Posted on

Riding Lesson Changes during the COVID-19 Restrictions (Executive Order 20-99)

At Enchanted Hollow Stables, we are so incredibly proud of our riding program and all of our riders, and we always do our best to operate our business as honorably and honestly as possible. That is why we make it a priority to respect the guidelines laid out by the Minnesota Department of Health and the Governor of Minnesota during these unique times.

Indie and one of our riding students.


We took a lot of time to thoroughly read through Emergency Executive Order 20-99 thoroughly, review guidance from the University of Minnesota written specifically for equestrian businesses, and discuss privately with our family what capacity we are comfortable conducting business in. We prioritize adhering to the Governor’s Executive Orders so that we are following the rules, doing our part, running our business honorably, and avoiding the fines and punishments that come from not adhering to the orders.

Carson and a saddle club member riding this fall.


According to the requirements laid out in Executive Order 20-99 Section 6.b., we are considered to be a business that offers an “Outdoor Recreational Activity” which DOES allow for social distancing. It’s easy to socially distance when you are on a horse! 
Unfortunately, despite that fact, we do still have several changes to our day-to-day operations that will be in place until the Governor’s Order expires.
Please read this excerpt from the University of Minnesota’s website where they succinctly explain what is allowed and what is not allowed at equestrian businesses for the duration of Executive Order 20-99:

What is not permissible during Minnesota’s COVID-19 restrictions? 

Livestock exhibitions, fairs, camps, clinics, shows, and group lessons are prohibited.

What is permissible during Minnesota’s COVID-19 restrictions?

Equine owners, barn managers and service providers are permitted to engage in activity that supports equine health and maintenance:

– Feeding

– Stall cleaning and manure management

– Turn-out and exercise

– Riding and training

– Breeding and reproduction

– Veterinary care

– Farrier care

Horse facilities may take these actions to effectively follow CDC guidelines:

– Schedule and stagger individual appointments to avoid person-to-person contact.

– Limit time at facilities.

– Sanitize commonly touched surfaces and shared equipment between uses.

University of Minnesota – “Caring for your horses during Minnesota’s COVID-19 restrictions”
Riders socially distanced while riding during a horse camp this summer.

WHAT IS CHANGING AT ENCHANTED HOLLOW DURING THE EXECUTIVE ORDER: 

  • All regularly scheduled group riding lessons are cancelled until the end of the Governor’s Executive Order. Most of our program is based upon group riding lessons and group classes. Unfortunately, for the time being, we are unable to conduct group riding activities for individuals that are not in the same household. If you have a regularly scheduled group riding lesson time, that is put on hold until the Executive Order ends. 
  • We ARE able to conduct PRIVATE riding lessons with individuals OR members of the same household.These will be scheduled in 50 minute increments to allow for 10 minutes in between each scheduled lesson in order to limit contact between riders. Pricing will be different for these private lessons ONLY for the duration of the Executive Order.
    • $75 for one rider in one private lesson
    • $50 per rider for 2 or more riders from the same household
    • We will have LIMITED availability for private lessons but we will do our absolute best to fit anyone into the schedule that wants to be on it! We are blessed to have anywhere between 60-70 regular riders each week, and I worry about being able to accomodate so many riders on an individual basis, but we will do everything we can to accommodate everyone that wants to ride with us during this crazy time. 
    • You MUST contact Sam (612-559-3232) and Mary (612-386-0279) in a group text in order to get in touch with us and get on the schedule. You can also call 612-386-0279 directly to schedule over the phone if that is easier.
      • We have availability for booking individual riding lessons on weekdays Monday through Friday at the top of each hour between 10am and 5pm
      • This is a TEMPORARY schedule and once the restrictions are over, we will return to our regularly scheduled group riding lessons
      • Limited weekend hours will also be available on a case by case basis, please inquire if interested
  • SADDLE CLUB RIDERS will still have opportunities for additional time at the barn in assisting with caring for the animals.We are so thankful and appreciative of our many saddle club members that are so helpful in assisting with lessons, chores, and caring for the horses. Since caring for the animals and conducting farm chores is deemed an Essential Service, this is still something that they can do. Please get in touch with Mary and me as usual to inquire about them coming out to the farm during this time. 

I think that while these are difficult circumstances, that a lot of our riders will really benefit from and enjoy some one-on-one private instruction! I am looking forward to making the best of the situation. This is also a GREAT opportunity to get your whole household out to ride together and do something fun and SAFE during a time when so many things are closed!
Please be patient and understanding with us during this stressful time! I am sad that we need to put in restrictions, because I love working with all of you and your kids every week, but I am so thankful that we are at least able to operate in a limited capacity and I am glad that we are able to do our part in the community.  

Horse camp riders on the trails during the summer.

If you’d like to support our farm during this time, I also encourage you to check out our merchandise on our website! Every dollar goes toward the purchase of grain and hay cubes for our lesson horses. We have lots of cute shirts, sweatshirts, and other items that are perfect for Christmas. We will be updating with more in-stock items throughout the next couple weeks so keep an eye out! http://enchantedhollow.org/store/

Thank you,

Samantha Sansevere

Barn Manager & Riding Instructor

Posted on

Get on our mailing list for riding lesson scheduling updates throughout the winter!

We have created an easy form for current (or future) riding lesson students at Enchanted Hollow Stables to fill out so that we can gather the preferred contact information for all of our riding lesson students!

This contact information will be used to contact lesson students and their families in case of scheduling changes, additional riding opportunities at the barn, and more.

Sam and Frankie try to make the best of snowy conditions!

Mainly, we will be using the emails gathered through this contact form in order to send out notices regarding cancelled or postponed riding lessons. As many of you know, we do not conduct riding lessons or camps when temperatures are below 20 degrees or when there are severe weather advisories. If you are not aware of our full Winter Riding Policy, please click here to view it.

Your contact information will be used for important updates or notices at the barn related to your child’s riding lessons, horse camps, riding classes, or additional riding opportunities!

Going forward, email will be our main venue for communication regarding cancellations or postponements of riding lessons – NOT text. You can still text us, but please plan on checking your email for updates on riding lesson scheduling.

Our riders really need to bundle up in the winter time! For tips on dressing properly for your winter riding lessons, click here.

All riders, regardless of regularly scheduled days, will be on the same mailing list. This means that while you may be scheduled for a Thursday lesson you may occasionally receive notices related to Tuesday lessons, and vice versa.

By filling out this form and providing your preferred email address, you agree that it is now your personal responsibility to check your email on the day of your riding lesson to confirm that no notices of cancellations or postponements have been made.

If Enchanted Hollow Stables sends out notices of cancellations and postponements and you miss the email and still show up for your lesson anyway, we are NOT obligated to provide services.

Generally, we try to provide at least 24 hour notice for all cancellations. Due to dynamic and unpredictable weather conditions in Minnesota, lessons may occasionally be cancelled with shorter notice. Please have your email notifications on or regularly check your email to be sure of any scheduling changes.

The horses handle the cold better than we do. In fact, they usually prefer it over the extreme heat!

The “Enchanted Hollow Stables Barn Family” Facebook Group is another great resource to stay connected!

We also post information and updates related to barn activities in our “Enchanted Hollow Stables Barn Family” Facebook group. Please still count on checking your email for all official scheduling notifications, but if you are not a member of our private Facebook group then I highly encourage you to request to join it! We will also post notices there as well as more fun and personal updates from around the barn, and it’s a great way to get connected with other families that ride at Enchanted Hollow Stables.

Click here to go to our “Enchanted Hollow Stables barn Family” Facebook group and request to join if you aren’t already a member!

Contact Information Form

Finally, the form you’ve been waiting for!

Please fill out this brief questionnaire and informational form with your preferred contact information. We also ask a couple of very brief questions about you (or your rider’s) riding preferences – such as favorite discipline, favorite lesson horse, and more. This is a good opportunity for us to check in with our riders and see how everyone is feeling about their goals and aspirations!

Posted on

Frequently Asked Questions

We are very blessed to have a very large program and as a result, we end up having a lot of people reach out on a daily basis with questions and inquiries. We’re so thankful for all of you that reach out! Sometimes it can be tough for us to stay on top of responding to everyone as quickly as we’d like, so here are a few of our most frequently asked questions. Hopefully this helps to answer any questions you may have prior to reaching out!

We will update this often and continue adding to this list, so check back any time you are curious or have a question about something just in case it’s been added!

Do you do riding lessons?

Yes, absolutely! In fact, our program is built primarily upon the dedication of our weekly and bi-weekly riding lesson students. We do riding lessons year round in our indoor riding arena, outdoor riding arena, and riding trails. You can see more information on our riding lessons on our “Services” page.

Lessons are typically done in a 2-6 rider group format with other riders of similar age and riding ability. We’ve found that this is also a great way to help encourage a supportive community of riders that very quickly become good friends with the other riders in their group!

Due to our very personalized and thoughtful scheduling system, you cannot get on our schedule for regular weekly or biweekly lessons via the website. You must reach out by calling Mary at 612-386-0279 OR emailing us at enchantedhollowstables@gmail.com.

Our lesson schedule is typically full — it is not unusual for us to have 60+ lesson students riding with us each week. However, we do always try to find a day and time for anyone that wants to ride with us, so please do not hesitate to reach out!!

How much do riding lessons cost?

Group riding lessons with 2+ riders start at $50 per rider, per one-hour lesson. Private lessons start at $100 per one-hour lesson.

Sienna Sansevere and Macaroni riding during the winter time!

Do you do riding lessons in the winter time, too?

Yes, but since our facility is not currently heated (but we are working on that!) when temperatures are below 15 degrees we cancel riding lessons because it is too cold for the riders to get the full benefit of their experience and it is harder on the horses respiratory systems. The health and wellness of all our riders and horses is our number one priority!

What are some other circumstances where lessons might be cancelled?

If there is a heat advisory we cancel riding lessons, also for the health, safety, and wellness of our riding lesson students and horses. Occasionally, there may be personal family conflicts or emergencies that may disrupt our schedule as well, though they are far and few between. We have a very large program with a good sized staff but we are still just a small family operated business!

A young lesson student during a horse camp in the winter time.

How old does my child need to be in order to do riding lessons?

This really varies child to child, because some are more mentally or physically mature than others. Generally, our rule of thumb is that they at least need to be old enough to already be potty trained before they can do a riding lesson or day camp.

We do offer “Little Kid Camps” that typically go from 10am to 3pm and are horse camps specifically for any riders under 7 that are at a beginner level, and those are a great option for our littlest riders to enjoy the horses and a day at the barn! Check out our “Horse Camps & Classes” page to see if we have any coming up, or email us at enchantedhollowstables@gmail.com to request that we put more on the schedule.

Can I rent a horse?

We do not do one day renting or leasing of horses. However, we do occasionally offer monthly leases on horses! Availability depends upon whether or not we have a horse available that is a suitable match for your riding abilities and goals. Leases are great for anyone interested in horse ownership but that are not quite ready for that kind of commitment! Contact Mary at 612-386-0279 for details.

A trail riding group during one of our Summer Horse Camps.

Do you do trail rides?

The simple answer is, YES! We incorporate our 1.5+ miles of trails and fields into many riding lessons, camps, and classes. They are an integral part of our program and we try to utilize them as much as possible.

If you are interested in a one-time trail riding experience with the horses, you can choose to organize a one-hour or two-hour riding lesson that can also include a trail ride for multiple people (weather permitting). We do not allow people to just come rent a horse and go out on a trail ride unsupervised – but we can organize a trail ride that starts with a riding lesson to ensure that you have the skills necessary to go outside prior to leading you on a guided trail ride on our private wooded trails and fields.

Contact Mary at 612-386-0279 or email us at enchantedhollowstables@gmail.com to get something on the schedule.

Do you do boarding?

Yes! We are currently full but you can contact us to be out on a waitlist for boarding. Pasture board is $300 per month and indoor boarding is $475 a month. We do have some stall boarding options available as well. Reach out to Mary or email us at enchantedhollowstables@gmail.com for details.

Our indoor arena.
Posted on

No Riding Lessons Sept. 6-13, 2020! Get Well Soon, Mary.

There are no lessons, horse camps, or official Saddle Club Days during the week of September 6th through September 13th, 2020. We hope to be back to our regular schedule starting September 14th, but please understand that this may change.

Mary Sansevere suffered from a traumatic brain injury on Saturday, September 5th, 2020. She fell from a horse trailer onto her head on a driveway. She has been suffering from severe concussion symptoms such as vertigo, headache, dizziness, nausea, and sensitivity to light and sound.

We are taking this week off to focus on her care. We will post updates here and in our private Facebook group, “Enchanted Hollow Stables Family Private Group.” If you are a current lesson student, boarder, or leaser at Enchanted Hollow Stables please text or message Sam to request to be added to that group for more private updates.

Here is a post from our Facebook page with more information.

Sam provided an update in another post a couple days later.

We are trying to be sure to reach out to all lesson students prior to their regularly scheduled lesson time, but we do ask that you continue checking our Facebook page for the most recent updates.

You are responsible for confirming your lesson time after September 14th and making sure that lessons are back on track!

Thank you so much to everyone for all of your kindness, understanding, support, and love in this stressful time.

Posted on

Saddle Club & Study Time: An Option for the 2020 School Year

We are considering the opportunity for parents and riders to have their child join us at Enchanted Hollow Stables during the school day if they are choosing to do distance learning, homeschooling, or even the hybrid learning method. These opportunities can be scheduled on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. They can come to the farm at regular school day times, complete online schoolwork, earn important life skills caring for animals at the farm, and ride under our supervision and instruction. 

Our family successfully  homeschooled for several years and we understand the challenges that parents face. The owner of Enchanted Hollow Stables was a homeschool parent for many years. Her two oldest children were homeschooled for the majority of their childhood. Samantha our barn manager and head riding instructor was homeschooled through high school.

One of the biggest concerns we had was making sure our children socializing with other children their age. Enchanted Hollow Stables is offering this opportunity for homeschooled, hybrid and distance learning students to have that chance to socialize, spend time outdoors on a farm and be around horses and our other animals in addition to study and homework time.

This is an excellent and flexible option for parents concerned about child care, a steady routine, and social interaction for their child.

Options & Pricing Information

One Day at a Time

Contact for Pricing

Any Week Day

If you’d prefer to only commit to 1 day at a time!

Per Week

Contact for Pricing

Monday-Friday

Schedule and commit to just one week at a time!

Per month

Contact for Pricing

Monday-Friday

A steady and regular monthly commitment!

We have had an amazing 2020 riding season with more horse camps, lessons, classes than ever before. It has been such a wonderful summer, and we’ve been honored to be able to provide the experiences that we do at Enchanted Hollow Stables.

We have been dreading the start of the school year because we are going to miss seeing our riders and Saddle Club members so often! With members of the Sansevere family still being in school as well, we personally know how tough (and lonely) it can be to adjust to distance learning, hybrid learning, or homeschooling.

We understand the challenges and complexities that families are facing with homeschooling, hybrid learning and distance learning. Openings are limited to ensure we can adhere to all social distancing guidelines.

These are uncertain times and things can always change, but we wanted to send out information about the possibility of this option. We see this as a great opportunity to continue providing our riders with a steady and supportive environment to thrive in!

Friends: Social interaction is important! They can be with other hard-working horse-loving friends every day!
School Work: It can be a struggle to adjust to distance learning, hybrid learning, or homeschooling. At EHS, they can get help from adults & each other, and will have access to WiFi to do their school work at the appropriate time.
Riding: They will have opportunities for riding lessons, trail rides, and more so that they can continue building their riding skills!
Farm Life: They can learn about what it takes to keep a farm running as well as learn important life skills you can only get in this kind of atmosphere! We’ve got animals ranging from ponies to goats to pigs and more — there’s always lots to learn!

For the months before temperatures get too cold (around November), we will be able to provide this opportunity at Enchanted Hollow Stables. In that time before winter hits, we will be working to insulate, heat, and remodel more parts of our facility so that we can continue through the ENTIRE winter and school year!

We are so excited to be considering this idea, which we’re calling Saddle Club & Study Time!

Saddle Club & Study Time Application

Please fill out the form below to express your interest in this program and to get on a waitlist for more information.


Please keep in mind that this isn’t a guarantee that the program will move forward — we need to achieve a minimum number of interested/committed students in order to officially plan for it. This was posted on August 14th, 2020 and we will give it a few days for people to consider and apply before we will get in touch about it potentially moving forward.

Posted on

COVID-19 Preparedness Plan for the 2020 Riding Season

After being in quarantine and under a “Stay at Home” order for months now, we are so excited to be returning to regular operations — with your safety at the top of our priorities!

After June 1st, we are slowly reopening our program and services!!

In this post, we will lay out some of our temporary adjustments to riding lessons, horse camps, and classes for the foreseeable future. We will plan to stick to these practices until at least July 1st, but will modify or adjust as needed.

Thankfully, our facility is very open with excellent airflow. Any activities that don’t occur in our outdoor arena or on our riding trails in our woods will occur in our arena or barn, which is also very well ventilated and wide open. We will be doing several things to ensure that we are providing the safest environment possible for our riders to do what they love in their favorite place!

We have put a lot of thought into our plan moving forward. We are looking forward to SAFELY getting everyone back at the barn!

Please bear with us, because we have had a LOT of wonderful people inquiring about getting on our schedule. We will do our best to get everyone out at the barn for camps, classes, and lessons ASAP while still being as safe and organized as possible!

STATEWIDE MASK MANDATE UPDATE 7/27
Following Governor Tim Walz’s Emergency Executive Order 20-81 taking effect as of July 24th at 11:59pm requiring Minnesotans to wear a face covering in certain settings to prevent the spread of COVID-19, we carefully examined the full order. According to section 10 in the Executive Order as well as the MDH COVID-19 Sports Guidance for Youth and Adults, face coverings are “strongly encouraged, but not required, when participating as an athlete in an indoor or outdoor organized sport.” Additionally, due to the nature of our barn being a covered roof but still open and uninsulated, we are in an outdoor setting with excellent airflow.

We are asking all riders that enter the facility to please bring their mask with them for any circumstances that may require them to enter an indoor setting. Masks are encouraged but not required for the actual sport activity of riding their horses.

Before entering the facility, we are requiring all students to sign a new waiver for the 2020 riding season. You can download it here, print it out, and bring it along with you to the barn! You cannot enter the barn without a signed copy of this new waiver.


We are so excited to see familiar friends and new faces out at the barn, finally!

Saddle Club Days *NEW!!*

We are very excited to be offering a new option for our most dedicated riders this year!

Saddle Club Days are opportunities for some of the older and more experienced riders in our program to join us at the farm for the day and help with different chores, tasks, and projects before they have an opportunity to ride later in the day.

You must be a member of our saddle club to participate in Saddle Club Days. Please click here to learn more about Saddle Club Days and joining our saddle club!

Group Riding Lessons

  • Hand sanitizer will be provided for use upon entering and exiting the facility.
  • Temperatures will be taken upon arrival. If the rider has an above normal temperature, they will be asked to leave.
  • Face masks are required to have on hand due to the Statewide Mask Mandate, and all riders are welcomed and encouraged to wear them. We will have cute cloth face masks available for purchase at the farm in our new gift shop!
  • Please respect social distancing and maintain a minimum of 6 feet from other people when possible. Instructors and staff will occasionally need to get within six feet from riders to assist and help them, but we ask that riders and parents keep their distance from each other.
  • We are asking parents to please limit their time in the barn. This is in order to minimize how many people are coming and going through the barn and coming into contact with each other even in passing. We do understand that if your child is a new rider with us that you will want to come in and look around and chat with us (from a safe distance of course), and that is okay. For this temporary period while we are trying to adhere to safe protocols, we just ask that time spent hanging out in the barn is limited.
  • If you are potentially infectious, we will be happy to work with you to reschedule your lesson. If you or someone you come into contact with has tested positive for COVID-19, please do not come to the farm. Please DO NOT come to the farm if you have symptoms or have been around anyone that has symptoms, or if anyone in your household has symptoms or has been around someone with symptoms. If you have traveled out of state or country recently, please do not come to the farm. And, of course, if you or someone you come into contact with has tested positive for COVID-19, please do not come to the farm.
  • Riding lesson group sizes will remain regular.

Please note that adjustments have been made to our riding lesson protocols since this was originally posted. We originally tried to adhere to 45 minute lessons with 15 minutes in-between to allow for minimized contact in the barn, but after resuming operations for a couple of weeks we have become more confident with our facility and our system so that we are comfortable resuming hourlong lessons.

With how good our airflow in the barn is combined with keeping equipment clean and sanitized between uses, we are comfortable resuming our regular hourlong lessons. We are still requesting respectful social distancing and good sanitary practices from everyone at the facility.

New Riding Lesson Students

As always, we try to do one-on-one hourlong lessons with new students that have not ridden with us before. This will continue to be the norm. A student’s first introductory lesson will still be done privately, and will still be one hour long to allow for plenty of time to get acquainted, answer any questions, and help them get a good start with their lesson horse.

Summer Horse Camps

Our summer horse camp schedule will proceed as planned, with the same careful sanitary and social distance practices in place as any of our other activities.

These horse camps are, by nature, more hands on than the shorter format riding lessons. If you are registered for a horse camp but would prefer to apply that registration fee to riding lessons instead to minimize your rider’s contact with a larger group of children for a prolonged amount of time, we absolutely understand and can make that happen. Just reach out and we will be able to get you on the schedule!

  • Hand sanitizer will be provided for use upon entering and exiting the facility.
  • Temperatures will be taken upon arrival. If the rider has an above normal temperature, they will be asked to leave.
  • Face masks are required to have on hand due to the Statewide Mask Mandate, and all riders are welcomed and encouraged to wear them. We will have cute cloth face masks available for purchase at the farm in our new gift shop!
  • We are asking parents to please limit their time in the barn. This is in order to minimize how many people are coming and going through the barn and coming into contact with each other even in passing. We do understand that if your child is a new rider with us that you will want to come in and look around and chat with us (from a safe distance of course), and that is okay. For this temporary period while we are trying to adhere to safe protocols, we just ask that time spent hanging out in the barn is limited.
  • As always, drop off for a horse camp that begins at 10:00am can happen no earlier than 9:55am.
  • Pick up is at 3:00pm sharp, unless discussed beforehand with Mary or Sam. Please wait in vehicles for your child at pick up time.

As always, please DO NOT come to the farm if you have symptoms or have been around anyone that has symptoms, or if anyone in your household has symptoms or has been around someone with symptoms.

If you have traveled out of state or country recently, please do not come to the farm.

And, of course, if you or someone you come into contact with has tested positive for COVID-19, please do not come to the farm.

Posted on

T-Shirt Design Contest

During our very first Enchanted Hollow Stables ZOOM party last week, we announced that we are doing a T-shirt design contest! Here are all the details:

  • Draw ANYTHING related to Enchanted Hollow Stables! It could be your favorite lesson horse, the goats, the chickens, Pig Newton the Potbelly Pig, your favorite spot on the farm, the barn, all your friends… ANYTHING!
  • There is no limit to how many entries you can do. Send one drawing, or send ten!
  • Anyone can submit drawings! You do not need to be a past, present, or even future rider at EHS to enter. You can be anyone, anywhere, and any age!
  • All drawings will be printed and hung up in the barn – whether they are selected to be printed on a t-shirt or not!
  • The winner(s) will be digitized and printed on Enchanted Hollow Stables t-shirts.
  • We may pick multiple designs, and have multiple different t-shirts. So there’s a chance for multiple winners!
  • Can be colored or not. You can either color in your drawing, or just send a line drawing!
  • If your drawing is selected to be put on a t-shirt, you will get a FREE t-shirt with your drawing on it.
  • You can submit your drawings via text, email (enchantedhollowstables@gmail.com), or mail them to EHS. Our business’s address is located at the bottom of this page.
  • Please submit by Sunday, May 24th.
We love our riders here at Enchanted Hollow Stables, and what better way to represent our barn family here at Enchanted Hollow Stables than by wearing t-shirts designed by our riders, for our riders?

We did have a few kids on the ZOOM call express that they don’t think they are good enough at drawing. I disagreed, because I’m sure they’re great drawers, but I also told them. that ANYONE who wants to submit a drawing can and should, and not worry about whether or not they think they are a good drawer — because any drawing is going to be treasured here!!

But, in case someone doesn’t feel comfortable drawing something original, I would still love to receive a drawing from them! So, as an alternative option, they can mail us a coloring page that they color to look like their favorite lesson horse. These coloring pages can be mailed to us at any time, or brought to us once lessons and camps resume. We will hang them all over the barn!

As with the t-shirt contest, you do NOT need to be a current, former, or future lesson student with us. ANYONE can submit a drawing or coloring page and we will proudly hang them in the barn!

Here are some links to websites with great printable coloring pages:

Here is our business address for anyone to mail their drawings or colorings to us to be hung in the barn and potentially used in a t-shirt design:

5164 County Road 33 SE

Buffalo, MN

55313

Posted on

How to Support Our Riding School during the COVID-19 Outbreak

Chester, our precious 31-year-old lesson horse, can eat only soaked hay cubes and mash.

There are a lot of changes and closures happening around the country, including our very own riding program suspending regularly scheduled riding lessons for the rest of the month. For the time being we will be unable to conduct our regular business operations. Just like many industries and individuals that will be feeling the economical and financial impact of the COVID-19 outbreak, Enchanted Hollow Stables is definitely expecting to have a tough couple of months! Every business will go through some hardships during this time. Every individual will, too.

Even when we aren’t able to conduct our business, our horses still need to eat. With over 50 horses on the property, they eat A LOT! We are admittedly a bit worried about whether the feed supply stores will have enough grain or forage in stock within a few weeks due to production being slowed by this novel coronavirus outbreak, so we are working to stockpile as much grain and forage as possible right now.

Most of our beloved riding lesson horses are seniors that were rescued and rehabbed before being integrated into our program. They have special dietary needs that include supplements, senior grain, and hay cubes — some of them can’t eat traditional hay and rely completely on hay cubes and soaked mashes.

Chance is a 27-year-old lesson horse that we rescued a couple of years ago. He requires alfalfa cubes and senior grain to supplement his diet and keep him feeling his best!

We will be trying to stock up on all the hay cubes and grain we will need to get through a couple of months to ensure that our horses will remain fed during this time. Being unable to conduct our regular business activities heading into a season when things usually start to really pick up will be a struggle!

We know that our struggle is not unique. Small businesses across the country are struggling right now. Individuals unable to work are, too! This is a tough time for everyone, and we absolutely understand that. But for anyone interested in knowing how they can support our small business aside from riding lessons, we thought that we would put together a post like this with a few ideas!

Despite being unable to stick to our regular riding lesson schedule, there are other ways that you can support our farm and help keep us operating through this tough time. Check out some of the things you can do!

Register for a horse camp!

We are expecting to be able to return to regular functions by the time that our Summer 2020 horse camp season begins. Please consider registering for one of our horse camps in June, July or August! Check out our horse camps page for more information on registering.

Buy a key chain that looks like your favorite lesson horse, or an adorable unicorn!

These key chains are adorable and look great on a set of keys, backpack, helmet bag, hanging on the wall, or anything else you want to clip them to! All of these keychains are made in Buffalo, MN, so you are truly supporting small local businesses by purchasing. See more options on our Keychains for a Cause page!

Lease a horse!

If you are a current riding lesson student at Enchanted Hollow Stables, consider leasing or half-leasing your favorite horse. At this time, our riding lesson program is on hiatus but we are still allowing boarders and leasers out at the barn to ride, so this also offers an opportunity to continue riding through this time. Contact Mary and Sam at enchantedhollowstables@gmail.com to inquire!

Donate!

For those that want to help but don’t necessarily want a product or to register for a horse camp. These donations are NOT tax-exempt, but they do benefit adorable old lesson horses! Donate via PayPal by clicking this link: paypal.me/enchantedhollows

Share this post!

If you are not in a position to contribute monetarily at this time but want to help in some way, you can share this post! We deeply appreciate your desire to help and it truly is a huge help to simply share this post.

Thank you, and please, stay healthy!

Posted on

Our Riding Program Plan for the COVID-19 Outbreak

Early last week, after President Trump declared a National Emergency for the COVID-19 outbreak and Governor Walz declared a Peacetime Emergency, we posted a statement on Facebook to share our thoughts on potentially pausing activities at Enchanted Hollow Stables.

Since then, as most people know, there have been some major developments in the situation.

Governor Tim Walz declared on March 15th, 2020 that Minnesota schools will close from at least March 18th to March 27th as a result of the novel coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak continuing to spread around Minnesota. There is a very real possibility that those school closures could last beyond the end of March.

Following that news as well as the news of a positive COVID-19 test result in Wright County, we had to take a very serious look at our plan for the next couple of weeks. While it will certainly be a struggle for our family’s small business here at Enchanted Hollow Stables, we feel that for the health and wellness of our beloved clients and their families that it would be in everyone’s best interest for us to make some temporary changes.

Lesson Students

This was a very difficult decision for us, but we are doing it with the health of our family and our clients in mind. We will follow in Governor Walz’s lead and not be having lessons during the weeks of March 16-20 or March 23-27.

We are exceptionally blessed to have a very active and busy lesson program, but that does mean that there a lot of people coming and going on a day to day basis. This leads to our instructors interacting with and being exposed to a lot of people. We do not have any interest in playing a role in causing any COVID-19 infections!

For that reason, we do feel that it is in the best interest of the health of our clients to not hold regularly scheduled riding lessons for a couple of weeks. We plan to be back to our regular lesson schedule after March 27, but this may change depending on the state of things in our community in a couple of weeks.

Horse Camp Participants

Our Spring Break 2020 Horse Camp that was planned for March 30th to April 3rd is canceled. We will work privately with those that were registered for that camp to have their camp fee applied toward one of our summer camps.

Boarders and Leasers

Boarders that keep their horses with us and leasers that lease horses from us will still be allowed to see their horses and ride. We do not feel at this time that it is ethical to not allow those individuals to see their horses that they own or lease. With that being said, we do have some guidelines we would like them to follow for the foreseeable future.

  • Please thoroughly wash your hands prior to coming to the barn.
  • We have hand sanitizer and disinfecting wipes in various locations around the tack rooms, lounge, and barn. Please use them before and after handling any tack, grooming tools, cleaning tools, or any other equipment around the barn.
  • Please do not have physical contact with anyone. No hugs or handshaking.

Most importantly, these rules below apply to ANYONE entering the property.

  • If you have any related symptoms at all — DO NOT come to the barn. We reserve the right to ask anyone that is exhibiting any symptoms to leave the property.
  • If you or anyone you have interacted with has shown any related symptoms or has tested positive for COVID-19 — DO NOT come to the barn.
  • If you or an immediate family member have recently traveled on vacation, been on a cruise, or attended a large gathering of 100+ people within the last two weeks — DO NOT come to the barn.

We are doing our part in cleaning surfaces and disinfecting as much as we can on a regular basis. Please do your part by following the guidelines above.

We reserve the right to invite anyone onto our property that is not a boarder or a leaser, but will exercise caution when doing so.

Please don’t be offended if we ask you a lot of questions before determining whether you will be allowed on the property (such as those outlined above, like whether you or a family member have traveled recently). A couple of members of the Sansevere family are considered high-risk individuals.

Please do your part in trying to help keep everyone safe and healthy.

This difficult time will come to an end!

We look forward to resuming regular activities as soon as possible.

Posted on

Attending Shows with the Enchanted Hollow Stables Team

We have had a lot of inquiries from lesson students and parents about attending competitions with our lesson horses. We are always trying to figure out new ways to expand our program so that our riders can continue to further their riding education and accomplish new goals. Therefore, this is definitely something that we have thought about for a long time!

Before we get into all the information about attending shows off of our property, I do want to mention that we plan to host a couple of schooling shows at home starting with the 2020 season so that our lesson students can practice in a competitive atmosphere but without leaving the farm. Costs for this will be less than the fees for traveling off the farm since there is far less liability, wear/tear on our trailer and equipment, and it’ll just be easier in general! We will keep students updated on any schooling shows that are planned once the weather warms up because we plan to have them in the outdoor arena.

We have decided to offer the opportunity for regular riders at Enchanted Hollow Stables to attend shows while riding our horses. There are opportunities to compete in both Western and English disciplines, with an emphasis on WSCA competitions (gaming events or pleasure) and jumping schooling shows. Riders can only be eligible to attend shows with us if:

  • They ride in at least 4 lessons per month at Enchanted Hollow Stables. This is to ensure that they will be well-practiced and well prepared for a competition in whichever discipline they are focusing on.
  • They have been approved for eligibility for attending a show by Mary and Sam Sansevere. With Mary being the barn owner and Sam being the head riding instructor, they both know the horses and riders the best and will need to determine if the pair is prepared to have a positive experience at a competition.

The fees for attending an off-site competition with an Enchanted Hollow Stables horse are all-inclusive (aside from office and class fees at the show for each individual) and the services covered by the fees include the following:

  • Coaching/instructing/tacking for the day. We will handle everything so that the friends and family of the rider get to just enjoy the day and cheering on their rider! We will coach them throughout the day and during their classes just like we do during lessons and horse camps. We will also help them tack up and groom if necessary.
  • Use of an Enchanted Hollow Stables horse. For leasers, half-leasers, and non-leasers. We can also transport and coach riders that own their own horses and board them at Enchanted Hollow Stables.
  • Help to prep the Enchanted Hollow Stables horse for the competition. Usually, the horse will need to be groomed, bathed, and stalled the night before a competition. We definitely recommend that the rider join us for this portion because it’s a huge and really fun part of the process, but we will help them with any step that they might need help with!
  • Transport of the horse to the competition. This covers gas as well as wear and tear on the vehicle. If the competition is more than 50 miles away, an additional fee may be incurred.
  • The option to use Enchanted Hollow Stables tack for the day. Some of our riders have their own tack that they are welcome to use, but we do provide the option to use any of our tack. Specific tack is reserved on a first-come, first-serve basis but ultimately is at the discretion of Sam or Mary because some saddles, bridles, etc. will be more appropriate for each specific horse or rider depending upon the discipline.

A non-leaser is any rider that will not be competing with a horse that they own and does not currently have an active lease or half-lease on any Enchanted Hollow Stables horse.

Pricing for the services listed above is as follows:

  • $250 for a 1-Day Show for Non-Leasers
  • $200 for a 1-Day Show for Half-Leasers
  • $150 for a 1-Day Show for Full Leasers or riders that will be competing on a horse that they own

Office fees and class fees are NOT covered by Enchanted Hollow Stables through the fees laid out above. Those show fees are necessary in order to actually compete once you are at the competition. They are not covered in our fees laid out above because each show varies in cost for classes, and not every rider will choose to compete in every class while others might. These particular costs will vary depending on the particular show we are attending, but for an idea of what to expect, most WSCA shows charge somewhere around $5 for an initial office fee and $5 per class.

At this time we do not have plans for offering rates for multi-day shows that require an overnight stay for the horse, but if a show like that is something that we end up planning for with some riders we will adjust fees accordingly for that particular situation.

As of March 2020, we are currently looking over the calendar for the year and figuring out a competition schedule. If you would like to inquire about attending a show with us this year and/or have an idea for a specific competition you’d like to attend, you can shoot Sam or Mary a text, call, or e-mail (enchantedhollowstables@gmail.com) at any time.

Enchanted Hollow Stables reserves the right to change any of the fees or terms outlined above at their discretion and at any time.