Our Team
Dr. Peter Heidmann
Dr. Peter Heidmann grew up in New England and learned horsemanship from old time horsemen. Dr. Heidmann is a Board-Certified Expert in Large Animal Internal Medicine (UC Davis, 2005), with special emphasis on respiratory and neurologic conditions as well as treatment and prevention of infectious diseases. In addition to his core internal medicine interests, Dr. Heidmann has extensive experience evaluating and treating performance and lameness problems. he performs specialty evaluations and ultrasound examinations for many types of equine athletes, both nationwide and internationally.
Dr. Heidmann has served as an expert witness in many legal, welfare, and insurance cases. Has has twice served as the Head of Internal Medicine for Pan-American games, an Olympic Qualifying event –first in Guadalajara, Mexico (2011), and again in Lima, Peru (2019). He participated as one of the founding veterinarians of MSU’s Bioregions program to Mongolia in 2014 (www.bioregions.org). He is Adjunct Faculty at WSU School of Veterinary Medicine in Pullman, and Affiliated Faculty at Montana State University, Bozeman.
Dr. Heidmann is the founder, Hospital Director and Head of Internal Medicine at Montana Equine. He also works in Wellington Florida during the Winter Equestrian Festival, and serves as the Head of Internal Medicine at Palm Beach Equine Clinic.
He enjoys speaking to small groups and larger formal seminars. Please call or email Peter to arrange bookings for your group or meeting.
Dr. Al Flint
Dr. Al Flint is a 4th generation Montanan born and raised in the Flathead Valley. Growing up, he explored the Bob Marshall Wilderness on horseback during both Summers and Winters. He completed a Masters degree in Reproductive Physiology and a Ph.D. in Cellular and Molecular Biology at Colorado State University prior to entering the College of Veterinary Medicine. Dr. Flint is the head of Equine Surgery and has been providing surgical services for 8 years at Montana Equine. He brings passion, experience and expertise to his work. Dr Flint’s professional interests include equine sports medicine, surgery, and reproduction. Dr Flint focuses on maximizing patient outcome using western medicine and complementary alterrnatives. When not at work, Dr. Flint enjoys riding, hiking or skiing Montana’s backcountry and time with his daughter.
Dr. Jaime Lehfeldt
Dr. Jaime Lehfeldt grew up in rural Nevada where she raised and showed horses, sheep, and cattle. She showed hunter/jumpers, three-day-eventers, western performance horses, and rodeoed. During summer months, she would work at a guest ranch leading rides and starting colts. Along with her horse experience, the FFA and 4-H organizations taught her leadership, perseverance, business skills, and compassion for the animals and their owners which would be applicable in her career later on down the road. After obtaining her bachelor’s degree at the University of Nevada, Reno, she was accepted to veterinary school at Oregon State University which allowed for a hands-on education with a small class size and wonderful staff at OSU as well as Washington State University. Following graduation, Jaime headed to Littleton Equine Medical Center in Colorado for a well-rounded internship. Dr. Lehfeldt did a residency at Oregon State University in Large Animal Internal Medicine doing research on equine metabolic syndrome, and camelid medicine. Following her residency, she returned home to Smith Valley, Nevada where she started a successful referral and general practice, focusing on preventative medicine, infectious diseases, and geriatric medicine. Internal medicine deals with the intricacies of the body, whether normal or abnormal, and how it responds to disease. During Dr. Lehfeldt’s career, her curiosity about ways to help heal the body with a natural approach has developed. This interest spurred her on to get certified in Veterinary Medical Acupuncture and spinal manipulation allowing her to combine eastern and western medicine for her patients. Jaime met her husband, Erik, a rancher out of Lavina, MT and moved to the area in 2015.
Dr. Chuck Whitmer
Dr. Whitmer grew up in Fallon Nevada working with cattle and horses. His experience in the veterinary industry began in Nevada, working with his hometown veterinarian his senior year of high school and has been in the industry since then. He attended college in Reno at the University of Nevada, Reno. GO PACK! He later went on to Colorado State University where he received his Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine, additionally, he stayed on at CSU one extra year to complete an internship with the Equine Ambulatory Team. He recently spent time in the central valley of California working in a 3-doctor equine hospital. Dr. Whitmer’s veterinary interests include lameness, reproduction and surgery. He also has an interest in saddle construction and fit in regards to the western horse. When he isn’t working he enjoys spending time with his beautiful wife Shannon and their two children Tate and Ella. A few of his hobbies include: Team roping, Saddle making and brewing beer just to name a few.
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Dr. Jamie Clark grew up in rural eastern Washington, spending as many hours horseback as possible. After a dual bachelor’s degree in Natural Horsemanship and Biology at the University of Montana Western, she attended veterinary school at Washington State University, and an internship in Equine Field Service at Colorado State University. She is passionate about whole horse care, from general wellness to performance horse medicine. Jamie and her family are grateful to call the Helena community home. When not working, she enjoys spending time with family, riding (of course), paddle boarding with her dog, and soaking up all the sunshine she can find.
Dr. Perez is originally from the beautiful island of Puerto Rico and fell in love with horses while spending time at his grandparents’ farm. At 27 years of age, Dr. Perez decided to follow his passion for horses and become an equine veterinarian. He graduated from the University of Florida, College of Veterinary Medicine in 2002. Since then, Dr. Perez has been practicing general medicine with a special interest in reproduction, neonatology and radiology. His professional life has been spent mostly in Florida and Louisiana with a couple of short stops in Pennsylvania and Kentucky. In 2024, Dr. Perez decided to join the Montana Equine Helena team and use his experience to provide excellent compassionate veterinary care to the equine population of the greater Helena valley area. In his free time, Dr. Perez enjoys cycling, hiking, pickleball, billiards and working on cars.
Dr. Shannon Moreaux grew up on a ranch with an abundance of farm animals and wildlife. He migrated through Oklahoma and the Rocky Mountains working on ranches, shoeing horses and steadily pursuing a lifelong dream of becoming a veterinarian. Dr. Moreaux was a professional farrier before earning a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree at Oklahoma State University. After graduating veterinary school Dr. Moreaux settled in Bozeman, MT with his wife, Dr. Cindy Moreaux. After practicing veterinary medicine in the Gallatin Valley for a decade Dr. Moreaux joined the faculty at Montana State University as the Director of the Equine Science Program and the Montana Extension Equine Specialist. Dr. Moreaux mentored undergraduate and graduate students and published multidisciplinary research. His areas of research have included behavior, nutrition, metabolism, metabolic and infectious diseases of horses. Dr. Moreaux earned the rank of tenured Associate Professor and won several teaching and leadership awards during his time at MSU. Dr. Moreaux returned to full-time veterinary practice in 2019 and has worked on horses around the world but is very happy to be back “home” in Montana. Dr. Moreaux’s professional passions are healing animals and educating people about animal health and welfare. His special veterinary interests are metabolic diseases, podiatry, preventive medicine, and nutrition.
Dr. Emily Green grew up in Bozeman, MT. She has been riding horses her
entire life, ranging from trail riding, packing, ranch work and roping,
and collegiate polo. She attended Cornell University for her bachelor’s
degree in animal science. At Cornell, Dr. Green worked for an equine
reproduction and immunology research center and played polo (Go Big
Red!). She then took a year off and worked as a wrangler on a guest
ranch in Paradise Valley, and in the winter calved for a ranch in
central Montana. Dr. Green attended Oregon State University for
veterinary school. She completed an internship with Montana Equine in
May 2024 and transitioned into a full-time veterinarian position. Dr.
Green enjoys primarily ambulatory work, focusing on sports medicine and
lameness, dentistry, medicine and routine care. In her free time, she
enjoys spending time with her dog Sage, riding horses, skiing, mountain
biking and running, photography, and leatherworking.
Dr. Elizabeth Krueger
Dr. Elizabeth Krueger grew up in rural Indiana where she competitively showed her horses and also raised goats, rabbits, and chickens. Her love of horses first began when her family would visit a dude ranch in Michigan every summer while growing up. Dr. Krueger was actively involved for 10 years in her county’s 4-H chapter and served as club president during her final years of 4-H. She competed mainly in western pleasure, trail, and showmanship classes but also dabbled in rodeo and English riding with her horse Dylan.
Dr. Krueger attended Purdue University (Boiler Up!) for her undergraduate bachelor’s degree in Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Biology, while also obtaining minors in Animal Science and Chemistry. At Purdue, she worked at the state’s ADDL lab in the virology department, in a behavioral/habitat research project, and completed an internship at the local zoo. In her free time, she volunteered at Purdue’s veterinary school and served as an officer for her Pre-Vet Club. She earned her Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine degree from Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine and completed her clinical year at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Krueger had the great opportunity to complete a well-rounded equine internship at Brandon Equine Medical Center (Brandon, Florida) where she strengthened her knowledge and clinical skills. Her special interests include reproduction, foal management, and general wellness. In her free time, Dr. Krueger enjoys spending time with her dog Stevie, hiking, reading, riding, and spending time on the water.
Dr. Casey Cooper
Dr. Casey Cooper was raised on his families’ horse ranch on the California/Arizona border of the desert. During high school, Dr. Cooper spent his summers with elite performance horse trainers in Scottsdale, Arizona. These valuable mentorships prepared Dr. Cooper to show his reining horses competitively in youth and amateur AQHA and NRHA events across the country. Dr. Cooper attended Colorado State University and earned a bachelor’s degree in Biology and a Master’s degree in Bio-Medical sciences. Dr. Cooper completed the DVM program at CSU in May 2015 and joined Montana Equine as an intern in 2015. After completing his internship, Dr. Cooper worked as a full-time veterinarian at Montana Equine through May of 2024, when he moved to Jackson, WY. Dr. Cooper continues to work at Montana Equine on a part-time basis.
Dr. Cooper enjoys focusing on lameness cases as much as anything implementing regenerative medicine and biological pharmaceuticals when possible. In conjunction with his interest in diagnosing and treating equine lameness, he has an extensive background with podiatry and enjoys working with farriers to complement treatments. Dr. Cooper has also taken several advanced courses in dentistry and tooth extraction.
Dr. Lauren Troutt grew up in rural West Tennessee where her passion for horses began. She has been riding since she was 3 years old. Growing up, she competed in western performance with 4-H and FFA and was a member of the local drill team. Her all time favorite equine hobby is horseback camping. Lauren also has an interest in large animal medicine, specifically cattle and small ruminants. She attended The University of Tennessee at Martin for her undergraduate degree in agriculture and Lincoln Memorial University for vet school. She enjoys all things outdoors such as horseback riding, hiking, kayaking, and camping with excitement of trying skiing/snowmobiling.
Megan Rae Triplett
Practice Manager
Megan has been in the Three Forks area since her family moved here in 1981 from Fort Collins, Colorado. Living on a small farm there was always at least one horse that needed attention, and as a kid that was typically where you could find her. Megan joined the Montana Equine team in 2013 as the office manager where she got to know so many of our awesome clients and patients, in 2016 she took over as the Practice Manager for all of Montana Equine’s locations. In her spare time Megan enjoys spending time with her 3 children to include traveling to Arizona to see her oldest daughter and granddaughter as much as possible, riding horses, side by sides, friends and family, traveling to new places, and enjoying this beautiful state we live in by getting out and doing as many outdoor activities as possible.
Desirae Raffety
Financial Administrator
Desirae was born in Bozeman, Montana and spent her childhood years growing up in the Three Forks area. She moved with her family to Northern Minnesota for high school and two years of college.
In 1998 she moved back to Montana where she finished her bachelor’s degree at MSU in Business with a Marketing emphasis. She married her husband Justin, and they have two daughters, Taylor and Sarah. They have lived on Justin’s families ranch outside Willow Creek since their oldest daughter Taylor was 2 years old.
While raising their children Desirae has had multiple accounting positions both local as well as remote to be there for her children as much as possible. Her oldest daughter Taylor is a Sophomore at Montana Tech in Butte studying OSH and the youngest Sarah is a Sophomore at Three Forks High School. She has been a competitive gymnast at Lone Mountain in Bozeman since the second grade which has allowed their family the opportunity to travel together all over the United States for her competitions.
Desirae enjoys running and has participated in a half marathon as well as many other road and trail races. Trail races being her favorite, as she enjoys the local views and the beauty of being in the mountains. She was able to achieve a much-desired goal of hiking Hollow Top Mountain in the Tobacco Roots with her husband this past summer.
Brittany Emens
Customer Service Representative
Brittany grew up in California both on the Central Coast as well as Northern Sacramento Valley. She has had a love of horses since High School. After a road trip of a lifetime, in 2013 to Montana, she and her husband Mike decided it was the place for them. Aside from chasing her 4 kids around FFA, 4H, and various sports; she also LOVES Real Estate and is a licensed agent. In her spare time she loves to travel and explore both Montana and beyond as well as spending time in the kitchen during the winter and the outdoors during the summer. Let her know a favorite Montana spot to explore when you chat with her!
Audria Bloch
Customer Service Representative
Audria is a Montana native from Thompson Falls and has called Three Forks her home for over 10 years. She and her husband Dan have 2 children that leaves them with an empty nest. When time allows, she enjoys family, outdoor activities including elk hunting, camping, riding her horse in the back country, cooking and gardening. Her extended family also requires plenty of attention which includes 5 horses, several cows, 3 labs and 4 cats. Life is good!
Ali Marchel
Customer Service Representative
Crystal Glumbik
Customer Service Representative
Kaydee Eppler
Administrative Assistant
A native of southern California, Kaydee grew up all over the western United States – Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Oklahoma, and Arizona have all been home at some point in her life. She was blessed to have been born into a family with a long history of horsemanship; breeding, training, showing, ranching, racing, and rodeo had heavy influences on her upbringing. Kaydee first joined the Montana Equine crew in 2016 and spent two years as a receptionist in the Three Forks clinic before moving back to Arizona. She’s thrilled to have been able to rejoin the team as a remote member of the office staff! Kaydee was certified as an Equine Massage Therapist in 2008, and she enjoys training and conditioning both her own and outside horses in her free time. She and her boyfriend, Billy, share their home with eight horses, three dogs, and one cat. You can often find them exploring the outdoors or hitting the occasional team roping or barrel race.
Julia Strazz
Inventory & Laboratory Service Assistant
Julia is originally from Chandler, Arizona, and moved to Montana in 2017 to attend Montana State University. She graduated in 2020 with degrees in Microbiology and Organismal Biology. Julia worked at MEA the year after graduating, and is excited to be rejoining the Three Forks team as an Inventory and Laboratory Coordinator. In the future, Julia hopes to further her education in the veterinary field. In her free time, she enjoys live music and hiking around Bozeman!
Shawni Hansen
Licensed Veterinary Technician
Shawni Hansen grew up in Twin Bridges, MT. She attended Northwest College in Powell, Wyoming were she graduated with an Associates in Animal Science. Upon graduation Shawni attended Eastern Wyoming College in Torrington, Wyoming obtaining her certificate and later certification as a Veterinary Technician. For pleasure, Shawni is an avid hunter, and enjoys spending time with her family and animals.
Derric Jankowski
Licensed Veterinary Technician
Derric grew up in the town of Schoharie, New York. From a young age, he has always had a love for horses and a passion for all aspects of western riding. Derric went to SUNY Canton and received his Associates degree in Veterinary Technology; this led him to further his education, where he continued in Equine Rehabilitation. In his spare time, he enjoys spending time in the saddle, being outdoors, and continuously finding new places to explore.
Whitney Downs
Licensed Veterinary Technician
Born and raised in Norco, CA Whitney grew up loving horses and knew she wanted to do something within the veterinary field when she grew up. Whitney attended Cal Poly Pomona and received her Bachelor’s degree in Animal Health Science and became a licensed veterinary technologist with an emphasis in business management. Whitney worked at Foothill Equine as an ambulatory technologist for 4 1/2 years before deciding to uproot her life and make the move to Montana with her dog, Foxy. In her down time Whitney is an avid birder, hiker, and she love finding new places to explore on foot and in the saddle.
Grace Wight
Veterinary Assistant
Grace grew up in a small town in southern New Hampshire. She found a love for horses at a young age and has spent her life learning different aspects of the equine industry. From age 13 to 18 she trained horses and competed in eventing. For her high school senior project she adopted a 2 year old mustang and competed in the Youth & Yearling Mustang Makeover. She attended SUNY Morrisville where she has obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Equine Science with a double concentration in Rehabilitation & Western Training. While in school she gentled colts, learned to drive draft horses, spent a summer internship showing in reining and western pleasure, and spent her final semester here at Montana Equine learning the ins and outs of the medical field. She will be continuing her education to obtain her Vet Tech license. In her spare time, Grace likes to spend time with her mustang and explore big sky country as much as she can.
Christine Gluch
Veterinary Assistant
Christine moved to the beautiful state of Montana in 2014 where she started college at Montana State University. She graduated in 2018 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Animal Sciences, concentration in Equine Science. Her love and passion is evolved around horses. She loves helping patients, clients, and learning new things to broaden her knowledge. In her spare time, she enjoys riding her horses, Shady and Rocky, going hunting, fishing, and anything else that is surrounded by the outdoors, of course with her dog, Hoot. Christine is excited to be apart of Montana Equine and to be surrounded by an amazing team and patients!
Mckell Giese
Patient Caregiver
Mckell was born and raised in Flagstaff, Arizona, and have been involved with horses her entire life. Beginning in middle school Mckell became more involved with horses and started competing in hunter-jumpers and equitation and continued to this day. She was also a working student for her training barn for about 10 years. Outside of riding, Mckell was also playing volleyball at her high school. Currently, she has decided to study Equine sciences and is on the Pre-Vet track at MSU. In her free time, she loves to workout, hike, ride horses, and hang out with friends.
Grace Fifield
Patient Caregiver
Grace grew up in a small rural town in northern Illinois but spent her summers visiting her grandparents on their ranch in Three Forks where she learned to ride and developed her passion for horses. After graduating high school, Grace moved to Montana to further her education and her love for horses. In this pursuit, Grace decided to join the team at Montana Equine where she discovered a love of medicine. Grace is also a student at Gallatin College where she is looking exploring different medical career paths. In her free time Grace enjoys riding, hiking, or spending time with her cat, Pumpkin.
Erin Przybylski
Patient Caregiver
Erin is a pre-veterinary student at Montana State University studying Equine Science. She was born in northern Minnesota but has called Alaska home for the past 10 years. During summers in Alaska, she loved helping out at the local horseback tour business and competing in the annual competitive trail rides. Most of her free time is spent riding horses and hanging out with friends, as well as hiking, biking, and anything outdoors!
Nora Kusler
Patient Caregiver
Nora moved to Montana to studying conservation biology at MSU. While figuring out her next steps in life she joined the team at Montana Equine as a patient caregiver, working at Montana Equine has inspired her to move forward from undergrad into vet school. In her free time Nora likes hiking, fishing, backpacking, snowboarding, and reading a good book.
Dakota Abbey
Patient Caregiver
Dakota grew up in Dillon, MT and has always had a love for horses. She has been riding since she could walk and her love for horses has only grown. Before moving to Bozeman to attend Montana State University, she trained horses and mules for 8 years, along with working for her dad at his mixed animal veterinary practice. She also participated in FFA and 4H, competing in veterinary science, livestock judging, and has shown horses and multiple market species. She is excited to gain knowledge and experience at Montana Equine while continuing school to pursue a degree in veterinary medicine.
Jordyn Greene
Patient Caregiver
Jordyn grew up in Kalispell, MT. She has been riding horses her entire life, western showing through 4-h, barrel racing, and trail riding. Jordyn is attending Montana State University in Bozeman for her undergraduate degree in Animal Science and Agriculture Business. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, riding, having fun in the outdoors with her dog Rosco, hunting, fishing, and camping with friends and family.
Tina Niemitalo
Patient Caregiver
Tina grew up in North Carolina and has since lived in Washington, Oregon, and Hawaii. Tina moved to Montana last year and loves spending time in the mountains. She finds new hobbies everywhere she goes but her favorites are hiking, surfing, diving, and film photography. Tine loves spending time with her family and is the happiest in the sunshine.
Luka Khim
Patient Caregiver
Luka was born in Italy and grew up in Korea and Hawaii before moving to Montana to study Animal Science at MSU, where he’s on the IHSA team and competes at horse shows across Montana and Utah. He started working with horses shortly after high school which inspired him to join the team at Montana Equine. In his free time, he likes riding, hiking, and reading.
Savannah Emens
Barn Crew
Savannah is a Junior at Three Forks High School and is heavily involved in FFA and 4H, she shows steers and competes on the Vet Science team. After high school Savannah plans to attend college to pursue an Agricultural Business degree and start up an AI Business for cattle. Savannah has wanted to work at Montana Equine since she was little and is excited to be a part of the team.
Hannah Landeraaen
Veterinary Assistant
Hannah was born and raised in Montana, she grew up in Scobey, MT and has always had a strong passion for working with all animals, especially horses. She was actively involved in 4-H for over 10 years, during this time she trained her team of Percherons, Ginger and Sage, to drive various types of wagons. Hannah graduated from Carroll College in 2014 with a bachelor’s degree in Anthrozoology. During and after college Hannah worked as an assistant barn manager at a local boarding facility as well as a Teamster during the summer. In her free time she enjoys driving her horses, pet sitting, baking, and volunteering at the wildlife center in Helena.
Meghan Roun
Veterinary Assistant
Born in Wisconsin, Meghan came to Montana in 2004. Meghan attended Penn Foster College and received an associates degree as a Veterinary Technician, she graduated with honors in 2023. Meghan is dedicated to caring for large and small animals. In her free time she enjoys trail riding, and participating in equine events such as team sorting and penning.
Hunter Mecham
Veterinary Assistant
Hunter is a Las Vegas native but moved to Montana in 2019 to pursue a scholarship in football at Carroll College. He graduated Cum Laude in 2023 with a major in Anthrozoology and minor in Biology on the Pre-Veterinary medicine track. He works with both large and small animals in the veterinary field. In his free time, he likes to hunt, fish, hike, and go to the gym.
Afton Mignery
Veterinary Assistant
Afton was born and raised in Helena Montana, graduating Capital High School in 2024. She has had a passion for horses from a young age, getting her first horse at age eight. Afton competes in versatility ranch horse competitions as well as participating in 4H and other various equine events. Afton is interested in pursuing an equine related career.
Brooklee Stief
Veterinary Assistant
Brooklee was born and raised in Montana. After graduating high school, she moved to Oregon and worked in a small animal clinic as an overnight critical care and ER assistant for 10 years. Brooklee finally made her way back home to the mountains and the big sky country where her heart had always been. During her free time Brooklee enjoys horses, working dogs, fishing, hiking, the night sky, sunsets, camping, shooting, and spending time with her 98-year-old Grandma, 19-year-old son, and a few close friends.
Channing Ellingson
Veterinary Assistant
Channing was born and raised in Miles City, MT. She attended Montana State University and obtained a bachelor’s degree in animal science. She has always had a passion for horses and all other animals. In her free time, she enjoys any outdoor activity, hiking with her dog Nala, working out, and spending time with her family and friends.
James West
Veterinary Assistant
James grew up grew up on his family’s ranch in Butte Valley, NV raising cattle, horses, and sheep before moving to Pendleton, OR to finish high school. After high school he attended Oregon State University to get his Animal Science degree. His hope is to attend Veterinary school and focus on Equine/Rural medicine. He spends his free time working on school and spending time with friends.
Alyssa Cooper
Veterinary Assistant
Alyssa’s love for horses and wide-open country began in rural Iowa when she was a little girl. After moving to Montana in 2016, the need to learn everything she could about equines grew exponentially. When a horse she dearly loved passed away, Alyssa knew she wanted to be an equine veterinarian and joined the MEA team in October of 2023 to gain some in-field experience as a high schooler. Besides horses, Alyssa loves to read, write novels for her and her sister’s entertainment, and eat chocolate chip cookies, which she can never refuse!
Sara Kelly
Patient Caregiver
Sara grew up in western Colorado and moved to Billings a year ago for college. She is pursuing an equine science degree at Rocky Mountain College with the hopes of ending up in Vet school. Sara was introduced to horses her junior year of high school as a form of therapy and has been in love ever since. She rides both western and English but prefers a good trail ride over all. In her free time she enjoys hiking, planning events with her school, and sleeping.
Cassie Hull
Patient Caregiver
Cassie was born in Washington and moved to Montana with her family when she was 13. She was active in 4H and FFA throughout school and went on to raise and train horses for others and herself after graduation. She currently lives in Roundup, MT with her husband, dogs, cats, and horses. In her free time she enjoys riding and competing on her horses as well as spending time with her family and friends.