O’Grady

"Umm, rumor has it there are apples in here for good horses"

 

Mr. O’ Grady had a little exercise on Saturday, too.  I’m so impressed with how well he is doing and how far he’s come since my daughter took him in.  Grady is a big guy, at least 18 hands or maybe more; we’ve never taken a measurement.  He is one of the sweetest horses we’ve ever met, with a heart as big as he is.

He does have shivers but with the proper care and maintenance he’s doing very well.  After letting his feet grow naturally and some corrective shoeing he travels much better than when we got him.  My daughter has also done extensive work on retraining him.  When Grady first arrived here he was very nervous, worried and stiff to ride. Now he’s as easy going, relaxed and goofy as the rest of the herd, and seems to enjoy his job for the first time, too.  I really like this wonderful horse. 

It just goes to show you that any horse who is given the time to trust you can become the horse he wants to be, not the horse he’s been told he is.

Until next time

Quote for Today

The horse through all its trials has preserved the sweetness of paradise in its blood.     - Johannes Jensen

A Great Day

"Dusty, she's making me work today"  "You're doing great Grady, it's fun, really, you'll see!"

The weather was just perfect Saturday (66F-19 C) sunny with unclouded blue skies and no wind.  The best type of weather for riding and working with the horses. 

Miss Dusty was once again a star at the mounting block.  I could get used to this!  We didn’t do much, some walk, trot and bending exercises.  She was excellent and listening to every cue.  The thing I like about her is I never really have to work hard at cues. With the slightest bit of leg, rein, body position or sometimes just thinking what I want she does it.  This reinforces, in my mind anyway, that all the slow work we did at the beginning of her training has had a good effect on her learning experience and attitude towards working. 

In the beginning of her training I thought we would never be done walking. With patience and persistence we took one step at a time and she progressed.  Dusty was never overwhelmed with something she couldn’t do.  If she didn’t understand or got stuck with an exercise I broke it down into smaller pieces and then put it together when she was ready. Dusty is the first horse I’ve trained this way.  Over the years there have been too many trainers and their way of thinking. In other words there were a lot of mistakes made training horses and me too. 

I’m comfortable now with taking as long as it takes to have a mutually satisfying relationship with a horse in training.  The slow approach has worked for us, as I’m sure it would with any horse.  Dusty is a wonderful horse and I’m lucky to have her as my riding partner.

Until next time

Quote for Today

You cannot train a horse with shouts and expect it to obey a whisper.
    - Dagobert D. Runes

Back In The Saddle Again

"Mr. Blue"

It’s been a while but we’ve had lots of things going on around here and this is the first time I’ve had a chance to sit down and write something.  I’m happy to report I’ve got my motivation back and have been riding Blue when I can.  Nate’s abscess returned so Dusty had been babysitting him in the smaller paddock.  He’s better now so she will soon be on the roster to be ridden.  The weather has been nothing short of miserable with high temps, rain and unbelievable humidity.  I’m not a hot weather person and can’t wait for autumn.  I also don’t feel I’m being fair to the horses to ride them in this humid weather.  They’re just as miserable as the rest of us only they’ve got flies and mosquitoes to deal with.  They seem to like hanging out in the sheds with the ceiling fans.  Amazing how many horses you can squeeze into a shed when the biting machines drive them inside. It reminds me of the clown car at the circus only it’s the “clown shed” at the farm. 

Blue and I are still working on him softening his neck.  He’s so tense and uncooperative I can only describe his neck as a “bull” neck, if that makes sense to anyone other than me.  As I’ve said before I’m trying to start him over so he will be more comfortable and willing to work and most importantly enjoy his job.  He seems to understand what I want more often now. He’s tracking up and not tensing his neck as much.  We’re still working in large circles.  When he refuses and starts to pop his shoulder to the inside and angle his neck the opposite way of what I want I slowly turn him in that direction so I don’t throw him off balance with a quick maneuver.  With this tactic he doesn’t get to win because of an evasion on his part. Blue can be a bit of a bully and at times a clash of wills ensues. When this happens the main thing is for me to remain calm and focused and show him that it’s not a travesty of injustice to do what you’re asked.  There’s no heavy lifting involved and it’s a lot easier if you just go with the flow and don’t try to outsmart me things will turn out for the best.  Although, to be perfectly honest, he does outsmart me occasionally, then it’s up to me to realize when it has happened and help show him the error of his ways with a gentle guiding rein.

So that’s life around here for now.  Summer seems to bring out the laid back- not in a hurry sort of mentality.  Maybe my brain is melting but there’s not much to do but get through each day and hope for a breeze and cooler temperatures.  Did I mention I ‘m not much of a summer person?

 Until next time

Quote for Today

Correction does much for the horse, but encouragement does more.

Not Quite A Book Review

 

" Grady "

During my down time from riding I’ve been reading some horse related books.  Recently, I finished a book that I thought might help with Donnie’s problems.  It’s called  “Empowered Horses” by Imke Spilker.  The description of the book states, “Learning Their Way through Independence, Self-Confidence, and Creative Play.”

The basic idea behind this book is to discover your horse’s independence in a “human's world” by becoming more passive, receptive, and accepting, giving your horse the physical and emotional space to take an unbelievably active role in your interaction in both work and play. To support the horse with exercises and develop games that will collect and balance his body as if by magic.  How with these interactions the horse will enthusiastically work with you inviting you along for the ride of your life. (This is basically copied from the back cover of the book)

I found there were some good insights to be found in this book.  One being that horses never get to choose what they want to do but are constantly told what they must to do. They are never given the free choice to refuse. Also, if we want willing partners, we have to empower them by giving them the choice to work with us.  There is some little bit of agreement on my part with this basic statement.  However, as I read more and more I couldn’t see myself going along with all the games played with the horses in the book.  One segment has the girl and a horse running up and down hills playing together with a collar attached around his neck and a lead.  Other games included running around the arena with the horse being free.  That’s just not in the cards for me, although it seemed to work for them. The book makes it clear that you can devise your own games of play to make it fun for the horse.  It’s all about thinking of ways to be receptive to your horse.

Some other things also struck me as not-so-doable.  Sure, I'd love to empower Dusty with all kinds of free choice, but she's already an opinionated mare, and I'm well aware of how she feels about most things.  If I followed this book's advice, walked into the field to put Dusty’s halter on and she turned away then she’s telling me no she doesn’t want to come and work or play with me.  If I subscribed to this theory, she’d never have to do anything she didn’t want to.  The principle behind all the playing and games is to empower the horse and make the horse want to be with you and interact with you all the time.  If you ask for something and they say no, then it’s their choice and you should respect it.  

I may have interpreted the book wrong, but as I read it I was picturing all of our horses and their distinct personalities, most of the time thinking what would work for some and not for others.  I came to the conclusion that Dusty would more than likely take advantage of the situation and tell me to take my halter and take a hike if given the choice--but maybe I'm not giving her enough credit?  The boys might be more receptive to some of the concepts and games, but not all.  A lot of times when they come up to me in the field or follow after me in the arena it's because they think I have treats in my pockets.  I believe the horses they worked with in the book were much younger than my herd and probably more open to suggestions.  My herd has mostly been there, done that and know when they can take advantage of a situation.

There were movements on teaching the horse to balance and be aware of their bodies.  It would take too long to go into it all here and the pictures do better justice to the techniques than I could write down.  A picture is worth a thousand words. Most were done from the ground but it also covered how they would introduce them to a saddle and rider.  Some of the time the riders in the book would jump on bareback with no bridle and walk and trot around the ring.  Again, that’s not in the cards for me right now--or probably ever. 

So in conclusion my thoughts on being with and training horses would basically come down to the theory that there is a balance to be had between not domineering, manhandling and downright abusing a horse and still getting respect from them and attaining training goals.  If everything is left up to the whim of the horse, it can be a recipe for disaster or just a plain waste of time.  The book’s basic principle is good if not taken to extremes.   And if taken the wrong way her ideas could be dangerous.  In my inexpert opinion, it’s not a complete training philosophy, but a good idea to keep in the back of your mind when dealing with your horses: they're involuntary partners who didn't sign up for this, so try to be patient, give them as much choice as possible within reason (i.e., listen to them when there is resistance to see if there is a LEGITIMATE cause) and make it fun.  But it shouldn't be a free-for-all either, so don't mistake this for a true training philosophy or a way of life.   Be mindful if this is all you do all day your horse will be out of control and you might get yourself killed.  Not to mention you will basically have a big pet on your hands.  It’s nice if we all have warm fuzzy feelings about our horses, but if that's what we want, maybe we should have house cats and not 1000lb+ animals.

Partnerships with horses demand MUTUAL trust, but also respect. Training, by nature, requires one party to do the asking and the other to do the answering.  To be clear, it's the human who is training the horse, not vice versa.   Asking correctly is what being a good horseman is about.   The horse shouldn’t be allowed to give you the finger and walk away any time he chooses.  That to me isn't empowering horses, that's disempowering humans.  For the short time he's asked to do his job, in exchange for his room and board, it's not too much to expect that they meet us half way.  Many horses may have been demeaned by humans in the past and will continue to be demeaned by humans in the future, but it doesn't mean we have to demean ourselves to be better horsemen.  We can still be good horsemen without making ourselves ridiculous in the process.  Prancing around fields Julie Andrews-style (cue the “Sound of Music”) with our horses and calling it "training" isn't empowering to either species--it's embarrassing.

While this isn’t a book review if you are at all interested in something covering these principles of training and interacting with your horse you might be interested in checking it out.  The book has wonderful pictures showing how it helped the horses they worked with and their methods.  The author and assistants worked long and hard on this book for years.  I’m sure I’m over-simplifying what the book actually wants the readers to grasp to better understand their horses.  When I started this post I felt like I was back in high school writing a book report.  You know when you really have to condense a whole book into a few thoughts.  What are you’re thoughts on this sort of training for horses?

Until next time

Quote for Today

Closeness, friendship, affection: keeping your own horse means all these things.     - Bertrand Leclair

Always An Adventure

"And that's a wrap"

"I am so out of here"

"Don't bother looking for me tonight, I'll be staying out with the boys!"

Yes, sorry, it’s another installment in the long series of riding adventures with Dusty.  I’ll preface this by saying that she hasn’t been ridden for almost two weeks due to obligations and life in general.  Our herd has also refused to come up at dinnertime to be taken into the barn and fed.  I’m attributing this to the cooler weather and decline in the fly population.  In my opinion, the herd now thinks they are feral.  Thank goodness there is always hay in the hay nets on the fence just in case foraging at night becomes too much of an inconvenience.  Then, too, there are three run in sheds for shelter.  Truthfully, I don’t care if they stay out all the time; it’s a lot less clean up in the stalls. 

On to Dusty...  After she was groomed and tacked we headed to the indoor.  I had planned to take her on a small trail ride, but we had intermittent drizzle and rain.  We usually take a hand walk around the perimeter to fill in the holes that the foxes have been digging in their never-ending search for mice and critters.  There was a mound by the wall, which is out of character for them.  Since I had Dusty, I called my daughter over to investigate.  When she kicked it with her foot she unearthed half of a deer leg.  So that explains all the coyote yowling the last week.  I’m sure they killed a deer and the foxes stole part of it.  How nice for them that we use a salt compound in the arena to keep the dust down; now the leg would be cured and keep forever.  Not!  We disposed of it.

On to Dusty and the mounting block...  I could tell by the way she was acting from the start this wasn’t going to be an easy day, and unfortunately I was right.  After positioning her, I managed the second step before she deliberately swung her butt out and gave me the "make me do it" look.  Okay, I was ready for that.  I attached the longe to her halter and she did some longeing at the trot to the left.  Let’s try it again, Dusty mare.  To which she replied, “I don’t think so,” and swung her butt away from the block again.  Back to trotting on the longe to the right for a while and see if the second time’s the charm.  It was, and I got on.  She actually stood for me until I cued the walk.  I’m well aware that she hasn’t forgotten what she’s learned about mounting, but she chooses to challenge me when she feels like she can. 

I was immediately treated to some head flipping and her trying to pull the reins from my hands.   This was unacceptable, so, with a gentle inside flexion, using the inside indirect rein behind the wither for the bend, I fixed my outside hand directly back to my hip, elbow at my side in a direct rein of opposition, and just closed my fingers.  If she wanted to pull then she would be pulling against herself and when she accepted that and realized if she didn’t pull, things were more comfortable for her.  Being the smart mare she is she stopped challenging after a while at the walk. 

We worked on what I described in my Establish Success post, and then proceeded to trot when I thought she was willing to behave.  We had some moments where we needed to half halt to slow down, but all in all once she decided to cooperate it wasn’t that bad a ride. 

I’ve never ridden a horse in all my years like her.  She is smart with an attitude and when she sets her mind to not behave it is a true test of wills.  Instead of getting angry or frustrated I’ve found it best to adopt the attitude of being patient, insistent and consistent when dealing with her moods.  She's opinionated and not a horse you can dictate to or pick a fight with; you definitely have to set her up with a right and a wrong choice, and let her get to a place where the right choice was HER idea.  It takes time, and patience, trial and error.  But, we're figuring it out... slowly.  Maybe someday she will realize it can be fun for both of us if she’ll just give in a little.

Until next time

Quote for Today

Every time you ride, your either teaching or un-teaching your horse.     - Gordon Wright

Establish Success

This week while riding Dusty I had an epiphany of sorts.  When cueing Dusty into the trot she needs no more than a feather light touch of my calf and she surges forward.  Her pace is just a little bit too forward, and I then have to half-halt and slow her down to where I want her.

It occurred to me that it might almost seem like a punishment to her when I slow her down.  I mean, here I am asking for the trot and she gives it to me.  In the next second, I take it all back and make her slow down.  She may be confused by this conflicting set of cues.  Or she just thinks I’m crazy and don’t know what I want.

So after discussing this with my trainer/daughter, we both agreed it would be best for Dusty and myself to set her up for success.  By this I mean that, while walking, I get the positioning and pace I think will make it easier for her to succeed, and only ask for the trot transition in a situation where she is balanced and positioned in such a way that she is not likely to blast off in the first place. 

We do this on a circle, starting at around 20 meters.  Once she was relaxed and paying attention, we’d walk a smaller circle about ¼ of this in just one corner of the arena, and ask for the trot just as we were heading into the corner from the center of the arena, so there was plenty of rail and corner for support.  Dusty wasn’t asked for the trot until we were all satisfied that she wouldn’t shoot off like a rocket.  You can feel when the time is right to ask just by the softness felt through the reins and the swing through the back.  

If the transition went smoothly and the trot was quiet and soft, we continued through the turn and trotted on the 20 meter circle.  If the trot was speedy or resistant, we stayed on the ¼ arena corner circle until it was under control, came back to walk and started over.

With just a few tries, I did get a consistently nice transition and pace and an even nicer halt this way.  We repeated the whole process in the other direction with the same result.

We’ve decided to keep working with Dusty this way until she realizes that the trot doesn’t have to be at Mach 10 all the time.  If we make it easy for her to succeed when she does it right I’m sure she’ll pick up on it quickly, she’s a smart girl.

I think it’s a good training concept to set all the horses up to succeed and make them feel good about their jobs.  Who wouldn’t feel good about getting it right instead of wrong most of the time?  It’s a good way to instill confidence in a horse and in humans for that matter.  We all need to feel good about ourselves and in turn it will make us happier with what we do.

Postscript:  We worked on this today again and even though it’s been five days between rides she did wonderfully.  I set her up with the walking circle and it took less than half the time as a few days ago.  We trotted at a leisurely pace in both directions without a misstep or change of pace.  The halt was square and right on the money.  We kept it short, gave her lots of praise and treats when we got back to the barn. 

I’m very proud of her. It seems as if she might be saying something like “If you just tell me what you want in a clear and concise manner, then I’d be happy to oblige.”   At least that’s what I hope she’s thinking, but with Dusty you just never know.

Until next time

Quote for Today

A horse is an animal not a machine and is only as good as it's rider.

Adventures with Blue

Blue

Blue and I have been getting reacquainted with our mutual riding goals this weekend.  To be explicit about our joint goals: I will be taking an active role in riding and honing Blue’s skills, and Blue’s goals are to be outside eating as much grass as he can fit through his grazing muzzle and doing his best to ignore anything I ask for. It could be that we are at odds in our specific goals. Although he is better trained than Dusty, he’s not an easy ride.  To begin with, he is out of shape so we can’t do much but walk and trot right now.  Which is fine with me until we become more attuned to each other.  Blue doesn’t know my particular way of asking for specific things just yet.  Even though riding cues are basically the same, I believe everyone has their own way of cueing.  I may use different pressure with my legs or with the reins, my balance may be slightly different; I’m much shorter than my daughter who was Blue’s main rider when she had free time, so we’ll have to become accustomed to one another.

We had a good weekend but, as I said, we didn’t move past basic walking exercises with some trot work and cavelletti.  Blue is very smart, which I find most paints are.  He also has a stubborn streak with some laziness thrown in for good measure. Blue is also an individual who likes to do things his way on his terms; he’s the sort of horse who likes to throw some monkey wrenches in the works for his own amusement. This could mean anything from not steering to curling up when you take a little contact.  One of his favorite tricks is to stretch down as far as he can doing an imitation of a snowplow just to see how far he can go to try and make you hold him up.  This is a game he can’t win with me.  When he pulls this evasion I generally give him enough rein to hang himself and cue him forward.  He’s not a fan of holding himself in this position and so he will pick his head up and trot correctly for a while. He reminds me of how it was to ride my horse Erik; as a youngster he would love to hang his head and travel on the forehand with me holding him up.  We finally moved past that particular quirk as I’m sure Blue and I will.

We started our day with a thorough grooming (and with a very indignant Blue giving me the  “stink eye”-- he couldn’t believe he was working two days in a row, I guess.)  Sunday was an interesting ride since we had a major rainstorm with the rain hammering the metal roof on the indoor.  I’m not sure Blue has ever heard a racket like this—at least, he acted like he never has.  After a few turns around the arena with him calling to his friends (who flat-left him for greener pastures) he got down to work.  Color me surprised when my usually bombproof Blue spooked by an open window for no reason, followed by a bigger spook sideways by the mounting block, with a small buck thrown in for a little excitement.  I’m amazed that I kept my seat.  I suppose there is some muscle memory left over from years of riding Erik, who was the fastest spook in the East and who was startled on a regular basis by almost everything within sight.  Luckily, Blue got over himself quickly.

Dusty continues to improve and her legs look better each day.  We still have a long way to go but hopefully she’ll be okay in a few months.  To her dismay, she’s sporting a grazing muzzle too.

Until next time

Quote for Today
There are only two emotions that belong in the saddle; one is a sense of humor and the other is patience.

Getting to “Ouch”

The Two-Point Position

 This past weekend it finally hit home that I’m not quite as balanced and fit as I should be.  It is very easy for me to believe that I am riding correctly because Dusty has such smooth even gaits there is no effort required to walk or post the trot.  I’ve never had a horse that was as comfortable as her and I have definitely gotten lazy about my leg strength, my core and my balance. Also, by simply riding Blue at a walk and trot it was easy to see that a horse with a stronger trot requires more leg and core strength, plus balance.  For riders to be secure and safe in the saddle these are the three absolutes that we can’t be without.

I came to these realizations during my ride on Dusty.  After some lovely trot work where she is really “getting it”, we started some shoulder – in exercises up the long side to start helping with her straightness issues. I wasn’t being particularly effective for more than a few strides here and there and so I had the proverbial light bulb moment: I had better stop the excuses about not being able to ride more than a few times a week and get on the ball. Not being effective while riding just isn’t going to get the job done for Dusty, Blue or me.

So, you may ask, what are you doing about getting back to your former skill level when you rode a few horses a day?  The answer isn’t easy or one I particularly wanted to hear.  From this point on I will be living in a two-point position because I feel this is the best single exercise to help you develop a secure, correct leg.  I don’t mean my patented lazy two-point either, where I would stand in the stirrups and ride around with a grin on my face looking for all the world like I had the perfect position in life.  No, I will be practicing the two-point correctly.

So to remind myself how to do this properly here is my mantra on two-point: Leg stability and position comes from balance - not from isolated gripping or pressure.  I’m guilty of gripping with just my knee at times but I’ve learned that gripping with any one part of your leg on the saddle rather than distributing the pressure between thigh, knee and calf will impair your position.

By dropping my leg gently around Dusty’s barrel I will allow my weight to sink through my knee, thigh and calf into my heel. By balancing with my knee and inner thigh and to do a good two-point position, you need to close your angles, so shortening stirrup leathers is usually a good place to start if you’re used to riding in a more “dressage-y” position.  Then I always have to remind myself that my knee needs to come forward and down, lower leg back to where my ankle is under my hip and my upper body can incline slightly forward.  All of this is done while resting the ball of my foot in my stirrups and allowing the weight to drop into my heel, rather than balancing on my stirrups or forcing my heel down, which pushes the leg forward and the seat back.  If I can work on this my leg should have the stability it needs in a few weeks time.

And let’s not forget the “look ma, no hands” aspect of a good two-point either.  By this I mean no pressing into the neck for balance (although it’s okay to grab mane if needed.)  I needed mane a few times; Dusty is built with a flat topline and I’m used to horses with a more upright neck.  This has been one of the hardest adjustments to get used to with her conformation.  It seems there is nothing in front of me but air.  

I did this exercise over the weekend and I can say that my inner thighs are a little ouchy. For some reason I find practicing this at the walk much harder than at the trot or canter. This position also helps get your abdomen or “core” in better shape.

Secondly, I am taking my stirrups away (though not while doing the two-point…yet.)  There will be no more relying on the stirrups to balance my position. I also tried this over the weekend and again “ouch.”  But really, it is one of the only ways to truly get a balanced seat.  It involves holding your leg in the position you would normally have with your stirrups and maintaining the correct position with inner thigh, knee and upper calf while sustaining a light seat.  It’s not as easy as it sounds and can be amusing to onlookers while my saddle is still in its non-broken-in slippery stage.  When done correctly after a while your seat will be balanced and you will feel more secure and safe. And that’s what I’m striving for …secure and safe.

Until next time

Quote for Today

Most persons do not ride; they are conveyed. 
    - M.F. McTaggart

Adjusting A Speedy Horse

Adjusting a speedy horse sounds like it should be an easy enough task.  Not so with Dusty.  Don’t get me wrong, I love finally having a horse with a good forward motion, but sometimes she can take it too far.  Most of the horses I’ve dealt with had to be pushed along to achieve any pace at all, so it is refreshing to ride a horse that wants to go.  And go she does.  Even at the walk her speed is Mach 10.  We rode with Grady again and she overtook him at the walk.  He wasn’t very happy about that so he upped the ante.  She passed him again with a little head tossing thrown in to show him who’s the leader. If I ever do decide to go to a show (very doubtful at this point) Dusty’s the girl for the job.  Her competitiveness would certainly shift into higher gear.

In the meantime though, I’ve got to work with her to teach her how to adjust her speed before we go onto more complicated tasks.  A horse without adjustable speed could be dangerous under certain circumstances.  I should add here that Dusty’s speediness is not due to any physical problems, poor saddle fit or teeth issues.  She’s simply a horse that likes to work and is always on a mission, mostly to show me how it’s done.  She doesn’t necessarily know where she’s going, but she’s making good time ;-). For now we’ve been walking, trotting, working on bending and balance.  On our last ride I decided to take her over some cavelletti at the walk, but no trotting yet because I didn’t want to get her over-excited and quick.   That’s where the speed-control issue comes in.

I set up four cavelletti in a row in the center of the arena.  Then we would trot down the long side, ride the corner and the turn up the centerline in a nice bending balance, get straight to the cavaletti, come back to walk and then walk the cavelletti. 

Her first time through she was not paying attention, causing her to bang her foot, though after that she walked through them carefully and did not touch another rail.  Then we would walk to the end of the arena in a consistent gait and alternate left or right turns then trot out of the corner down the long side again.  When she picked up speed I gave a slight half halt and slowed my posting. I feel taking her through the cavelletti gives her a focus and helps teach her to slow down a tad and be careful where she’s putting her feet.

We’ll keep doing this and rearranging the cavelletti into different patterns for a while until she decides it would be a good idea to listen to my cues.  Eventually, we’ll move on to trotting the entire exercise and continue working on maintaining and adjusting her speed with different exercises as she masters each one.

Dusty does think she’s smarter than me—and maybe she is—but since I’m the one with the license doing the driving, she needs to pay attention since she’s only got a Learners Permit at the moment.

Until next time

Quote for Today
Just knowing we have both learned something when I have finished riding is enough for me!

And So It Begins

" Dusty"

The New Year is officially here and it’s time to reevaluate my riding goals.  I long ago let personal goals drop by the wayside simply because I never follow through with them.  Riding goals are a different story, that’s something I can work on with some moderate success.  This year I’ve decided to make it simple, nothing specific to write down or remember, the simpler the goals the easier to keep.  My goal for this year is to work with Dusty and Blue and bring them along slowly and correctly and allow them reach their full potential at this time. 

While this may seem a minimal goal I feel it’s easier to not box myself in with precise movements to be learned or specific dates to have them achieved by.  My feeling is that if you work with the horse you have on any given day you can ascertain what’s needed and proceed from there. So even though it seems an undemanding goal it will still take lots of learning on our parts, the horses and mine. One day at a time, one lesson at a time and hopefully one good experience at a time to develop steps on the ladder of knowledge.

***************************************************************************

New Year’s Day Ride

There is an old saying/superstition that goes, “whatever you do on New Year’s Day you will do all year long”.  If this is actually true I’m happy to report that Dusty and I had our first ride of the year on Jan. 1, 2011.  However, I’m not thrilled to report that it was dreadful. 

It all started out in the barn with our neighbor’s teenagers tearing up and down their cornfield on snowmobiles.  The racket from the machines was noisy and the extra need to rev the engines was unnecessary, unless you’re a teenage boy of course.  Dusty was dancing around in the aisle on the cross-ties head up, eyes wild with her heart pounding.  Once we got to the arena she was still agitated, so I did something I rarely do, I lunged her for a short time at the trot before I put my foot in the stirrup.

My ride was interesting if nothing else.  Dusty never really calmed down completely but we managed to get a few things accomplished.  After a while we were able to achieve one or two very nice slow paced trot circles in each direction.  During one of these stellar moments Dusty decided to pick up a canter.  Right lead, nice controlled pace so even though it wasn’t asked for I let her go with it.

By the end of the lesson she was still a bit agitated so we cooled down by walking on a long rein.

Even though she was nervous we never progressed to a dangerous situation and we ended up having a decent ride with a wonderful canter thrown in for the New Year.  So thank you Dusty I’m sure many good rides will come our way in 2011!

Until next time

Quote for Today

Even the greenest horse has something to teach the wisest rider.

Today's Ride

I finally managed to get some saddle time today and it felt good to be on the back of my horse again.  For reasons known only to Dusty today she had a rocket up her butt.  In all fairness, the weather was cold and she hadn’t been ridden in two weeks so I was willing to overlook a little misplaced enthusiasm on her part.  

We started out trying to walk around calmly to warm up but she kept thinking it was a good idea to break into a trot.  After a while we had a discussion and she decided walking wasn’t that hard after all. I know Dusty is a very bright mare so I was surprised to feel that she has forgotten everything she knew about bending and softening in a mere two weeks.  Needless to say we had to take a step back and revisit previous lessons until she remembered how smart she was and how far she has come from where she began.

After her epiphany we did some easy yet challenging work to keep her interested in her lesson.  First, walking over cavelletti in patterns to refine her steering just a tad followed by trotting over the cavelletti in figure eight patterns to keep her bending on a circle.  I should say that we’re not big fans of drilling a lesson; usually we don’t do it more than three times before we quit, whether she got it perfect or not.  My feeling is, as long as she is willing to go forward and try to do what I ask, we can refine the exercise at a later date.  Dusty considers cavelletti work great fun and so I’ve decided to include it as a training tool  regularly.

We ended on a good note by regulating her pace to a medium trot, bending and softening.  Today I used the turning seat. In order to do this I simply sat up correctly, weighted my inside seat bone slightly, looked to the center of the circle, positioned  my inside shoulder slightly behind my outside shoulder and followed her mouth with a light connection.  Dusty really picks up on things quickly and it  worked like a charm. 

It always astonishes me how the slightest little movement on my part can influence her movement.  This is why I don’t believe in any sort of harsh treatment of horses in their training.  I feel it’s simply not necessary to  overdo the aids to get what you want. This, of course, is just an opinion that I have come to over the years.  With proper training and a little understanding on the parts of both horse and rider, there really is nothing that cannot be accomplished.  I'm of the opinion that we make training  much harder than it has to be.  Simple, direct and kind aids are very understandable and amenable to the personality of most horses. 

Until next time

Quote for Today
Correction does much for the horse, but encouragement does more.

A New Training Aid

This weekend we added a new training aid to Dusty’s repertoire.  Because of her left-sided stiffness/crookedness, she needs to work on her positioning through softening and correct inside flexion.  We’ve been trying to achieve this with an opening rein alternating with an indirect rein behind the wither, a giving outside rein combined with some inside leg cues.  All worked for the most part on different circles sizes and at times spiraling in and out.  And while this is working to help keep her fresh and not boring her to death, something was still missing, so we decided to try something new.

Today we introduced her to seat aids.  Basically, it’s dropping more weight into one side of your butt or the other depending what direction you want to bend in.  No leg cues whatsoever except for creating forward motion.  Instead of using leg to help with flexion, sitting with more weight on the inside apparently causes a horse to naturally bend slightly in that direction.  That combined with the rein aids is enough to get a nice balanced bend.

It’s not as easy as it sounds, but once I got the hang of dropping my seat and resisting the urge to use my leg, I’ve got to say it worked like a charm.  Dusty relaxed, lengthened her topline and softened very nicely.  This only took maybe two times around the circle until she was a different horse.  The most amazing part is that she felt more upright and balanced through her turns.  She’s still crooked on her left side but she was really trying and she did get straighter and started to round up in her back a little.  That’s what we’re looking for, just a little try.  I should add that it was only necessary to drop the seat bones in the corners and not the entire way around; that would have been overkill and I’m sure she would have gotten annoyed eventually.  There has to be release and a lot of pats and praise, especially for a strong-willed girl like Dusty.

And so we had some very nice rides and, believe it or not, you can even steer a little bit with this method alone.  I took her over a few cavelletti’s in patterns at the walk and she did great. Then we moved onto trotting exercises over the poles for fun because she thinks she’s a hotshot jumper, no matter that the poles were on the ground!

Until next time
Quote for Today
There are many wonderful places in the world, but one of my favourite places is on the back of my horse.
    - Rolf Kopfle

Our Weekend Rides

 Getting to ride again after two weeks off was a nice experience for both Dusty and myself.  After the initial meet and greet and “where’s my treat?” we had a nice weekend together.  Our first ride was basically a return to softening and bending to reestablish what she already knows and make her feel good about herself.  Dusty’s winter coat is coming in and even though the weather was on the cool side she did work up a sweat after only twenty minutes or so.  We did a little trot in both directions, some figure eights, some lateral work at the walk and called it quits, ending on a good note for our first day.

Our second day was a little more interesting and we accomplished more than the previous day.  We worked all the same things from the day before, doing patterns at the trot etc.  It was also a day to work on my position. Although I know what I’m supposed to be doing I sometimes slip back into old habits. This is why it’s so helpful to have a knowledgeable person on the ground.  One of my bad habits is stiffening my arms and back and losing the bend at my elbow. I was trying not to let the reins get slack and loopy like a piece of spaghetti, but while following her mouth with my hands it was difficult to keep my arms from stiffening up.  The best fix for this is to loosen up by not having your thumbs turned up to the sky in a fisted hand but bent in at about a 45-degree angle with the reins held more gently. Once I changed my hand position it loosened my whole upper body and made following her head much easier.  Dusty has such a lot of movement with her head it’s very hard to not fix the rein to try and control her bobbing head. The whole idea is to follow the movement even if you feel like you’re whole body is moving too much. It didn’t take long to get back to the right way of going with a little practice.

After all of our basic fixes, hers and mine, we decided to try a canter in each direction.  I always like to start off with her worst direction, which is to the left.  We got the bend and I asked for the left lead, of course she got the wrong lead right off.  As we continued on for a few steps she popped up on the straight line and did a flying lead change, woo hoo!  Unfortunately, she was still cross cantering behind. This is really uncomfortable; I felt like a jack-in-the-box on a pogo stick and asked her to whoa, which she did immediately.  I was proud of her for stopping on cue; in the past she might have kept on going.  She still gets very excited at the canter but with more practice and balance I’m sure she’ll be fine.  The canter to the right started with a perfect step off and a nice pace. Dusty still has this little tea cup canter that she must have learned way back when she had western lessons before she was mine.  Someday she will have the longer ground-covering canter that I want but for now this is fine.  I remember when we started the trot exercises she had the little western jog trot and now she’s really tracking up and her paces are adjustable.  She’s come a long way and I’m proud of her for being such a willing and smart student.

All horses need time, time and more time to learn and adjust to the way of going that is correct for what you, the rider, want them to do for their particular discipline.  There’s no way around taking the time and having the patience to do it right.  She may never be perfect because of her conformation but at least she will be going as well as she can for her body type and her muscles will be developed correctly. We’ve already seen a lot of improvement in her muscles and have been surprised by how well she can now track up from behind into her front hoof prints; we didn’t think she had it in her, but this is what happens with a supple horse whose frame is relaxed and rounded and as it should be.

Until next time

Quote for Today 
Just knowing we have both learned something when I have finished riding is enough for me!