Every one agrees that learning to ride at Mill Swamp Indian Horses is "different" than learning to ride at other barns. It can be hard to understand exactly what that means. Here are some pictures from yesterday that help explain."Different" might mean spending a little quality time rare heritage breed turkeys like this little Blue Slate hen.
It might mean watching a training session for two rare heritage breed Mammoth Donkeys that just arrived on Friday.
It might mean coming in from a trail riding lesson sitting astride a formerly wild Shackleford Island horse while your instructor gaits along sweetly on a high percentage Choctaw mare.
It might mean using the skills that you have developed from years of practicing natural horsemanship to to help those who will follow in your path.
It might mean learning about heritage breed conservation by looking across the pasture to see Big Muddy, a Choctaw stallion out with several Choctaw mares.
It might mean wrapping up the day learning the ancient ballad "Katy Dear" on the tack shed porch with a guitar, bodhrun, Weissenborn style lap guitar, and ukulele.
And it definitely means riding. Our advanced riders have put in a total of 1,716.63 miles over the last 8 months.
And every bit of this was done with no paid staff. We are a non-profit breed conservation program run completely by volunteers. Our safety record is extraordinary because riders begin to learn natural horsemanship the first day they are at the horse lot. By understanding the horse's mind they learn to protect there own bodies.
Fees are set to make the learning experience affordable. Riding lesson fees are only $160.00 per month, per family.
Yep, very different.
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