Where I went to school

I went to school at a place called Full Circle Ranch. I was originally trained for riding there and returned as a five year old for "secondary school."
Bill Basham and Angie Reitmeier address the entire horse. Their purpose is to help horses and humans live more harmonious lives through understanding and kindness, rather than through fear and ignorance. They will teach with patience and consideration while searching for ways that make sense to each individual.
The DOR says that you need Kevlar undies when you go to their clinics. They are not mean, just straightforward and honest-sometimes that hurts humans a bit.
This couple has taken horses that have been "written off" as untrainable and turned them into a horse that can be a working partner with a human.
They help horses learn to be brave. They teach a horse to think with its left brain, rather than reacting with the right brain. Horses who go through this school are exposed to a variety of adventures in various settings. They work with owners to ensure that when the horse comes back home there is a good relationship in place to continue moving forward. Located in Potlatch Idaho it is a wonderful place to go and spend quality time building you relationship with your horse under expert guidance.
Yep, I sound like and ad, sorry. I know that my training there is the reason I am not a werehorse more often, or all of the time. I have a tendency to react first and think later...it is a good thing that I was taught to think so I can recover quickly if I do have a fall apart.
There are places where magic happens and the DOR has seen it happen here. Bill and Angie help her with a horse she rescued. This horse had been so abused that she was afraid all of the time. The DOR saw through that and could picture in her mind the horse she could be. Bill and Angie helped peel the layers of damage done to this mare, uncovering the horse the the DOR could picture in her mind. Now this horse is working at a cattle ranch, competes at roping competitions, and works as a pick up horse for bull riders at rodeos. From a horse that panicked at the slightest thing, to a horse that has a fit if she can't get in the trailer and go on an adventure-you see they do work magic at Full Circle Ranch.
The DOR and I will be heading their way for some quality time. She has been busy making armor plated outfits. She has a lot of things she needs to work on and knows she will be taking a bit of heat, she also knows that every experience with Bill and Angie makes her a better horseman.
If you ever have a chance to attend one of their trainings I encourage you to go. If you go to a training in Washington State, look for my spotted butt to be there and come by and say howdy.
Training is the basis for the horse/human relationship, good training is the basis for a partnership. It is important to never quit learning!
Enjoy your day and don't forget to hug your DOR

The eyes have it

The DOR loves her horses eyes, she thinks they hold all the knowledge that one needs to know in them. She took some pictures of those of us at the ranch yesterday and I thought I would share them.


This eye belongs to Salty the Wonder Horse. His eyes have seen trails, jumps, numerous kids that he taught to ride. The most important thing his eyes have done is to teach a little boy with asperger's how to communicate. He helped the boy learn to understand that eyes speak to you and that allowed the little boy to learn to speak to others. Salty has seen a lot in his 22 years, he believes that horse have the power to help heal human hearts. In Salty's eyes all humans are to be loved.


This eye belongs to Freedom Dancer, a 42 year old energizer bunny. Freedom has seen trails, cows, husbands, wives, and kids. Freedom has seen more than any of us will ever know. He has never lost his love for humans, he is a very forgiving soul. He believes that you look where you want to go, pick up your feet, and just go there...it is that simple. In Freedom's eyes there are no excuses for not doing what you want to do.
These eyes belong to Ginger. She believes that humans must be taught proper manners. She has taught many a rider proper horsemanship and manners. First you get the look and lip, then you get the tail swish, then you get the "Ginger Stomp" a hind foot stomping the ground-if you still don't get it she walks away and leaves you in "time out" until you apologize. In her eyes humans need to remember that they are a partner with their horse, not the boss.


This eye is Harley Darling's. In Harley's eye you will see bravery. I tease the pretty boy that he is a looks and no brains, it is just because I am jealous. Harley looks at things and figures them out. He has eyes that want to learn about everything and understand about things, that is why he is not afraid. In his eyes knowledge and understanding are what you need to overcome fear.

This eye belongs to Scooby. Scooby's eyes have seen many a trail with his old owner, they were together for many years. Scooby has seen both shores of the United States. His eyes gave courage to the DOR, a belief in her ability to become an independent re-rider. Now his eyes don't see anything ...he is blind. But in his eyes you will see trust. He trusts the DOR and other humans to keep him safe. He uses his hearing and sense of smell to help raise an orphan colt. In fact unless you know Scooby is blind you would never know it until you watched him for a day. Scooby's eyes are filled with confidence, his eyes will show you that a handicap is no reason not to live life to the fullest.
Hank owns this eye. In his eye you will find fun and mischief. Hank's eye teaches you that life is supposed to be fun and if you aren't having a good time it is your own fault. Hank doesn't tolerate human pouting or bad moods. He will tease you until you laugh. Hanks's eyes say that heaven or hell is where you are at right now-it is your choice which one you are in, so choose wisely.


I own this eye. This eye believes that older beings can learn a lot from younger beings-after all look at all I am teaching the DOR. This eye also believes that there are times you should be afraid and run away blowing marbles. In this eye you will see how deep the loving bond between a horse and human can run. In my eye you will see peace.
So I hope this helps you understand why the DOR loves the eyes of horses, she believes that all of the answers to life's questions can be found in the eyes of a horse. She also believes that every horse has a lesson they are sent here to teach to humans.
Enjoy your day and don't forget to hug your DOR

Thank you

Thank you Teachings of the Horse it is an honor to receive this award from you. I am going to pass this on to some blogs I like to drop in on...I hate having to pick just a few.
Mosul 4 all a blog written by a female medical student is Mosul
Powell River Books Blog what would you do if you lived in a floating house in BC?
Strawberry Lane a touching blog about life on a small farm.
Tumbleweed Crossing is about living on the high desert west of Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Margaret and Helen a delightfully honest blog by best friends of 60 years.
Cowgirl Up a wonderful role model for any rider.
I know that I have missed someone, for that I apologize...please drop by and take a look at the blogs listed on the side bar. I keep finding so many great places to visit.
Enjoy your day and don't forget to hug your DOR

Universal Light Award

Thank you Kimmy Sharing Light for this award, it is an honor.
Kimmy created this award to honor those that share the light, inspire others. Inspiring others adds to the goodness in this world, it encourages others on the journeys that they are making.
At first I wondered what the point of my blog would be, besides to share my adventures with my family, friends, and people who knew Jack. I was worried about my age, my physic, and some of the roadblocks that I faced working with a young horse. Then I realized that there are a lot of people just like me out there. Older, fluffy, re-riders who needed to feel like they weren't alone. Then I discovered that Jack has a horsenality that was just too much fun not to share. I have encountered many inspirational people on my journey.
I would like to share this award with:
Barn Door Tagz This blog is about the ongoing adventures of a first time horse owner
Spartacus Jones An interesting blog about a singer-songwriter and horseman
Take It To The Limit A blog about living life to the fullest
My Autism Insights A delightful and informative blog about living with a child with Autism
Grey Horse Matters A blog that addresses issues facing the aging rider and equine enthusiast.
Middle of the Road A blog about a lady born in the middle of the century, in the middle of the year, in the middle of the month, in the middle of the day.

Recipients please pass this award on to people that share the light! Please visit my friends.
Enjoy your day and don't forget to hug your DOR

Saturday=schooling day

So Saturday rolled around and I started praying for Alzheimer's, not for me but for the DOR. If she had "sudden onset Alzheimer's" she would forget about Saturday being schooling day. Well I found out she still is in possession of whatever faculties she currently has and showed up with her tools of torture...she calls them toys.
So after working with the carrot stick she breaks out the apple stick with a grocery sack tied to it. I don't care if that darn bag is tied to something with the word apple in it I don't want to play!
I quit blowing marbles and she stopped waving it around. Then she started up again...what will it take to make the bag go away?
Then she wanted to play "put your nose here". She can put her own nose on the bag and if she is lucky while she is bending over to touch the bag I won't shove her over. I am NOT touching that bag! The DOR is wearing a glove on one hand. No that isn't a tribute to a weird rock star, it is because when I had my fall-apart I gave her right hand one heck of a rope burn. The skin on her hand is peeling and she didn't want to tear her hand up anymore than it already is. If a bag is so good why didn't she wrap that around he hand, hmmmm? I think she is scared of the bag to, that is why it is tied at the end of a six foot long stick.
The DOR reminds me that she has peppermints in her pocket. She holds some in her hand and leads me around making me follow the bag. She stops and waits for me to touch the bag.
I must admit I thought about it, she had a lot of peppermints. The best I could come up with was standing still without blowing marbles while she waved the bag around. I did a lot of licking and chewing-this bag stuff is hard. By the time we were done my heart was racing and I was a bit sweaty.
You think I had suffered enough...but noooooo. The DOR is sneaky, she tied grocery bags above all of the feed tubs. See the evil thing over my tub? Does that seem fair? I am going to starve to death. I was eating some hay that was on the ground, but that isn't going to be enough. Harley and Salty don't mind the bags. They are either really brave or really dumb. I think Salty is brave and Harley is just a pretty boy and doesn't know enough to be afraid.
I figured out how not to starve. If I stand between Harley's and Salty's feed tubs they will toss out enough that I won't die of starvation. I may become weak, too weak to save myself from the evil grocery sack. I am hoping before I reach the point of no return the DOR will remove the bags.

Enjoy your day and don't forget to hug your DOR