Horses "Following a Feel"

 "Following a Feel"

Those words had no value to me in my initial years of riding (groundwork was nonexistent.) I interacted with the horse offering unintentional, continuous tension- on the lead rope, on the rein, in my leg, etc. There was never a pause, time for mental processing, recognizing separating directing the thought from movement, adaptability in my aids or any conscious release of pressure towards the horse (other than during a jump.)

Connecting the Groundwork with Horseback Riding

Connecting Groundwork and Riding

One of the challenges in offering instruction is to communicate clearly with students AND horses. As I overhear, read, or watch many “horse training” sessions/clinics I find that there’s a general lack of “connection” in the student’s ability to understand how the “here and now,” especially in how the quality of their groundwork is, relates to their future ride.

Horse Training Help : Containment or Skills

Dear Sam: Horse Help Horsemanship Series 

Tying the Horse: Are you teaching unwanted equine behaviors?

Horse Training Basics

Teaching containment or adaptability in the equine? So many unwanted equine behaviors are taught by human interactions that challenge the horse without ever teaching the horse the skills to think, search, try, and retain.

Click the link to watch on the Alternative Horsemanship YouTube Channel 

New videos posted every Friday 

Livestreams with Alternative Horsemanship the Remote Horse Coach

November Alternative Horsemanship Livestreams in the Locals Community

Changing mindless patterned horse interactions leads to unwanted equine behaviors.

Part 1 Mental AnticipationsSaturday Nov 5th 9am pst

Part 2 Physical Behaviors
Saturday Nov 11th 9am pst

Part 3 Specificity & Timing
Saturday Nov 25th 9am pst

 Watch the November Livestreams now

Empathy and Equines

Empathy + Horses = Weakness

There is a constant human imposition upon each other and horses...
Unrealistic ego-based demands without having accountability as to how a person's clarity of thoughts and intention, quality of communication, adaptability in energy, accuracy of timing, and everyday mindless interactions, are constantly "teaching" horses unwanted responses that people then criticize and chastise the equine for.

Horse Rider Tips- Anticipation and Unwanted Equine Behaviors

The urgency of the stories in our head...
So many good-intentioned equine enthusiasts unintentionally get pressured and distracted by the "story" of
*last time...
*that one time...
*what if...
*what others think...
*I hope...

Horse Behavior: Engaging the Mind before the Movement

 Dear Sam: Horse Help Horsemanship Series

Horse Behavior: Engaging the Mind before the Movement

Alternative Horsemanship the Remote Horse Coach discusses the importance of separating engaging the horse's mind from his movement to diminish unwanted common equine behaviors that create mindless, chaotic, excessive, movement.

Click to watch on the Alternative Horsemanship YouTube Channel

New videos are posted every Friday

Horses Pressure & Release Part 2

Pressure & Release Part 2

The reality is that many riders feel like they are begging for the horse to acknowledge them. Other folks’ approach is to “make” the horse do something through physical dominance; this fuels the horse’s defensiveness. Then there are riders who learn to work “around” the horse, limiting what they ask of them to avoid potential resistance or conflict.