You're absolutely right that I did not check on Khol during his stay with you which is why I am…read moreadvising people to do so. And you're absolutely right that you gave Khol some extra vet care in the beginning which I knew about. It's also true that some horses thrive very nicely at your place. Khol IS in his mid-20s which is a typical age for a retiree. My objection isn't an overpromise of the care I believed I was paying for, and in fact I do appreciate the extra care that you gave Khol when he had a problem in the beginning. My hindsight wish is not only that I would have visited him within the first 4 to 6 months to see with my own eyes, but also that I would have been given a call to say that Khol was not thriving. He was seen by a vet when he arrived at his new farm and was clinically diagnosed with a body condition of 2 on a scale of 1 to 9, where 1 is complete starvation. He weighed 1200 pounds vs his healthy 16.3 warmblood weight of 1600 pounds. His blood work came back fine which indicates that his poor condition was due strictly to starvation. I'll tell you what broke MY heart was your statement when Khol left that you were going to miss "those big sad eyes of his." From the time I had bought him in April 1998 until the day I saw him leave, Khol had not spent one day sad. When he got to where he is currently ---without my even mentioning it --- the caretaker said to me "I don't know how to say this but I have never seen such a sad look on horses face." Khol is where he should be now, and I'm sure many of your herd will live out the rest of their days happy and fat at your place. For those owners whose horses thrive, your farm is the right choice. I would just urge you the next time you have a horse go downhill as drastically as Khol did, that you please alert the owner and give them the opportunity to rethink their choice. And to any owner considering your farm, I will again implore you to do as I say and not as I did, and be sure to visit your horse in the first 4-6 months.

My horse, Sugar, has been living at Welbourne Farm for almost two months. I just visited her,…read moreagain, this past week and she looks great and has become part of a very sweet, small herd of about 10 horses that tend to stay near the main house. She has also found a mate, Cody, and the two of them are inseparable. From the very beginning phone calls, months ago, to Sugar's arrival and since, Josh, Nat, and Amanda have all been very attentive to Sugar's needs and I am happy to say that two months in, she is happy, thriving, and healthy and has taken to living life like a horse in the wild beautifully. These horses sleep under the stars and anyone who knows horses knows that is about as good as it gets for a horse. Josh and his family all take the responsibility of caring for these retired horses very seriously. They really do know every horse by name and all of the horses are checked on daily ... This is the perfect retirement home for a horse ... Lynne

This place is exactly what you need. I can't say enough about Makendra and her Farm. Her passion…read morefor her horses and teaching is tangible. Both me and my daughter ride there but I am often requested by my daughter if she can just go hang out at the farm. The energy, people and overall pleasantness of the farm is a true escape. I love each and every one of her horses and have learnt a tremendous amount of horse care knowledge from Makendra. She is interested in the connection you have with the horse you ride, she wants the experience to be both educational but fun and enjoyable at the same time. Don't pass on the opportunity to visit Tsaheylu, you would be missing out.

This review is not only my testament to Makendra's teaching ability and skill, but also her…read moredemeanor and patience with horses and riders. She's an amazing instructor, rider and trainer. If I could afford it, I'd buy one of her homebreds!!!

My daughters attended camp at Serene Acres. My daughters experienced light interaction with the…read morehorses but instead they had them locating fly masks in the field, mucking stalls, cleaned feeding dishes and additional barn labor duties. They did do 1 craft and depended on the weather the riding lesson went from 15min. To 1hour. We expected more interaction with the horses however the volunteer kids got those jobs over the paying customers. We will not be returning. The owner blocked me on Facebook from writing a review on The Serene Acres page. We followed the next week with camp at Red Gate and they had an amazing time with lots of interaction.

My girlfriend and I went here for a beginner trail ride having been referred here by a local bed…read moreand breakfast. They mainly offer boarding and lessons, but also offer short trail rides for novices. We had minimal prior horse experience. The staff at Serene Acres were very helpful and informative in getting us up and on two horses. The horses were good older horses with a little bit of personality. In no time we were walking around on the horses. The only downside was that we were mostly walking on country roads without much of a trail. The area is beautiful in rural Virginia, but not quite the trail we expected. Apparently they normally take people a different way but it was too flooded to pass even by horse. Overall great service and horses, thou the "trail ride" may be more of a quiet country road ride.

Amazing farm with beautifully selected horses, expert breeding services, and top notch care. World…read moreclass

Found THRS in November of '14 via a Facebook group for Virginia horse folk, BEST thing ever!!…read moreYvonne is Amazing with children. Kind soul, firm voice, level headed, and easy to get along with. I was ecstatic when my 4 yr old said he wanted his own Pony so he could ride like Mommie did. I have a riding buddy for life, and I couldn't be more thrilled. Yvonne is instilling in him the love of not just 'riding', but the work that comes along with the joys of riding. Yvonne started him out on grooming tools, explaining each one in a way he was able to grasp and retain the knowledge. I was floored when we were out at TS and he brought me a curry comb and told me what it as and how to use it. :D His first lesson, he was on the Pony named Lyric, who has fast become his favorite and he talks about her all the time, before we even realized it. He knew which foot to use and where it needed to go. He was able to hold the reins perfectly the first time and I think he's a natural, but then I'm Mom. ;) Yvonne is a consistent, firm, and compassionate. I can't think of a better temperament for a teacher working with children. She's a gem!

I grew up riding and always knew I would introduce my son to riding as well. That was almost 2…read moreyears ago and the progress he has made has just blown me away. He absolutely loves riding and Yvonne knows exactly how to get him to understand what she needs him to learn. I tell everyone I drive 45 mins each way for my son to ride cause it's worth it.

Miran Farm is an friendly, family-oriented farm dedicated to top notch horse care, learning, and…read morefun! I started riding lessons here in October 2009, and I'm happy to say I now own a Paint horse who was trained by Fareed Miran, which means I've got a smart, amazing, all-around do-it-all horse. Fareed works hard to ensure the horses, cattle, and property are taken care of, and depends on open and honest communication between the boarders and himself, so that everyone's expectations are clear. He strives for this to be a "no drama" barn. I've learned so much over the past 10 years being part of Miran Farm. About riding, certainly: barrel racing, pole bending, bareback, obstacle courses, team roping, working cows, and even enough English riding to get me through my riding adventures in Ireland! About equine behavior as well, through having the opportunity to ride different horses in lessons past, or working with Fareed directly in lessons with my own horse, or just "hanging with the herd" when I turn my boy out and observe their dynamics. But what I have learned about human behavior and interactions is especially invaluable, particularly from a business perspective, regarding the ingredients for and challenges of running a successful boarding facility. I've observed that the most appreciated boarders are the ones who: don't gossip or complain behind the scenes; give their horses adequate care and attention; respect everyone's safety, property, and space whether in the arenas or in the barn aisles; and communicate their concerns directly to Fareed so that the issue can be dealt with reasonably. Conversely, I've observed that the boarders who gossip, complain, ride unsafely, behave in underhanded ways (try to lure fellow boarders to other barns), and/or don't see to their horse's needs (keep up with farrier visits and veterinary care, pay their board on time) are the boarders that no one is to sorry to see go because they are poison to the barn environment. A "no drama" barn and people like this don't mix. I feel very blessed to be part of the Miran Farm family, and hope to be for many years to come.

In response to Catherine S. Review....she said she doesn't even remember me..but yet we says Im A…read morebarn jumper whos never satisfied. .hmmmm can't say that about someone you don't even remember. I was there for 6 months. .also she says things like they clean up after the cows...maybe they do now but they didn't before nor did they water Down rings.....fareed is a con artist .... He STOLE all of my property. I contacted legal advice and what he did was ILLegal and I should of had him arrested. He with held my property saying I owed him a months board which was false. I had no horse there and wasn't bringing a new horse in....I will keep spreading word about him and that farm and about Dani and others there.

What a great experience. This was my first time zip lining and Riley and Preston were professional,…read moreengaging, upbeat, and thorough. We went ziplining during their moonlight 9pm tour and it was a great adventure. They went above and beyond to make sure we felt confident and empowered when transitioning to each zip line or bridge. It even rained during our night tour and they remained professional and kept everyone's spirts up. We also heard a bear roar during our tour which was a bit scary, but also cool at the same time. It did help with the fear that we were several feet off the ground. We were provided with gear, glow lights for our helmets and the hands on training exercises before we embarked were priceless. Everyone wore their masks and it was a nice outing to experience durning COVID-19. Heads up this activity is hosted by a third party on the Salamander resort (which is a beautiful property) but is pretty deep in the woods.

My wife's sister got us two tickets to this as a Christmas present. We took off for a day in June…read more2022 and did the Treetop Zip Line adventure. We were on time and got carted to the course but they were expecting three people to join us. As it turns out, those three people thought they had signed up for a different time so my wife and I got to do this with just us and our two guides. Our guides were Tim N. and Gwen. We had done a Zip Line adventure with our kids in Williamsburg but this was completely different than that. After a very brief training and test on how to stop yourself on the zip line, we headed for the course. In total, there were five zip lines on the course and the guides gave us some history and fun facts between each zip line. After going down the first two, I was very confident in my braking and making sure I got to the platform at the end. My wife had some issues braking throughout all five zip lines. Since there were only two of us doing the adventure, the owner said we could go through the course again. Our guides said this does not normally happen. I was excited to go through the course a second time and my wife got way more comfortable braking during this second trip through. Our guides were friendly and very helpful. They had to pull my wife in a couple of times and they were great at walking her through it and were very patient. Based on this experience, we will definitely come back when the kids are old enough to join us.

Top notch training and boarding! Jane and her team work tirelessly to make sure her students…read morereceive the best personalized training while her ponies and horses receive the best care! My daughter has been riding with Jane for 2 years and has become a confident, beautiful rider who is now going to A rated shows and placing in the top of her division. Best program in northern VA!

Broken lease agreement by giving away a horse without informing the owner. This ultimately led to…read morethe death of the horse, with no accountability for their actions from Jane or Meredith.