DIRECTORIES

ANIMAL EDUCATIONAL EXHIBITS

North: The Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium pittsburghzoo.org The National Aviary nationalaviary.org

ANIMAL COMMUNICATION

Greater Pittsburgh Area: Renee Takacs, M.A., | intuitguide.com

ANIMAL-RELATED ART, PHOTOGRAPHY & RETAIL

April Minech Custom Portraits | Pet Inspired Art www.ladybugdelightz.etsy.com Black Cat Art | Pet Portraits/Murals/Fine Art 412-983-5278 | www.blackcatartllc.com North: Kim Lenz, Behind the Lenz Photography 412-983-0981, https://www.facebook.com/ Behind-the-Lenz-127787624032093/ Buzzy Photography 412-371-5212 | anita@buzzyphoto.com South: Kara Jones Photography, kjones.smugmug.com Paws ‘n Claws Eyewear, PawsnClawsEyewear.com

ANIMAL RESCUE ORGANIZATIONS

North: Animal Friends 412-847-7000 | thinkingoutsidethecage.org Beaver County Humane Society 724-775-5801 | www.beavercountyhumanesociety.org Frankie’s Friend Rescue 724-889-7011 | www.frankies-friends.org Pennsylvania Great Dane Rescue, 724-869-9185 Hope Haven Farm Sanctuary 412-366-1187 | hopehavenfarm.org South: Animal Care & Welfare 412-244-1372 | animalcareandwelfare.org Droopy’s Basset Rescue 888-9 GET DROOL | www.droopysbassetrescue.com Washington Area Humane Society 724-222-7387 | washingtonpashelter.org Animals Against the Odds Rescue/Rehab www.aato.rescueme.org South Hills Pet Rescue 724-622-0434 | www.southhillspetrescue.org East: Humane Animal Rescue 412-345-7300 | animalrescue.org HAR Wildlife Center 412-345-7300 | animalrescue.org SW PA Pugs with Special Needs 724-763-2790 | swpapug.org West: CARMAA, 412-780-4983 | carmaa-petadoption.com Greater Pittsburgh Area: SPAAR, www.seniorpetandanimalrescue.org Guardian Angels Pug Rescue, 724-537-3466 www.facebook.com/guardianangelspugrescue Humane Society of Greene County 724-627-9988 | greenepet.org PEARL Parrot Rescue, www.pearlparrots.com

BIRD & SUPPLIES

Natural Inspirations Parrot Cages www.naturalinspirationsparrotcages.com

DOG TRAINING

North: AKIN Family Dog Training (Lilian Akin) 412-732-8091 | akinfdt.net Greater Pittsburgh Area: Happy Pets Training/Christine Flint 412-373-9583 | www.happypetstraining.com Success Just Clicks, successjustclicks.com North Shore: South: Paula’s Professional Dog Services, 412-818-2482

DOG TRAINING CLUBS

South: Dogworks Training Center at The Canine Club 412-220-8100 | www.thecanineclub.com Golden Triangle Obedience Training Club 412-653-6880 | gtotc.com Keystone Canine Training 412-833-2211 | keystonecanine.com Xcel Canine Training Center 412-833-2504 | xcelcaninetraining.com

EQUINE BOARDING, LESSONS & TRAINING FACILITIES

North: Rockin’ Horse Stables 724-601-4706 | rockinhorsestables.com South: Coventry Equestrian Center, 724-206-9902 Manon’s Farm, 724-705-7912 | 724-621-0260 SydMor Equestrian Center 724-969-0510 | www.sydmorstables.com

EQUINE FEED & SUPPLY AGWAY - SOUTHERN STATES

North: Mount Nebo Agway, Sewickley, PA | 412-364-4430 Beaver Agway, Beaver, PA | 724-775-0535 Mars Agway, Mars PA | 724-625-2340 South: Eighty Four Agway, Eighty Four, PA | 724-222-0600 East: Ligonier Agway, Ligonier, PA | 724-238-6207 West: Imperial Agway, Imperial, PA | 724-695-7388

EQUINE TACK STORES

North: Shady Acres Saddlery 412-963-9454 | www.shadyacressaddlery.biz South: Lowry’s Western Store 724-228-1225 | lowryswesternshop.com

EQUINE VETERINARIANS

Dr. Brian Burks, DVM - Fox Run Equine Center 724-727-3481 | foxrunequine.com

HOLISTIC PET PRACTITIONERS

Pet Chiropractor North: Dr. Doug Knueven, DVM, Beaver Animal Clinic 724-774-8047 | beaveranimalclinic.com Greater Pittsburgh: Dr. Michael Savko, DC, CCSP, CVCP 724-261-7915 | drchirovet.com EASE Animal Massage 412-447-8490 | www.easeanimalmassage.com Wholestic Equine & Pet Services 205-492-1000

HOLISTIC PRACTITIONERS FOR GUARDIANS

East End: Judith Levy, Coaching/Energy Modalities 412-726-2659 | www.judithlevycoaching.com South:

HOLISTIC VETERINARIANS

Dr. Doug Knueven, DVM, Beaver Animal Clinic 724-774-8047 | beaveranimalclinic.com Dr. Qiang Li VCA Castle Shannon 412-885-2500

PET BURIAL, MEMORIAL & CREMATION SERVICES

South: Chartiers Custom Pet Cremation 412-220-7800 | ccpc.ws Jefferson Memorial Funeral Home 412-655-4500 | jeffersonmemorial.biz Greater Pittsburgh: Thousand Hills Pet Crematory 724-355-8296 | www.thousandhillspetcrematory.com Sunny Acres 412-292-6701 | sunnyacres.6@gmail.com

PET GROOMING

North: Keeta Mobile Pet Spa 412-545-3328 | Keetapetspa.com All About Dogs 724-925-1577 | allaboutdogsgrooming.info Happy Tailz Pet Spa 412-759-7620 | Happytailzpetspa.com Larry’s Laundromutt 412-534-4052 | Larryslaundromutt.com South: Woody’s Dog Wash & Pet Boutique 412-714-4644 | woodysdogbath.com East: Animal Elegance 412-361-1177 | www.animal-elegance.com Cat Around Town Cat Grooming 412-466-7877 (PURR) | cataroundtown.com Greater Pittsburgh Area: Zoom N Groom (Sonya Patterson), 724-225-4827

PET FRIENDLY BUSINESSES & ORGANIZATIONS

Bactronix, 412-375-7886 | www.bactronix.com

Good Nature Organic Lawn Care 888-LAWNSAFER | whygoodnature.com Simple Sugars Scrub, Simplesugarsscrub.com UBS Financial Services 412-665-1914 | lee.oleinick@ubs.com Village Shoppes Scenery Hill Elves Lair Christmas & Gifts, Jan’s Tea Shoppe - 2nd Street Coffee Roasters, Velvet Envelope, Westerwald Pottery, Two Old Crows, www.sceneryhillpa.com Greater Pittsburgh Area: Fragasso Financial Advisors 412-227-3200 | www.fragassoadvisors.com J & D Waterproofing Home Improvement 724-746-8870 | www.jdwaterproofing.com Matt Arch Foundation, www.connectarian.com One Hour Heating & Air Conditioning 724-225-1644 | www.onehourair.com OxyMagic, 412-781-4110 | www.oxypgh.com Redford Photography www.redfordphotography.com Susan G. Komen Pittsburgh 412-342-0500 | www.komenpittsburgh.org East Pittsburgh East Nissan 412-824-9020 | www.pittsburgheastnissan.com Unique Home Solutions www.uniquehomesolutions.com South: Southpointe Chamber, www.southpointe.net

PET-FRIENDLY LIVING

Greater Pittsburgh Area: Judy Smith Team Realtor – Berkshire Hathaway 412-274- 7618 | www.thepreferredrealty.com/real-estate-agent/2242288/judy-smith-team/details/ Pinch Property Services 412-445-8550 | PinchPropertyServices.com East: The Getaway at Glen Highland Farm www.glenhighlandgetaway.com South: American Destiny Real Estate Services 412-983-2220 | www.adr-usa.com Amore 877-716-6840 | amoreapartments.com

PET GROOMING SCHOOLS

North: Pa Academy of Pet Grooming, 412-759-7620

PET REHABILITATION

Rebound Pet Rehabilitation 4152-508-2285 www.reboundpetrehabilitation.com

PET MINISTRIES

South: Christ United Methodist Church 412-277-1096 | christumc.net

PET RESORTS - BOARDING, DAYCARE, GROOMING & TRAINING

Camp Bow Wow, www.CampBowWow.com Locations: Camp Bow Wow Pittsburgh Southwest 710 Trumbull Dr., Pittsburgh, PA 15205 412-276-WAGS (9247) Camp Bow Wow Pittsburgh North 2327 Babcock Blvd, Pittsburgh, PA 15237 412-931-WAGS (9247) Camp Bow Wow Highland Park 1325 Washington Blvd, Pittsburgh, PA 15206 412-362-PLAY (7529) Camp Bow Wow Pittsburgh East 1610 McClure Rd, Pittsburgh, PA 15146 724-733-CAMP (2267) North: Dog stop - North 724-935-DOGS (3647) | www.thedogstop.net The Dog Stop - Sewickley 412-766-DOGS (3647) | www.thedogstop.net Lucky Paws Pet Resort 724-728-1484 | www.luckypawsresort.com South: Fuzzy Paws Pet Villa 724-746-3899 | fuzzy-paws.com Hounds Town USA 412-232-5285 www..houndtownusa.com The Dog Stop - Banksville Rd. 412-343-1171 | www.thedogstop.net Pampered Paw Resort 724-413-3135 | pamperedpawresort.com East: Pittsburgh Pet Concierge 412-856-8505 | petconcierge.org Doggone Awesome Pet Services, 724-212-0427 www.doggoneawesomepetservices.com The Dog Stop - Monroeville 412-373-3355 | www.thedogstop.net The Dog Stop - East End 412-361-0911 | www.thedogstop.net The Dog Stop - East: Strip District 412-315-7050 | www.thedogstop.net Country Lane Pet Hotel 412-824-7991 | www.countrylanepethotel.com Walkers Pet HoTail 724-327-7297 | www.WalkersPetHoTail.com

PET RETAIL/SUPPLY

North: Woody’s Dog Wash & Pet Boutique 412-714-4644 | woodysdogbath.com East: Petagogy, petagogy.com | 412-362-7387 Petland East Side Village 412-363-PETS | www.petlandvillageofeastside.com Greater Pittsburgh Area: Asgard Raw Dog and Cat Food 412-408-3355 | www.asgard-raw.com Baskets of Nature 724-831-9437 | www.basketsofnature.com Dig It Collars, dig-it-store.com Trixie’s Dog Fashions www.trixiesdogfashions.com O2 Derm Pet Topical Gel, www.O2Dermpet.com

PET SITTERS

North Furry Family Pet Sitting 412-999-9524 | www.furryfamilypetsitting.com Western PA No Boarders Pet and Animal Care Home & Farm Sitting 724-219-7801 | Noboarders-petcare.com South: Your Critter Sitters (Raylene Hoover) 724-448-7330 | yourcrittersitters.com East: Pittsburgh Pet Concierge 412-856-8505 | petconcierge.org

VETERINARY HOSPICE & MOBILE SERVICES

Greater Pittsburgh Area: Nancy A. Ruffing, DVM 412-801-1071 | gentlejourneyvet.com

VETERINARY PHARMACIES

Greater Pittsburgh Area: Murray Avenue Apothecary 412-421-4996 | MAApgh.com

VETERINARY HOSPITALS

North: Beaver Animal Clinic 724-774-8047 | beaveranimalclinic.com Cheyenne Veterinary Wellness & Surgical Center 412-884-3162 | www.cheyennevet1.com Frankie Friends Veterinary Services 724-889-7011 | www.frankies-friends.org/low-costveterinary-services 724-889-7011 VCA Northview Animal Hospital 412-364-5353 | vcanorthview.com South: All About Pets Veterinary Hospital 724-745-5503 | aapvet.com All About Pets Veterinary Hospital – Washington location 724-503-4887 | www.aapvet.com All Life Veterinary Clinics, 724-281-3446 Rivers Veterinary Urgent Care 412-998-9030 | riversvet.com East: The Big Easy Animal Hospital 412-908-9301 | tbeah.com Monroeville Pet Hospital 412-372-1100 | www.monroevillepethospital.com

VETERINARY SPECIALTY & EMERGENCY SERVICES

North/South: Pittsburgh Veterinary Specialty and Emergency Center, Inc. 412-366-3400 | 724-809-2000 pvs-ec.com

EQUINE AFFAIRS

First Dressage Lesson, with Kristin Hermann Part I

I call my first lessons "my getting to know you lesson." I know, and I want my students to know. Teaching to me is a dialog. My typical first question is, what are your three natural aids? It is amazing what riders do not know: the legs, seat, and hands. And the secret to riding is using all three natural aids in unison or what is called equestrian tact. All aids work in conjunction and are not used independently of one another.

I always ask what do you think the word dressage means. Most dressage enthusiasts don't know this either. It means the gymnastic training of the horse. It does not mean I just imported a fancy warmblood and bought the matching outfit and boots. Any horse and rider can do dressage or gymnastically train the horse.

I follow the USDF training scale or pyramid in all lessons, and once again, most riders are not familiar with this either. Rhythm, relaxation, contact, straight, impulsion, then collection. However there are many sub-sections in the training scale, but the first three are the most important—the basics. You cannot ride a horse unless it is relaxed, and you must have rhythm before you can even think about contact. So to help my students remember the Training Scale, I call it the Three R's Relaxed, Rhythmic, and Round instead of Contact.

Next, I explain how we do most of our training on the circle. I call it the Training Wheel of Training, or the 20-meter circle, to establish these first three basics. (It also enables me not to have to scream across the arena.) On the twenty-meter circle or the training wheel of training, riders learn about rhythm and bending or positioning. You can't let a horse track left and look to the outside of the circle. I use the analogy of car tires for adults and a bicycle tire for a younger person. Renowned equestrian Bill Woods used to talk about a train and the horse's spine following the track. Circling left, the horse's whole body, from tail to poll, should be bent or positioned onto the arc of the circle. And how do you do that? By using your three natural aids. supposed to do and called. Shockingly, most riders never heard this information either! (Maybe I read too much when I was learning?) The inside rein is called the "softening rein." You soften the horse in the neck as you bend it to the inside. I never instructed riders to look for the horse's inside eye because I want riders to look ahead and not down. Then the inside "active leg" keeps the horse going by activating the inside hind leg, and the rider's outside "supporting rein" supports the horse from falling in on the circle. Yes, each rein and leg aid has a name that explains its purpose. The inside softening rein softens the horse in the neck, the active inside leg asks the horse to stay out or bend plus move forward if needed, and the outside supporting rein supports the bending horse from falling in. The outside leg is called "passive." However, it is supposed to hold the haunches and keep them from falling out, so in theory, the outside leg is not really passive! I often joke when I teach, "now, is that enough information already, or are you ready to put it all together?"

I think it is essential for riders to understand what they are doing and why! That is why I share this information. I also tell riders that if they read a book on training a horse, it would tell them to ride the horse the same way in both directions. Nope, not true. Horses are different in both directions. Most horses bend to the right, and the outside shoulder falls out, and when they track left, the inside shoulder falls in because they still want to bend right even when going left. Oh geez. So, simple training exercises on the circle bring this to the rider's awareness. Starting to position or bend the horse on the circle with rhythm becomes dressage training for the horse. Training starts on the circle figuring out how to bend and balance a longitudinal horse with the rider's vertical aids. It really doesn't make sense if you think about it!

When we show dressage, we display to the judge how well we trained the horse in both directions at all three gaits. Training level starts with the rider being able to ride the horse on four twenty-meter circles, two at a trot and two

at a canter. Then we ride a few straight lines on the centerline, across the diagonal, and splice in a stretchy circle to show that we are not holding a horse together. The judge expects the rider to be bending the horse in the direction of travel and riding the horse at all three gaits unconstrained.

Once the rider understands bending on a circle with rhythm and contact, the lesson progresses to straight lines. Straight lines and circles, oh my. I just spent months learning how to bend a horse, and now you want me to go straight? By this time, the student is either fascinated with horse training or dressage or, like me, says, "where is the closest liquor store?" But, what is dressage? It is learning how to ride on straight lines and circles! We train our horses on straight lines and circles, so if you do not value the training process (which takes time), you may as well take up golf or tennis.

In all dressage tests, we come down the center line twice. But for training purposes, it does not matter if it is a straight line on the center line, quarter line, or second track. What matters is that the horse is straight. Horses are not born straight any more than we are born ambidextrous. I always share a famous quote: "we ride our horse forward ( relaxed and rhythmic), and WE put them straight." I emphasize that the word riding is a verb! Riding is an action word. You have to do something with your three natural aids to get results from the horse. Horses do not go straight. Riding on the quarter line or straight line, we realize how crooked our horses are with the shoulders falling in or out. And, how do we put them straight, easy - by using our three natural aids. Just riding a horse on a straight line teaches more about the rider's aid I love that the dressage tests have a coefficient score for "effective use of aids." Yes, effective! What does effective mean? It means doing something. Like put the horse's shoulders straight, bend the horse, and ask it to move if needed. I like to shatter that concept that all this does not happen from a rider just sitting there looking pretty. Use your aids, and be effective; however, let's not look like we are riding a trampoline. Move an elastic elbow forward and back, widen the hands if needed to get a direct line of communication elbow to bit, let the leg breathe with the horse's rib cage, but kick when needed, and allow the seat to absorb the horse's back oscillating and not bear down. Indeed, the act of riding is the ultimate in multitasking.

Riding is like treading water; if you sit still and don't tread, you will drown. You have to move and signal the horse in rhythm with its rhythm, and that is only one of the challenges. So many riders come to me that are afraid to open a rein; I tell them it is explained in every book. I did not make it up; go ahead and move. I give students permission to bend an elbow, open a rein, and move their heads. But many riders have been told not to move, lock their elbows in, and no breathing when they ride. We could call it 'mummified riding.' Hmmm, a good title for a future article! Riders try so hard to do it right and become stiff and ineffective. You ride with your joints, not with your muscles.

Part II continued in Winter Edition

Wholestic Equine & Pet Services

Clinton, PA

Reiki Master

Animal Communications & Intuitive

Canine Natural Remedies & Alternative Therapies

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Seminars, clinics, and remote consultations.

Andrea Ross

Masterson Equine Method | Certifi ed Practitioner (205) 492-1000