Yvette Casdorph
Dressage Instructor

Yvette grew up in the South Hills of Pittsburgh PA, and spent her teenage years riding her pony Fireball around South Park. She and Fireball loved competing in barrel racing, equitation and hunter classes at the South Park Fairgrounds. While in high school, Yvette bought and trained a several horses- her first project horse was a 6 month old quarter horse, followed by off the track thoroughbreds, a Saddlebred, grade horses and horses from the summer camp that spent the winter in South Park. She loved discovering the differences in equine personality and movement, and would ride any horse she could get permission to! Yvette and her mentor, Carla, also taught Girl Scouts about horses and helped them to earn their Horsemanship badges.

Yvette attended Lake Erie College as an Equestrian Teacher/Trainer, but felt that Therapeutic Riding was her calling. She transferred to Slippery Rock and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Recreational Therapy, then attended Cheff Center for the Handicapped to earn her Therapeutic Riding Instructor Certificate. Her career began in Massachusetts as a Recreational Therapist while working part time at Ironstone Farm as a licensed/certified Riding Instructor. Soon after, she purchased a small farm in New Hampshire, left the position as a Recreational Therapist, began a job as a paraprofessional working with a student with autism, implemented Educational Recreation Therapy program, and began to teach riding from her own stable. Yvette’s love of dressage was discovered at this point, when she took a dressage lesson with her friend’s trainer, Sibley Hannigan. After watching her friend demonstrate her ability to turn her gangly warmblood into a beautiful dancing partner, Yvette was hooked on dressage!

The dressage foundations taught her so much more about using her seat, maintaining balance, and developing coordination, as well as how important it is to listen to the horse, provide structure and ask, give, and use proper timing to help the horse become a graceful dance partner, with the strength and coordination to carry themselves through the precise figures required in dressage.

Yvette knows that riders never stop learning, and wants to share her skills and knowledge with others, and teach them how to help their horses become strong, graceful athletes. Incorporating dressage into any horse’s training can help them live longer, sounder lives! Yvette currently works with Lisa Hall of Full Circle Stables in Ligonier, PA and Jacklyn Ely of Ely Equine while pursuing USDF Certification in Training through Second Level Dressage. In addition to learning about teaching classical dressage, she maintains her Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructor status through PATH International.

Both of Yvette’s horses are Andalusians- she and Xiberoa (Zibby) will be showing at Second Level at the Mountaineer Flight and Three Rivers Equestrian Association Dressage USDF shows. Xatia (Leia) may be making her show ring debut at the J.W. Ruby Research Farm in Reedsville this summer as well!

Yvette looks forward to meeting and working with like-minded horsemen and women, who are excited to broaden their training and skill set!