Showing posts with label training a horse. Show all posts
Showing posts with label training a horse. Show all posts

Horsemanship and Horse Training in the real world


Training with Reality


Most folks do not rely on their horse for their livelihood and therefore lack a perspective of what kind of quality partner they could have and would need if their life literally depended on their horse.


The picture I have included was taken from the time I spent on the north rim of the Grand Canyon. Besides the modern-day truck and trailer, much of the day-to-day life was just as it was 100 years ago, including staying in cabins with no water or electricity 40 miles from the closes paved road.

Jump Starting your Riding Season


Spring is here, now what?

For those who are not competition motivated, or who have to address “obvious” advancement with their horse, such as working with a baby and teaching them ground manners, I find often find pleasure horse owners reach a plateau with their equine partner, and often lack a direction, which in turn can create patternized routines and rides, lack of motivation, lace of mental presence from human towards their horse.

Up here in the pacific northwest, many horse owners are lucky enough to keep their horses at home, and have the opportunity to “just ride” whenever; though the ease of accessibility is awesome, it can often become a “lonely” experience without another equine enthusiast to share ideas, thoughts or experiences with.

Of course then there are sometimes the horror stories of folks trying to expand their equine associated friends, but large groups of all levels and mentalities in varies levels of dangerous scenarios can often turn someone off from participating in group gatherings.

So what can you do?  Here are a few ideas…

1.)           Every two weeks “add” one small new concept, idea, or thought to YOUR knowledge base regarding any equine related.  This can be read, watched, heard.  You don’t have to either “totally get it, understand it or want to use it.”  But it will be something new to think about.  It often can take a long time of “mulling something over” before you can have an opinion about it.

In this day and age media allows us a lot of opportunity to see, hear and read things we would have never had access to in the past.  Take advantage of it.  Even if you just sit back and watch all of the amateur horse lover videos on YouTube, audit a local competition or other horse related gathering.

2.)           Go take a lesson or audit a lesson.  Even the “top” horse people in the world take lessons or continue to expand their knowledge through learning from others.  Lessons often can be associated with “having a problem,” but really they may just be a way to get another person’s assessment of “where” you and your horse are at, with some ideas and suggestions for future improvement.  To get the “most” for your money, if you can find someone to video you (to film in close proximity to the instructor so you can hear what they are saying), you’ll be able to watch the video in the future, and some of the things you may have missed while riding, you might be able to address after watching yourself in the lesson and reminded of the instruction offered.

3.)           Find a riding buddy.  I don’t mean someone who you will brainlessly gossip with when you ride out on the trail, but rather someone with similar horse related interests who might share and/or motivate you.  There are always notice boards at the local feed store, and often online there are plenty of websites (horse and non horse related) where people can freely advertise or search for other people with the same similar interest.  It might take a little time, you may have some “misses” but eventually you’ll find at least one person who you can share you appreciation for the sport with. 

I was reminded yet again just a week ago, how clients who live quite far apart, but who met at one of my clinics a year ago, are still in touch and have on several occasions done horse activities together.

There are plenty more ideas but, these few can offer you an affordable jump start to your riding season.

Because I offer training by the week, I find many folks who come for a week or two as a “spring tune up” to get them and their horse on the “same page” in order to go home with some realistic and plausible future goals and ideas.

Good Luck,

Sam

 

Finding the “child within” when we work with our horse!

Spring is in the air, most riding enthusiasts are getting giddy with thoughts of relaxed (and warm) days spent with their equine partner.  Many riders who are “gung ho” to learn and improve their education, understanding and abilities can unknowingly have an “intense” energy as they are focusing with their horse.  And although we want to be mentally participative riders, we need to remind ourselves that the underlining issue should be that we are riding to have FUN.  I jokingly tell adult students to take the time to “act like a kid again” once in a while when they ride.   I am referring to the sometimes overly analytical, overly sensitive, overly intensive behavior many of us take on as adults when we focus.  This behavior tends to lack a positive and supportive leadership energy that conveys to our horse that we are really having “fun” even if we are “working”.  So the more tight and tense we get as we attempt to focus, the more the horse starts to wonder why and starts to associate a “stress” every time we put him to “work.”
On that note, perhaps the next time you’re sitting in traffic or have some time on your hands, you can assign you and your horse some games or tasks for your next ride that might be similar to what a child might suggest to do for “fun.”  Take Pico and me for example.  The other day I had intention to ride out into the orange groves, but of course “life happened” and by the time I got to him, I had very little time, it was already close to 90 degrees out and I couldn’t leave the property, sooo… 

As I looked around the riding area, I glanced at the plywood bridge we’d built; it occurred to me that although I could ask Pico to step with one, two, three or all four feet on the bridge, pause him stepping up, standing on or stepping down off of it, I’d never asked him to step up onto an object as he was BACKING.  (I gather most sensible adults wouldn’t either, but can imagine a few kids sitting around saying to one another, “I wonder if we just tried to see if I could get my horse to do ___________________ .”  And then proceeded, unhindered by all the unknown and what-ifs , so that in the end they were actually able to accomplish ______________ with their horse.

From a “mature” perspective, why on earth would I ask my horse to step up onto something while backing? How about if there was an emergency situation (out on the trail, etc.), or helping desensitize him to movement behind his vision and to being physically “touched” in his personal space, using it as an opportunity to continue to build trust, it also creates a “task” to accomplish while I refine my use of clear communication, etc.

As a side note, although I want to be “carefree” in offering this new task, I did not want to present the scenario as a challenge to Pico to “see” if he could get “it” right.  So before presenting a task such as stepping up backwards, I needed to have pre-established tools and clear communicative that I could effectively use as aids to tell Pico exactly what I wanted, even if we had never done the task before.

So I started from standing on the ground with Pico in a halter and using a lead rope to create first boundaries of where I wanted him to stand.  Then I asked him to be able to lightly shift his weight backwards, and of course that is when he felt the bridge against his rear legs.  I had to allow him to use braille like behavior with his hind legs to get used to edge and height of the bridge. 

Pico wanted to explore his options- swinging out sideways, pushing into my personal space rather than hovering near the bridge, etc.  Most horses will try everything EXCEPT what you’d like them to do.  As mentioned in other blogs, the game of “hot and cold” was presented.  Each time he got “closer, softer or lighter in his response to my aid, I let him stand and rest for a moment so mentally he could start to associate where I wanted him.  After he kept finding the ideal spot I want him in, then he started picking a rear foot up in the air.  This was an awesome effort on his part, even if he wasn’t standing on the bridge yet.  He would lift a rear leg, gently draw it forward, backwards, out to the side, but couldn’t fathom actually “reaching” backwards with it.  Finally I was able to shift his weight while his hind foot was in the air, and then as I relaxed the pressure of my hand on the lead rope, he relaxed his foot and placed it gently down on the bridge.  Breathe, sigh, lick, chew.  Blew his nose.  Blew again.  Dropped his head down towards the ground and took another big breath.

Quietly, we walked away from the bridge and I spent a few minutes picking weeds (literally) so that he had some time to sort out what had just happened.  The second time I lined him up and after just a few tries of other options, offered his hind foot slowly to step up.  Again, we went and picked weeds.  He continued to blow his nose.

Even though in all his searching he never once “blew up”, got aggressive, or acted stressed, but it was a LOT to ask his brain and emotions to address.  REMEMBER to give your horse an acknowledgement and or break when they get “it” right.

Then I hopped on him bareback, in the halter, lined him up, and asked him to step backwards and up.  Light, soft, smooth.  Awesome.

The one thing I will mention when playing games with your horse is not to do so in a manner that will create anticipation in him, causing him to “go through the motions” rather than really addressing what you are offering.  Otherwise, you’ll think that your horse is being “good”, and your horse is really just trying to “hurry up and get it done.”  Too many trick horses can do “all the tricks”, but if you change up the order or try and interfere, they horse can’t handle the change in routine.    When I teach a horse to stand on something, bow, lie down, line up to an object, pick me up off the fence, back into pressure, none of it should seem like a “trained” response.

Have fun,

Sam

Preface: A week's "tune-up" with young horse in training

I was emailed a notice that another “Road to the Horse” has finished although I didn’t have a chance to watch any of it yet, then I read an article in Western Horseman about the final phase in a colt starting series, and within the last few weeks have noticed the general discussions on the social media sites I visit has everyone excited to get “going” with their young horse as spring gentle peaks out from behind the gray and cold weather in most parts of the northern hemisphere! 

So on that note, I thought it might be fun for you as the reader to learn about a mare I started last winter, she is an Arab/Warmblood cross and will be four this year and is in for a week “tune up.”  I thought it would be interesting if I kept a bit of a daily journal as an example of things I present, address, etc. when working with a young horse…  Before I get into that (Day 1 will begin in tomorrow’s blog) I want to give you a bit of a preface to keep in mind so that as you read my daily entries perhaps it is with a slightly better understanding of my approach when working with a young horse.

Many times I start young horses and help their owners participate in understanding how to work with the horse, but as I watch the trailer lights disappear I rarely get to see that horse again… So it is always nice when I do get to hear about a young horse I’ve worked with and how they are coming along. 

In this mare’s particular case the good news for me was that there has been no other professional “influencing” the horse since I last saw her.  Weather here in the desert plays a huge factor with the scorching summer heat limiting time people spend outdoors, and although the owner was able to work with the mare mostly building confidence in their own relationship and focusing on ground work for the first few months after I left, for the most part the horse was left alone.  (Again, with youngsters, many times I prefer this scenario as it allows the horse time to mentally and physically start to mature.) 

In my opinion I know you “can” start a horse in two days and do “amazing” things with it, but that is an in-the-moment goal, without much foresight into the horse’s future. I truly believe every scenario with a horse needs to stay “appropriate” for that particular horse.  The problem is that “horse time” and “human time” are motivated by really different factors. 

The horse is focused on survival prioritizing eating to do so.  He spends hours and hours (if given the choice) slowly meandering about foraging.  Humans on the other hand mostly operate in a “time is money” sort of fashion and all too often hurry their way through life, including the time spent with their horse.  This can be especially so when someone has bred, raised and “waited” for several years to start their youngster, they are really ready to “get going” with their horse by the time is two or three years old. 
As a side not, about 50% of all Ask the Trainer questions submitted to me are in regards to issues with young horses between two and five years old.  I feel this happens because people forget to maintain an appropriate perspective in their goals for their particular horse.  Again, just because you can, doesn’t mean you should. 

Not all horses are created equal; starting from birth there are some horses that are naturally more confident, physically capable and mentally interested in life, and others that are not.  I don’t want to be breed specific, but there are some horses of certain breeds whose young minds can be overwhelmed by “too much information” too quickly causing stress, insecurity, fear and defensiveness.  Then there are other horses that all too often are considered “dull” or “slow” and can “go through the motions of training” but are too mentally immature to process or understand what has been presented to them, and so they learn to just “tolerate” the training as oppose to participating in it.  And then of course there are others that you show something to once, they get it, and it seems as if they ask, “What’s next?”  Of course we all dream our youngster is going to be one of those!

If you take a moment to think about how you personally learn, or maybe how your kids learn, you’ll know that everyone has a different learning “style” and that everyone responds to different teachers and how they communicate.  If we grouped our kids together and said, “You will understand this,” and present a learning situation in only one manner, and if we had no willingness to consider working with each child in a manner that they could understand, many of the kids would probably “miss” the lesson.  But if we were able to help them learn in a way that allowed them to mentally process and then physically do what we asked of them, rather than challenging them “get it right” the child would not only learn but would gain confidence rather than confusion as he did so. 
Take for example the subject of math.  How many kids nowadays are weak at basic addition, subtraction, arithmetic, and division?  If a teacher ignores the fact that the child lack a basic understanding of math, how can we expect that child to be successful in future more advanced math topics such as algebra, geometry, etc.  And looking farther down the road, how would we expect that same child to later in life as an adult work competently at job if it required the usage of those initial math skills, let's say such as a job in construction?

Imagine a futuristic scenario with the child who never learned or mastered basic math; let’s pretend that he was writing to an “Ask the Construction Consultant” Q&A in regards to framing a house.  The person may write in saying that no matter what they do, they just can seem to get the frame of the house “square.”  But if instead of the consultant answering by suggesting or focusing on tools as ways to layout the lumber itself to get a square frame (with horses think equipment solution or exercises to  practice), what if he suggested reviewing the construction worker’s basic math skills.  If those skills were reviewed and it was found that the problem with framer's lack of understanding of basic math then affected his ability to cut the proper length of wood in order to design a square frame because his layout and design calculation would always be inaccurate due to faulty math.  (Think in horse terms problems someone who complains about difficulty with getting clean flying lead changes without addressing the ability to have quality, balanced and light transitions between and within each gait first.)

So you get my point.  Too many times horses much to my own disbelief can figure out how to “manage” with their riders, for years without even really understanding, AND are somewhat successful in their chosen discipline.  As an instructor, when you take someone who has ridden for twenty years and ask them to ride a round circle, or to vocalize how they physically communicate a specific aid to their horse, or if they have ever wondered why over the years it takes more “activity” to get less response from their horse, and they are unable or have not considered any of the above, this is an indication that there are holes in their own awareness, understanding and communication with their horse.

The point of the above examples is to remind you that “colt starting” has become almost a buzz phrase that everyone gets excited about.  Honestly after you watch a hundred horses started, you start to realize many times it is a bigger “deal” to the person than the horse.  I have no idea why horses accept us strapping a foreign object onto them and then allowing us to climb on, but they do!  But what most people forget about is the quality of their horsemanship AFTER they are able to physically get on their horse.  Too many times, the first few rides are “great” (i.e. uneventful) and then “all of a sudden” the horse starts doing things the rider doesn’t want, (again translate the horse’s unwanted behavior as a lack of his understanding rather than him trying to be “naughty”.)

So instead of focusing on the “excitement of the first few rides” if we focused more on offering quality and clear communication after those initial sessions, both humans and horses would probably benefit a lot more in the long run.

So with that said look for the next blog this will be about “Day 1” after not riding the young mare for six months. 
Stay tuned,
Sam