Tuesday, December 1, 2020

Is It Just Me? Or is everyone else itching to get back to clinics and competition?

A Personal note from Editor/Catskill Horse magazine, Nikki Alvin-Smith


 I do confess that I cannot wait to get back to giving dressage clinics, coaching at competition and offering dressage training at our farm here in Stamford, New York.

Everyone has endured a very turbulent and strange 2020 and as we canter into the last month of the year I cannot but hope that next year things return to some semblance of normalcy. 

 

 

For my husband and I, both international level Grand Prix dressage competitors/coaches/clinicians, the year has been a very quiet one. Our decision was to postpone our busy clinic tour, including trips abroad as there was no way the necessary quarantine needs could be met once there - and the idea of masking up to give instruction for 10 hours straight a day was an impossible ask. 

We LOVE our clients and missed the hugs, conversations, and frankly income, that our horse business provides. But, patience will hopefully pay off in the long term with a return to good health and better times.

Our life probably mirrors that of many other trainers. A mix of clinic giving, boarding/training, travel and ongoing personal education with other colleagues.

Here's a snapshot of ours:


Hubbie Paul coaching an accomplished hunter jumper rider.

Paul at a Finger Lakes clinic training Kim Preston - a dressage trainer in her own right.

Kim Preston visiting on site at our farm for a few days dressage retreat.

Another hunter/jumper rider gets some help on the flat.

Young Riders are all part of the action.


As we look forward to getting back to giving clinics we also look forward to welcoming boarders back that seek dressage training for their horses. 

 Once again being Covid careful we halted on site visits and training for others at our farm for 2020. It just seemed the right thing to do. But in Spring 2021, as vaccines hopefully become widely administered and the pandemic crisis abates, we expect to be back to full training at our farm.


Paul training ANCCE stallion Celesto V at WVH.




 

 We also look forward to training time with our own horses of course. We have sold off all our breeding stock but we have kept two special horses in our private yard, a 3 year old Lusitano/DWB homebred gelding called Extravaganza WVH and this beautiful soul, Tiberio Lafite aka Tigger, who we have owned since a youngster and is now 26 years old and still going strong. Though his Grand Prix moves are not requested anymore!! 



Travels abroad should also be back in play (we fervently hope!) as the year of 2021 progresses. We sure miss our friends, family and clientele abroad. The opportunity to take in some ongoing education from some of the world's best trainers is always a treat.


Paul and Stal Andre outside Lisbon, schooling on the great late Lusitano stallion Rico - as Portuguese dressage master Antonio Borba looks on at his retired stallion go.    



 

Certainly all of us wish to be back at it all and busy with our chosen career paths. It is a great time to set plans in motion, to dust off any depression, and encourage our hearts and minds with positivity towards the future.

So don't be shy to get on it! The winter in the NE is the perfect opportunity to set the hooves in motion for 2021 and canter down the centerline in an optimistic frame of mind.

Don't forget to send news of your forthcoming shows/clinics and other horsey events to Catskill Horse magazine for free inclusion on their events page.



Tuesday, October 6, 2020

Buying Horse Hay? Beware of Scammers...

 As Fall is in full swing and winter rapidly approaches horse owner's thoughts turn to stocking up on hay supplies. It seems there are an abundance of scams ongoing, some new and all nefarious and many occur through social media entities such as Facebook, where folks seeking hay are 'trolled' and captured.

 


 

Here are a few tips as to what to look out for so your hard earned dollars don't disappear without quality hay 'on your table' and red flags to be aware about when resourcing a supplier.

  • Know your supplier. Do your due diligence when it comes to buying hay. Obviously there are many reputable hay dealers around, but there are also many that are not and many middlemen that act in concert with certain hay dealers procuring hay supplies and customers for a commission that actually produce no hay at all themselves, or very little. It is smart to know the provenance of your hay if possible, and deal directly with the actual producer of the hay. Dealers necessarily source hay from all over the place and quality can vary considerably. At a minimum a hay seller should have a website, and a decent and transparent online presence. Be aware that middlemen often use other people's photos of hay stacks and claim them as their own, when really they have no such production or supply on hand.
  • Don't pay in advance. The latest trend of taking/requesting 'bookings' and requiring a deposit or prepayment is a great way for dealers to garner cash from prospective customers to provide cash flow to their business. How do you know you will even see the hay? There have been recent arrests ( finally) of a person in VT that regularly took money from unsuspecting horse owners for loads of hay in advance of delivery for many years, and never turned up with any hay supply. If you prepay you also have no idea what quality will be provided or when it will arrive. Pay on delivery.
  • Check the load. Dealers may tail load with good hay, so that on initial inspection the load looks good and you say go ahead and unload it. Halfway through the load may be a different quality from a different source. Check it throughout and ask the dealer if the hay has all come from the same producer.
  • Watch out online. There are many folks that pose as prospective consumers or direct growers when really they are middlemen looking to either pick up a load and add their margin, or are resourcing prospective customers for larger hay dealers. Larger hay dealers may even drop a trailer at one of their 'sales agents' and ask them to fill it by finding a source of hay, and then call on it when they get a call for someone in the area needing a hay supply. Thus your hay may have sat in a metal tin for a while before you see it. Not good for the hay!
  • Stay loyal. When you find a good resource to buy hay stick with it. Understand that prices may nominally increase year to year as all farmers' experience cost increases annually in producing the hay. Insurance, fuel, equipment leasing, buying and maintenance, costs to fertilize fields either organically or with chemicals, re-seeding of fields etc. 
  • If you are looking for horse quality hay, buy from someone who knows horses and what their needs are. Properly cured horse hay, grown for horses without weeds i.e. clean and green, will cost more than cow hay.
 


Sadly there are many unscrupulous people out there. Be smart, do your homework, call and ask questions, Google them, review websites and social media posts. 

Don't part with your cash until you have seen the hay in person and are happy with it!



Sunday, September 27, 2020

When Equestrian Press Calls Out

The stand Eventing Nation {EN} recently took regarding their contention and action to have the name of the event Plantation Field removed from the competition due to its claimed offensive undertones, made the national news cycle including the NY Times. Contentious rhetoric and actions ensued. 

The owner of the property pulled the lease rather than change the name of the event, which has been on the calendar as a recognized competition for 20 years; Olympic rider Boyd Martin, requested publicly that his image and name be removed from any press at the publication; other publications brandished their swords alongside EN and the equestrian populace came out to voice either their support or boycott of EN and its owner brand and advertisers. 

So in theory September 2020 was the last time equestrians will be invited to gallop along at this fixture, at least as it is now called.

The pulling of media credentials from Eventing Nation's Editor by the competition's management, as a result of the publication's article, was not the first time access has been denied at an event to press as punishment for speaking out and certainly it will not be the last. 


 

I have personally experienced similar access issues to eventing competitions, although in my case for no apparent reason. The property owner that hosted a major cross-country event that cancelled recently after a good run in Dutchess County was extremely hesitant to allow me to cover the competition for this magazine, Catskill Horse. In that case the statement 'came down' to me that I would be allowed to cover the event provided I kept a low profile and did not publish anything negative about the sport of eventing or the competition. I did not attend.

I am not going to delve into the wrongs or rights or moral grounds for the Plantation Field controversy, except to say it could have been better handled better by all parties. The timing of the article and the way the conversation was approached was certainly designed for maximum impact.

I do believe that elitism in equestrian sport, whether perceived or actual, needs to go and that governing entities need to do a better job of developing an inclusive environment for everyone. 

In my opinion the boycott of a publication or company for its views is somewhat inevitable, as in my experience people like to read and hear thoughts and ideas they agree with better than those that challenge their mindsets. That is human nature I suppose. It is a sad reality though. How can we improve life for all when we are afraid to think no further than our own frame of reference and education.

Of course as a publisher and a writer I believe free press is critically important to society and that voicing an opinion or bringing to light options for improving life for all is an essential component of a media professional's job. It was the driving force that guided me to start writing professionally back in 1981, covering events for The Chronicle of The Horse and penning 'how to' articles for the now defunct, Dressage and CT. 

 


 

I also fervently believe that facts should be the guiding principle in all writing, not under researched or ill-informed and errant statements used to promote ignorance or create tensions or unrest.

Media professionals will always be the subject of retaliation. Sometimes petty instances and histrionics but sometimes severe consequences can follow publication of their works.

For event management press is usually highly sought and much desired. It boosts not just the entries and attendance at a competition, it also brings much needed numbers of 'eyes' on the valuable sponsors participation that most venues require to operate. Event planners, hosts and management work hard to bring equestrian competitions to the public eye and try endlessly to support the sport to keep it on the Olympic calendar. Their task is not an easy one by any means.

 



The expression, " All press is good press," is something to think about. I am a PR/Marketing Specialist and in my experience for smaller brands this is the case. For larger brands perhaps not so much. Glean.info covers this topic beautifully. For equestrian events, in particular the dangerous sport of combined training, press can cast an unwanted spotlight on issues with death and disasters on course. Reticence to allow open press access to events held on private property is understandable if the event management team is concerned about a journalist highlighting a negative aspect of the competition, even if it is factual and accurately illuminated.

The name of a venue is a challenging thing to adapt, not least because of the historical factor that may be inherent in the place name. Whether that name be perceived as a negative or positive attribute is a societal moral issue. 

One thing is certain, the freedom of the press to report and do their job is an essential part of the conversation. However, the author must be certain of their facts before they hit send and the topic could have easily been discussed as Boyd Martin's official press suggested, "over a cup of coffee," and after the event had concluded, not just in advance of its date.

Photo Credits: Nikki Alvin-Smith

Tuesday, July 28, 2020

Hey! Need hay? Update on Horse Haymaking for 2020


1st cut 2020 hay - Photo Courtesy of Willowview Hill Farm, Stamford NY.


Farmers are busy baling hay and closing out their 1st cut 2020 season. The weather has been difficult this year and yields are down for 3 reasons:

  1. The late start to Spring weather and lack of snow cover over winter dished out a slow start to the growing season for all types of hay.
  2. The lack of Spring rains cut down on the yield.
  3. The good weather had farmers taking advantage of the opportunity to get busy knocking down hay earlier than usual so many of us saw a lower yield.
What does this mean to the consumer looking for 2020 1st cut hay?

Yields being down 30-40% in some cases mean hay prices have seen an increase according to the USDA.

The hay available is of very good quality in general, as most farmers did cut earlier so the seed heads are still on the grasses and the stems soft. The drier weather also helped hay producers avoid rained out haycrops on the field in the NE USA so the nutritional quality should be higher.

The earlier hay cutting opportunity also means many cow farmers are taking advantage of a midsummer 2nd cutting for silage and will take their usual 2nd cut as a 3rd cut later in the season. This may mean the horse hay available on their second baling will come in later and may suffer from curing issues with the hay lessening quality if pushed too late into the Fall. 

When less 1st cut is available customers will be forced into buying more expensive 2nd cut that is around. Either way - 1st cut may be harder to come by if you don't stock up with enough for winter and have to start searching high and low for it in the Spring. 

Rainfall in July in the North-East has not been significant so we wait and see how yield on the 2nd crop comes in. 

Photo Courtesy: Willowview Hill Farm, Stamford, NY

All in all it would be smart as a consumer in need of horse hay supplies, to stock up sooner rather than later to ensure supply needs can be met and hay costs are kept under control.

Tip: If you choose to buy large rounds or squares consider buying an equine hay feeder as they can save you up to 30% on hay costs according to University of Minnesota research.



Photo Courtesy of Horizon Structures LLC, Atglen, PA


Wednesday, April 22, 2020

No Good Deed Goes Unpunished ~ Horses on Lockdown

“Anger or hatred is like a fisherman's hook. It is very important for us to ensure that we are not caught by it.”
Dalai Lama 


In the Covid-19 times of high stress and high emotion many horse owners find themselves facing the extra challenge of not being able to visit, ride or spend any time with their horses that are on lockdown at boarding establishments.
 
A note from Editor at Catskill Horse magazine, Nikki Alvin-Smith

While the owners of the horse farms have to work hard to keep all the chores done and offer nightly video check-ins with the horses under their care, custody and control, horse owners wait nervously at home for the opportunity to get back to spending real time with their pets.

There is a flood of well-intentioned folks out there on social media, setting up helpful and sometimes not so helpful pages and resources to help their clients navigate this new normal in horse keeping. Unfortunately some of the information is their 'interpretation' of the guidelines offered in their respective State. Occasionally in their earnest quest to provide more 'resourced at the source' information, they will take emails and letters from veterinarians and various government officials speaking 'off the record' in private emails in an effort to offer guidance and post them in the public domain. 

The fair use (copyright) of such materials can create a wave of interest as anxious horse owners share the information around to try and fathom just what their boarding horse farm can and can't do, and to try and pressure horse farm owners to allow perhaps more 'visiting' than is strictly allowed. This can be devastating to a boarding farm owner who is already dealing with a lot of extra work and financial stress with missing lesson revenue and horses sitting idle but still costing hay and grain and bedding, and who really does want to reopen their facilities but is torn between what is truly allowed and legal and what is 'interpretation'. Another complication is that if a barn allows folks to visit the facility, even if following CDC hygiene guidelines, their insurance company may not cover the liability if the activity is deemed illegal.

Unfortunately among non-professional publishers, distribution of materials without the permission of the author into a public domain is fairly common. The author is left with a difficult situation. It is important that if you are responsible for disseminating information that you post responsibly. Know that it will be picked up and distributed by others once it is out there.

In an effort to help spread useful information from government sources for horse and boarding barn owners dealing with these unprecedented issues Catskill Horse magazine recently shared information that was published in the public domain that was issued directly by a vet from the NYS Agricultural Market ( position and release source according to the person that posted the original letter). While our social media sharing of the post reached a relatively small audience of approximately just 33% of our monthly unique magazine views that total over 75,000, the 25,000 plus hits it received certainly guaranteed a higher viewership than perhaps the vet in question intended. We had validated the identity/author of the source before sharing and the content aligned with other sources we had researched and as it was in the public domain it was 'fair use' under copyright laws to republish it.

However, when the vet noticed the posting on a Sunday afternoon, she contacted all persons that had commented on the post to contact her directly for more information stating that her original letter was causing confusion. Later she asked us to remove her address from the bottom of the post (apparently it was her home mailing address) and substitute her email address with a request for folks to contact her. Of course Catskill Horse magazine complied. We had no wish to cause her difficulties for issuing advice that was not official from the government for which she worked. Later still she thought better of it altogether and requested the post be removed. 

The rules of copyright were explained, as we asked the author if the information was accurate to which we received no response. In an effort to help her with the dilemma created by the person responsible for making the post public in the first place (a horse farm owner in Clinton Corners, NY who we shall not name or shame, as probably it was just their earnest intention to help other horse farm owners but for this purpose we will call Fanny), we directed the author to the various public forums where it had appeared and suggested she ask them to remove the original post so that any other posts would be automatically removed also, and we agreed on Sunday night that we would do the same as soon as the original post was removed.

When 9am Monday morning rolled around and our staff member that handles social media checked on the original public postings, it had been removed or/and amended and consequently our post was amended also.

The post apparently caused a lot of drama, all caused by one person, 'Fanny', trying to do a good thing but working outside of the confines of the professional publishing world, with no knowledge that her actions would create such a situation for the vet, however unintended, by making that original letter public and available for others like Catskill Horse to pick up and share.

It is important that if you set out to provide information in this crisis to help people deal better with the situation that you cite, 'on the record,' and accurate information.For my part, I suggested to the vet in question, that as this topic was evidently a 'hot topic,' that the Department of Agriculture needed to issue a clearer directive with better clarity for horse barn owners and equine owners. She advised that this is currently being worked on and that new guidelines should be forthcoming. In the realm of what is considered 'essential' and what is considered 'low risk business' the intent of the order and the availabe waivers applicable need to be addressed more succinctly and there is much confusion as the guidelines issued are so ambiguous.

Unfortunately, although Catskill Horse had published material from the public domain in good faith, the an episode of cyber bullying ensued from 'Fanny' that published the original post while we were in discussion with the author, and were trying to figure out the conflicting requests that were being made and follow the timeline and back check the resource. 'Fanny' deemed it necessary to make an attack on certain volunteer staff and contributors of the magazine through finding their private Facebook accounts and sending them private message, tried to shame the same volunteer parties on social media and even attempted to bully staff, including myself on a personal level with veiled threats and fictitious nasty comments trying to smear other businesses that I work for.

An amazing example of how one person can cause much drama by making a poor decision, and then not accepting any responsibility for their actions or making any apologies.

These are stressful times and emotions can run high but please consider the consequences of what you post online and how you choose to conduct yourself. 
The Covid-19 pandemic is a crisis we must all endure. Choose to be kind.







Saturday, February 29, 2020

Stop Blaming the Horse

Strange as it may seem, horses don't wake up one day and decide they are not going to do something or plot against their riders and handlers to undermine training efforts. The small frontal lobe of a horse's brain does not encourage a vast amount of ability, if any, to reason.




Horses learn by conditioning and experience. For every horse owner that blames a horse for poor behavior, it says much about them and little about the horse. If a horse won't do the 'thing' you want it to do, there will be a very good reason.

Most of the time it is simply that the horse doesn't understand your request. If it perceives anger emanating from their rider/handler they will become tense and eventually they will run on their instinct of flight not fight. If that exit is blocked, then they have no choice but to instinctively defend themselves with hooves and teeth, though first, they will back up, rear or try to intimidate the threat.

A common reason for a horse not doing what it has been asked to do, even if it knows the task at hand, is a fear of pain. Physical pain experienced by the horse can come from a range of sources; bad saddle or bit fit; poor riding techniques, especially push and pull; soundness issues; chiropractic misalignment; poor dental care. A horse has no way to communicate other than by its actions.

When a horse becomes overwhelmed by too much input that it doesn't comprehend, it will become reactive. A very smart horse will most likely be more sensitive to external stimuli than a less smart one. A mare similarly will require more tact than most geldings or even stallions. Horses do lose their tempers and they do lose focus and switch off when they become frightened. 

A horse with its head held high is ready for flight. Tension is already present and it is up to the rider/trainer to recognize the telltale signs and review what they are doing and how they are doing it.

The age of the horse has no bearing on its training level. If you have an older horse who is less educated in the ways of our riding world, tightly spaced tin transport boxes and generally has not seen much of life, then you have to take the time and patience to train it to trust you and not be afraid. There will always something that the horse will be more afraid of than the whip or the spur. You cannot force a horse to learn or force a horse not to be fearful, except with trust. This takes time and technique and importantly, consistency, to achieve.
Once a horse trusts you it will do its level best to do as asked. 



When given a specific task, the horse will usually choose the path of least resistance. For example, a horse will choose to jump the lowest part of a fence so cross poles encourage their confidence and teach them to stay in the center of the fence. 

A double win. To say a horse cannot reason does not mean it has no intelligence, and just like us, some are more intelligent than others. Some are more resourceful, some seemingly have a better developed sense of humor.

Yes, there is an occasional horse that poses more difficulty in the training process but often these are more highly bred horses with more athleticism that intimidates the rider. Or perhaps is too much gait for the rider to manage.

In short, always look to yourself before blaming the horse. As Olympic gold medal dressage winner, Gabriella Grillo once said to me during my training in Germany, 
" This horse did not ask to be here in my yard. It is my job to make him happy and confident."





 

Thursday, February 20, 2020

Trip To Europe Yields Some Disturbing Anti-Horse OwningTrends

My recent trip to Europe yielded some disturbing news - there is a sincere anti-horse owning trend taking hold. As a horse owner on this side of the pond I took particular note of the issue. I was aghast at TV reports, and comments among friends and acquaintances when I inquired further as to what they had heard on the topic. It seems that the general public, pushed along by organizations' spread of propaganda ( the notable P.E.T.A. being a key player), are listening to these so called humane societies advocating that riding horses is cruel and should be reviewed and stopped.

The iconic Olympian Isabell Werth, touches on this topic in the last chapter of her recent book, Four Legs Move Me. To paraphrase, she remarks that if this attitude against horse ownership takes hold, we will be visiting horses as exhibitions of the species in a zoo and all horse ownership as we know it will cease.


Armed with ridiculously biased reporting, these organizations are already 'credited' with causing the banning of horse sales on Facebook. Whether that is true or fake news I cannot ascertain. However, their activities in Europe are most likely to be encouraged here by the ever present equine deaths at sporting events.

To single out horse racing as a culprit for bad press would be easy to do, but all types of riding disciplines and horse shows are under fire. The Ocala Equestrian Center was quickly targeted for not having turnout for every stall space on social media. In Europe there are suggestions of putting into law the notion that every horse must have access to free turnout at all times. Eventing shows sadly see a fair number of human and equine injuries and death, even our local HITS Saugerties showground has experienced a death at the main arena of an accomplished young female equestrian. 

The fellowship and history of the horse in our society is well documented and our partnership with the horse, care and concern for its well-being should always be foremost in our ownership and riding/driving of our equine buddy.But we must also regard our position within the entire community with diligence. 

We must educate the non-horsey public about the benefits that horses provide to everyone: the therapeutic benefits for humans, the Wounded Warrior project, the PATH programs, the para-programs. When a neighbor complains about the smell of manure we should take note and make an effort not to be antagonistic or inflame the situation, but seek to resolve the matter equitably. 

When industry experts attempt to mitigate cruel practices such as long haul transportation for slaughter and social media posts of live horses being crowded onto planes to Japan pop up we should take note. Black market horse meat, horses being apparently randomly shot in fields, stolen from paddocks, and discussions of best methods to euthanize horses by implementing ownership fees to cover veterinary administration of euthanasia for the horse, are all topics we should listen to carefully. When the Chinese slaughter donkeys for supposed 'medicine' and fairs in Spain exhibit abuse of donkeys and horses we should pay attention and do something concrete to stop it now.



It is wise not to take this attack on our beloved horses and their ownership by us for granted. If we do not take methods to self-regulate the horse industry others will be all too happy to seize the chance to do it their way. Speak up!