My passion for horses began at age 10 when a new friend in a new town invited me to ride at a local college barn. Not coming from a horsy family, my parents indulged what they thought would be a fleeting distraction. A horse in the immediate future would never be and, in hindsight, that was a blessing. Through my teens, I showed hunter/jumper winning champion and reserve champion at every local show my parents would drive me to. I hunted with the Somers Hunt Club; at the end of each hunt, I don’t remember what was more tired my entire body or my face for holding a wide smile throughout. College, career, and family distracted me for a decade. Then, while living in Singapore, volunteer opportunities at an equine therapy stable, aka Riding for the Disabled, put me back on path. It was there that I witnessed the truest demonstration of horses “living in the moment.” The local Polo Club lent us our therapy horses. One moment they were racing up and down the Polo pitch and, in the next, they were lazily walking around the arena with one of our kids.
Upon our return to the States and with the family settled in Connecticut, I carved out time to start riding again. Seeing I would and could jump on any horse, my trainer asked whether I would be willing to help rehabilitate show horses at Bill Steinkraus’s barn in 2005. Yes! It was there that my trainer gave me the greatest compliment in saying: “Jen, if I come back as a horse, I want to be your horse.” Bill would join in on our conversations and his perspective was so clear as he boiled things down to his tenants of great horsemanship. I always enjoyed my conversations with Bill. He was a gentleman in the barn and a fierce competitor in the jumping arena. His love of the Thoroughbred was deep-seated and when I asked which of his mounts was his favorite, he shamed me by asking me if I could pick a favorite child.
My focus then turned to Off the Track Thoroughbreds in 2008. Being constantly presented with behavioral and wellness conundrums, I developed a comprehensive approach to horse wellness and training with a foundation in the Reiki healing arts and Marker Teaching. For me, force was not the approach. I needed a better answer: Ask a little, often, and reward huge.
“A small bit of pressure over a long period of time will create a desire for change.” – John Lyons
Having always recognized the bridge between traditional veterinary medicine and Integrative wellness, I organized and facilitated an Equine Wellness Fair with the intention of demonstrating this bridge in 2016 & 2017. Over 25 local vets and integrative practitioners came together giving lessons and answering questions. I was instrumental in the promotion of the diagnostic behavioral modality known as OSCAR therapy (recognizing and treating trauma in all species). In keeping things interesting, I hosted a streaming radio show, HORSEtalk, to profile equine wellness and local equine events in Connecticut. In 2018, a move to my husband’s family home in Vermont brought my horses home (finally). I now hang out with my herd of three enjoying much needed downtime with the occasional student stopping by the barn. For me, the greatest gift horses bestow is their unfailing effort to keep us humans in the moment, teaching awareness and fairness without judgement.
-JAM
Certifications
Centered Riding, Inc., Certified Instructor, I
Classical principles of riding using body awareness, centering and imagery.
Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship (PATH, Intl )
Personal and physical development of individuals through horsemanship on the ground and in the saddle.
- Certified Instructor
- Certified Equine Specialist in Mental Health and Learning
OSCAR Therapy Practitioner
Phobia reversal and behavior modification system using positive reinforcement therapy.
Anna Twinney’s Reach Out to Horses, llc.
Holistic Horsemanship Certification, Littleton, CO
- Wild Horse Gentling, Cody, Wyoming
- Nurse Mare Orphan Foal Gentling – East Haddam, CT
Equine Acupressure Practitioner, Level II
- Tallgrass Acupressure Institute, Castle Rock, Colorado
Equine Reiki Master Teacher
- In depth education spanning 2 years of study providing over 40 case studies.
Meet my Teachers
Fred
– Love and connection will win you a blue ribbon.
September Song
– Jumping the wall is fun!
Facetious “Face”
– I needed an “about Face” look at horsemanship. The first horse I witnessed going the “path of least resistance”; A horse that never missed a distance and had seemingly great “show horse composure” was an anxious basket case when free lunged.
Ponche’s Solo
– “Don’t fight the brace. Finesse it.”
and
“It’s not what you say. It’s how you say it.”
Truman’s Appeal
– Pause
– See it in your mind first,
then ask.
Rhine
Lightness can be a double-edged sword.
and
The best teacher for the execution of straightness
“Straight is the perfection of right and left.”
