Career Paths in the Equine Industry

By: Taylor Sondgeroth

Getting a start in the equine industry can be a daunting task. While there is no direct path to working in the industry, there are plenty of learning and experience opportunities that can bring you into the horse world. A common theme that you will hear is that many people in the industry work a plethora of jobs to gain new experiences. Lisa Dorsey and Jessica Brown have been working with horses at Auburn for 15 and 6 years, respectively. Their paths to working at Auburn included many different jobs that gave them experience and insight into the industry.

“It sounds like we’ve done a lot in in the industry,” Brown said. “In the horse world, it is not uncommon to change your job every year or two to go work with a new trainer or at a new barn. It isn’t frowned upon in our industry.” Dorsey and Brown both emphasize that students should not be afraid to try something new and gain new experiences along the way.

There are many opportunities for working in the equine industry: teaching, insurance, breed associations, photography, commissioned art, course design, horse show management, training, giving lessons, marketing, communications, law, social media, journalism and research.

Career Path Examples

Lisa Dorsey and Jessica Brown spoke to the Auburn chapter of the Collegiate Horsemen’s Association in their January meeting. They shared their career paths as examples of how different experiences can take you to new places and provide exciting opportunities in the equine industry.

Lisa Dorsey

Lisa Dorsey started riding at age eight. Growing up, she showed in 4-H and Quarter Horses. Her riding instructor attended University of Findley which is what pushed Dorsey to attend the institution. Dorsey rode on the IHSA team during her time in school. After graduating, Dorsey was the head trainer at Regency Horse Ranch in Pennsylvania where she worked seven days a week cleaning stalls, training horses and giving lessons.

Dorsey stepped away from horses for a year but continued to give lessons on the side. She decided that she wanted to reenter the equine industry and worked for a veterinarian as an equine vet technician. She then worked at a client’s barn as an assistant trainer for a little over a year.

Dorsey’s least favorite courses in college were nutrition and reproduction, but she found herself working at DeGraff Stables in reproduction. During her three years there, she received training from Equine Reproduction Services. After becoming engaged, Dorsey moved to Orlando, Florida, to work at High Life Stables as the breeding and quarantine manager. She then worked at the Equine Reproduction Services headquarters as the stallion manager in Ocala.

While pursuing the opportunity for continued education, Dorsey was brought on as an instructor at Miami of Ohio where she taught over 300 students and ran the IHSA program for three years. Her experience brought her to Auburn University as the NCAA western coach for the Auburn Equestrian team where she coached for seven years. After having her son, Dorsey stepped down from the NCAA coaching position to be the barn manager for Auburn and start the Auburn IHSA team. In 2019, Dorsey helped bridge the gap between Animal Sciences and Athletics at Auburn. Her relationship with the Department of Animal Sciences and experience with Athletics allows students to participate in hands-on learning and work experiences at the Auburn Equestrian Center.

Jessica Brown

Jessica Brown started riding sale horses and lesson horses as well as showing all around Quarter Horses. She attended William Woods for Pre-Vet but decided to go another route to enter the industry. In college, Brown rode in a wide range of disciplines and showed the school’s horses at different shows across the country. Through this program, she met equine industry leaders and obtained internships in the process.

After graduating, Brown wanted to work in reproduction, or theriogenology. She gained experience with cutting and reining horses in Texas and took Colorado State University’s short courses in reproduction. Brown moved more into veterinary technician work doing minor surgeries, reproduction and taking sales x-rays. Additionally, she worked seasonally with yearlings in Kentucky, working cattle in Virginia and as a groom.

Brown became the English Barn Manager at University of Findley for a year. She then worked in barn management and instruction at Savannah College of Art and Design for three years. During this time, she obtained her Masters in Equine Education.

After going home to help with family medical care, Brown came to Auburn as the Coordinator of Equine Research and Instruction at the Auburn University College of Veterinary Medicine. She manages all the horses owned by the school an teaches labs to veterinary students. She is now also working on an Ag Science Education PhD.

Takeaways

Dorsey and Brown attribute their work in the equine industry to connections and networking. “Talk to people everywhere you go,” Brown said. Getting your foot in the door through internships early in your educational career is also beneficial to starting in the industry. “Every job that I had, I got from connections that I made along the way,” Dorsey said.

Building your resume with different experiences and short courses is helpful in building your career with horses. Education is great to have but, “in the horse world, it’s more about what you’ve done than what you know,” Brown said.