At the Wright Ranch we deal with a wide variety of horses, disciplines, and situations.  We approach everything with an open mind and an emphasis on good foundation.  Most of the horses that come to us are here to be started and trained for their owners personal use.  Some of the horses we ride will go on to show barns where they will become specialized in their discipline; be it cutting, reining, jumping, dressage, or endurance. 

A filly in her first days of training

When starting a young horse we will often use a an older horse from which to do much of the preliminary ground work.  This gets the young horses accustomed to seeing people above them.  By riding another horse around them they also tend to be more relaxed and naturally inquisitive.

2 year old filly at one week

When we first start riding a colt we keep things very basic, we encourage them to stand quietly, we teach them to follow their nose, to move foreward freely and easily  Our primary goal is to make them confident and happy.  Often it is the first few rides in which a horse develops its opinions about being ridden and asked to do things.  Just like people if school is frustrating and confusing we don't want to go, but if we like our teacher and enjoy our tasks, we will look foreward to going to school.  Usually it doesnt take long before a horse is confortable and relaxed being ridden in any of our arenas, at this point the animal is ready to be ridden outside.

A warmblood gelding in his first month of training

We have over a thousand acres of cattle land at our riding disposal, and we use every inch of it.  By taking young horses out they get exposed to many new things.  Out here they learn to balance their rider on a variety of terrain which improves range of motion along with enhancing physical and mental development, which will suit them well when they return to the arena.  We have had several cases where older dressage horses have come to us that were burnt out from the show pen, after several months of being ridden outside they returned to their dressage barns and were ready to perform several levels higher than when they left.

Bandit at three months

When we come back to the arena, our horses have developed a good work ethic  and are eager to please.  At this point they are ready to accept some collection and basic leg cues.  Usually this comes fairly easily, as without knowing it, they have already learned these things while negotiating situations on the trail.

Stephanie getting a lesson on her young Gypsy Gelding

When training any horse, it is important to keep in mind the needs and abilities of their owner, and adjust accordingly.  We encourage all of our clients to come out and take an active role in the training process.  Lessons are part of our training fee, instead of having us ride the horse on any given day we encourage the owner to come out and learn how to handle their horse under our watchful tutulage.  A young horse will be a young horse for a long time; by teaching both the horse and the rider we can help the owner develop the skills and tools that they will need to have a strong partnership with their horse for many years to come. 

Giving a horse a job

We seldom miss an opportunity to take our young horses to new ranches and places. Gathering cattle and checking fences on different ranches throughout our area provides opportunities for our young horses to gain experience.  We believe that any new job a person can give a horse will help keep their mind fresh, and develop a more well rounded horse.

Adressing problems in older horses

Oftentimes people bring horses to us that have become dangerous or frustrating for their owners to handle.  These horses have offered us many unique situations and opportunities.  These horses often require us to think outside the box, and give us opportunities to fine tune our own horsemanship.

Rehabilitation and Reconditioning

"Sometimes we encounter physical and behavioral problems in horses that get in the way of creating a whole healthy and well trained animal.  When this happens you need someone to work with your horse to bring back normal functioning.  On our ranch M.C. Kidd has been that person.  I have worked with other professionals over the years, and I have found Kidd's knowledge of equine biomechanics to be unique.  Her dedication to horses is amazing."  Steve Wright

Find out more about MC Kidd at www.synergyequinewellness.com

Our Growing Cutting Program

Our cutting program is in its very beginning stages, but it is already showing a very bright future.  Our goal is to create confident well adjusted cutting horses that are competitive in the show pen and a pleasure to ride.  We are combining our history of strong fundamentals and solid foundation training with the new skills and techniques which Dylan picked up during his apprenticeship with NCHA hall of famer Dave McGregor.  So far the result has been cowy physical horses with a great disposition.