Nothing like a horse with new teamsters!

[Gabe Ayers]

I spent this past Saturday over at the farm at the Chewonki Foundation working with their single mare, Sal, and high school students in the woods. I worked on that farm for 8 years and spent many days teaching these 16 year old kids about working with Sal. Having been away for four years now in Vermont, it was wonderful to be back with Sal and students once again. I was reminded of the joy and satisfaction of watching a young person, full of interest but lacking confidence, pick up the lines a put an animal to good work in the woods. As Sal worked with them the students’ confidence grew and you could see how proud they were about having been able to skid a log or two with a horse. What a superb educational tool a good horse can be! I am proud to have been a part of bringing Sal along and the farm crew there have made excellent progress with that mare. This experience once again reinforced to me the need to match ourselves up with folks who want to learn about building a successful relationship with working animals, and Chewonki remains a great example of just how productive and beneficial that match can be. Horses have so much to teach…
-Brad

[Author]

Posts