The Equestrian Connection

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#60 Giving OTTBs a new lease on life with Lauren Maas Sep 15, 2024

Show notes

The non-profit organization that is rehabilitating and retraining these amazing athletes

Lauren Maas is the executive director of Canter California and Canter USA, non-profit organizations providing retiring Thoroughbred racehorses with opportunities for new careers by helping to place, rehabilitate, and retrain these amazing athletes.

It began leasing her first love, a 1985 OTTB gelding named Sunny, just before her eleventh birthday. Lauren’s love of thoroughbreds has continued and grown ever since.

After holding multiple volunteer positions throughout the years, Lauren became the executive director of 501c3 thoroughbred aftercare organizations CANTER California and CANTER USA, which has placed more than 25,000 OTTBs in a new home. Lauren has been hard at work to revamp the adoption and listing program and plans to continue to grow CANTER’s presence and place an even greater number of OTTBs into their forever homes.

Amongst all that, Lauren is now also a first-year veterinary student at the Royal Veterinary College in England.

Connect with Lauren & CANTER:

#59 Working for your luck with international showjumper Richard Vogel Sep 01, 2024

Show notes

Achieving and maintaining success with horses and in life

*Important to note: This podcast episode was originally recorded in June 2024 in German for the wehorse podcast. We used translation software to dub the episode for our English podcast, The Equestrian Connection. Please excuse any imperfections in the conversation as a result.

Richard Vogel is a German rider who started riding horses at the age of four, following in the footsteps of his family who have always had a strong passion for horses. He began competing at the age of seven and since then has has achieved numerous national and international successes.

After a riding apprenticeship and valuable years of training with Ludger Beerbaum starting in 2015, today Richard Vogel is the No. 1 German show jumper and sits at No. 10 in the world rankings.

Currently, Richard continues to compete internationally and represents Germany in various equestrian competitions. At the same time, he runs a business together with Sophie Hinners and David Will; a sports and sales stable in Hesse with two locations, known for the first-class training of show jumpers.

Richard's philosophy can be summarized by his motto "The more you work, the luckier you get."

In this podcast episode, Richard Vogel tells host Christian Kröeber how he worked for his success from an early age, why his business partners rarely compete in the same competitions as he does, what he thinks makes a good rider, and what he thinks needs to change if we want to still be able to experience equestrian sport in 20 years.

Connect with Richard:

#58 How Equestrians are Prequalified for Activism with EquUSCAN Aug 18, 2024

Show notes

Aligning equine advocacy work with social justice and global activism

The purpose of EquUSCAN is to engage equestrians (specifically in the US and Canada, though everyone is welcome) in social justice work and global activism. EquUSCAN is a resource hub, highlighting and amplifying important humanitarian causes around the world and providing actionable avenues through which you can get involved and contribute to making a difference, help those who need it most, and reduce harm and suffering for vulnerable and targeted populations. EquUSCAN believes that your voice matters and they want to empower you to use it for the greater good!

Founders Kait Miller and Elsie Reford truly believe that aligning equine advocacy work with social justice and global activism is the next evolution of the horse-human partnership and they are excited to be creating a platform that intentionally fosters the merging of those spheres.

Connect with EquUSCAN:

#57 Speaking Up About Horse Welfare with Rebekka Klubien, the Journalist Who Exposed Helgstrand Dressage Aug 04, 2024

Show notes

Her experience as the investigative journalist who exposed Helgstrand Dressage

Rebekka Klubien graduated from Roskilde University in 2021 and started working at the public broadcast tv station TV2 in 2022. Currently, she holds the position as a TV producer in the investigative journalism department.

In 2023, Rebekka went undercover as a groom to see firsthand the daily operations at the Danish base of Helgstrand Dressage, which also has locations in Germany and Florida. Inside the barn, Rebekka found horses with welts from whips, mouth sores that were not given time to heal, and spur marks that were disguised with shoe polish when customers visited. She also filmed Helgstrand riders riding aggressively in training sessions with tight draw reins and the use of rollkur.

Later that year, the documentary “The Secrets of the Horse Billionaire” aired on Danish national televisions station TV2, resulting in the indefinite suspension of owner Andreas Helgstrand from the Danish National Dressage Team.

These stories are becoming all too common, and is a very important topic of discussion within the industry. On this episode, we chat with Rebekka about her experience, the welfare issues within the industry, the future of the sport, and her advice on speaking up.

Connect with Rebekka:

#56 Understanding Your Horse’s Dietary Needs with Connie Flores Jul 21, 2024

Show notes

Why it’s important to feed the horse in front of you

Connie Flores is a certified Equine Nutrition Advisor and the owner of 17 Hand Equine Nutrition.

Her goal is to help horse owners understand the purpose behind every ingredient in their horse’s diet and to help develop a personalized feed program specific to the horse as a unique individual. Connie works independently of any feed company and provides unbiased feedback and recommendations, as well as keeps the owner’s goals in mind.

On this episode, we discuss Connie’s why behind empowering owners to understand their horse’s nutrition, advice for both hard and easy keepers, hay testing, and so much more.

Connect with Connie:

#55 Horse-centric Thinking vs. Human-centric Thinking with Mary Ann Simonds Jul 07, 2024

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A better way for horses, humans, and the future of the sport

Mary Ann Simonds has worked as a researcher, educator, coach and consultant for over 40 years in the fields of human and animal behavior, communication, consciousness and ethology. Lecturing and consulting nationally and internationally primarily on horse-human interactions, her work blends the application of science with intuition integrating cultural issues and finding solutions for the well-being of people and animal. She has produced numerous educational materials including videos and books and has a new book “A Horse by Nature” recently out.

Currently living in Wellington, FL, Mary Ann has retired from a rigorous teaching with the Institute of Integrated Sciences and the Whole Horse & Equestrian Science Institute to focus on writing and speaking. Her pioneering work has focused on stress management in animals and how humans influence animal behavior both in the wild and in captivity. Integrating a whole systems approach to interspecies psychology, Mary Ann has worked with governments, communities, businesses, non-profit organizations and universities.

On this episode, we discuss signs of stress in horses, horse personality assessments, skills of a good horseperson, welfare, and the future of the sport.

Connect with Mary Ann:

#54 Understanding Bodywork Modalities with Miah O’Cain Jun 23, 2024

Show notes

Redlight Therapy, Tuning Forks, Cryotherapy, and more

Miah O’Cain is an equine sports massage therapist and the owner of Highland 3:5 Equine Services. She has a vast knowledge of additional supportive techniques and modalities - many of which we’ll discuss today. This includes redlight therapies, Tuning Forks, Bemer, and cryotherapy.

Her ultimate goal is to find the root cause of pain and dysfunction and then fix the problem at the core, not mask it. She does this by bringing body, mind, and soul back into alignment.

On this episode, we discuss the different body work modalities and technology, how to know what is best for your horse, and so much more.

Connect with Miah:

#53 Following Your Heart with MD Equestrians founder Marloes Blok Jun 09, 2024

Show notes

How listening to her horse led her to starting her own company

MD Equestrians is a company that designs and sells bitless bridles and accessories, as well as their new bareback pads. With products available in sizes from miniature to extra-large, the mission is to make this way of working with horses accessible for everyone.

The founder, Marloes Blok, is a young entrepreneur who had the idea of starting this company after going on her own bitless journey when her horse was showing signs that he didn’t want to wear a bit.

On this episode, we discuss what it’s like to start and run your own business, her advice to other young equestrian entrepreneurs, being a social media influencer, getting started with bitless riding, the differences between side-pull bitless bridles and hackamores, and so much more.

Connect with Marloes:

Website: https://www.mdequestrians.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/diegoandmarloes/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@diego.marloes MD Equestrians Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mdequestrians/ MD Equestrians TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mdequestrians

#52 Learning to listen to your intuition with Kerri Lake May 26, 2024

Show notes

Feeling versus thinking and it’s importance for equestrians

Kerri’s early awareness included a natural ability to communicate with animals and all of life in subtle realms of consciousness, through energy and presence. With wisdom, guidance and communication from many teachers (human and non-human), she assists to help you recognize your capacity to experience connection and communication through presence, through the heart.

Without dependence on a modality or system, Kerri has blazed a new trail on the road to freedom from limitations and conditioning. On this trail, all species are welcome and integrate through frequencies of communication. The greatest gift she can give to you is her own purity of expression, sharing her own journey, to help you see that if she can do it…so can you.

On this episode, we hear Kerri’s inspiring journey and discuss horse-human communication, becoming more aware of your own intuition, and so much more.

Connect with Kerri:

Website: https://www.generateharmony.com/ Activating and Facilitating Feel - Live Q&A (May 27th): https://www.generateharmony.com/events/activating-and-facilitating-feel-live-qa

#51 Empowering Horse Owners with Jenn Savage May 12, 2024

Show notes

Conditioning and maintaining your horse for long-term health & happiness

Jenn Savage is an equine bodyworker and educator with the mission to help educate and empower horse owners who want what’s best for their horses above all else.

She believes in the importance of giving back as much as we can to our equine athletes, especially when we ask big jobs of them. So, she’s on a mission to empower others with knowledge and resources to help prehab their horse while training like a Savage.

In this episode, we discuss signs your horse may need body work, what your warm-up routine may be missing, the importance of prehab, building a community of like-minded horse people, and so much more.

Connect with Jenn:

Website: www.savageequineservices.com Instagram: www.instagram.com/savageequineservices Facebook: www.facebook.com/SavageEquineServices

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