Academy of Dressage Pty. Ltd. in Mount George | Horse trainer

Academy of Dressage Pty. Ltd.

Locality: Mount George

Phone: +61 400 639 909

Address: 41 Waters Rd 5155 Mount George, SA, Australia

Website: http://www.academyofdressage.com.au/

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• Sport & recreation
• Sports & fitness instruction
• Coach
• Horse trainer
• Horse riding school

25.01.2022 WORKING EQUITATION DAY this Saturday, 9th March Booked Out BUT you can come and watch. Starting 9.30am, finishing 4pm. Lovely shady venue with super obstacle...s and very knowledgeable instruction. Sessions @ 9.30am, 11am & 1.30pm Visitors welcome. Tea, coffee & biscuits supplied. Enq: Sarita on 0408.084.777 and to book a session in the future. Further details: www.academyofdressage.com.au See more

25.01.2022 An innovative water obstacle, in this case a cross country course, but it could be a Working Equitation challenge. Anyone want to build this for us?

25.01.2022 ON-LINE DRESSAGE COMPETITION Morgan Horses Barrie will be Judging the Morgan Horse Show Dressage Competition online on 9th March 2020. Riders set up their video camera or mobile phone and film their test/s which they then upload to YouTube. Barrie is then sent the links and downloads the entered tests, which he marks and returns to On-Line Competitions which are organised from W.A. Online Judging is very big in the USA, overcoming the tyranny of distance, snow storms, e...ase of being involved but not having to be somewhere at a specific time, on a specific date that the competitor may not be able to manage for all manner of reasons, not to mention less stress for horse and rider. We love that riders can compete from home or their agistment centre, don't need a float or have to float, many reasons for encouraging on-line competitions for all disciplines, and some of the new gizmo's available to go with mobile phones for filming your lessons, training sessions at home, out competing, just clip on your gadget and the camera follows you. What an age we live in...... See more

25.01.2022 I love all the Agapanthus flowering in profusion everywhere. Soooo pretty.

24.01.2022 NEXT W.A. CLINIC at State Equestrian Centre tentatively booked for Tuesday June 25th to Thursday June 27th 2019 inclusive. For more info, cost and available times please call or text me on M: 0400.639.909 by Saturday 25th May.

24.01.2022 The ABC 891 Interview on 'false' and 'business damaging' Star Ratings and Reviews, and Facebooks recent change from a star rating to a straight 'Yes' or 'No' on... whether you like a business or not, and Facebook not allowing one to remove the Review button any more, has been moved to next Wednesday at 10am (and Google isn't getting off either). The ABC want to do this topic justice, and couldn't get anyone to be interviewed, a human that is, from Facebook (surprise surprise) so are looking for an expert in this field - any volunteers? Thankyou for your comments on my post from yesterday and if you have information that Facebook and Google users need to know please send through and I will try to incorporate, or you may like to ring in on the day. Ph: 1300.222.891 I have been doing a lot of research and I am horrified at what I am discovering. I am not naive but I am truly concerned by what I have been discovering on this journey I never wanted to take in the first place. Today a 'person' told me that for every $20 I want to spend I can have one hundred 'False' One Star Ratings put up on any businesses, and again Fb and Google don't require a review (the reason for a black mark against a business) which I also think is appalling, even in dressage a low score requires the Judge to say why. So for $100 I can buy 1,000 False 1 Star Ratings and on Facebook with their new system I can buy 1,000 'No' I don't like the business, and again it is not a requirement to say why. I am writing to Mr. Zuckerberg tomorrow as no one at Facebook is contactable by phone or email, and I and many thousands of others around the world have spent many hours trying to find a way to speak to a human. At least one can contact a real person at Google, albeit not that easy either, and I am not very good with accents.....to be continued/.. See more

23.01.2022 NO INTERNET & NO LANDLINE for nearly 3 months for us is a way to ruin a small business very quickly in this day and age of internet, whether cut off by accident or on purpose. Our business has definitely been affected. We are all being forced to communicate via the internet, none of us have a choice anymore, and the horse world operates to a high degree on Fb, so no internet no Fb either. It makes one want to hide in a cave. So if you have sent anything by email sinc...e February we may not have got it or it is buried who knows where and we apologise. We were not ignoring you. People think if they have sent an email the person at the other end has received it. Not necessarily true. And Fb do not post everything we all send either, just ask anyone that has sent invites out via Fb and then on checking with individuals find they never received the Fb notification. Fb say they can't be expected to post X Billion posts each day, so they cherry pic. It is their right, they own Fb not us. So if you didn't know that, you do now. We are finally back on line if photos, and videos are involved or call or text us on our mobiles. Still sorting the landline. So frustrating and annoying, so many incompetent, pass the buck, don't care, don't have the knowledge required and stupid people we had to deal with, and does anyone ever call back? It is nigh on impossible to even get to speak with a human these days. One robo question after another and usually not applicable to what is going on in your situation. Did anyone hear even one polititian mention the dreaded word 'internet' or 'NBN' during the election campaign - we didn't, and we now know why after 3 months of trying to sort out this mess, the internet in this country is a HUGE mess. Just running a home, let alone a business without the internet is nigh on impossible, emailed bills don't arrive, next the 'you haven't paid your bill' notices are sent and you don't know, oops the insurance, car reg, etc. etc.may be due but a reminder by email won't be coming, retrieving from any cloud storage well you can forget that, the list is terrifyingly long and one is hard pressed to remember so many things. And internet banking, well you can forget that too. And trying to speak to a human, not a robot or someone that I can't understand their accent, forget that as well. We have restarted some paper files of info that we could not access for 3 months including a list of what is due and when throughout the year - be warned. So if you have tried and failed to communicate with us via the internet since February we apologise. Fingers crossed we are out of the woods PERMANENTLY but we are not holding our breath. Safest way to make sure we know you are needing to get hold of us is via the mobile phone system, and fingers crossed that keeps working. www.academyofdressage.com.au See more

22.01.2022 Always a pleasure coaching at the S.E.C in W.A. - well maintained and well run. Thankyou to everyone who attended and listened, asked thoughtful and intellig...ent questions and tried some new ways to achieve better outcomes. Thankyou Karen White for taking such good care of me this visit. All riders are encouraged to call or email with any queries when I am back home when you want any advice or help as the sewing person in our home would say "A stitch in time saves 9" Enjoy your wonderful equines in the meantime. See more

22.01.2022 Winter is over - Weather is gorgeous - like our horses! Dust off your riding togs and book a lesson! Visitors always welcome to come and watch from our viewing gallery! Billy on the boil and a biscuit tin of fresh goodies awaits you too. Horse in the pic is School horse Toolman with Barrie... www.academyofdressage.com.au See more

21.01.2022 Time for our fibre surface top up - happening today - so apologies to students and horses with the Academy closed but open again tomorrow. Thinking about your... own surface at your place, visitors always welcome to come and have a look, bring your own horse for a test ride, and always happy to answer questions as we have nearly 50 years of experience with all sorts of surfaces on our various arenas over the years. Order of events today: 1. Check the levels and Barrie said down 1" in one spot and 2" down in another and he was spot on - who needed the theodolight? 2. Bring in and spread the 450 million year old angular sand - available at only 2 quarries in Australia, luckily one of them is in SA. 3. Bring in the fibre mix which is tricky to spread because of its matting effect. 4. Rotary hoe the whole arena to mix new ingredients and previous surface - not a fun job. 5. Final checking of levels and touch ups. We have had a number of different riding surfaces on our arenas over the years but this is the best for sure BUT there are considerations that MUST be taken into consideration regarding maintenance if you consider putting in a fibre arena - the main 3 being: 1. Can you wet the surface EVERY DAY eg. do not let it dry out. 2. Hand raking is OUT, you need a special purpose rake made for the fibre surface and something to pull it - we use a quad bike and we had our rake made for us by www.trindallequestrianservices.com in WA to suit our specific needs - great service and very reasonably priced too. 3. The CORRECT ratio of sand to fibre is of UTMOST importance - too much sand to keep the price down means you may as well have saved your money getting fibre. Note: If using a fibre surface outdoors we would recommend the swimming pool set up - there are a number of good YouTubes showing how to set up that system. Always happy to help, only a phone call away. See more

21.01.2022 Is your Instructor, Coach, Trainer; too tough, even abusive, not positive or encouraging enough, overwhelms you with too much information, underwhelms you with not enough information, asks too much of you, doesn't ask enough of you, and so on.... Well as fulltime Instructors and Trainers we are always discussing in our house how our students (horses and humans) are going, issues they might be working through, difficulties they might be having understanding various concepts,... as well as their progress and achievements and when they have a Sticker Day (that's when a student has really had a moment to remember). We aim for Goldilocks territory, not too much, not too little, just the right amount of information, time to think, time to try and achieve, again it is the same approach whether human or horse is the student. Barrie and I Mentor each other, coming up with ideas that might make things easier, logical, more interesting, challenging, whether for our 2 or 4 legged pupils. Those conversations can be quite robust as we sometimes come from different perspectives, myself being the breaker in the family and Barrie the Judge, but we care very much that our students, whether human and/or horse are learning, achieving and enjoying their time as much as is humanely possible. And if you think becoming a knowledgeable, competent and caring Riding Instructor or Horse Trainer is easy, well think again, it is unbelievably complex, in fact it takes a lifetime to have enough knowledge and experience to be really useful and is sometimes dangerous to boot. And what brought this on...reflecting on some of our lessons this week. When one stops reflecting, learning and loses the passion, it is time to stop. If you got to the end of this, well done! See more

21.01.2022 Protocols we are currently following at our Academy: On arrival all riders must hot soapy wash their hands, paper towells supplied. All lessons are private anyw...ay, but we ask that students and riders with their own horses don't bring visitors with them at the moment, and the gallery is cordoned off. Lots of fresh air at our place but we are strictly observing social distancing measures. We are not preparing our school horses inside in the wash bay, rather outside in our covered but open air yards. We are avoiding touching students horses and their tack. We are spraying taps, toilet, door handles, light switches, the list goes on and on but you get the idea we are being very fussy. Adjusting of tack by Barrie or myself only and soapy washing of reins after each ride. All riders do wear gloves but no different from fingers and hands really. Tea, coffee and biscuits currently not supplied. See more

21.01.2022 Have you ridden horses doing FLYING CHANGES? Were they by accident or on purpose? What knowledge and experience needs to be in place for a human, so that on a... trained horse one can ride a change or changes, when and where they desire? What needs to be in place for the horse, before a human starts to train a horse to do flying changes on cue? Are the initial single changes easier, or the changes in sequence that come later easier? What can go wrong???? In a word 'plenty'. Like all training, lots of knowledge & experience and a variable system to suit each individual horse and/or rider is necessary. Both Sarita and myself have a lot of experience under our belts when it comes to flying changes. Sadly we too often get to see horses and riders when flying changes have gone wrong. Get help from the get-go for a happy outcome. And we are also sad that there are so few horses trained in flying changes. It shouldn't be like that. Flying changes in competition start at Medium, only the 4th level, there are 7 more levels to go. Flying changes are a game changer in so many ways. Horses, no matter what their use in life, should have flying changes under their belt whether for trail riding, jumping, Working Equitation, endurance, comfort for the rider, mustering and cutting, Western, side saddle - just a few areas that flying changes make life easier for horse and rider. And 'eyes on the ground' are a MUST when teaching and developing flying changes, with the rider being in the worst seat in the house because they can't SEE what is happening. Always happy to have a look at video clips via email or posted on YouTube, and if you don't live too far away first hand is great. Happy to discuss your and/or your horses situation. Barrie - M: 0400.639.909 Email: [email protected] See more

21.01.2022 Very happy for you to call me to discuss whether attending one of my Clinics is the right fit for you and your horse. Barrie M: 0400.639.909 Our website will provide you with a lot of information about us too: www.academyofdressage.com.au I believe in using ones brain not braun to communicate with our equine friends and I am distressed with the way horses are being forced the world over to conform, sadly not just the dressage world either. I am grateful to the Masters tha...t mentored me on my own journey and I am passionate about helping horses and riders by continuing the passing on of true Classical Principles. Since 1974 I have been a fulltime Coach, Trainer, still operate an advanced Equestrian Centre for adults who can already ride and want to further their knowledge and develop their skills, an A Level Dressage Judge for 30 years. In the 80's my wife and I trained in Europe with the worlds best Masters and more recently in the US. We have a lieftime of knowledge and experience that we gladly share. See more

20.01.2022 Thankyou Richard Mitchell.

20.01.2022 I hope to see you there.....

20.01.2022 I am going to be very sad in a few weeks when this wonderful student here from the US over the past 2 years, and a fellow Crafter to boot, is returning home. Laura is seen here riding Shoulder-in on wonderful School Horse Toolman. I love the back view in the mirror. Thankyou to Pixie Blue for taking the pics and sorry it took me so long to put up.

19.01.2022 Measuring for top boots - lucky he has a sewing expert in residence - tape measures are my forte. Now a 3 month wait while they are made in Italy.

18.01.2022 HELP PLEASE from a clever person that can fix, somehow, my broken bird bell that I love. It slides onto one of our Working Equitation posts as one of the obstac...les. We tried to fix with hose and wire...nope it needs better than that. M: 0408.084.777 Please share if you know someone that can help hopefully in the Adelaide Hills and this coming week. See more

17.01.2022 In case you don't already have this App.

17.01.2022 Maddie Shoesmith is looking for a: Casual (Summer) Groom Wanted - Posted with Sarita's permission We are a family run polo farm with some breeding stock, located in Strathalbyn SA.... We are passionate about conditioning and maintaining our performance horses to a high standard, and having horses that can have long careers with sound bodies and minds. This job is for you if you are: Experienced, confident and careful handling horses generally. Specific polo experience isn't necessary. Happy to work in a team and take direction, but also able to take initiative and get on with the job. Seeking to learn more about managing performance horses and running a large horse farm. A great listener. Good with details and you enjoy getting things right. Focused on following instructions and giving horses the best care you possibly can. A mad keen horse lover, and want to learn anything and everything you can about them!! Daily duties include: Rugging. Feeding. Cleaning stables. First aid. Saddling up. Moving horses. Cleaning tack and other various stable duties as required. Some foal/youngstock handling may be needed from time to time depending on experience. The nitty gritty: Position: Casual, immediate start until early April 2019 Days: Monday to Friday Hours: 3-4 hours per day depending on workload and the weather. Start time between 6am and 7am each day, 6am starts on hot days. Majority of the work is outside, so we require someone who can handle working in the heat. Team: you will be working directly with our head groom and will be required to take direction from her. Pay: Good rate. Further details provided privately. If this sounds like the job for you, please PM me your interest and details of your previous horse experience.

17.01.2022 I am Judging in gorgeous Tasmania this weekend. Home Sunday night so lessons and training of horses back to normal Monday (14th January 2019). Apologies for any inconvenience to my regular students. And I didn't pic the pics.

16.01.2022 Do you like the 'mobile phone' pic I found? MOBILES are the BEST way to contact us - via a call, text or recorded message. Our landline, emails and Facebook pa...ges don't get checked by us as regularly, and please don't assume sent messages are always received or seen by intended recipients. Barrie - 0400.639.909 Sarita - 0408.084.777 See more

16.01.2022 'Pic of the Week' June 2nd 2019 Amanda 'in the moment' riding Spanish Walk superbly as they negotiated a corner at the same time - with School Horse Solitaire. I so love this pic, thankyou Derek Baron xx S

16.01.2022 'Old way' may be good, or maybe a 'new way' is worth considering, and 'try a different way' on the sign post pointing towards you might be the answer at a certa...in point, and yes, Sarita does have a 'thing' about sign posts. So many things to consider, and relative to both human and horse, including; future goal/s, age, fitness, purpose, equipment, facility, weather, knowledge level, skill level, so many variables...certainly keeps life interesting. www.academyofdressage.com.au See more

16.01.2022 Our daughter Holly and wonderful School Horse Cruze dashing around our Working Equitation Course.

16.01.2022 What is your KNOWLEDGE and LEVEL OF SKILL regarding FLYING CHANGES? Do you want your FC's CHECKED and IMPROVED? Or help to INTRODUCE FC's to your horse with those very necessary knowledgeable and experienced eyes on the ground? Want to LEARN ABOUT & EXPERIENCE flying changes first on one of our highly schooled School Horses? Barrie's M: 0400.639.909... Sarita's M: 0408.084.777 www.academyofdressage.com.au $90 for 1 hour privates with your own horse. $110 for 1 hour privates on one of our highly schooled horses. Please add 60c/kilometer if we travel to you. See more

15.01.2022 Clinic today "Intro to Working Equitation" with Sarita Stratton at Academy of Dressage. What a fabulous day and a fabulous sport. Lisa Ingersoll I've put them a...ll up so you can copy some for yourself. Lisa McDonald you've done most wonderful job photographing the day. Sarita Stratton thank you so much for so kindly and patiently showing us the ropes. Part 1. See more

14.01.2022 HOT WEATHER INFO Early morning lessons and horse training sessions available. Up to 5 degrees cooler than Adelaide - Check Mount George on your Weather App. B...rick indoor arena, stables & covered yards all wet down daily. Our temperature cut-off at the Academy is when the thermometer hits 34 degrees - so mornings are usually comfortable. CFS declared Catastrophic Days - closed. Queries call Barrie 0400.639.909 or Sarita Stratton on 0408.084.777 See more

14.01.2022 *No junior or trainee Instructors with limited knowledge because Barrie & Sarita give all the lessons. They have so much knowledge and experience which they so... willingly share not to mention their gorgeous horses. Such attention to detail is only possible when a coach really knows their stuff. I can find it difficult to hear and the accoustics and loud speaker system made hearing every single word 100%. Suzanne J - Bellevue Heights, South Australia *My horse and I came to stay for a week. Barrie was very thorough in understanding what I hoped to achieve in my time at Monserrat and was always happy to explain different concepts and means of achieving my goals until my brain went 'click', and Barrie did the same with my horse until she went 'click' too. So good to understand all the what, when, how, why, where.....I am a need to know person and Barrie's teaching style worked so well for me and my specific learning style. The facilities are fantastic, very safe, and my horse settled in right from the 'get go'. Phoebe - Country SA *I have tried the rest, and finally found the best. I am sorry it took me so long to find Barrie, but I am going to make up for lost time....sad Barrie doesn't live in my State but even that hasn't been too difficult as Barrie and Sarita are always happy to look at videos, take my phone calls with all the questions that pop up...fantastic ongoing help, even long distance. John - WA *Awesome service and support, attention to detail, genuine and honest. I have had a bad time at the hands of some horse people and the Strattons came to my rescue. I nearly gave up but with Barrie & Sarita's ongoing caring help I am out the other side and now understanding and doing things I have only seen on YouTube. Very grateful and having fun for the first time in a long time. So glad I didn't give up. Shirley - Beaumont *In a nutshell - safe, systematic and sensible. I am getting great help with my own horse BUT I was encouraged to have a few lessons on one of the Stratton's very well schooled horses so I could learn about and experience flying changes before attempting to help my horse learn about such things - wasn't so sure about spending the money on any school horse lessons, BUT it was so worth it. Vicki - Adelaide *I ride in NSW at a Riding School. Mum thought it could be fun to have a ride while we were in SA on holidays. I had the best time, such responsive well schooled horses. I think this wonderful experience might have ruined my expectations of my normal Riding Centre. We took video and lots of photos and I will post some on the Academy Fb Page. Thanks guys, you are awesome. Jeremy - Interstate

14.01.2022 Academy of Dressage will be closed only 2 days over Christmas - 25th & 26th December. Seasons Greetings to one and all!

14.01.2022 High level dressage with obstacles. Love it!

14.01.2022 I am pretty good at keeping up with incoming mobile texts, voice messages and emails but Sarita is right, haven't heard back, CALL AGAIN! My mobile is 0400.639.909

14.01.2022 With Barrie’s help you will understand how to develop rhythmical paces defining the degree of cadence, collection and self-carriage required to compete successfully through the levels of Preliminary to Grand Prix. Barrie emphasises the development and understanding of... supple horses with elastic paces, working ‘over the back’, displaying ‘throughness’ with a proper ‘connection’. You can learn to perform all required movements up to and including: walk and canter pirouettes, flying changes, piaffe and passage. Lessons and training available at riders own properties if not more than 25km’s from Bridgewater - travelling cost determined by distance. Call Barrie on 0400.639.909 to discuss your specific situation, or email [email protected]

13.01.2022 WESTERN AUSTRALIAN CLINICS Enq: Barrie on 0400.639.909 or Email: [email protected] The above Clinics are currently booked out but call or email if you have any questions, would like to be on the cancellation list for the March Clinics, and/or book in to the other 2019 Clinics. Lessons 50 minutes. Auditors $20/day ALBANY 2 Day Clinic - March 8th (Friday) & 9th (Sat)... DARDANUP 2 Day Clinic - March 10th (Sun) & 11th (Mon) STATE EQ. CENTRE 2 Day Clinic - March 12th (Tues) & 13th (Wed). Rider improvement, furthering your horses training and Work in Hand - Come with a wish list and questions to get as much out of your time with Barrie as possible. And tap into his 'A' Level Judge knowledge if you are a competitor. www.academyofdressage.com.au See more

13.01.2022 Quickest way to let friends, boarders and students know all is ok. CFS have given permission for horses to go back to their paddocks. Thankyou Chris Salter for... helping us. Weird to see halter rack empty with all the horses in. System worked well seeing it was real life. Lightning struck our next door neighbours cattle yards and whoosh a fire leaping up the trees. Same thing happened one street over, another strike in a paddock in Fowlers Road. CFS fantastic. 6 appliances plus service vehicles plus Police. Thankyou all. And we feel good about our fire and sprinkler system. Great to give our Fire Drill a real life workout. Hope everyone else is safe. CFS crews staying another hour to be safe. Thankyou to everyone that has contacted us. We hope all of you and your babies are safe. See more

13.01.2022 Interview was postponed to next Wed 13th Feb at 10am as ABC want to do this subject justice and difficult to find an expert on the matter. I have an interview on radio tomorrow morning 7th Feb on the following subject, if you have any comments I would be grateful for feedback. If you have something to say that will help the general public be better informed about this, and as a consequence possibly save some businesses being destroyed by false information, I would love to he...ar from you. DO YOU rely on Reviews and * Ratings on Fb, Google, etc. when assessing if you will contact a business, restaurant, car servicing place, whatever? HAVE YOU, or do you know anyone, that has been affected by false 1* ratings for their business? WERE YOU aware of this malicious behaviour towards businesses by individuals and hackers before reading this? DID YOU know there are businesses giving false 1* ratings on other businesses they are competing with? HAVE YOU seen the new Fb rating system of a 'Yes' or 'No instead of the 5* system, eg black and white, you either 'like' or 'don't like' a particular business. no shades of grey allowed? HAS ANYONE been able to remove the Review button, last year you could, it seems now you can't remove the Review button? ARE YOU annoyed by the persistence of Fb and Google wanting you to Rate every business that you even just drive past let alone visit? Last year on 18th August 2018 three 1* ratings went up on our 3 pages in a 10 minute time frame. They are all false. One was a person in the US that had no idea she had been hacked and her 1* ratings were being sprayed about the place unknown to her, she did manage to remove that 1* from our Academy and other pages. She was horrified that someone would do such a thing. The other two 1*'s are: one false profile, the other does belong to a person in Adelaide but we cannot get them to respond in anyway and we can't find a way to track them down. Have we reported this to Fb? - yes, absolutely, and many times, but the methods for reporting to Fb do not include anything to do with their Reviews and Star ratings, nor their NEW Yes/No system. ALL REPORTS to Fb are dealt with by Robots, one can't get to a human no matter what. Trust me I have tried and tried. Google is unfortunately putting up the Fb ratings on their pages too, so a double whammy if you are a small business that has been affected, but at least Google seems to have a Policy about false Star Ratings and Reviews, I am waiting to see if anything happens there. Did get to FINALLY speak to a person in the Phillipins only to be told I had to report online, very very difficult and frustating. I spoke to a Journalist at The Australian in response to an article in their Monday paper about Fb, and their targeting practises, and he told me he relies on Star Ratings to decide whether he will use a particular service or business. I used to as well. If you got to the end of this, well done, and thankyou!! See more

13.01.2022 Hot Weather is on its way next week. Our policy is: Hotter than 34 degrees at Mount George (not Adelaide's temperature as we are always 4-5 degrees cooler up h...ere) we move our lessons and horse training sessions to early morning, cool of the evening or we reschedule. As Mr. Weather Man does change his mind or sometimes gets it wrong we usually wait until the evening before to make changes. We are thankful for our cool, solid brick indoor arena. Even the outdoor is so shaded and cool. Barrie 0400.639.909 See more

13.01.2022 Barrie schooling a very lovely horse currently in training with his Mum at our Academy. Barrie totally loves him and will miss caring for him everyday when he moves to his Mums lovely property in the hills where Barrie will still get to work with them both. As a consequence we will have room for another horse in residence and training so please call Barrie if you would like to discuss whether we can be of service to you. M: 0400.639.909

13.01.2022 Just one of the many videos these very artistic people put together. Enjoy!

12.01.2022 This morning I saw a pic on Fb of 2 reunited horses. It prompted the following from me: One of the reasons we stopped breeding or training horses to sell, is because one never knows where a horse one sells or gives away will end up. Ours are lifers but now we are getting on in years I am worried our babies may outlive us. A problem for another day a long way away we hope. Many Old Masters took their horses to 'Heaven' with them the day they died because they didn't trust ...what might happen to them. Many of the human race are not as caring and honest as we would all wish or sadly hurt, upset and sadly sometimes completely ruin horses because of ignorance. We have horses left to us in peoples Wills but again getting older means we need to think on this too. Black Beauty is an example, he went from bad to worse until he was miraculously discovered by complete accident by his breeders and saved from near death. One of our fantastic School Horses was left to someone in a Will with money to care for him for life (none of that came with him but may have been used to pay us to school him, we were never told). We were told he was a confirmed bucker and bolter. He NEVER put a foot wrong from Day 1. It distresses us often what we see and experience first hand is going on in the 'real' horse world. The horse mentioned is an Australian Stock Horse and had been to 5 so-called professionals including 2 Olympians to 'fix' him. Grrrr.... and that horse is School Horse 'Solitaire', currently our best Spanish Walker and the gentlest of souls. The horses on our property live in small herds in the company of their own kind. Once they have their family established we avoid at all cost changing their status quo even though it would sometimes work better for us. They are in their paddocks 24/7, we are not, AND they weren't and aren't able to decide who they want to own them, where and how they live, the equipment they are expected to accept, no choice on who rides them or how, so we, all of us who own and set certain tasks for our horses, have an unbelievably HUGE responsibility to our equine companions. See more

12.01.2022 Part 2 "Intro to Working Equitation" today. Photos by Lisa McDonald. Riders: me on Classic and Lisa Ingersoll on Tully. Clinician Sarita Stratton at Academy of Dressage.xxx

12.01.2022 School horse Solitaire and Amanda Daniel flowing together as one on Sunday. Thankyou for putting up the clip, I didn't know you were filming and my heart felt good seeing this harmony. Becoming a knowledgeable, competent and empathetic horse person takes dedication giving of your time and effort, and money too to achieve the euphoria that can come when it 'comes together' for you. Well done Amanda, your are wonderful to teach, thankyou!

12.01.2022 The signpost below is pointing in different directions waiting for YOU to write on it what direction YOU want to go with YOUR RIDING or YOUR HORSES TRAINING. ...What does 45 years of combined teaching of riders and horses mean for you? It means Barrie and I have HEAPS of knowledge, a HUGE amount of of experience, and we are STILL passionate about sharing everything we have learnt and keep learning so our students (humans and horses) have the opportunity to gain knowledge, improve skill levels and techniques quickly and efficiently and most of all how to do all this KINDLY for the horses involved, whether yours or ours. Our horses are our 4 legged kids, and we love them. See more

11.01.2022 1 LESSON TIME HAS BECOME AVAILABLE on Tuesday 25th June at my next W.A. CLINIC - Tuesday June 25th to Thursday June 27th 2019 inclusive at the State Equestria...n Centre. For details call me on: 0400.639.909 - Cancellation at 11am but I can move some times that day to suit if needs be. Visitors always welcome. www.academyofdressage.com.au See more

11.01.2022 Winter is over - Weather is gorgeous - Time to dust off your riding togs

11.01.2022 Working Equitation Sessions ARE BACK now Spring has decided to stay. On your own, with a friend, and up to 4 riders - 60 & 90 minutes or a half day - can have a mini comp at the end. Your horse or one of our school horses! Level from basic to advanced dependent on level of training of rider and horse. Safe environment, excellent equipment & very knowledgeable instructor - go on, give it a try!! Call me for more info & pricing dependent on your choice. ... Sarita M: 0408.084.777 More info on our website: www.academyofdresssage.com.au Available 6 days a week - sorry not Wednesdays. See more

10.01.2022 WORKING EQUITATION DAYS IN MARCH Barrie will be in WA giving Clinics so we will play - come and have some fun whilst learning about WEq. Lovely shady venue with super obstacles and very knowledgeable instruction. 2 riders/session 90 minutes - $80 each Private sessions 60 minutes - $90... Your own horse OR one of our super School horses for an extra $25 FRIDAY 8TH MARCH 2 sessions @ 12.30 to 2pm & 2 to 3.30pm. SATURDAY 9TH MARCH 4 sessions @ 9.30am, 11am, 1.30pm & 3pm. Stay a while, covered safe yards and 2 large holding paddocks for visiting horses. Visitors welcome. Tea, coffee & biscuits supplied. Just bring your lunch and a camera happy person to take lots of pics or video of you to enjoy later. Can accommodate novice to advanced and agility. Enq: Sarita on 0408.084.777 Payment to: Academy of Dressage Pty. Ltd. BSB: 085-458 A/c: 55-737-4368 See more

09.01.2022 Horse & Rider Checkup: How long since you've had one? The truth is that you probably stopped learning and practicing lots of new physical skills sometime in early childhood, then what happened? If you are like most people, you sat down and started working. Since you’re reading this, there’s a pretty good chance that you’d like to make some improvements in what your body is capable of mastering by developing some new skills, which is an amazing coincidence, because that’s ex...actly what we teach! And we look after what horses are doing with their minds and bodies too, so bring yours along with you OR ride one of our wonderful School Horses and enjoy the luxury of it being all about YOU. Come and have a look and a listen - visitors always welcome, make a cuppa, grab a biscuit and stay awhile. www.academyofdressage.com.au Enq: Barrie 0400.639.909 or Sarita 0408.084.777 See more

08.01.2022 WHAT DO WE OFFER? We pride ourselves on being honest, super helpful, caring and wholistic in our approach to both 2 and 4 leggeds. We both have a huge amount of knowledge and experience gained over 45 years of fulltime training of horses and riders, (90 years if you combine the two of us) that we willingly share. We have always gone above and beyond and still do.... You can be trained with your own horse or Learn on one of our highly schooled School Horses Indoor arena at our place, or your place add 60c/km travel Immersion Courses from 1 day to 6 weeks for 1 to 2 students including riding, work in hand, ground work, very informative tutorials and all tailored to each attendees requests. Assessments including where you are at the moment, a plan for the future, pre & post purchase. Help available online and by telephone too! Working Equitation training with our fantastic equipment. Lots of information on our website at: www.academyofdressage.com.au or Enq: Barrie on 0400.639.909 or Sarita on 0408.084.777 See more

08.01.2022 Whose welcome? Anyone interested in what's new in saddle design and materials coming out of Europe - come to look and learn, ask questions or have a try - your horse or ours - no charge. We are amazed at some of the innovation and new materials being used in modern day saddles.

07.01.2022 Academy of Dressage Pty. Ltd. School Horse Cruze (English Riding Pony) being ridden beautifully by his owner Helen James 10 years ago. Thankyou for sharing Helen, we love it and him.

07.01.2022 Anyone that is interested is very welcome - THIS Sunday! Morning session at the ESA offices in Mt Barker, and the afternoon session is at Tilling Hill, come to the morning, or the afternoon, or all day.

07.01.2022 Second day, second flying change. Watch for the slow mo change!

07.01.2022 Christmas, Birthdays, Special Occasion - we provide Gift Vouchers - value is Gift givers choice. The attractive Gift Vouchers can be emailed, printed and posted..., or you can mention your special Gift in a card of your choice. To organise go online at our website: www.academyofdressage.com.au or Call Sarita Stratton on M: 0408.084.777 to organise. See more

07.01.2022 Posted recently by Jenevieve Heinrich. "Life is about balance. I'm slowly finding my balance. Finding my happy! Managing my time better so that I can fit i...n work, study and the fun things. Here's a pretty awesome moment in my riding. It's called the Spanish Walk. Thanyou Sarita Stratton and Barrie for sharing your beautiful creatures!" Thankyou Jenevieve for sharing your thoughts, we should all take notice. And have I told you how much I love teaching you. I love your enquiring, analysing mind and determination. Getting ones head around the concepts comes before getting ones body around the actual doing. See more

07.01.2022 New LED's for indoor arena, stables, courtyard and covered yards. Scissor lifts little wheels for safe install in indoor arena didn't like the fibre surface so I have had my heart in my mouth with them doing their balancing acts atop their very high ladders. Apologies to students with the Academy closed. Barrie back from WA tonight, instal of new lights will be done and dusted, so back to normal lessons and training from tomorrow Friday 28.6.19.

06.01.2022 I am away until next Tuesday - Quilting Retreat. To change or book lesson times with me please contact Barrie 0400.639.909 as he is keeper of the diary while I am away. And Candice Helbig this is your babies quilt that I have finally finished - will drop off next week.

06.01.2022 APOLOGIES - We are cancelling our next Film Night on Saturday March 28th. We will reschedule when the Caronavirus drama is over. We are so grateful that our ...wonderful work is in the fresh air. Please be sensible everyone, we don't know of anyone confirmed with the Virus yet, and we hope it stays that way. See more

05.01.2022 Western Australian Riders very welcome to a FREE Film Night and Q&A Session! Don't be shy, book in, and come with your questions. You don't have to be attending... Barrie Strattons Clinic to be able to come. When: Tuesday 25th June 2019 - 6.30pm start Where: Mohegan Healing & Training Centre at Henley Brook With: Barrie Stratton, FEI Competitor, Full time Coach for 40 years, 'A' Level Dressage Judge for 41 years plus Judge Educator & Mentor, trained in Europe and US, Author of the 3 'C's series, Calm, Confident & Connected - For more info about Barrie visit www.academyofdressage.com To attend please text Karen White on M: 0419.984.367 at www.mohegan.com.au for Intuitive & Empathetic Training. Please take a plate to share for dinner & something to drink and most of all come with interesting, challenging questions. See more

01.01.2022 A story to recite - Years ago when we used to bring Major Miguel Tavora over 4 times a year for professional development for ourselves and students I would hang... out for the next Clinic to arrive. I was preparing an Andalusian Stallion for flying changes and I knew Miguels dates were going to be a bit soon for me to have him ready for Miguels eyes on the ground but one lives in hope. First lesson of the week, question from Miguel: "And what would you like help with this week SaRIta? - (that is how he would say my name). Answer from me: "I have been preparing for flying changes and would appreciate your eyes on the ground and advice please". Miguel: "OK, show me some strikeoffs from walk, counter canter on circles and some simple changes." I had hardly done anything and up went the hand and Miguel said: "No, when you have done a thousand more simple changes we will talk about it". I needed that extra month......Well I got 3 extra months until the next Clinic and the boy nailed those flying changes. As Toyota would say: "Oh what a feeling". See more

01.01.2022 What a fabulous movie night again last night , understanding judging, specific things they are looking at & loads to work towards at our cosy Little house ... on the Prairie We all squeezed in...... Thank you everyone that came with platters, there was so much food So enjoyed having Barrie from Academy of Dressage stay the last 3 days, his company, stories of his life’s achievements, I’m in total admiration & just adore this man. I didn’t burn any meals Sarita Stratton, I was extremely attentive See more