Recently I was contacted to see if I’d be interested in reading and reviewing another horse book.  I’m currently reading Beautiful Horseflesh, and have some questions below from the author, Karen Bennett.  You can review her answers below. Note they were provided prior to May 15th, hence the comments below.

How much of your day/week is related to horses?
I spend no time at all with horses as I live in a small house in the suburbs of Baltimore. Now, what Baltimore has happening tomorrow (Sat May 15th) is THE PREAKNESS, held at PIMLICO race track!!! Tomorrow is the second race in the Triple Crown for three-year-olds. So, all TV news ends with an up-beat story and film footage of GORgeous, satiny, smooth muscled Thoroughbreds. Oh, so beautiful. Up until recently there were no tickets to be purchased by the un-affiliated, because of COVID. I certainly couldn’t afford a ticket even if Covid were not a player in this year’s races. I don’t even have the fancy hat to wear.

My closest racing connection is Ms. Georganne Hale, the vice-president of racing development for the Maryland Jockey Club. She is a generous woman who took time from her busy schedule about four years ago to allow me to come to the track on a wintery day to answer questions I had about lip tattoos and gate placement. What a doll. She was generous with her time. I listed her at the top of my “appreciations” on page 1 of my book, “Beautiful Horseflesh.”

What is it exactly that you do?
I am a seventy-seven-year old horse enthusiast. Heck, I don’t want a horse in a pasture or barn somewhere, I want a horse in the house so I could talk to it and pet it all day. Exactly what I do now that I’m retired is to drive to a health club M-F and swim a mile. Then I go home, do all the usual things a woman does; groceries, bake a lot, etc. then I sit down to write, edit, answer notices, make calls, fight with a bank over their erroneous charge of $72.00.

I’m a member of The Maryland Writers Association, I take writing classes on line (covid times), read/edit other authors’ work, have visits with other masked women, and work to make a home of the house I moved into 11 months ago. Oh, and I take a nap most afternoons.

In this field of work, is it possible to be full-time professional and earning a liveable income?
Not in writing. I survive on a social security and a teensie pension from working a few years at the VA Medical Center. But, I am better at being without money than most. I’ve had so much practice and was taught to not waste. I mow my own yard, cut my own hair, shovel my own snow, bake my own pastries, and am not one who shops unless I need something.

What are the general steps taken to be employed in such a role?
I worked for years as a family nurse practitioner, with most of my experience in Corrections: jail, prison, half-way houses. I’ve written a book about a fictionalized woman in prison for life. That book won first place in literary/commercial fiction in Maryland Writers Assn in 2006. I haven’t published that book, and the title is changed to “The Dictionary Defense.”

Favourite horse memory?
My seventh grade girlfriend, Jane Farrell was a true friend who invited ME to go horseback riding with her in New Jersey on a Saturday. Her dad would drive us to the stable, drop us off and pick us up later. My parents agreed. That was a rather cold day. I was in my usual winter coat, a knit hat, and a long scarf with fringed edges wrapped around my neck. I had dungarees, shoes and socks. I didn’t own boots. I think Jane was dressed the same.

We were mounted in western saddles and sent out into a large enclosed pasture. After moseying for a while we learned it was time to return to the barn. I was disappointed to leave an activity I was so loving. But, I was the kid who did what I was told, and reined the horse to the barn. Well, that horse didn’t need to be coaxed. He spun around and at break neck (mine) speed headed up the hill for home. I just hung on because I never had riding lessons, and this horse was speeding. I wanted to enjoy the race although I was scared because the horse seemed to be agitated and was in a big hurry and all I could do was to hang on.

We headed for a tree—I mean dead on. Just as we neared certain destruction the horse veered off to the side and swung its head around looking back and continued running, not looking where it was going until he slowed at the fence of the paddock. An employee helped me from the saddle. I was disappointed the ride was over so soon, and sorry the ride ended badly. As I stood waiting for Jane to join me, a kid who worked on the farm came running after me with my long neck scarf held high. He hollered, “Here! Here’s your scarf. It was wrapped around the horse’s tail!” And that is my favorite horse memory.

Future goals?
I have no horse goals. I love them in absentia. I hope to be an author who is well read. I have written several books, none related to another. I’ve been gathering material my whole life although I didn’t realize that until I started writing and felt I had insight enough to write a few funny stories, then serious stories, then five novels. I entered contests, won some, sent stories into magazines and had some published.

I self-published a book two years ago, “The Farewell Tour,” a mostly light read, about a woman who recognizes her four lucky numbers, her PIN, is an upcoming date. She decides to travel because she suspects the date may be her last day. The book is an entertaining read while traveling or simply chilling-out. My remaining books are about a kidnapped ballerina, the prison book, and a novella about being a church choir member during the time the Catholic church started outright closing churches and merging parish populations.

Best thing about your sport/profession?
I started writing when I was unhappily married and in my mid-fifties. I’d come home from a daily 65-mile one-way commute, walk into my house, feed the pets and go into a small room where I had a laptop on a TV table, and I wrote every night. I liked other writers whom I met at writing clubs, conferences and at writing classes and writing groups. We are all scraping our energy together in hopes of being published—of being read.

Some look for financial reward, but most of us, realists, still write because we want to write, and love our compatriots. Just before Covid hit in 2020, I was house-sitting for 10 weeks in Juneau AK. I attended a writers group in one of Juneau’s libraries and found a community of friends right away, because no matter where we are, our goals are the same: to write. By the way, there are not many horses in Juneau. I asked and was answered, “not much hay.” That’s all.

Pam Billinge has recently taken the time to share about her books and the therapeutic work that she carries out with horses. Her answers to some questions from Equus Education are detailed below. Thanks Pam!

How much of your day/week is related to horses?
That depends very much on the day! Every day I can spend anything between two hours and four hours with the daily ‘care’ of the horses and land maintenance. Sometimes I might also spend the rest of the day working with the herd and one or more clients who come for therapy or coaching. Other days the work required to run my business is desk based: doing accounts, marketing, designing programmes and workshops or writing articles and books.

What is it exactly that you do?
I am a horse-led therapist and facilitator. This means that I offer clients – both private clients and from the corporate sector – personal and professional development experiences which have at their centre the relationship between horse and human. Sometimes what I do is called equine assisted learning, but I prefer to call it ‘horse-led’ because I feel it is me who assists the horses!

I am also an author, and have published two books The Spell of the Horse, and The Spirit of the Horse.

In this field of work, is it possible to be a full-time professional and earning a liveable income?
Yes it is. However it takes many years of training and building a network to be able to run a full-time profitable business.

What are the general steps taken to be employed in such a role?
I always recommend that practitioners follow two lines of study: a professional psychotherapy, counselling or coaching qualification and training PLUS a parallel education in horse behaviour and horse care. It is most likely that practitioners will be self-employed, so will need to know about running a business too.

Once the professional skills required in each separate discipline are acquired the two things can be put together. Practitioners may also wish to specialise in a client group – children and adolescents, families, business people, bereavement and trauma, for example.

Favourite horse memory?
My favourite horse memory has to be the six weeks I spent studying on a ranch in the mountains of Colorado. Riding every day, most of the day! What I learned about myself from my amazing lease horse changed my life completely and led to me doing the work that I do.

Future goals?
I want to continue writing books about horses and their healing, generous natures, so that they are better understood throughout the world.

Best thing about your sport/profession?
Undoubtedly spending so much time with horses and continuing my own journey of personal discovery at their side. I also love it that the horses are allowed to simply ‘be’ – without any pressure to perform or conform to our human world.

Ross Prowd, owner of Turf Monthly shares about his new venture.

How much of your day/week is related to horses?
Pretty much all of it.

What is it exactly that you do?
I have just started up Turf Monthly, so I am busy writing, editing and designing a digital magazine. On top of that, I also still freelance, and continue to do a little bit of work as a bloodstock consultant and pedigree analyst.

In this field of work, is it possible to be a full-time professional and earning a liveable income?
Everything is possible, but as a new venture, I am confident that it can maintain an income. Like most working in the industry, it is a labour of love. Economic decisions are secondary to the aim of Turf Monthly, which is to bring alive those great champions of the past so they become more than just a name on a pedigree page.

What are the general steps taken to be employed in such a role?
I studied as a journalist but maintained a strong interest in racing although never considered a career in that field. I pursued involvement in the industry as a hobby, but if you keep your eye out for opportunity, it can come in different forms.

Also I got to know the people at “The Sportsman” and was offered an opportunity to write for that great publication. That opened doors to writing for other industry magazines, and eventually helped me into an Administrative role at race clubs. The more people I talked to, and the more horses I was around, the more I studied and became interested in certain aspects of the industry, particularly pedigrees and history. Turf Monthly combines these interests and seems a natural evolution.

Favourite horse memory?
There are so many of them, that it is a difficult question to answer. One that always stands out is Octagonal’s win in the AJC Derby, a race that I am featuring in the November edition of Turf Monthly. I watched that race in a hospital room waiting for the birth of my daughter who was born a few hours later.

Profile On: Ross Prowd – Owner Turf Monthly

Future goals?
My goal is to reconnect people with the thoroughbred. It wasn’t that long ago that the horse was central to life, and we had a strong connection to them. Working at race clubs, you learn that going to the races is often the first-time people get to see a horse in the flesh. You can see the impact these wonderful animals have. There really is something almost spiritual about the connection to the horse and you can actually see this in the way people interact with the horse.

As an industry, we do not want to forget the magic, and we need to share it with others. On the other hand, in a modern world, I see that commercial aspects often are harming the breed. From a pedigree side, I want to help people understand that breeding the best and soundest horse possible is more important than a few dollars to be made in a sales ring.

Best thing about your sport/profession?
The connection with the horse. No matter what section of the industry you are in, just about everyone shares a love of the thoroughbred. They might express it differently, but I think it helps generate that sense of inclusion that has always been such a big part of the culture.

Jenni Bush is another person that I have connected with on LinkedIn. Her focus is as an equine business mentor. She was kind enough to share about the work that she does.

How much of your day/week is related to horses?
Weekend are horse time and then the looking after every day.

What is it exactly that you do?
I am a business mentor who helps small equine business owners to generate clients, leads and stable income through marketing, mindset and strategy.

In this field of work, is it possible to be a full-time professional and earning a liveable income?
I am living proof that it is yes. It isn’t easy, but I believe we are all able to flourish and earn an income doing what we love.

But more often than not we allow our own beliefs and limits to stop us. So I help business owners and startups break that.

What are the general steps taken to be employed in such a role?
You need experience, real-life experience. Like riding a horse, great balance and you probably need to have fallen off enough times to learn the lessons. While I have coaching skills and qualifications under my belt, it’s my skills, ability and mistakes that mean I know how to help my clients.

Profile On: Jenni Bush, Equine Business Mentor

Favourite horse memory?
Wow I have loads. I was a riding coach for a long time. It’s the little things isn’t it. The moments they call to you. The smiles on others faces when they get it! But my all time favourite has to be competing in the same showjumping class as my daughter and her face when she came 1st and I came 2nd! I will never live that down!

Future goals?
To help more people achieve their dreams in business.  To build a fund to support children in deprived areas have access to horses and financial resources to follow their dreams.

Best thing about your sport/profession?
My Clients! I have the best clients ever based all over the globe!