Jenni Grimmett, DVM, was an essential part of bringing the book Dressage the Cowboy Way to publication. She was the ideal coauthor for Eitan Beth-Halachmy (see my interview with “8”), because she practiced Cowboy Dressage (CD). I am a believer, use CD precepts when I work with horses, and will undoubtedly one day spend more time on CD, but my current passion is endurance. I enjoyed reading the book, and have wanted to learn more about Jenni for a long time. Fortunately, she agreed to do this interview!
Q: Give us a little bit of your life history. How did you first get into horses?
Like most horse crazy girls I think I was born this way. I don’t remember a time when I didn’t love horses. My earliest memory was a pony ride on one of those pony carousels that travels around, I was 5? Maybe younger? At 7 years of age I made a deal with my parents. Thank goodness I lucked into the phase of parenting where bargaining with your kid was a thing! I wanted a horse and they didn’t think I was responsible or old enough to take care of it. We struck a bargain that I would take care of our menagerie of animals which included dogs, cats, rabbits, chickens, ducks and pheasants all by myself for 3 months. I also had to read every book in our small country elementary school library on horses. If I did all of that I could get a horse for my 8th birthday.
I did it, and they stuck to their end of the bargain. Polly Perkins was a cute little black Morgan/pony cross. My parents were not horse people but they were animal lovers. I don’t think they knew at all what they were getting into!! A wonderful Morgan breeder found her for us and I’ve had Morgans ever since!
Q: What made you decide to become a vet?
Well, I can actually credit my mom with that one. Originally, I just wanted a job working around horses. Being a jockey sounded fantastic but I knew by age 10 I wasn’t going to be that size. My mom suggested I think about being a veterinarian and introduced me to “All Creatures Great and Small” by James Herriot. I devoured it and loved every single minute of that book. So, I switched from dreaming of being a jockey to dreaming of being a veterinarian at age 10 and I never once waivered. The goal of vet school pretty much defined my adolescent years, as the career has my adult life!
Q: Could you give us a brief version of how you became involved with Cowboy Dressage?
Cowboy Dressage came into my life at a very opportune time. I was struggling in my horsemanship after being very disillusioned with a big-name trainer in natural horsemanship. I really wanted to find a way to build my riding skills and maintain my horse’s physical and mental well being. But I was having a tough time finding a discipline that embraced that wholly and truly. I had long admired Eitan as a fellow Morgan devote and amazing showman and horseman. I lucked into finding a clinic on Facebook that was within reason for me to attend.
As a solo practitioner with a budding practice it was tough for me to go, especially as breeding season was just kicking off, but I took the plunge and it changed my life. I found that Eitan was exactly what I was looking for in a mentor. I also made friendships at that clinic that I will always treasure. At that time it was still Western Dressage but when the change to move to Cowboy Dressage happened, I followed right along. By the end of that year Eitan had contacted me to begin doing some writing for Cowboy Dressage and we formed a friendship based on mutual respect that led us to eventually write Dressage the Cowboy Way.
Q: Tell us about the book you wrote with Eitan. What was it like to coauthor Dressage the Cowboy Way?
Oh man. That book was an experience. That was my first professional writing adventure. I am a lay person in the field of writing. I enjoy it and I think I have a small talent for it but I had no idea what went into writing a book of that caliber.
The truth is I don’t know how we got it done, actually. I wrote that book in between calls, riding in the vet truck with my assistant driving. Then I spent several days with Deb and Eitan at Wolf Creek Ranch editing and pairing the words with the pictures, but the vast majority of the writing was done here in Idaho while I was working. I don’t know how we got it done! Luckily with the blogs that we had been working on a large section of the book had been sketched out already so that was hugely helpful.
Q: How was working with Eitan to write a book, compared to working with him in a clinic/horseback?
I would say it is much the same. Eitan is a genius, really, as well as an artist. His mind is a wonder. The largest hurdle to working with Eitan in any form is that you have to be able to either interpret or extrapolate the genius going on through what may be a bit of a language barrier or just the fact that his brain functions on a completely different wavelength. He is so good at minutia and we have spent countless enjoyable hours dissecting video footage to really understand foot falls, weight and balance and the natural rhythm of the horse and yet he somehow still manages to escape all of that while he is riding and just paint the picture. It’s a unique blend of wonderful science and gorgeous art.
My job was to find a way to put that on paper, like an interpreter. It’s exactly the same when I am riding under his instruction. When I am most successful is when I just allow him to ride the horse through me, clearing my head and just being in the moment (NOT easy for my brain!) and then we get to dissect it all afterwards! In trying to do that with the book I had to embrace the art, simplify it and translate it into what I hope is something that anybody can follow along and understand.
Q: How should people read the book? Is it designed to be read straight through or can you browse to topics of current interest?
It is written in a way that builds from one thing to the next. However, I think it can also serve as a reference guide. For most horsemen, depending on where you are on your journey, you will want to come back to some of the sections again and again. Plus, I think that as your understanding of each of the maneuvers grows as you develop more feel and your aids become more complete. Your understanding of something like shoulder in grows from the mechanics to the delicate execution of the maneuver for the purpose of bettering your horse. There is so much to it. You can dive down that rabbit hole as deep as you want to go.
Q: What is your role now as a CD enthusiast and clinician?
As a CD professional I feel that our goal is to represent Cowboy Dressage and embody the principles of our organization. Eitan’s dream was a discipline where kindness to the horse and each other comes first. We try really hard to live that. Dan and I both are recognized clinicians and teach Cowboy Dressage at our Lucky Duck Ranch in Sagle, Idaho. We have worked hard to build the CD community here in North Idaho. We have spent many years doing introduction clinics to encourage folks to participate. Fortunately, we have a very active and strong group of “Duckers” that have been working with us for several years.
I also travel and introduce CD to other areas around the country. Thank goodness I decided to take a year off from traveling after a busy travel schedule in 2019! 2020 was not the year to travel!
Q: How has CD evolved in recent years?
As a brand new discipline that is being scratched out of the dirt by hard working folks, CD is ALWAYS evolving. Our amazing world partners work so hard to keep things up to date and fresh and to keep welcoming folks into the fold.
On rules
When CD started 8 didn’t want any rules. He just wanted that one thing, Kindness, to rule the entire discipline. With the electronic “handshake” agreement to respect kindness we shouldn’t need any other rules! Well, that is true to ride with Cowboy Dressage and be a part of the discipline, but as the competition side has grown rules have to come along too!
So, I would say the biggest evolutionary change is the ever-growing list of competition rules. While CD is NOT all about the competition, it is the competition that allows for the growth. That keeps folks motivated to keep working and striving to be better. Friendly competition gives them goals and awards and we all need that dangling carrot!
The judges
Lyn Ringrose Moe has done an AMAZING job building our judges program. Our judges undergo rigorous training and continuing education to make sure that we are all striving for the same things on the court. With soft feel always being first and foremost, we also want to make sure we are building equine athletes and equestrians that can go on to excel outside the court as well.
Cowboy Dressage is global!
The other thing that has evolved is the world wide aspect. We have strong supporters in such far flung places as South Africa, Australia, and Europe. What started out in tiny little Grass Valley, California has touched so many lives around the world. The organic growth has been slow but steady, This has allowed us to make sure that the CD that you see in Australia is the same CD you see in N. Idaho.
Q: How has COVID-19 affected your operations?
What a year this has been. As a rural small town large animal mobile veterinarian, COVID did not impact our business negatively. If anything, I think we have been busier than usual. I think all of my clients spent their stimulus checks on breeding fees! Since I haven’t been traveling to teach CD or to attend shows, all I have been doing is working lately and so from a business aspect 2020 has been good for us!
We are lucky to be in an area very lightly affected by COVID. It has changed some things here at the ranch. We used to do potlucks for every ride night or gathering and since COVID we haven’t been doing that.
Once our state lifted the restrictions though, our clinics have all gone as planed this year. We had to cancel a few of the early ones. We practice social distancing and we are outside in the sunshine. However, we haven’t gone to wearing masks here at the ranch 😉 I would say the very best thing to come out of this year thanks to COVID is the CD virtual show structure.
In your experience, has it had a big impact on CD in general?
CD responded to the cancellation of many of our shows by offering up a series of virtual show opportunities this summer. They really did it right too by making sure there was a user friendly system for submission of tests for the shows.
I have so enjoyed participation in the virtual shows. It has allowed us to continue to work towards our goals, the feedback from the judges is superior in my opinion to what we get from the live shows and it’s fun to watch the other riders in your class ride on their home courts. I have competed with folks in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, California and Austria for my last show. Also, it allows me to show more than one horse, which I can’t normally do for a live show. I really hope the virtual show format continues. It’s a great thing for folks in areas that do not have a large enough group of riders for a live show.
Q: What about horses?
I know you are a life-long Morgan owner! What is special about the breed?
This is funny because my family will all role their eyes whenever anybody asks me, “Why the Morgan?”. I am a walking billboard for the Morgan breed! There really is not any other horse like the Morgan. As a life long Morgan owner and rider, it has affected me deeply. I miss that connection anytime I ride a horse that is not a Morgan. It’s difficult to put into words, but when you get on a Morgan the flow of communication is so strongly two ways that it makes riding other horses just feel like horses! I know I sound like a lunatic, but I think any Morgan person would tell you the same thing.
What makes Morgan Horses special for Cowboy Dressage?
I think CD is perfect for ANY horse, but for Morgans it is a discipline where they are free to be themselves without adding huge weighted shoes, tail harnesses or any of the other fads that go along with the Morgan show world. CD looks for the best in any single horse. It asks only that each horse be able to perform to their best ability. There is no “look” or head set or length of stride that makes a CD horse perfect. Any horse can excel.
In a world that measures the Morgan against so many other breeds, CD is a place where the flashy, gorgeous and opinionated Morgan can just be who they are and revel in it!
After almost 40 years of trying to convince my AQHA (American Quarter Horse Association) loving friends that the Morgan is best, I have come to realize that the Morgan is not for everybody. They are certainly not the easiest horse to ride because of the two-way communication. But, there is nothing like a Morgan for making you feel like this is a two way partnership. They are 100% there all the time, for good or for bad. I can’t see myself ever riding anything else.
Do you have any favorite horses you would like to tell us about?
I have two geldings currently in training. Kit, (Vintage Knight Rider) my 9 year old has been a challenge to say the least. I have learned so much from this horse both as a veterinarian and as a horseman. I’ve owned Kit since he was a weanling. Although I don’t know that he will ever be the CD superstar, I want him to be he is an awesome mountain horse. We will continue to work on our training in the arena but he really prefers to be outside conquering our Idaho wilderness.
Ernie, (CFR El Vaquero Dorado) is my up and coming superstar. He is 6 this year and also came to me as a weanling. Ernie has soooo much talent and such a busy young brain. He is coming along slowly but steadily. I think there will come a time we are piaffing and doing pirouettes. I’m hoping that 2021 brings me more training time. It’s hard to make much progress in your training when you are working 70 hours/week!
Chico, (Bluebird Rising Wind) is 18 and retired from competition, but we are still working on some advanced training at home. He has spent most of his summer mountain climbing. He is an amazing mountain horse as well as an excellent lesson horse for those students ready to try some of the more advanced concepts.
Santa Fe Renegade
Santa Fe Renegade retired here to the ranch 2 years ago. He is 22 now and also mostly retired. His role is to help continue my education when Eitan is so far away. Every time I ride him I feel Eitan and it helps me to remember where I am going in each of my own horses. He lives with his old friend, Lighthouse Bonnie when she isn’t teaching lessons as well.
That’s MORE than enough horses for a gal that works as much as I do. Thank goodness my husband helps me live this crazy life!
Q: Is there anything else you would like to share?
The only other thing of interest about me right now is that we are working on a reality show sponsored by Spalding Labs. (Spalding is the maker of the Fly Predator among other things). It’s called On the Road and it is a series of short you tube style clips based on our adventures on the road as a mobile veterinarian. COVID has definitely put a damper on our filming this year. Fortunately, they have several dozen episodes completed from the footage that we put together last year.
Spalding Labs (Youtube Channel) is a big time supporter of Cowboy Dressage and Tom Spalding is a heck of a guy. Hopefully we will get back to shooting more for 2021. I think for 2020 we just need to buckle down and ride it until it quits bucking!
Previous Cowboy Dressage notables interviews
An interview with Cowboy Dressage founder Eitan Beth-Halachmy
What was I thinking? (An interview with Debbie Beth-Halachmy)
Taking Cowboy Dressage to Europe: An interview with Lesley Deutsch
Resources and links
Dressage the Cowboy Way: The Complete Guide to Training and Riding with Soft Feel and Kindness
Jenni Grimmett’s blog: Horseman’s Journey
Wow Jenni puts into words so well what it is about Morgans that we Morgan owners admire:) They are often not the easiest horses to ride but they challenge us to become better horsemen/horse women. And what sweet ride it is when we learn how to have that conversation with them that they want! Love the book she and Eitan wrote!