“But I thought horses prefer cold water because it’s more natural…”

That was a message I received after a recent post about preparing for winter weather changes to help safeguard our horses against colic.

And honestly — I get it.
It’s a really common and very reasonable assumption. I used to wonder the same thing.

So I wanted to respond the way I would if we were chatting at the barn, coffee in hand, watching the horses quietly munch hay.

Here’s the gentle, reassuring truth as we understand it today:

What we know (based on research and experience)

There’s no good evidence that horses prefer cold water.
There is good evidence that cold water leads many horses to drink less.

And that’s why this matters so much in winter and during warm-to-cold weather swings.

What research and long-standing veterinary experience consistently show:

• Horses offered very cold or near-freezing water tend to drink less
• Horses offered slightly warmed or tepid water (about 45–65°F) usually drink more...

Want to know what YOUR HORSE thinks you’re asking for? How they interpret your cues? Or — if you use R+ — what THEY think they’re being rewarded for?

So often, there’s a gap between what we intend and what they perceive. It’s in that gap where behaviors fall apart, or never end up looking the way we imagined.

There’s a powerful way to bridge that gap — working patterns. Not just dressage tests or obstacle courses, but patterns with visual & tactile feedback that help both you and your horse see what’s really going on.

What I Mean by Feedback Patterns

These are setups using physical elements in the arena or on the ground — poles, mats, cones, barrels, rings (like hula hoops, with safety modifications), targets.

• Poles on the ground help clarify things like step placement, rhythm, and how your cues are being received.
• Mats and targets can give tactile feedback.
• Chalk or paint markers offer visual feedback — not for the horse necessarily, but incredible for us to see what we aske...

"My secret to happy horses under saddle?"  It’s all about providing the right value and volume of reinforcement! For new riders, inexperienced or green or horses, or horse who are over aroused or starting their positive reinforcement journey, the right reinforcer, such as hay or another high volume low value one can be a game-changer!

Yes, you read that right: Hay can be fed from the tack! My students and I use it all the time with young horses or those new to clicker training. It’s not forever, just until they learn to be at ease receiving food under saddle.

Remember: Always get permission before using hay under-saddle, especially in arenas or yards. With a little practice, it's easy to minimize any mess.

Here's how it works...

The little gray horse listens for his favorite word or click, then if he doesn't receive another cue to carry on or do something different, he settles into a soft default position and waits for the cue that the food is coming. This brings a ton of comfort...

"A strained smile, a tentative way, and a worried look—that’s what I saw on the man in the rearview mirror as I pulled the horses down our drive, leaving my husband and dogs (blue heelers) behind. Up until that moment, I thought this evacuation was a load of crap, an aggravation and a waste of time. But seeing my rock of a husband’s face waiver as we left, I started to wonder: Would things ever be the same?

 The photos that popped up in Google inspiring me to write this post? They capture my last hurricane evacuation, driving away from the farm to take refuge in Georgia, thanks to generous friends of a friend.

What can't be seen seen in the photos of that time is the calm before the storm (horses loading well, trailer ready to go just needing a few quick check lists reviewed—or the flooding devastation that left my husband stranded, rescuing every animal he could, including feeding the neighbor's cattle... with our expensive horse hay!  (Yes, he and the bull became besties by the en...

Beyond the Saddle
 

"It's not about what you can do, but what you choose to do."
 

Not that there’s anything wrong with riding or to say that you’ll never get to ride your horse again, but given that there are times when we simply cannot...
 

So often, it’s not about whether our horse *can* do something; it’s about whether it’s *fair* to ask it of them—and of ourselves. Many kindhearted equestrians, particularly women in middle age or older, feel the pull to *do X* with their horse, driven by the ticking of time and the desire to create memories while they still can. Sometimes it's the horse’s age that limits them; sometimes it’s our own.
 

It’s a bittersweet reality: the years bring both blessings and burdens. Family responsibilities, changing physical abilities, and the unyielding biological clock can make the dream of riding feel distant. And yet, our horses are still there—beautiful, present, and ready to connect.
 

My own experience as a lifelong equestrian has taught me that true...

                           Elephants, Enrichment and the Power of Positive Reinforcement

I came across a fascinating study recently (thanks to Rachel Bedingfield 🙏) that beautifully supports something many of us have seen with our own horses:
When animals associate their experiences with something positive, they become more optimistic and resilient—even in uncertain situations.

Here’s what the researchers found:

🧠 Elephants used past experiences—and the emotional value of those experiences—to make decisions about ambiguous situations.

🐘 They showed a clear "positive bias":

• They approached an ambiguous positive cue 3x more often, and
• Responded to it twice as quickly compared to a cue associated with a negative experience.

In contrast, when the ambiguous cue was associated with something negative, they were slower and less likely to engage.

🐴 Why This Matters for Our Horses

This is the emotional groundwork of what we do every day with compassionate, positive reinforcement (R+)...