Michele working with a student ...

Testimonials

My husband, Jimmy, and I first met Michelle and her business partner, Twna Douglas, at a Clinton Anderson clinic in Farmington NM in February 2008. In March 2008 Jimmy purchased an Appaloosa mare, “Dottie”, from a neighbor. This mare was 8 years old and barely halter-broke. She also had a reputation for being very pushy, “chesty” and disrespectful under halter. I have ridden all of my life but I didn’t feel I had the necessary skills to start a mare that was this old and this green without some help. I called Michelle.

Michele & Kristie at Kristie's first ride on Dottie

Dottie and I along with Jimmy and “Copper” started with Michelle in July and what an amazingly rewarding journey it has been. Michelle is extremely knowledgeable about horses and training techniques. But, almost even more importantly, she is an exceptionally gifted teacher. She is able to read the horse and read the person and flawlessly match her teaching style and training techniques to the skill level of both. She is able to break down complex tasks into small steps so it is easy to comprehend and implement when you are working the horse in between lessons. She knows how hard to push you and/or the horse at any given point, when to be firm and when to back off.

Kristie's first ride on Dottie

After weekly lessons with Michelle, Dottie has transformed into a very respectful, honest mare that was ridden for the first time in her life on October 21 – an event that went off without a hitch. And both my husband and I have grown tremendously in confidence, knowledge and skills. We have enjoyed every minute of the training sessions and always left the lessons feeling like we had the techniques and necessary information to go home and practice what we had learned. Dottie is going to make a great trail horse and both my husband and I have dramatically improved our horsemanship skills thanks to Michelle.

Dottie's happy owner, Kristie