Heather Smith Thomas and her husband raise beef cattle and horses on a ranch in the mountains of eastern Idaho. Heather writes regularly for more than 25 farm and livestock magazines and about 30 horse publica­tions. She has sold more than 11,000 stories and articles, and published 20 books. Here she is pictured with one of her own ranch horses: a mare named “Ed.” Now in her twenties, Ed continues to be one of the ranch’s best cow horses and is often ridden by Heather’s nine-year-old granddaughter.

By Heather Smith Thomas

Good Horse, Bad Habits: Practical Solutions to Problem Behavior in the Barn, under Saddle, and out in the World