Sunspring Ranch in Provo - Ivy

Ivy Chatwin

Sunspring Ranch

            Hey, everybody! I’m excited to tell you about the fantastic internship I just completed at Sunspring Ranch in Provo, Utah. They board horses, teach riding lessons, and run a dairy goat operation. I wanted to get outside more and spend time getting hands-on experience with animals, and this internship more than met my expectations. I spent most of my time working with horses, and I loved it! I plan on continuing to volunteer at the ranch for the remainder of my time in Provo. There's still so much to learn and experience! Just yesterday I got to hold the first baby of the season: a tiny, fuzzy, sweet baby goat. She was actually one of a set of triplets born New Year’s Eve!

I feel like this internship has helped me achieve much more than the goals outlined in my introduction interview. I was able to burn off stress and connect with the animals in ways I hadn’t expected, and I always left feeling tired but refreshed and calmed down inside. I don’t know what path my life will follow, but the experiences and lessons from this internship have helped me develop as a person so I feel more calm and confident in my ability to handle any situation that might arise.

Technically, Sheri Goodman was my internship provider, but I spent most of my time working with her daughter Josi. Josi is a busy, cheerful undergraduate at the University of Utah. In addition to her homework, she teaches riding lessons, coaches equestrian vaulting, participates on a vaulting team, works at a restaurant on the weekends, and cares for six ponies, five horses, several dozen goats, and a handful of barn cats.

Like her mom, Josi has been riding and showing horses her entire life. She welcomed my help and provided patient instruction and many opportunities to stretch my limits during my time at Sunspring. Her cheerful laugh and careful but fun attitude always lifted my spirits, and I learned a lot just from watching her as she exercised horses and taught lessons. She’s thanked me profusely every night; sometimes she is so busy that she hardly has time for her homework, let alone her horses and barn duties.  I was more than happy to be able to help her out. This whole internship was definitely a win-win situation.

My Personal Goal was to increase confidence in working with animals. I especially wanted to improve my self-talk and get into better shape physically. I am surprised that I was able to meet this goal so thoroughly in such a short amount of time, but I really have changed for the better throughout this experience. At first, I was timid around the horses, unsure of how to use the equipment and find my way around the facilities, and shy around new people. I struggled to even lift a saddle and battled self-defeating voices in my head. Chores like mucking stalls and moving hay were difficult at first, but repetition has strengthened those muscles. An independent horse used to pull me around by the lead rope, but now I have a firm and strong grip, even if the horse decides to pull away or buck. My happiness level rose significantly as I connected with the beautiful animals, broke a sweat working, and witnessed beautiful sunsets in the open air. Those negative voices have no place when I am living in the moment, concentrating fully on the animal in front of me (horses demand that you live in the moment or else you will be ignored or get hurt). Now, I praise a well-behaving horse, rub his neck or hug his big shaggy head, and the feel-good chemicals flow through my brain. 

My confidence increased significantly as I grew comfortable with the equipment and got the hang of grooming and exercising horses. I know how to read horse body language much better, how to move predictably and cue them to move for me, and I have learned to be more assertive. Tonight it all came together: I took the big shaggy red half-draft horse Oslo out of his pen to give him a workout, and Josi told me that we do so well together that I can come work with him whenever I want to. I felt proud and accomplished. He’s the biggest horse at the facility, but I no longer feel intimidated by him. I can tell that he trusts and listens to me a lot more now than when I first started. And sometimes when he decides to test me and act up, I know what to do. He is a professional vaulting horse taking time off to recover from an injury. Early on in the internship, Josi explained his condition and showed me the ropes in his physical therapy routine. By now I have become quite adept at reading the slightest tilt of his head or shift in weight that could signal discomfort, and I adjust the routine accordingly. I love lunging him: it’s therapeutic for both of us. 

My Professional Goal was to be a hard worker and contribute well to all aspects of the organization. I met this goal as I helped Josi work horses, but I also cleaned stalls without being asked, filled water tanks, picked rocks out of the arena, swept or raked up dropped hay, moved horses around from field to field, helped clean tack, and accompanied Josi on her rounds to feed all the animals. I pride myself on being a hard worker; I like the feeling that comes from using my muscles and accomplishing something meaningful and noticeable. I picked up the rhythm of the ranch and learned about all the things that go on behind-the-scenes or in between riding lessons. I learned about three different types of hay: normal alfalfa for most of the horses, high-quality alfalfa for the goats, and grass hay for the Arabians (they’re a high-strung breed and don’t need the extra sugar in alfalfa hay; it would just make them hyper). Ponies and horses need between one and three flakes of hay, twice daily, unless they’re really big or it’s really cold (Oslo got 4 ½ flakes tonight!). One flake of hay will feed four little goats or three big goats, but on cold days all the animals will need more so they can stay warm. I learned about different kinds of feeders, how to keep a hose from freezing, about water troughs with heaters that keep ice from forming, how to tie a rope halter, how to tack up a horse in both English and Western styles, how to pick hooves and brush out mud or ice from fur, and so many other details that combine to make one great whole. 

These are useful skills for being around animals, but I know that the real value of this internship is in the transferable things. The ability to work hard, the commitment to details, the willingness to get my hands dirty, the patience to try again, the gift of laughter on a hard day, the knowledge that I need exercise and fresh air to stay sane—these are things I will take from this internship and use throughout my life. I am grateful that I’ve had the opportunity to learn and grow and serve at Sunspring. I plan to continue volunteering there next semester; Josi’s taking Organic Chemistry and Physics, so I know she’ll welcome the help!