ask) into their home, so it’s very much appreciated.  Especially since he just cleaned his carpets!  =)  Hmm…might have to buy him dinner for this one!

I hope you all have a wonderful, happy Thursday and please visit these other sites that frequently participate in Thankful Thursday:

Akal Ranch, Enlightened Horsemanship Through Touch, The Pony Expression, and Tired Dog Ranch.

Image courtesy of D Sharon Pruitt

It’s hard to believe that this post unofficially marks the 100th post for From The Horse’s Back!  Unofficially, because the 100th post was technically the April Carnival of Horses, but hey, nothing wrong with a little creative license right?  I’d love for you all to celebrate with Tiny and I as we pass this blogging milestone!  We are going to have a contest to give away a special horsey surprise to one lucky reader.  All you have to do is comment on this post BEFORE April 12 when the winner will be randomly selected.  If you can think of a favorite post, put it in your comment.  We hope you celebrate with us!

First, I’d like to congratulate Brooke of Green ‘n Green = Black ‘n Blue who was the very first contest winner on Pets Blogroll!  She was the winner of a book titled “One Good Dog” by Susan Wilson and sponsored by Macmillan.  This contest will be repeated weekly for the next 7 weeks and all you have to do is join Pets Blogroll, display the widget, and comment on the contest post to be eligible.  We’re also featuring another Giveaway – this time a Pets Blogroll pet bowl, just for posting about the network on your site and submitting your link to the comments section of the contest post.  These are just a few great reasons to sign up with Pets Blogroll.  We’ve also gotten reports that some members’ traffic and comments have spiked after joining.  Why not widen your audience and join?