"Trail Solutions" by Julie Goodnight

I just borrowed the video "Trail Solutions" by Julie Goodnight of HorseMaster.  As some of you know, Julie's ranch is here in southern Colorado and the GunDiva has had the privilege of not only taking her personal horse, Estes, to be on a HorseMaster episode, but has also gotten to work behind the scenes as a horse handler for Julie.  Julie is a marvelous, down-to-earth, knowledgable horse woman; she isn't just a trainer, she is a "horseman", and this DVD is way fun to watch.

OK, as a mom, I would like to say "my daughter's part in this video was the best", (Stand by Me) but in all reality, it was probably the most boring.  I have seen what Estes can do; she must have been behaving herself or had camera fright, because she was pretty darn calm compared to the other horses.  Julie helps a horse face its fear in the "Wave Runner" episode, giving great advice for getting any horse past any trail obstacle.  "Loaded Up" was an extra exciting story because of the horse that was used.  Most trailer loading doesn't get quite this bad, but it can, and you get to see a true professional handle a truly devious horse.

My personal interest was in "Rearing to Go", not because I have a barn sour horse, but I do have a particularly obstinate horse that I have let get by with too much over the last two years.  I had developed some fear of falling with my bad hips, and although Jesse is very protective of me and usually quite obliging, she has become a handful, and I don't want her to be a safety issue for other people, so I will be reverting back to her training bit and mecate, and trying out Julie's method of regaining control. 

Although "Shop Til You Drop" wasn't as interesting to me (because I can't talk those dollar amounts for horses), I really enjoyed the "behind the scenes" chat for this portion.  Julie goes into the differences between mares and geldings, giving good examples of where/when each has its strengths.  I had heard from other trainers that mares were not the best choice for locations where their riders change often; Julie explains why:  the bonding that mares crave.  I actually ran into this situation with Jesse; it became quite clear early on that she did not like having many different riders.  Two or three that she could get to know were OK, but don't ask her to carry someone different many days in a row or even several times in a couple of months.  As she got older, she got worse about this.  It became obvious she wanted to know her rider and what that rider wanted - always.  I guess I got lucky when I ended up with a mare; I happen to like having a horse I can bond with!  Don't get me wrong, I love my gelding, too, but there is certainly no great bond between us.

I had a wonderful time with this DVD; it was entertaining and educating.
Juanita