There is something about horses that draws humans in a way nothing else can. Their elegance, their kindness, and their humor are often unexpected and always weave a spell. Sometimes the attraction seems elemental and irresistible. For those moments when it seems a horse is likely to find its way into your life for the first time, this book is the ideal guide, shield, and source of solace. No matter how hard we try to avoid it, for some of us, horses simply happen! Friedman offers realistic and well-researched suggestions for what to do when one happens to you and advice on how to keep laughing while your mind slips silently away at the end of a lead rope.

From the Introduction: You never really thought you would own a horse. Maybe you were nursing an unrequited childhood pony lust, or maybe your dreams centered more on fast cars and big houses. Everything changed when one day little Suzy (or Marie, or, occasionally, Tommy) took a field trip to a local horse farm. The blackmailing was insidious. There would be no appropriate bedtime, no quiet meals, and no sane conversation in the house until you put down your newspaper or turned off your computer and gave your full and earnest attention to the whiny little monster who used to be your child. “But, Mom! Dad!” you heard, “Everybody’s getting a horse but me!” Naturally, this statement was suspect from the get-go. Granted, you’d been a little out of touch with your child’s friends, but you were pretty sure none of the neighbors’ yards had sprouted grass-nibbling critters bigger than your SUV. Still, the Good Parent voice in your head was shrieking, “Do you want all the other parents to think you can’t afford to give your kid whatever her over-marketed little brain thinks she needs?” No micro-parent worth her (or his) salt would overstep this bound. So, checkbook in hand, you hauled little Lindsay off to the nearest horse emporium, The Silver Spur Happy Trails Riding Stable (Horses For Hire and Sale, Riding Lessons by Appointment). You found yourself standing toe-to-hoof with the biggest, dustiest, homeliest monster that’s ever escaped from your nightmares. Your child was hopping from foot to foot in excitement. The dealer was smiling around his chaw of nicotine-replacement gum, and someone was handing you a rope. You might as well have used it to tether yourself to the nearest flagpole, because this was the start of a wild ride. Welcome, Fellow Traveler, to the Wild World of Horse Ownership!

ASEA certified appraiser, owner of Gallant Hope Farm in New Jersey, Joanne M. Friedman earned a BA in Psychology from Clark University and an MEd in Special Education from the University of Hartford. A veteran high school special education teacher, Joanne Friedman has spent nearly 50 years with horses, all providing fodder for three books and over 150 articles on the behavior and training of horses and riders. Contact her at www.gallanthopefarm.com.