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From The Horse’s Mouth

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This week we have ANOTHER contest/giveaway, with yet ANOTHER one next week! I mean, who doesn’t love free stuff, right? Plus it’s the holidays and that means these are things that I think will make GREAT gifts!

Through the years I’ve gotten to know some very interesting people; some that show me I’m on the right path (as in those who’re quick to show you the kind of person you DON’T want to be) and those that continue to make you strive for excellence.

And then there’s those that have similar thoughts when it comes to horses.

Mr. Robert (Bob) Kinford is one of those folks. He has decades of experience with horses, and his colts all ride around happy- a big plus for me! He’s got an amazing sense of humor and can cook like no other! He’s a cowboy gourmet, a buckaroo, cowboy humorist, a low-stress cattle handling expert, as well as an author!

He was kind enough to let me get a sneak peek into his latest book: “From the Horse’s Mouth” and I have to tell you, his wit and wisdom shine as he writes a book from the perspective of the horse!

This isn’t your typical horse-training book. It’s a humorous, sad, and real book about how we, as humans, tend to over-look our horse’s perspective. Now those of you that know about our training philosophies here at the ranch know that we try to always put the horse first. It’s why we ride with Buck Brannaman. But there’s still folks out there, that never think about how their horse feels or what’s going through his mind. This book does just that, and it’s a great read!

From the Introduction:

Everyone is always looking for that “magic bullet” to take care of all of the problems they have with their horses. The problem is, there is no silver bullet. After working with thousands of horses over the decades, three things have become clear.

First every horse is an individual, and second, every horse is a product of its past. Third, two horses can have a nearly identical past, yet hold opposite lessons from it. The best analogy I can come up with to describe this is two children raised by an alcoholic parent. One may grow up to repeat the life of it’s alcoholic parent, getting drunk, beating the kids and kicking the dog, while the other grows up to abhor alcohol and cannot raise a hand to their child under any circumstance.

This individuality makes working with each horse unique. Developing a relationship with horses is much like developing relationships with people. One may be willing, open, and easy to work with. The next may be like dealing a past full of abuse who is suspicious, angry and looking for an opportunity to lash out. Yet another may have a past of injuries which cause problems due to pain or vision loss which cause adverse reactions to what we are asking of it.

The goal of From The Horse’s Mouth is to let the reader walk a mile (or two) in the horseshoes of of their equine friends. Let them walk in the shoes of horses to learn why the problem lies not in the horse, but in their own deafness to what the horse may be telling them.

Here’s my review:

In a world full of instant gratification, where winning is all, the one thing over-looked in today’s equine world is the point of view of the horse. Bob does a great job making the stories not only entertaining, and relatable, but shows us that if we put the horse’s thoughts first, and study how to become “fluent in horse”, and work on the horse’s schedule and not ours, we’ll be able to have a willing partner who’ll ride with us to the end of the earth. Isn’t that what we all want?

Now, if you have someone on your list that loves horses, I highly recommend you enter to win this book. Bob has been gracious enough to offer an autographed copy! Yes, folks, that’s right, an Autographed copy! And I bet he’ll even sign it with a few words of wisdom if we ask nice!

So here’s how we’re going to give you chances to win:

1. Head over to The Horse’s Mouth on Facebook, and tell them, you’re here because I sent you!

2. Follow Bob (or me- @thesdcowgirl) on Twitter: @bobkinford, and tell us you want to win a copy by using the hashtag: #bkhorsesmouth

3. Tell your friends! For more chances to win, send your friends to The Horse’s Mouth Facebook page, and tell them to let us know who sent them. You’ll both get an entry.

4. And finally, leave a comment below, letting me know you “Liked” the Facebook page, or twittered about the book or both!

This contest will run through Friday at Noon Central, so be sure you enter, and enter often!

Happy Trails, and Happy Horsing Around!

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PS. Be sure you check out Bob’s other writings, in the links above. I assure you, they’re full of wit, wisdom and good eating!

About ~The South Dakota Cowgirl~

Jenn Zeller is the creative mind and boss lady behind The South Dakota Cowgirl. She is an aspiring horsewoman, photographer, brilliant social media strategist and lover of all things western.

After a brief career in the investment world to support her horse habit (and satisfy her mother, who told her she had to have a “real” job after graduating college), she finally took the leap and stepped away from a regular income; trading the business suit once and for all for cowgirl boots, a hat, and jeans. She has not looked back.

When Jenn first moved to The DX Ranch on the South Dakota plains, she never imagined she’d find herself behind a camera lens capturing an authentic perspective of ranching, and sharing it with others. Jenn has always been called to artistry, and uses music, writing, images, home improvement, and her first true love of horses to express her ranching passion.

Horses are the constant thread and much of her work centers around using her unique style of writing to share her horsemanship journey with others in publications such as CavvySavvy, the AQHA Ranching Blog, the West River Eagle, the family ranch website, and her own website.

Using photography to illustrate her stories has created other opportunities -- Jenn’s brand “The South Dakota Cowgirl” has grown to the level of social media “Influencer”. This notoriety has led to work with Duluth Trading Company, Budweiser, Wyoming Tourism, Vice, Circle Z Ranch and Art of the Cowgirl, to name a few. She also serves as a brand ambassador for Woodchuck USA, Arenus Equine Health, Triple Crown Feed and Just Strong fitness apparel. Her photography has been featured by Instagram, Apple, TIME Magazine, The Huffington Post, and Oprah Magazine. Jenn’s work has been published internationally, has been seen in several books and has graced the covers of several magazines.

Jenn became a social media influencer by accident when she started to explore Instagram as a way to share her life on the ranch with folks that don’t get to experience it. It’s grown into an incredible platform that she uses to empower women, create an environment for self improvement and share life on the ranch.

When she’s not working, she loves to drink coffee, play with her naughty border collie named Copper, start ranch colts, and run about the country chasing cans. Her mother still thinks she doesn’t have a “real” job.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Ashley says

    I liked From the Horse’s Mouth on Facebook and told him you sent me!! This book sounds awesome and I would def love to win a copy!

    Reply

  3. Sunnie says

    This does look like a great book, one that I wouldn’t pass on! I wrote on his wall, we are buying a farm, ,moving from the city and this book is right up my alley!

    Reply

  4. Jessica Cordes says

    Oh good!! I didn’t miss this one! ; ) Definitely heading over to like his page and I’ll see about sharing this with a few friends too! This book looks wonderful!! Thanks for sharing his work with all of us Jenn!

    Reply

  10. Jai says

    Just liked the ‘From the horses Mouth’ page and shared the link to my wall. This looks like such a fantastic read!! This is what I aim for ALL THE TIME with my horse. Giving them the best deal with the best feel is our DUTY as human beings. wonderful blog Cowgirl!

    Jai
    http://www.sequoiadesign.ca

    Reply

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