Having The World In Your Backyard

by: Erin Shea

The 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games have come and gone. The crazy three weeks of WEG were worth the hard work for this once in a lifetime experience to show the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation and Maker’s Mark Secretariat Center to the world.

So what was MMSC doing? Our volunteers and staff worked our two booths in the trade fair and equine village, which we shared with Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association. We sold tons of merchandise and spread the word about the work we do.

While working at the booth, I heard heartwarming stories from WEG-goers about the horses in their lives, and about how many of these horses were rescued horses. I was overjoyed to hear that so many people around the world share our goal in rescuing ex-racehorses.

Our trade fair booth was always crowded with the help from some celebrity appearances, which included: Ron Turcotte, Pat Day, Joe Fargis, Calvin Borel, Kate Tweedy and Leeanne Ladin - authors of Secretariat’s Meadow - The Land, The Family, The Legend, and Heather Henson - author of Dream of Night.

Besides just the booths, we had potential adopters stop by our center and look at our horses almost every day during WEG. At the end of the games, six of our horses had found new homes.

Not only did we have visitors at our Center, we also had world class athletes riding through our property. Both the athletic endurance horses and the strong driving teams came thundering through the back of our fields. I also got to watch the individual jumping competition, my favorite event. Having the chance to watch the people that you idolized your whole riding career is breathtaking. It’s spectacular to see horse and rider come together so beautifully and jump the huge obstacles without trouble. As a jumper rider myself, I was inspired to watch the many, different techniques that world class riders used to communicate with the 1,500 lbs. of pure athlete underneath them.

I can’t believe the three weeks of the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games, that I had waited over eight hundred days for, are over. All of the anticipation and excitement is gone, and as the visitors go back home life in Lexington will soon return back to normal.
I’m glad that Kentucky had the opportunity to show off everything that we have to offer and that Lexington proved that it really is “the horse capital of the world.”

The games have arrived!

Equine Village Booth

Back of Equine Village Booth

Trade Fair Booth

Videos being shown at Trade Fair Booth

Individual Jumping Course - First Round

Individual Jumping Course - Second Round

Driving team riding through our back yard

Red Light For Health

by: Erin Shea

It is incredible what a little red light can do. Feel a cold coming on? Just put the light up to your jugular vein for 10 minutes and you’ll feel better. Is your horse sore? Use the light to hit points to heal almost anything from muscle cramps, immune system problems, and digestive issues. All this power coming from a tool, made by Photonic Health, that resembles a small flashlight.

How does it work? From a western medicine standpoint, the flashlight-like device projects a beam that stimulates the mitochondria in the cell, which produce ATP (energy), increases circulation, and reduces pain. From an eastern medicine perspective, it stimulates acupuncture points and creates energy flow over meridian lines of the body.

Bryan Owens, founder, came to MMSC during WEG to show us just what this little machine can do. Using our cranky grey gelding, Willy, Bryan evaluated the horse’s pressure points for a diagnosis. By the way Willy moved around in the cross ties, lifting his back legs up to kick, pawing the ground and biting at us, it was obvious that he was not feeling too well.

“Begin by moving your hands down the bladder meridian to open your horse up,” said Bryan. “Mark the certain points where you note a reaction, like a sigh, twitch, or any kind of movement, and we’ll go back and work on those later.”

Noticing that Willy ached all over, especially in his ulcer points, Bryan suggested that we focus on healing a possible stomach ulcer. While Melissa held the light up to the points which Bryan suggested for 2 to 30 seconds, we watched for Willy’s reactions. At first, he pinned his ears back, shook his head, and opened his jaws as if releasing a silent scream of pain. But eventually as the treatment progressed, Willy dropped his head, sighed, stretched out his legs, and stood still in the cross-ties, all signs of relaxation. Willy even let us work the points on his back end, which before we started therapy would have been in the danger zone.

“Every horse can benefit from having their “wellness points” worked on,” explained Bryan, “even those that show no obvious signs of pain because this therapy improves overall well being.”

“What does it feel like?” I asked Bryan.

“Do you have any sore areas?” he responded.

My lower back was aching, so Bryan and Susanna took two light tools to my lumbar region. A surge of warm powerful movement radiated up my back and I felt my muscles relax. In five minutes, I was pain free and relaxed. Oh I get it now Willy! Love that little red light!


For more information about Photonic Health, visit their website: www.photonichealth.com

"Today Is Horse Day. That's Why We're Dressed Like Cowboys"

by: Erin Shea

On Thursday September 9, The Year of the Horse was celebrated at Liberty Elementary School, so Maker's Mark Secretariat Center joined other organizations from Lexington to come teach the children about horses. As the Fall 2010 communications intern, I was asked to come report and photograph the event. I am so glad that I went.

We explained to 750 kids what we do at the Center by comparing it to their school, but instead of subjects like math and science, the horses learn things like dressage, eventing, hunter/jumper and other disciplines. Susanna, who speaks several languages, spoke to them in a foreign language and explained how horses also have a language. Then she taught them how to say "hello" in horse by blowing in their nostrils. We took our two ambassadors, Ferdinand's Star and Fly Lite, who willingly greeted them all which delighted the kids. We discussed how horses see the world, which is different from how humans see it. We flipped up the horses' lips and showed off their racing tattoos, and displayed their big yellowed teeth.

"See what happens if you don't brush your teeth?" said Susanna.

"EWWWWW!! YUCK!!" exclaimed the kids.

Ferdinand's Star and Fly Lite, were used by Rob Spencer, equine podiatrist and farrier, also to teach the students hoof care and how shoes are put on horses. Most of the kids knew little to nothing about horses so we had to start with the basics.

"Look at your feet. Do you all wear the same size shoes?" asked Susanna. "What kind of shoes do you wear to the beach? To go hiking? To play basketball?"

Rob Spencer showed the kids that horses have different shoes for different jobs. And that horses have different size feet, and that shoes are nailed or glued on.

"Do the nails hurt??" the children asked.

It was a great day for the kids but it was also educational and fun for me. Explaining horse nature, horse care and daily procedures in a way that children can understand - simple, clear and logical, made me thing about things I take for granted. Seeing the children laugh and marvel at Ferdy and Fly was wonderful because horses bring me joy too. It was awesome to share my passion with the children at Liberty Elementary School.

Learning How To Go Left....And Other Thoughts While Riding...

by: Erin Shea

Riding is a mental as well as a physical pursuit. When you get on your horse, you don't leave your thoughts and personality behind. They show through your riding. It's quite amazing how much your individual traits shape the way that you ride. I guess this is because you can tell the character of a person by the way that they treat another living thing, like a horse. During my time riding last week, I came to the realization that they way I ride reflects my personality.

I am my father's daughter. I have been told this my whole life. I tend to ride putting the majority of my weight on my right side of my body. Susanna noted this and surpirised me by asking me out of the blue if I was like my father in personality. "Why?" I asked. "Because in Chinese medicine, Native American medicine, and indeed some religions, the right side of the body is traditionally associated with the father," she told me. "And you are very right sided." She suggested I lengthen my stirrup a hole on the left so I would have to reach more for it and asked that I pay attention as I rode this way in the future what happened.

So I was riding Diano in the jumping field a few days later. At first I was having a hard time getting him to go down the outside line without bending to the left too much and drifting left coming to the fence crooked. Remembering my tendency to be right sided. I started to put more of my weight in my left stirrup. We had a much straighter line. Wow! it is amazing what riding properly and balanced can do for you and your horse!

Like my dad, I am a perfectionist. It's a blessing and a curse. It's a great trait when trying to accomplish something. I'm motivated and will work until my project is complete. However, I am often unsatisfied with my work and I tend to beat myself up over things which often are not important. Not the best quality to have when training a horse.

This too showed up in my riding this week. While I was trotting on Pete, Susanna told me not to try so hard while posting. Easier said than done for someone like me. At first, "not working so hard" was really hard. However riding this way, and not stressing about whether you are doing everything by the book, makes sense when you realize that your horse responds to what you're asking. After a bit, I began to feel how to use my seat and body to ask my horse to extend and collect at the trot. When I gave him the correct support from my position. Pete engaged his whole body in his trot making me realize what an amazing responsive horse he is. He's so sensitive, like many Thoroughbreds, and willing to do what his rider asks of him, if asked in a clear way, and then allowed him to do what he does best: being a horse!

Our riding habits may lead us deeper into our lives than we know. That is what I've been experiencing myself this week. So as a piece of advice to all riders, look past the physical part of riding and think about yourself as a whole. Sort out your riding problems and maybe then you will be able to put yourself in balance, both in the saddle and out.

Enter Working Trot, Halt at X, Salute....

by: Erin Shea

I am not going to lie, but Sunday I had never been to a dressage show but I heard from people in the hunter/jumper world that it is about as exciting as watching paint dry. However after the few hours that I spent observing today, my slightly biased opinion was dramatically changed.

I can see how anyone who does not know much about the sport could find it boring. But can't that be said about most anything? What's so fascinating about seeing people lob a small ball over a golf course? Or watching racecars fly around in the same circle hour after hour? From my perspective, I saw more horsemanship on display in the dressage classes than in a typical hunter show class. To ride a test well and win, dressage riders have to be in complete communication with their horses every step of the way. That's not always the case in hunter rings, sometimes our horses carry the weight a lot more than you think! The active and constant communication required by a dressage rider is established and maintained with the correct use of the seat and hands. The dressage rider's position must be upright yet deep, strong yet fluid, and in constant harmony with the horse's motion. Power and control come from the riders' seats, with their hands held lower than hunter riders which allows their horses to follow through with their heads and necks. When positioned correctly, the rider could make her horse engage its whole body while beautifully moving through the dressage pattern, which consisted of walking, trotting, cantering, circling, and halting at specific points through oust the arena.

Another big difference about a dressage show and a hunter show is how the contestants are scored. Every movement of every dressage test is given an individual score and commented upon by the judge as the test progresses. After the classes, riders could pick up their prizes and their score cards which include not only included total score for all the movements combined, but also individual scores for the rider's ability, the quality of the horse's gaits, as well as its obedience and impulsion. Not only did this system of judging make the classes seem more objective than many times hunter classes are but it also provides an extremely helpful tool for the rider to know what needs to be worked to improve for next time instead of trying to guess why the judge placed you a certain way.

I have to say, after spending a day helping out the MMSC team (which ended up with a third, two fourths and a fifth). I have gained a whole new respect for dressage. I know that as a hunter rider I have a lot to learn from this discipline. Solid communication between you and your horse is critical for every equestrian discipline, from eventing to jumping, to reining, and even trail riding! I hope that while riding out at the Center I can learn some tricks of the trade from these dressage people because now I see how it can provide a solid foundation for riding well and for retraining, or, indeed training any horse, to be the best, most obedient athlete it can be.

25 more days until the Games!

You Can Teach An Old Horse New Tricks

by: Erin Shea

As summer comes to an end, the Kentucky Horse Park is a busy place gearing up for the World Equestrian Games, now only about 30 days away. The Secretariat Center has also been full of action with its daily routine of training horses, seeking adopters, shipping horses out to new forever homes, greeting visitors, and the arrival on Friday of two new horses, "Frigidoon" and "Kim's Rhapsody."

We have also been working on our plans for the Games. We will have daily demonstrations at the MMSC every morning at 10, with each demonstration showcasing a different aspect of Horse Centered ReSchooling Program®. For one demo we're planning on having our mascot, Ferdy, perform some tricks.

As Ferdie is not strongly motivated by good and seems to have a limited attention span, teaching him new tricks is not such an easy task, so we've brought in the help of a clicker. The clicker, which is a simple hand held device that makes a loud clicking noise when pushed, is used right after the horse performs the necessary task and right before he is given a reward. After a couple repeated steps of click-treat-food, the horse knows that the click means he has performed the correct task and will be receiving a reward. When the horse realizes this, the horse may beging exploring options to see how far he can push the task or how many times he can do it in a row to get a reward, and this is how the horse will learn the tricks. The "trick" for the trainer is to watch what the horse offered up as he explores new behaviors and to capitalize and build on a behavior to build it into a trick. Susanna and I noted that Ferdy willingly picked up his front foot, so we worked with that and combined it with a bow (stretching his neck down to the ground) as well, which he performs very easily now. After this action was perfected, we moved on to placing a bucket of grooming equipment in front o fhim and having him touch his nose to one of the brushes. We thought that it might be fun for us to tell people that Ferdy was keen to be groomed, so our goal is to have him be able to pick up the brush from the bucket. Although Ferdy is 15 years, it was fun to see how quickly he learned and how experimentitive he was! We will be working with him as much as possible from now until the WEG, so who knows what he will come up with as far as fun things to show to the crowd!

More to come soon, only 29 days until the games!

What a crazy week it has been! According to http://www.rk3de.org/, Rolex brought in a total of 61,828 spectators across four days. Many of those people took at least one stroll through the trade fair. Located just inside the entrance of the indoor on the second floor, the MMSC had many people stop by to find out about the program and stop to look at our available horses board. Because so many people were interested in adopting, we ran carloads of people back and forth from the Center to try out horses Friday-Sunday. Deputy Alydar was adopted and left Monday. Benny and Mr. Informed are ready to go and just waiting for rides home. Aspen arrived at his new home and settled right in. We will also be receiving two new horses within the next few days who we are very excited about: Hap's Online and Cool Smoke. Keep an eye on our website for pictures of these flashy horses. Also on our website under the News section is an updated calendar. School will soon be out, so if you have time on your hands, don't forget to come volunteer at the Center and look for us at shows!

We would also like to give a big thank you to our Training Intern, Whitney Campbell, for getting a Photonic Health Red Light kit donated to us which includes the light itself along with many charts and books which explain how it works. We have seen such therapy used for many purposes in the past and work wonderfully.

This will be our interns last official week as their graduation will be held this Sunday at 1pm. Bryn will be going home to NH for the summer, but will return to UK next fall, and will certainly be back at the MMSC to volunteer. Whitney graduates from U of L next weekend and will be moving to Lexington. John will go back to Burlington, KY for the summer but return to finish his degree at UK in the fall.

I have enjoyed updating the blog and learning how to publish stories to the website. I hope you have found both to be informative and effective. Have a lovely, horse filled summer, and I will see you all next year!