Ask Cari

This is Tuff, owned and trained by Rex Peterson.  Tuff is one of Justin’s sons (Justin played Black Beauty), who was featured as Jeremy Irons horse in Ed Harris’ film Appaloosa.   Come meet Tuff at the AQHA Quarterfest in May, where you can help celebrate the American Quarter Horse.

May 1-3, 2009 Tennessee Miller Coliseum Murfreesboro, Tennessee

Westfield Whips have been designed with impeccable craftsmanship for over a century.  With perfect balance, action and flexibility, these whips never feel heavy in your hand.  All Westfield, whips are built on cores made to precise specifications to guarantee that they replicate the feel and performance standards of the original whalebone and rawhide whips which have never been surpassed in quality and feel.

“For me, the Westfield whips are the finest available in the world today.”-Bruce Davidson

Bruce is one of the finest and most accomplished equestrians of our time.  He is a two time Three-Day Event World Champion and a five-time Olympic veteran, holding two team gold and two team silver medals.  He is a two time World Champion, has won the Rolex Kentucky Three Day a record six times and is one of only two Americans to have won the Badminton Horse Trials.  He has been the US Combined Training Assoc.  “Rider of the Year” a record fourteen times.

“In my industry where every detail matters, I count on the handling precision of a Westfield whip to deliver a perfect performance.”-Rex Peterson

Rex has trained horses for film for over four decades, creating some of the most complex and exciting horse action sequences every filmed.  His credits include dozens of films including Black Beauty, Dreamer, Hidalgo, Runaway Bride, The Horse Whisperer and The Patriot.  His concern for the well being of horses has earned him the praise of humane organizations and animal advocates.

Westfield whips are well balanced, light in weight and of the highest quality.  I love these whips and so do my customers.”  –Olaf Nyby

Olaf Nyby of Norway is one of Europe’s top driving instructor and horse trainers.  His expertise includes pleasure and commercial driving and international competition in pairs; four-in-hand combined training and driving dressage disciplines.

The Westfield whip-dressage, straight lash (6 foot), Lunge line, and jumper bat are available at swansonpetersonproductions.com

Here Ryan uses his Tufflex Stock Whip (6 foot), and Diamond Weave Pro Lunge Whip from  Westfield  to cue Doc to perform many tricks and movements.The whips are an extention of his hands to guide his horse, who must never be afraid of the whips.

These side hobbles are made out of a soft nylon diamond braid rope.  They can be used as shown laterally or converted as front hobbles.  They are a simple design easy to put on and take off.  Hobbles are used to teach a horse patience.  For the movie business, Rex has found that it is imperative that all of his horses are well mannered and can stand anywhere calmly for hours.  As a result of his experience, all of his horses are broke to the hobbles from day one.  This also teaches the horse not to fight if he is ever tangled up in wire, rope, nets or anything else.  They are availabe for $40/set directly from us.

Front Hobbles-another style-easy to use

Rex designed this German Martingale after finding it impossible to find one on the market without all the rings in each rein.  His unique design is easy to use with a simple method of adjustment using conway buckles.  These 3/4″ harness leather reins come in English style connected with a buckle or Western style in split reins.

This is old system which helps collect the horse.  Rex recommends using it when the horse is unbalanced,  flips his head, or is unsteady in the bridle.  This system allows you to have draw reins which puts pressure on the bit, however when the horse is collected and balanced you are on straight reins.  This is a valuable training tool to be used by experienced horseman.

They are available for $95 plus $10 shipping from Rex directly.

Rex designed his hobbles out of a soft nylon rope connected with a metal swivel, button knots and braided sliders keep them snug.  Working in the movie business requires horses to be patient and stand for hours.  All of Rex’s horses learn to hobble as part of their basic training.

Patience, patience, patience.  One of Rex Peterson’s training mantras.  Hobbles on a horse prevents a horse on the trailer from pawing or teaches the horse not to fight if he becomes tangled up in a fence or rope.  There are countless benefits to teaching a horse this control.

Always take care when you first put hobbles on your horse.  You must teach a horse to understand the hobbles.  Use a war bridle and work in a controlled space so that you can teach your horse not to fight the control of his front feet.

Rex makes each pair of hobbles, a limited quantity are available for $40 plus $5 shipping in the US.  They can be purchased with a check or Visa/MC on the web site Swanson Peterson Productions or by contacting us directly via email.

These 3 TB’s were sent for 30 days of training to Rex Peterson and his boys, nicknamed the Outlaws, because they are 5 years old were unbroke until a week ago.  This is the second day they have left the arena after 9  rides.  To learn more about how to gentle a horse, contact swansonpetersonproductions.com

The son of Rex Peterson learned a few things from his Dad, he can train a horse to do almost anything, including letting him walk through his horses legs.  This horse came to him as a Bronc, no cowboy in California could ride him, after 15 days he was gentle to ride.

To learn how to train your horse to be obedient and well schooled contact Swanson Peterson Productions to purchase a set of DVD’s to learn these training methods.

Cache, a 16.3 AQHA Stallion who starred in “Appaloosa” with Viggo Mortensen,  is wearing the Rex Peterson Neck Rope available for $38.00, contact the web site or email cari@cariswanson.com.

Rex designed this unique neck rope using a button knot with a loop that will not slip off, no matter how hard the horse pulls back.  Since neck ropes are impossible to find, Rex created exactly what he needs for use at home and on films.  This became a necessity after one of his wranglers mistakenly tied up a horse with an expensive spade bit, breaking it when the horse pulled back, costing the film hundreds of dollars in repair.  Rex researched what the old timers used for tying up horses in the Old West and found the old Russell and Remington paintings showed neck ropes on all the horses.  You can see all the horses in his films including “Hidalgo” and  “Appaloosa” are wearing this signature neck rope.

Rex’s neck rope is made out of a new rope that is as soft as cotton with the strength of nylon.  They are available on his web site for $38.00 by check or Visa.

RJ/Hidalgo’s three year old filly is wearing a war bridle, made from a 30 foot lariat now available for sale at SwansonPetersonProductions.com

They are $45 plus shipping and can be purchased by emailing cari@cariswanson.com, you can either send a check or use a Visa/Mastercard.

The war bridle is an invaluable tool when breaking a horse to lead, teaching a horse to trailer or mannering a horse for any purpose.  You will quickly earn the respect of your horse.  Several of Rex Peterson’s training dvd’s demonstrate how to use the war bridle, they can also be purchased at SwansonPetersonProductions.

Ryan demonstrates how to use the Lariat on his new horse, Pard, who he is preparing to teach to load on the trailer.  After a five minute lesson, Pard was quietly walking on and off the trailer.