Anne Phinney, a fifth grade teacher at the Town of Webb School, has published her first book, Finding My Way to Moose River Farm: Living with Animals in the Adirondacks.

The book is a compilation of tales of the true-life experiences of living with a menagerie at her farm in the Rondaxe area of Old Forge.

Anne and her husband Rod share Moose River Farm with miniature donkeys Bing and Frankie; goats Lily, Liam and Lacy; four small dogs named Nina, Niles, Hayden, and Huxley; and housepet Fiona, a Vietnamese pot-bellied pig.

Anne Phinney and Rosemary

Also in the mix is former classroom pet Rosemary, a three-foot-long iguana that lost her tail when grabbed as she slipped behind a filing cabinet.

The Phinneys are perhaps best known for their horses and riding stables, with Anne providing riding lessons to a number of students.

Eleven horses live on the farm—nine owned by the Phinneys and two  boarded by other riders.

Among their horses is a grandson of Secretariat, Esau, that was acquired in Canada some years ago.

Anne used to compete in Dressage, a competitive equestrian sport defined by the International Equestrian Federation as the highest expression of horse training.

In participation of the sport, the horse and rider are expected to perform from memory a series of predetermined movements. 

Its fundamental purpose is to develop, through standardized progressive training methods, a horse’s natural athletic ability and willingness to perform, thereby maximizing its potential as a riding horse.

Dressage is occasionally referred to as horse ballet.

One of Anne’s riding students, Inlet resident Courtney Holt, is currently riding competitively at Hobart College.

Holt had performed in a View-sponsored equestrian event previously hosted at Moose River Farm the last two summers called Hoofbeats in the Adirondacks.

Anne grew up in suburban Philadelphia, on a small property not conducive to keeping horses.

“But I always had a burning passion for horses,” Anne said. “I don’t even know where it came from. I was addicted to them. From age 16, I was able to get my first horse and have had at least one ever since.”

“In college, I got to work for an Olympic show jumper, and loved working with that caliber of horse. I knew I had a future with horses.”

Anne said her book is written in the same vein as All Creatures Great and Small, and it is for readers of all ages.

“Finding My Way to Moose River Farm: Living with Animals in the Adirondacks” is scheduled to be released in mid-August. It will be available on-line and in-store at the Old Forge Hardware,  Adirondack Reader in Inlet, as well as the End of the Line Gift Shop at Raquette Lake Navigation.

The Phinneys will host a book release event at Moose River Farm on Saturday, August 24 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. where Anne will be available to sign copies of the book and folks can meet some of the book’s characters.

Also present will be the VanRipers, authors of the Adirondack Kids series of books; Nancy Best, author of Learning to Cook Adirondack; and Brendan O’Meara, author of Six Weeks in Saratoga, the story of Preakness-winning race horse, Rachel Alexandra.

Another book signing event has been scheduled for the Adirondack Reader on Saturday, August 31 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Excerpts from the book, videos and photos are accessible on Phinney’s blogspot: MooseRiverFarm.com.

Written by: Gina Greco on August 1, 2013.on August 8, 2013.