WH146 | The beauty of the mundane, boring, still and settled with with Elsa Sinclair
The Whole Horse Podcast with Alexa Linton
Release Date: 11/09/2025
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_outlineIs 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 me pausing mid-sentence to chew on powerful new ideas and process aha's. Her way of thinking about horses and training has this way of helping us see something in a totally different way. Would love to hear about any aha's you had while listening!
What is Freedom Based Training? Perhaps the best way to explain it is to break it down: Training is the art of developing toward an end goal. Freedom is the ability to make the right choices for you in any given situation. Freedom Based Training embraces the paradox of these two ideas – freedom and training. To do this we develop depth of relationship and width of skill in a balance, using passive leadership instead of dominant leadership.
Elsa Sinclair is a professional horse trainer and instructor who brings to the horse world a unique and powerful perspective. Gathering together awareness from a variety of equine disciplines, Elsa has an enthusiasm for developing human ~ equine partnerships to fully enjoy the process of learning and growing in the direction of their goals. Elsa draws on a long and diverse history with horses as she travels now through her latest adventure of Taming Wild. What if horses were given a choice? Would they let us ride them? Without force or tools to control and without bribes to lure them? Elsa asked the questions, embarked on a project to find out and ultimately filmed a movie about the process. What started as simple questions, birthed the movie Taming Wild, an online course for those interested in learning Freedom Based Training, and a following of people who seek their own answers in what it takes to work more collaboratively with horses.
Find out more about Elsa and her work at www.tamingwild.com.