Stramel Ranch

06/17/2026

Sometimes it’s just nice to sit and enjoy the sunset.…

Zoe & Douglas caught a few bass.

Beautiful evening

06/16/2026

Starting 2 year olds…..

I started studying equine dissections…

At 2 years old, a horse’s spine and pelvis are still developing. Dissections show that both bone and soft tissue maturity lag far behind what many originally assumed.

Training stress on an immature axial skeleton has significant lasting negative consequences.

So, we wait to ride them…because it’s best for the horse.

They still learn. They still get conditioned. And Zoe still has a lot of fun along the way.

Win. Win.

06/11/2026

We’re adding a new member to the family and I need your help!

Go to our stories and take the poll on IG!!

Shhhh…..it’s a surprise and Zoe doesn’t know! If you see her, make sure to keep your lips 🤐😁

We’re going to need a name too! 👏❤️🤗

06/11/2026

06/09/2026

Veterinary epidemiology, explained by my DVM husband….a man of complex words.

The entire screwworm issue summed up for us, kill the fly. 😂

06/07/2026

The older I get, the more I realize success isn't measured by what you build. It's measured by who you help.

Seven years ago, this ranch existed only on paper.

In 2019, I started sketching ideas, moving dirt, writing checks, making loads of mistakes, solving problems, and building one piece at a time.

Somehow, it's 2026.

I'm thankful for the incredible clients who trust me with the horses they love.

At the end of the day, I hope my story is about helping as many horses and people as possible—having the 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗲 what has been normalized, questioning practices that come at the horse's expense, and sharing knowledge that helps both horse and their owners.

If I can leave the horse better than I found it, and the owner more informed than when they arrived, that's a life well spent.

I've decided that 25 years of education, experience, and searching for answers won't be wasted. If what I've learned can help even one horse or one owner make a better decision, then it's worth sharing.
Most importantly, If that offends you, I'd encourage you to ask yourself why.

06/04/2026

Twenty-five years ago, I moved across the country and entered an industry because I loved horses. I thought I was joining an industry that loved horses as much as I did.

Instead, what I found and what I’ve learned, is that many people, maybe even most, in the performance horse industry, don’t actually love horses. They love what horses can do, what they can win, and what they can earn. And, that is a big difference.

Because, if you truly love something, you don’t destroy it.

After 25 years in veterinary medicine, 20 years as a physical therapist, nearly 20 years in performance horse barns, years studying movement, performance, injury, rehabilitation, and even pushing my own body to it’s full limitations, I learned some things.

The same injuries.
The same breakdowns.
The same excuses.

A decade passed.
Then another.

And still, the same thing over and over. Yet, no one says much about it....it seems.

I thought I was smart and apparently not, because .....

It took me decades to finally understand what was really behind the curtain.

The problem isn’t bad luck.
The problem isn’t genetics.
The problem isn’t that horses are fragile.

The problem is that we’ve normalized something that isn’t “normal.”

Once you see it, you can’t unsee it.

I’m so thankful for my own ranch.

Look at this amazing crew. I’m missing a super cute, rogue, 2 year old buckskin....he didn’t make it out from the barn in time for pictures. 🥰

Education changes industries.

Maybe it’s time to swing the pendulum back toward the horse.

More on this later.

Because at the end of the day, I really love the horses.

06/03/2026

Zoe: “Can we get cows?”

Me: “Absolutely not.”

Also me: checking cattle prices at 10 PM…..and searching where to buy cows in north Texas 😂

05/25/2026

I appreciate having a place where horses can simply be horses.

05/08/2026

Teaching a horse or pony to lay down safely and correctly can have legitimate practical value especially when done with proper horsemanship.

Teaching a pony to lay down safely builds confidence, emotional control and softness.

Huge thank you to our friend, horse trainer and Zoe’s horse training coach, for investing so much time, knowledge, and patience into helping her learn how to train ponies the right way.

The horsemanship lessons matter just as much as the riding.