Our Services
Moose Ridge Farm offers private Dressage Lessons using clicker training, trailer in your horse or take a lesson on one of ours. We also offer Family Dog Training at the farm. Alexandra is available for custom clinics, and offers enriching seasonal programs for kids and families both on our farm and yours. From Dressage Lessons to Clicker Training Dogs to pioneer camp, nature-inspired art, and community events, we bring creativity, connection, and fun to every experience.
Located in beautiful Midcoast Maine.
Moose Ridge Kids
Join us at Moose Ridge Farm in Lincolnville for joyful weeks of connection, creativity, and hands-on summer adventure for girls ages 9-12. Our unplugged day camp invites campers to explore life on the farm through craft, cooking, outdoor play, and time with horses in a safe, encouraging environment. Campers enjoy: Nature-inspired handwork & creative art projects, cooking and baking over the campfire, horse time and farm games, daily rhythms that spark imagination, confidence & community. Come dressed to play in bonnet, apron and dress or suspenders, pants and shirt. We welcome all kids to express themselves freely while exploring the land, animals, and games with each other.
Check out this photo gallery that features some of the range of activities each week will highlight for the girls.
Dressage Lessons
Our lessons emphasize classical dressage fundamentals, focusing on correct rider position and the effective use of aids to communicate with the horse. Students learn to ride thoughtful dressage exercises through arena figures and movements such as leg yield, shoulder-in, and haunches-in, transitions within gaits all while developing an understanding of balance, flexibility, and the training scale.
We use clicker training to enhance connection and learning with the horses on the ground with games, liberty work and under saddle to mark desired movements. Positive Reinforcement training encourages a thinking responding horse rather than a reactive horse that moves our of fear, Rt training is science based training that has incredible benefits for riders and their mounts. Alexandra has been clicker training with horses since 2003 with her own horses and in her lesson program.
We also offer Liberty Lessons & Lunge Lessons, which allow riders to deepen their body awareness and their energy levels to better que and respond to the horses energy levels to create a positive learning environment where horses respond to the cues rather than react to cues. Our goal is to keep the horses below threshold and calm. Also by observing our horse we zone into to using body language, breath, and energy to communicate clearly and calmly from the ground.
Whether in the saddle, at Liberty or on the lunge line, every lesson is designed to build connection, confidence, and skill.
Dog Training
Clicker Training for Dogs at Moose Ridge Farm Dog classes are geared towards family-friendly dog training (kids are invited to help train their dog) which helps you and your dog build trust through obedience/manners and agility games with clear communication through positive reinforcement.
Learn how to use the clicker as a bridge for understanding, shaping behavior with kindness, and strengthening your bond one session at a time.
The 6 week course is designed to have 2 components - we spend the first half learning manners and then use those new skills for movement with agility obstacles. Classes are set up to keep dogs seperated and structured play time is available at the end should you and your dog wish. Dog classes are a unique experience at the farm as we train in the indoor arena, in the barn aisle, around the farm pond and in the backyard, with these different spaces we can practice training in a real-life setting.
In addition to group classes at the farm, Alexandra is also available for private sessions at the farm or in your home for one-on-one training $75.00.
Classes will have different themes, different ages or dog sizes may apply.
View UPCOMING EVENTS below for Dog Classes.
Clicker Training Horses & Dogs *
Clicker Training Horses & Dogs *
Spending time with a horse is always rewarding, and incorporating positive reward based clicker training adds a whole new level of connection, communication, and play to both groundwork and riding. As a dedicated Dressage instructor, Alexandra Mackenzie Doan has found clicker training to be a powerful tool for pinpointing key moments of balance, movement, and responsiveness—allowing her to mark the exact instant a horse offers the desired response with a clear "Yes, that’s it!"
This instant feedback not only builds understanding and trust but also sharpens the rider and horses timing and feel.
Alexandra is passionate about this method and is excited to share its benefits with others.
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The click marks a desired behavior : a behavior that you have asked for or one that you observe. It says to the horse, "yes, that's what I want!" It teaches the horse to listen and to try and this builds the horses self confidence and confidence in you as their leader. Clicking ground games such as targeting make it very clear to the horse what you want, ie : the horse to touch an arena letter with their muzzle or their hoof on a mat. The clicker work under saddle helps the rider realize and feel the perfect moment of a transition or a leg yield, shoulder in, etc. We use clicks to develop movements as well.
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Mmmmm it’s like a chocolate truffle, its a "thank you, you did a good job", the treat makes the click worth the efforts. The treat is given in a very specific way to encourage balance (on the ground) or flexibility (under saddle) to the horse. Treats are never given away, they are earned and horses are taught to respect the treat giver. Treats give the horse a moment to process information. Finding your horses favorite treat will make the training fun!
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Not only is the treat a physical reward but also it is a lesson in itself. The reward is learning how to creatively work with your horse, to bond deeper with your horse, to play, to get work accomplished, to become a better rider, to listen to your horse more carefully, to communicate and have an equine partner interested in listening, learning and trying.
Riding is not easy, it takes patience, skill and practice practice practice - why not have fun while doing what you love best - working with a horse!
Join us for a TWO DAY CLINIC designed to introduce and deepen your understanding of clicker training in dressage. Each morning begins with engaging discussions on horse behavior and the fundamentals of Alexandra’s Click, Treat, Reward system, including fun, hands-on games (without horses) to help you practice timing and technique. We’ll then move into groundwork, introducing horses to targeting, proper treat delivery, and interactive walking exercises. After a lunch break by the farm pond (please bring your own lunch), we’ll head into under-saddle sessions where you’ll learn to use the clicker to encourage softness, flexion, targeting, transitions, and dressage movements. Lessons are tailored to each rider’s needs and offered in small groups or private sessions. This clinic is ideal for both newcomers and those with experience in clicker training. You'll leave with practical tools, improved communication with your horse, and a fresh perspective on making dressage fun—one click at a time! Note: All horses must be up to date on vaccinations, and helmets are required while mounted.
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Have Alexandra come to YOUR FARM for a clicker clinic and inspire your students to try something new and FUN! We can tailor a clinic to match the needs of your horses and riders as her Click Treat Reward system is appropriate for all disciplines to improve deeper communication from working on the ground, at liberty, under saddle or over jumps. Alexandra is happy to work with and along side your trainer to design your perfect event. Lessons are tailored to each rider’s needs and offered in small groups or private sessions. Appropriate for newcomers and those with experience in clicker training. Your students and boarders will learn practical tools, gain improved communication with their horse, and a fresh perspective on working with their horse—one click at a time!
Some of the ways we make Dressage, Driving in Hand, Playing at Liberty, Trailer Loading (to name a few things we do) with our horses FUN...
Dressage clicker lessons under saddle focus on learning how to create and mark movements and transitions, with the sound of the clicker. Horses start to see the Dressage movements as a game and sometimes nicker in anticipation of the click and treat. The horse and rider build confidence in accomplishing the asked task.
Ground lessons - in-hand driving or lunging focus on using your rein aids to drive through cones or directing the horse to stand on a specific spot or walk over specific poles and patterns. We cue the horse to muzzle target arena letters, or the flag or any new objects that may present as “threatening” to change the way the horse views the object.
Playing with the horses at LIBERTY focuses on directing the horses solely through using your breath, your energy levels, your body language and then using the clicker to reward the horse for answering your requests. This encourages students to have an open and creative mind, work on observation skills to best influence the horse and all this makes the work fun for everyone!
We have a Reverse Round Pen, obstacles to climb over, cones to weave in and out of to name a few of things you may find in the arena to play with !!
Trailer Loading using the clicker focuses on building upon a horses natural curiosity to investigate its surroundings through pawing, smelling or touching parts of the trailer. The click rewards this curiosity and shows the horse that we are listening and allowing them time to be a horse and question the situation, in return defusing fears about the trailer and the loading and unloading process.
Other animals respond well to Clicker Training such as dogs learning obedience or agility, donkeys learning to pull a cart.
Clicker Training is not only a positive based training method but also is well studied by science and animal behaviorists all over the world. It works well for teaching as it creates a very calm learning environment.
COMMUNITY EVENTS
COMMUNITY EVENTS AT MOOSE RIDGE FARM in Midcoast Maine celebrate connection, creativity, and the seasons. Join us for Clicker Clinics, Clinics with other horse enthusiasts, Art Nights, Horsie Movie Nights, winter bonfires, and movement-based gatherings in our indoor arena. We also love supporting local traditions like the UCC’s Annual Strawberry Festival — there’s always something special happening on the farm! Have an idea for a workshop or need to rent the indoor ring? Please reach out — we’d love to collaborate.
Want to stay in the loop? Sign up for the Moose Ridge Farm email list to get updates on upcoming events, seasonal series, and special gatherings. From season to season, you’ll be the first to know when new opportunities open up to connect, create, and celebrate with our barn community.
Contact us
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