WH125 | Taking a 3Fs approach to providing good horse care with Lauren Fraser
The Whole Horse Podcast with Alexa Linton
Release Date: 07/17/2024
WH151 | Shifting the horse industry one saddle at a time with Katrina Chapman
The Whole Horse Podcast with Alexa Linton
After meeting on a horse track tour and realizing that we shared a common passion and vision, I couldn't wait to chat with Katrina Chapman of Lovas Equestrian about her work, her saddles and what drew her to thinking outside of the box about equine environments and more. Katrina is a trailblazer, as you'll hear, starting as a saddle fitter and moving into creating her own custom saddles after seeing some major gaps in the industry. But, Katrina's a horse lover first and foremost, and in this conversation she shares some of her frustration when it comes to being a saddle fitter, when the issue...
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WH150 | Building confidence and competence in equine emergencies with Dr. Lizzie McCready
The Whole Horse Podcast with Alexa Linton
Celebrating our 150th episode with this awesome chat with Dr. Lizzie of Empowered Equine! I happened upon her work recenty and was so grateful to find someone laying out emergency preparedness for horses in the online space. Ever since moving further out of town I have felt the need to upgrade my "tool-kit" and make sure I am up to date with my knowledge and skills and I think many horse owners are feeling the same way. In this episode we get into how the vet shortage is affecting horse communities worldwide and how to be prepared despite it, some of the important skills and equipment to have...
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WH149 | Demystifying insulin + shifting our lens on recovery with Elisha Edwards
The Whole Horse Podcast with Alexa Linton
In this illuminating episode we're back with Elisha Edwards to shine more light on the often confusing topic of metabolic disorder, laminitis and hyperinsulinemia. As I share, I'm usually a pretty quick study but this stuff gets my brain all twisted in knots - and am I ever grateful to have someone like Elisha to break it down for me. As many of you know, the topic of insulin as it relates to disease has been top of mind for me since my gelding Reykur's recent laminitic episode where his levels of insulin were off the charts despite trying to do all the right things. I've been doing my best to...
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WH148 | Walking the rocky road of recovery with Shannon Beahen
The Whole Horse Podcast with Alexa Linton
Season 9 just wouldn't be complete without an epic conversation with Shannon Beahen of Humminghorse, this time about the rollercoaster ride that is recovery from a significant health event in our horses. Both Shannon and I come to this conversation with very real and personal experience of this rocky road in our own bodies, and with members of our herds. As you'll hear, I've been in the stressful beginnings of this walk with my new gelding Reykur, and Shannon at the (hopefully) end stages with her gelding Ivan, and this chat felt like an important one to share our experiences and support...
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WH147 | Bringing creativity to the paddock with Nica Quinn
The Whole Horse Podcast with Alexa Linton
This episode with artist Nica Quinn was a long while in the making, as you'll hear in this chat when we both share our stories of synchronisities and, quite frankly, miraculous happenings and path crossings. We've never met in person, but it always fascinates me when one path impacts another profoundly, and creates a new reality altogether. Isn't that so often the way with horses, especially, as we talk about in this episode, our more challenging horses? In this inspiring conversation, Nica shares about her creative journey, how horses brought her art to life, how trust in the process has...
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WH146 | The beauty of the mundane, boring, still and settled with with Elsa Sinclair
The Whole Horse Podcast with Alexa Linton
Is there a better way to start a brand new season then a chat with the amazing Elsa Sinclair? I think not! We start season 9 with this rich conversation, broaching the big hot topic of pressure - what is it, how do we apply it (consiously or not) with our horses, how can we do "pressure" well, and where does not wanting to use it actually ironically mean more of it - how getting older and wiser is a very good thing (and doesn't mean we've lost our skill or courage), and exploring the concept of the beautiful in the mundane, every day moments with our horses. As always with Elsa, this chat had...
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WH145 | Using clicker training to support your equine manual therapy with Dr. Barbara Parks
The Whole Horse Podcast with Alexa Linton
What a perfect way to finish off season 8! This episode with Dr. Barbara Parks was fun, fascinating and fully geeky - my fave. We turned over a lot of stones, discussing clicker training - why many people think it doesn't work, what can go wrong and how to move into a place of understanding and success with this very helpful tool, especially in the realm of body work and other care practices, getting into many of my burning questions about equine body work, from how to set a boundary with a client, to when to have a hard conversation with an owner, to what to do when your treatments aren't...
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WH144 | On the shoulders of giants + with the wisdom of elders with Dave Collins
The Whole Horse Podcast with Alexa Linton
We're finishing out this seasons mentorship series with one of my most essential mentors, the one, the only, Dave Collins. Founder of the BC College of Equine Therapy and so much more. 22 years ago, almost to the day, I arrived at the BC College of Equine Therapy as a student thinking I knew it all. Well, that illusion was about to be lovingly shattered by Dave and the work that he was pioneering in the horse world. And I'm grateful for those two years every single day, even though, as you'll hear in this episode, they were rough! Two months into school I met Diva, my mare of almost 22...
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WH143 | Hoof care fundamentals with Nicole Jory
The Whole Horse Podcast with Alexa Linton
There's a good reason why I asked hoofcare professional Nicole Jory to contribute her online course Hoof Care Fundamentals to Outside the Box Equine - she knows her stuff! Nicole is my main hoofcare support for my herd and has been an invaluable resource for myself and my equine community for over a decade and I'm so pleased to be able to introduce you all to her in this episode! We cover a lot of territory in one hour: from trimming, to the three main issues she sees with hooves and how to help, to feeding for hoof health, to how to read a hay analysis. Nicole is a wealth of up-to-date...
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WH142 | It’s in the safety that things fall apart - a Raven Moon farm update with Alexa
The Whole Horse Podcast with Alexa Linton
Second lone wolf episode this season! Easy to get inspired sitting out amongst the trees and horses especially when big thigns are shifting here at the farm. This short 20 minute pod is an update on the herd and myself now that we have officially "landed" here and settled in our forever home, as things start to arise to be worked with. Would love to hear your thoughts on how these topics land for you! Enjoy.
info_outlineThis week on the podcast I spoke with equine behaviour specialist Lauren Fraser, the woman behind the 3 Fs (Friends, Forage, Freedom) framework for species-appropriate horse management. As you might imagine, I was excited to pick her brain on the intersection between equine life-styles and environments and their behaviour.
Our conversation ranged into many interesting territories, such as the direct links between deficits in the 3Fs and the problem behaviour we may encounter as a result, the negative effects our human mindsets can have when it comes to providing appropriate lifestyles for our horses, and a few notes at the end around co-operative care and the benefit of taking enough time to train our horses so we can prevent fear and trauma rather than rehabilitate it.
Lauren Fraser is an experienced horsewoman, who has worked professionally with horses since 2006. Prior to her current specialisation, Lauren taught riding and horsemanship, and trained horses.
Lauren provides horse behaviour consultations remotely worldwide. She also teaches others about horse behaviour, regularly guest lecturing for several universities, and delivering educational courses through the Understand Horses website. Lauren also mentors horse trainers who are interested in better understanding and addressing horse behaviour problems.
Lauren holds an equine science certificate from the University of Guelph, and obtained her MSc in clinical animal behaviour through the University of Edinburgh's Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies. Lauren's dissertation research examined the behaviour of horses subjected to ‘laying down’ during training.
Lauren was the International Association of Animal Behaviour Consultant’s (IAABC) horse division chair from 2013-2021 and was an IAABC application review committee member from 2012-2023. She is an International Society of Equitation Science practitioner member, as well as a Fear Free® Certified Professional.
Lauren currently has three horses: an Andalusian, an Arabian, and an Arabian/Quarter horse. She has tried her hand at many things with her horses over the years, including limited distance endurance riding, bridleless riding and liberty work, as well as working cattle and progressing her horses from the hackamore, into the two-rein. Lauren particularly enjoys training cooperative care behaviours, and teaching ‘clean slates’: giving young horses solid foundations.
When not with her horses, Lauren can be found mountain biking, taking her dogs to dock diving competitions, or playing the ukulele, poorly.
You can explore Lauren's work at https://www.equinebehaviorist.ca or find her on TikTok @horsebehaviourtok