iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Reposted by Sarah Olson

Stand Up for Science! @standupforscience.net · 12/02/2025

Welcome to the Bluesky account for Stand Up for Science 2025! Keep an eye on this space for updates, event information, and ways to get involved. We can't wait to see everyone #standupforscience2025 on March 7th, both in DC and locations nationwide! #scienceforall #sciencenotsilence

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Harry Dunn @libradunn1.bsky.social · 27/02/2025

Im excited to take place in the economic blackout boycott tomorrow. I hope you'll join me and millions of others.

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 25/02/2025

Just out here trying to fight fascism and play with cute ponies

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 22/02/2025

Just a friendly reminder, that the right wing men are currently fantasizing about hanging female politicians they don't agree with. This is why Trump's America is dangerous.

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 16/02/2025

Me shopping in the women's section: I hate my body, I hate fashion, nothing fits me, too expensive, crippling despair Me shopping in the men's section: everything fits me, I am incredibly hot, I can afford everything, gender euphoria #androgynous #nonbinary #genderqueer

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 16/02/2025

If you aren't talking about the attack on trans people right now, you need to open your eyes and start caring. For those of us who are queer and have trans people in our lives we love, we are angry and horrified and scared.

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 15/02/2025

New profile picture! I got my septum re-pierced today 😜 unfortunately the first time I got it done years ago, they messed it up...I had to wait for it to heal over and get it redone. It was much easier this time around!

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 13/02/2025

Don't let the anxiety and fear of the current state of the world stop you from creating and dreaming and loving. The world needs your art, your kindness, your work, your love, more than ever.

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 12/02/2025

Respect our existence or expect our resistance 💪🏼

If the government doesn't see trans, nonbinary, and genderqueer people as valid then we don't have to acknowledge that government as valid either. After all, their existence is just a choice and we're not obligated to affirm their mental delusions, right?

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 12/02/2025

Friendly reminder that trans people are only around 1% of the population. Trans people aren't a threat to you. But billionaires sure are 🖤

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 11/02/2025

I'm really trying to genuinely understand, for the purpose of empathy, how there are conservatives who are against abortion and vaccines but who will pinch (abort) foals and vaccinate their show horse.

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 09/02/2025

Alula says to stay silly and stay strong, friends!

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Reposted by Sarah Olson

Hank Green @hankgreen.bsky.social · 08/02/2025

Weak men cannot compromise. Weak men cannot build consensus. Weak men think that leadership means force. Weak men build nothing that lasts.

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Orange Dick Tater Hater @realbiscuitspaw.bsky.social · 08/02/2025

More relevant than ever

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 08/02/2025

I train animals with kindness: patient, reward-based learning that promotes their autonomy. I also live in the United States, where we are watching a coup d'état happen in real time. And I have a few thoughts to share during this dark and difficult time.

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 06/02/2025

I am struggling to post lately because frankly, I'm speechless.

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 04/02/2025

Right now, men in power in my country are trying to erase the most vulnerable of us - trans and genderqueer people. In a world where patriarchy is upheld by violence, force, and hate, picking up my clicker and training horses with kindness and empathy is an act of protest.

Picture of a clicker trainer and their horse, who is wearing a pride flag, with text that says "Choosing to train without pressure or punishment is an act of protest"

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Reposted by Sarah Olson

ツ Hunterprobss @hunterprobs.bsky.social · 02/02/2025

My hot take is that dairy cow welfare is significantly better than athletic horse welfare. In dairy, stress/ pain directly decreases your milk yield (your profit). In horses, they still perform and WIN through their stress/ pain.

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 02/02/2025

My teen student on Alula and a friend with her horse played some clicker games together today and we had fun! 💕

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 01/02/2025

Horses would be better off if we thought of them like dogs. Take them for walks and let them sniff things and explore with their muzzles and whiskers You wouldn't hit your dog with a crop or kick them with spurs or put a bit in their mouth. Why do it to your horse?

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 01/02/2025

Looking back at pictures/videos of me training baby Alula while going through chronic illness is bittersweet, my R+ skills were terrible back then (I was entirely self taught for a while) and I'm impressed we accomplished so much in spite of it!

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 01/02/2025

R+ makes training and working with horses more accessible if you have physical limitations. R+ allowed me to safely start a feral filly while going through chronic illness, surgeries, and physical therapy. Training horses doesn't have to be forceful, physical, and unsafe.

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 01/02/2025

How can you look at a horse and think it's okay to pick up a whip or spurs, or stick a harsh bit in their mouth and strap it closed? We don't get it.

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 30/01/2025

I was anti tongue clicks for a long time (they cause me misophonia!!) but since learning to trim I have learned that hands-free clicking is an essential skill and I'm fully converted

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 29/01/2025

Anyone else looking forward to soaking up some much-needed horse time this weekend? Just gotta get through the last half of the week 💪🏼

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Reposted by Sarah Olson

Lauren Fraser @lauren-fraser.bsky.social · 29/01/2025

🧪TL;DR Horses NEED social interactions to thrive. New research from Flamand et al showed that even one hour/day of free social interaction improved the behaviour of stalled horses: fewer stereotyped behaviour, less time in hypervigilance, more optimistic bias scholar.google.ca/scholar?as_y...

A lone pony stands in a sunny but frosty paddock. Green, sunlight evergreen trees can be seen behind him, out of focus. Two green metal fence rails are in front of the pony, one in front of his chest and the other crossing just below his eyes. He has a black mane and forelock, and a large white shield shaped marking on his forehead, connected to a thin white strip that extends to his nose, ending in a vaguely suggestively shape. One of the pony’s ears is pricked, facing the camera person, while the other is swiveled and orientated to the aide: perhaps to horses off camera?

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 28/01/2025

I used to try so hard to please everyone. To do everything right. I constantly apologized for myself. The truth is if someone is determined to find something about you they don't like, they will. All you can do is embody bodhicitta, loving compassion for all beings, and move on.

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 28/01/2025

Over the years I've become more and more against stalling because of the irrefutable evidence that they harm welfare. That being said, some stalls are better than others - like if they are open and can see/interact with other horses and freely exit the stall to a large paddock.

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Corbyn (They/Them) @fellowanimal.bsky.social · 28/01/2025

Hierarchical systems are harmful to all animals, and that's why I never shut up about the hoax that is dominance theory- a belief that ignores the complex, rich, and incredible relationships shared between members of a group.

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gen 🌿💐🐴🌏🌈 @clickerbabe.bsky.social · 27/01/2025

Really cool study from 2014 that essentially found that horses could learn more effectively when experiencing positive emotional state (induced w/ calming pheromones in the study)! summary post on it coming on my insta soon (www.instagram.com/genuinequine)

sciencedirect.com

Influence of emotional balance during a learning and recall test in horses (Equus caballus)

Modern day horse–human relationships entail different types of sport and riding activities, which all require learning. In evaluating the interaction …

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 28/01/2025

Be kind. Trust science. Embrace presence. These are the things I believe in.

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 28/01/2025

If Instagram wants to f--k with its layout then guess what, I don't care about making my profile aesthetic anymore. I'm just going to post whatever I feel like or have to say with zero regard for what it looks like now 🤷🏼‍♀️

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 28/01/2025

"Once we agree that animal emotions exist and that they matter...Then we must consider ethics. We must look to our actions and see if they are consistent with our knowledge and beliefs." Currently reading:

Picture of the cover of Marc Bekoff's book The Emotional Lives of Animals

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 28/01/2025

So many owners don't properly prepare their horses for routine care tasks like hoof trimming, deworming, and vaccines/blood draws. It is absolutely worth investing time in teaching horses to be confident and calm during these essential tasks using clicker training.

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 27/01/2025

The second article in my series about science denial in the equine industry is now up, this one exploring denial and skepticism in more depth and why it's so urgent we combat it. I'd love to hear your thoughts. Please read and share 🖤 saraholsonmichel.medium.com/science-deni...

saraholsonmichel.medium.com

Science Denial Harms Horse Welfare. Here’s How We Fight It.

Like climate change deniers and anti-vaxxers, equestrians are susceptible to conspiracy theories and skepticism.

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 27/01/2025

One of the books I am most excited about this year is The Siren's Call by @chrislhayes.bsky.social, which is about the attention economy. Our attention is a limited and valuable resource that is crucial to presence and mindfulness. We should be aware of how it is exploited.

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 26/01/2025

My latest piece for Medium tackles science denialism in the equestrian community and how we can begin to combat it (spoiler alert: it involves having empathy for people as well as horses!): saraholsonmichel.medium.com/equestrians-...

saraholsonmichel.medium.com

Equestrians Have a Science Denial Problem

Why the horse industry won’t embrace evidence that would improve equine welfare, and how we can change that.

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 26/01/2025

Can you imagine a world in which you walk into a feed store and the equine section has dozens of clickers, target sticks, treat pouches, and ethical equipment instead of whips and spurs and bits? That's the world I'm working to create.

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 26/01/2025

If I walk into a farm store right now, I could buy dozens of different types of whips and spurs and bits in the equine section. But I wouldn't be able to find a clicker, a target stick, or a treat pouch there. That's a damn shame, and it's my dream to change it.

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 26/01/2025

Does anyone else stare at pictures of their horse and feel like they could cry with gratitude and pride and just burst from the amount of love they feel for this precious animal? No?? Just me?? 😭

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 26/01/2025

Alula misjudged the distance a smidge when she decided to jump a little cross-rail while playing at liberty today. That's okay Alula, it was very brave of you to try!

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 26/01/2025

You do not need gadgets and training aids to teach horses to carry themselves correctly. These things work against the horse. Balance and posture and self-carriage cannot be forced, the muscles have to be built up with practice and patience. This is Alula working at liberty today.

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 25/01/2025

I am not a scientist, I'm not a famous horse trainer with a private facility and countless clients, and I'm not selling a product. I'm just a horse owner who found a better path, who wants to share this joy with fellow equestrians.

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 25/01/2025

Have you been told not to let horses drink when they're working? There isn't any real reason to do this! I freely allow water consumption to support hydration.

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Sarah Olson @boldhorsebehavior.bsky.social · 25/01/2025

If you thought the concept of a boss mare was feminist, wait until you find out that herd dynamics are actually fluid and horses are peacemakers with a huge range of behaviors and calming signals that promote cooperation rather than competition

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