Broken Bar C Horses

06/08/2026

Our first introduction to ground poles this evening. Polly was my guinea pig for distance this evening and did well.

Using small “poles” like this gets a horse to engage many things at once. Coordination, top line engagement, and balance. For Polly, I’m mainly looking to increase her top line muscles so she’s more responsive to my leg cues while I’m riding. Doing ground poles and working on her feel will put us one step close to the finished product.

Even though this seems like a very simple process, the end result can and does take months. Muscles take time to develop and building the level of feel I’m after takes quite a bit of time. With some repetition and hard work, she’ll make a fine bridle mare.

Charlea Jaeschke, thank you for the constructive and enlightening conversation! Having someone with similar goals and interests in my back pocket to pick at has been awesome!

06/06/2026

Every horse has a breaking point.

No matter how many hours you’ve spent in the saddle, no matter how many places you’ve hauled, every horse has a flaw or a problem that sticks with them. They’re no different than us. We all have sin. We all fall short. But that’s the name of the game.

It’s my job to find the faults, find the weak points, find where the frustration begins, and move forward. Bo**er got A LOT of new yesterday. New environment, new experience, new asks. I know from my own personal experience that this horse can stand tied. I’ve seen him do it on more than one occasion. Sitting back was his breaking point.

Working backwards is a great tool to use to learn how to go forward. Finding where a horse starts to get frazzled can teach you the signs of their mental departure before things go south.

Bo**er had an episode of disconnection yesterday. This morning we went right back to our problem spot, I asked the same things of him there, and he thought it through. Not only did he think it through, he COMPLETELY relaxed. Foot cocked, tail swishing, mouth chewing. Every sign.

Some days it’s a hard pill to swallow when a broke horse acts like a rookie, but that’s where the humbling and progress begin. Don’t let 1% of the horse dictate how you treat the other 99% of him.

06/06/2026

My first solo ride with Gus. This little dude is level headed. We’re still a baby, I’m still trying to drive a tug boat around but he just goes. We scared up some wild turkeys and a couple deer and he didn’t bat an eye. Once he’s got more of a handle to him, I think he’ll make a solid mount. Now to get out of the terrible twos and grow into ourself🫣🫠

06/05/2026

Sit back once, I’ll help you un-wad your panties. Sit back twice, I’ll help you never do it again.

06/05/2026

Thanks for being a top engager and making it on to my weekly engagement list! 🎉

Julie Means, Karlee Frank, Joleigh Forgey

06/04/2026

🧼Scrub a dub dub🧼
🫧It was Lefty in the tub🫧
After all that rain, Lefty needed some TLC to get back his ✨gorgeous gelding glow✨

With the constant rain making sticky mud, wind coming and drying out the top layers, and then more rain creating more mud, making sure the horses are brushed/ bathed can be important and easily looked over. When thicker mud sticks to horses legs, bellies, and chests from them rolling away flies and dusting themselves, it can rip out hair and leave exposed hide or sores. This leaves an opening for irritating flies and bugs or can open up scabs that can become irritable. A quick brush or in Lefty’s case a half bottle of soap, can go a long ways to ensure the health and wellbeing of a horse. Plus, on sticky and hot days like this, who wouldn’t want hosed off?💦

06/04/2026

06/04/2026

I've been awful about getting videos of Bo**er and tracking his progress but I'm still working with him.
Despite being solid in the saddle and plenty capable of his job, Bo**er has no foundation. The ranch he's off of believes in getting one to accept a saddle and then putting one to work. Ground manners are skipped.
With a baby around, this isn't ideal behavior and it can certainly cause hiccups if there's an emergency. So, for the time being, Bo**er is getting a start on the ground. Over the past few days he's been learning to lunge and move off pressure on the ground. This will open up another form of communication through body language and give Boog some much needed confidence. Building his confidence and helping him to relax is going to fix a large sum of his issues. No more flighty business, no more unfinished meals, and no more unnecessary struggles.

The ultimate goal for this horse isn’t to make him a kids horse or a backyard pet. It’s to make him more user friendly so he’s a better employee. A solid foundation can not be replaced or altered. A house without a foundation can still be a beautiful home but it only takes one storm to move it.

06/02/2026

This is my WHY. This is what makes all of the countless hours doing the same thing over and over and over again so worth it. No matter the horse, being able to climb on and KNOW that you can take them anywhere and they will perform the SAME as they did in their safe place. That’s it.

The overwhelming feeling of success in the end erases every step backwards, every long night, every trial.

Thank you to my village of people who have allowed me to keep going and reach these goals as my life unfolds and grows. I wouldn’t have been able to make it this far without your unwavering encouragement and support.

My family and I are beyond blessed to have such AMAZING horses in our lives, loving family and friends, and beautiful opportunities laid before us in order to spread the Word. This is my WHY.

06/02/2026

Here’s a short clip of my first ride back with Jess after about a week (ish) off. I put a different bit on him, a locked futurity O-ring. I’ll add a photo to the comments. This bit works WONDERS for Jess. He plays a lot with a bit so the small port with copper rollers keeps his mind busy.
🧨DISCLAIMER🧨: This gelding has been rode in just about everything. Halters, snaffles, and shanked bits. I’m staying in a snaffle to increase my leverage and work on getting more flexion at the poll. When I feel we have this down to a T, with little to no assistance, then I’ll put him in something new. Snaffles don’t mean green and changing the bit to match the task is like changing clothes to match the occasion. A good horse can be rode in anything…

Anyway, he rode around so good we went out on the track to cool him out since you can swim through the air here. This guy hasn’t touched the track in THREE years and he remembered exactly what to do to breeze. He stopped where he used to and everything. It’s incredible how good their memory is and what they can recall in an instant. He was so respectful. He stopped and asked if we were going to turn and gallop and when I asked him to keep walking he just went on like any other day.