Calberry Farms

05/25/2026

05/14/2026

Keep in mind that the horses had most of January and February off due to bad weather...

Lew is a client in training with me. (Not a client's horse, he's the actual client. Right, Lew? "Ya, I'm the client," says Lew.) He's a baby OTTB.

He had a lot of issues when he came off the track, but honestly not really anymore than most of them.

Laminitis and underweight- that pretty much sums it up.

We were dealing with the laminitis last fall and you can see in the January video his soundness is questionable.

In a body, everything is connected. So, were his feet still tender from the laminitis and that tenderness was causing him to brace and go hollow? Was his lack of muscle mass along his topline causing him to go hollow and the hollow and uncomfortable movement made his trot look not quite right? I don't know...

What I do know is that, even though he isn't tracking up today, he is now moving in a manner that will build the muscle along his topline that will allow him to track up in the not too distant future. If he had kept going the way he was going in January, he would never track up.

The wonderful thing about Lew (well, there's many, he's the sweetest!) is his owner. You wouldn't believe how many people would have wanted me to get on the January version of that horse. And then we would have had to have a really uncomfortable conversation about how the horse's back isn't filled out enough to support a saddle. Let alone a saddle and a rider. And then the owner would get offended.

It's such a relief and a pleasure to work with an owner who lets me train at my own pace (which is Lew's pace really). And who loves him for who he is as a person!🥰

In our mutual opinion, Lew is a pretty special person.🧡🧡🧡

05/13/2026

"How many times a week is she being ridden?" asked the saddle fitter.

"0," I said. "Wait, are you asking how many times a week would she be being ridden if she had a properly fitted saddle? Or are you asking how many times a week is she actually right now being ridden?"

"How many times a week is she actually being ridden right now," clarified the saddle fitter.

"Oh, zero then," I said.

"Good for you," said the saddle fitter. "Most people would keep riding."

"Most people haven't seen a horse go from healthy, strong, willing, good tempered, and athletic to falling apart," I said.

"That's true," said the saddle fitter.

"I've had the benefit of seeing a horse break down."

And I have. More times than I care to admit tbh. I've seen my own horses break down and I've watched as other horses have broken down and I've known exactly what was happening but was powerless to intervene.

I'm talking about the type of breakdowns that happen after years of uneducated or just plain bad riding (I count bad riding as intentionally hurting the horse and uneducated riding as causing harm to the horse unintentionally).

In this context, saddle fit and riding are inexorably linked as both impact how the horse moves undersaddle.

My background and expertise is in the field of training and riding. That expertise comes from seeking out the knowledge of how to ride a horse so that they stay healthy in the long run because I've seen the opposite.

This is what happens:

It's so slow you barely notice it. You think you're doing everything right but then- your horse has a minor issue- you figure you can work on it. You hardly remember that there was a time when the horse didn't have this little issue. It becomes commonplace.

Your horse loses muscle along their topline. And you think to yourself that you need to ride them more to build up their muscle. You don't understand that riding, the thing you're using to build up your horse's topline, is what's actually causing the atrophy.

Eventually your horse has more and more issues. You have the vet out. You get injections. You cry a lot. You don't know what went wrong. You think you are unlucky. "Horses!" you say.

05/12/2026

Located at:

275 Ipswich Pl,
Charlottesville, VA 22901

Just 3 minutes from Albemarle High School.

(Please don't stop by without an appointment 🙂)

Needs 6 kids to fill.

Drop-ins welcome. Contact for pricing.

Please share to reach the parents who are like, "Shoot, I need something wholesome for my kid to do this summer."

Extended hours may be available depending on demand.

05/10/2026

Happy Mother's Day to all the horse moms out there🧡

05/08/2026

Thank you for bringing back horse treats from Germany for us!!

Merlin the Holsteiner: "Lady, I'm from Free Union, 25 minutes from here."

05/05/2026

SHARE SHARE SHARE with you parent friends- parents of horse lovers and parents of potential horse lovers because I need at least 6 kids to fill.

***Days and times are subject to change depending on demand.

***Extended hours may be available

Located at 275 Ipswich Pl, Charlottesville VA 22901

Very convenient to the town of Charlottesville...maybe about 15 minutes depending on what part of town and how much traffic.

We will learn about horses in the morning and hang out with horses, then lunch (not provided), then some pool time in the afternoon! What could be better???

Message me to sign up.