Kattie Barnett’s KB Horse Training

*STORY BY ANGELA CUTRER AND PHOTOS CONTRIBUTED*

One’s path in life is never guided by handy arrows etched into the earth. How wonderful it would be if we did have such an easy line to follow.

Instead, life’s path involves many different reactions and interactions, including decisions (both good and unfortunate), luck, preparation and networking.

Perhaps it would be easiest to describe Kattie Barnett’s road to where she is now as a bit of this and that, and a whole lot of patience awaiting God’s plan. It’s commonly known that one can make plans all day long, every day of the year, and God is just going to give a chuckle at our weak abilities.

Yes, it’s best to let him do all the hard work. After all, he’s the grand master of planning, and Kattie is first to admit that. It brought her to her dream job, on a plot of land that was her dream location, doing a job with animals she could only dream of having before, with friends then and now who helped her navigate to the place she now calls home.

And Kattie wouldn’t trade a minute of the journey because it led her to where she is right now - the owner and head honcho of “KB Horse Training, riding lessons, and colt starting” outside of Elizabethton. This business promotes “quality training with a natural horsemanship approach” and “quality equestrian riding lessons” for both young, old and everyone in between (that goes for humans as well as equines).

Kattie isn’t looking for bucking broncos - she trains horses; she doesn’t “break” them. Her strength revolves around her mottoes: quality service offered to both horses and owners so that their commitment to each other becomes an unbreakable bond.

KB horse training’s Facebook page tells you of Kattie’s successes:

• “What makes her special is that Kattie takes time for each individual horse, finds what works for that horse and doesn’t push [through] training at the cost of the horse. She doesn’t “break” a horse, she trains that horse. She will not make them sour or crush their personality leaving a hollow robot shell…”

• My daughter has been with KB Horse Training for over a year now and has learned so much. She got to be in her first horse show in October which was a great experience. She is now a[n] owner of her own horse that we purchased from Kattie…”

• “...After not being happy with previous trainers I met Kattie Barnett and have never been happier with a trainer as I am with her. Kattie listens, and understands…”

• “We highly recommend Kattie if you are interested in lessons for yourself or your child. … [O]ur 7 yr. old … is learning all about how to care for as well as ride horses. …Kattie is such a natural, patient teacher.”

In a world crowded with video games, social media and political intrigue, KB Horse Training allows both children and adults to become one with their horse while also learning about themselves within the frame of nature.

“I hate social media,” Kattie said with a snort. “I can’t help it, I just do. I’d rather be outside in the fresh air, working with a horse.” And that’s what makes Kattie special: She embraced the life of a horsewoman and loves when others get the itch as well.

“We just finished our camp, and it was great,” she said of one of her business’s summer activities where children learn about horsemanship, including things like trust, respect, responsibility and empathy. “The kids just love it, and we do, too. We teach them everything they need to know when it comes to taking care of their horse. They need to learn everything, so we teach them everything.”

But it’s not all work and no play. In addition to learning how to groom, steer and ride, the kids get to play on a slip-and-slide and engage in balloon fights as well.

Photos on social media, which is hard not to use in some way, show the camp kids riding, grooming and practicing. It’s best to do and not just watch, and the photos show these children - some just knee high to a grasshopper - reaching as high as they can to pull that curry comb through the stiff hair of a patient horse standing calmly. Others can be seen trying to rope, or being led around like they are the horses so they can see how horses feel and react to certain cues.

It’s all a part of an outdoor activity that would be lost without people like Kattie; people who cared enough to learn, then do, then share. “They have to learn to respect and have a commitment,” she said of the lessons she gives. That goes for her, too; she’s been a “one-man band” at her business for a long time, and it’s not like she can sleep in when she has animals to care for.

Born and raised in the Valley Forge area, Kattie is the daughter of Victor and Betsy Delavega and the granddaughter of Willie and Opal Barnett. “When I was little, mama took me to Watauga Boarding Stable and June McQueen,” Kattie said, remembering how it all got started. “I was not raised around horses, but I loved them. I took lessons for about a year and then had the opportunity to buy a horse for sale. The seller begged my mom not to buy the horse: ‘This horse is going to kill this little girl,’ he said.

“Me and that horse did everything together,” Kattie said with a smile in her voice. “I taught him tricks, to stand on rocks - to do everything. I was hooked.”

As a young child, Kattie said she had been told she was “a better-thanaverage rider,” which made her feel really good about herself. She used that confidence to learn more and to invest more into herself as a horsewoman. Her mentor, Robbie Potter, taught her to be a better rider and connect with horses with better communication.

Kattie went to every event she could get to in order to watch and learn. But she also knew it was important to remain humble. Nobody likes a smart alec cow…person.

“I start colts and colt starting is my passion,” she said. “Those horses often times have never been touched. When they come to me a lot of times we run them off the trailer into a stall. It requires several skills such as roping, and working off the back of another horse to gentle a horse to get used to human touch.”

Before this all came to be, Kattie was working as a waitress, but then COVID-19 hit. She, like so many others, lost her job. Someone said to her, “well, we have this time, so why not give me some riding lessons?” And so she did. Then word of mouth had her busy as a bee, actually doing what she loved. It was magical.

“I never thought to make any money off it,” Kattie said of her horse skills. “But then COVID came, and then ‘Yellowstone’ came, and then all of the sudden, everyone wanted to be a cowboy.”

Her clients were well served and began telling her she should open a business and do this full time.

“I thought about it,” she said. “Then I started a Facebook page (pesky social media again) and people wanted me to train their horses and give lessons - and it just went from there. People started noticing me.”

Kattie said she is proud to produce a “really good product. I love my horses and I love the ones that come to me to be trained. I take good care of them and listen to what their owners want from them. But it’s a balancing act.”

Kattie has to balance her business as well as her home life with her son, Tucker, 8. Luckily, he loves horses, too. And Chelsea Johnson now serves the business as director of the lessons program, which means Kattie can put her focus back toward training.

“I don’t specialize in anything,” Kattie said. “I train horses from the ground up to become versatile - haltering, standing tied, participating in horse shows and for trail riding. Once I’m done with your horse, I guarantee you can take him on a trail ride and he’ll do great or to a horse show and place.”

Kattie’s ranch is in Lynn Valley. She first saw the ranch some years ago when it was for sale. It stayed on her mind constantly, but she couldn’t afford such a thing and the single mother couldn’t get a loan. Later on, the ranch sold and Kattie worked the horse of the new owners, who became dear friends.

Then the owners decided to move to Arkansas. Kattie was sad to be parted from both her friends and the ranch she loved. The ranch sold, but then the buyers backed out. The owners talked to Kattie about her buying it, but she said she couldn’t get a loan. The owners said, “Well, let’s work something out, then.” And the rest is history.

“That’s just what kind of people they are,” Kattie said, sounding emotional. Because of this kindness, Kattie had herself a business not far from Siam, where she lives. She has added a round pen and stalls with a lot of blood, sweat and tears from herself and wonderfully kind people in the area.

“Justin and Katie McCall at Wayward Springs Tack and Consignment have helped so much,” Kattie said. “Whatever I need, they order it for me and they are such wonderful people, they helped me fence this place. I couldn’t have done it by myself.

“Double C Western Supply’s Diana Hilton has been a big supporter. She’s also helpful in spreading information on social media about my business to help me. You can’t meet better people than the Blevins family, of which she’s a part.

“And my neighbor, Ken Barrickman, I look up to as a grandpa. He’s a wonderful neighbor.”

Kattie’s no-quit attitude pushed her to make things better in her life, for both herself and her son. She has friends she can count on, but it’s also her own determination that got her where she is.

It was also her natural ability that helped her become the horsewoman she is today. “I want to talk about ‘feel,’ which is something the old cowboys talk about that very few people experience and understand,” she explained. “I feel like I have that. It’s a level of nonverbal communication and trust between horse and horseman or horsewoman.

“[My] ‘feel’ is a lot to my success. I also ‘feel’ has taken a toll on my social skills with people. All day, every day 80 percent of my communication is nonverbal. I prefer horses over people and am more comfortable around them because they accept me for me. However, I can take these 90-day started colts and do anything with them from working and roping a steer to winning competitions, while other horses and riders work years to have that level of trust between horse and rider. When I take a horse to a show and someone compliments me, …I thank them and tell them this client’s horse only has 30 days on it, they about fall to the ground.”

In a video on Facebook, one can see Kattie riding, training and showing horses the ropes. The atmosphere is serene, the lessons calm and the patience evident.

“God is good,” Kattie said of her life. She’s still a young woman at almost 30, but she feels as though she’s lived a lot so far, but never alone. “I’ve prayed about everything. I’ve prayed about my decisions. And now, the effort, the prayers, the elbow grease all led to me being able to benefit my son and myself in my own business.

“If you want something, go out there and do it,” she suggested to others on the fence about taking that step toward doing what they love. “Don’t fake it ’til you make it. Fake it till you become it! Pull the long days and early mornings, and often the all nighters. Don’t be average and don’t settle for average. There is too much of that in this world.”

And maybe all those folks finally taking that first step to getting themselves a horse could mean Kattie’s business will grow pretty fast in the near future. No worries: She plans to expand her facilities later on, add more land, build a home, house more boarding horses. She’s ready when you are. “Be different; life’s short, buy the damn horse!” she said with a laugh.

When you are around Kattie, you’ll see the passion and it just might rub off on you. And it’s not too late to ask her for help with your new horse. She doesn’t plan on moving away - ever.

“I love Elizabethton and East Tennessee,” she said quietly. “I have no plans to ever leave here. Never.”

Contact KB Horse Training at 423-518-0540, email at kbhorsetraining@gmail.com or visit on Facebook for upcoming camp events and training information.