Horses can carry mentally and emotionally turmoil because of their ability to tolerate a situation or people imposed “pressure.” All too often these horses are taken advantage of for their seeming willingness to “stuff their emotions.” But at what point does a horse owner’s thinking transition from “this is my goal…” to “this is an appropriate goal for my horse and I…” – if it ever does? In my experience is seems to take a traumatic situation for the owner to realize they’ve pushed their horse “too far.”
I find myself responding cautiously when I have an overly enthusiastic student that “can’t wait to show me” something that they’ve been working on with their horse. It seems all too often that the “end goal” or “result” has become the sole focus point for the person, causing them to overlook the deterioration of the quality in their horse’s performance.
The problem with “over focusing” is that the person stops offering their horse an open line of two way communication. The less clear the communication, the less attentive the person is to “zoom out” and be able to assess the ENTIRE scenario, rather than just a specific movement or action of the horse. With the “intensity” factor at hand, the person becomes increasingly demanding that their horse perform a specific task, and the more the horse doesn’t “get it right” the more unclear pressure is applied by the person.
Usually as the pressure is increased the quality of the communication between person and horse starts to deteriorate. As the horse starts asking for help, he winds up being ignored by the person and so he has to resort to “helping himself” which usually causes undesired results by the person.
So where is the “line” or balance to where the person can feel “forward” progress in working with their horse, and yet can do so without blowing their horse’s minds? The concept for this blog came to me over the past week as I watched a multitude of horses all in different places in their training, development and maturity. And yet I found myself basically “teaching” the same lesson. I don’t feel there is a “right” or “wrong” way to do things. But I do believe in prioritizing communication with a horse in a way that the individual horse needs rather than trying to get the horse to follow a set “program.”
The opposite extreme from the “intense person” are those people that have become overly sensitive, usually owners of “reactive” horses, this causing them to never want to “push” the boundaries of quality with their horse for fear of a “blow up.” Well there is a fine line. But keep in mind the horse is never going to wake up one day and say “Gee, this is what I need to focus on today…”
I think the problem stems from people many times viewing the actual accomplishment of an act or task as a relief. Instead I prefer to look at the interaction and communication that helped get the horse to achieve the task at hand as the accomplishment because those are the same tools the person will use with their horse to take things step further.
Somehow it seems to be human nature to work one “one thing or another” but not to maintain a perspective that everything we ask of our horses is connected. It may not look the same, but really it’s all about both our and our horse’s mental availability. Our intention whether we’re working on something “old” or “new” should be no different. I can’t recall how many times I’ve heard people say, “Oh we worked on that a long time ago, but now when I ask my horse to do the same task he acts as if we’ve never done it before.” For these people, their horse is trying to TELL them that obviously “way back” he wasn’t clear on what they working on, and today, he STILL isn’t clear.
So the scale seems to be extreme with people and horses- it’s “all or nothing” when it comes to lacking sensitivity or being overly sensitive. It’s our responsibility to find that “middle” ground. Don’t be “afraid” to experiment with your horse. So many people say “well the trainer finally got him to this point and I don’t want to ride him because I might ruin what the trainer did.” If the trainer was clear in how and what they presented to the horse, and the horse really understood, then the owner isn’t going to “wreck” the horse.
Horses have an amazing way to decipher and adapt from one rider to the next. Have you ever had that “crazy” or “high strung” horse and then put a small child or disabled person near that same horse? So many times that horse will completely adapt their behavior and energy to who is around them.
So the next time you head out to work with your horse experiment and assess where your energy, mind and focus is- then see how it is affecting your horse. Try and make some changes within yourself, and you’ll be amazed how fast your horse will change too!
Keeping it in perspective- Sam
Alternative Horsemanship™ with Samantha Harvey the Remote Horse Coach shares horse training and horseback rider coaching, philosophies, and approaches she has developed over three decades. Offering horsemanship clinics worldwide, distance horse coaching instruction, equine consultations, equine re-education and rehabilitation, colt starting, and lessons. Follow her #alternativehorsemanship on all social media platforms.
Clarity of Trust- Outside of Horses- Great Video
Please take a minute and click the following link Trust it will help you appreciate the communication and trust that goes into a relationship beyond people and horses!
Games Day- Another Success
Light morning clouds coveted the sky but we all vowed to ignore them and continue on. I was proud of the group that participated- in their ability to "help" their horses through different tasks and their "open mindedness" for trying a few new games.
I will run through the list of classes to give you an idea of the point of a Games Day. As I told all of the riders, the point of that day was not for "training" but rather to allow an assessment of their own partnership with their horse and the level of communication with horses and people.
Game 1- Musical Stalls- same as musical chairs but with poles on the ground to make the "stalls"- one less stall than the number of riders. Each round the music stops, the rider who has not found a stall is eliminated.
Object: We hold this class at a walk- it's amazing to see the most "sluggish" horses suddenly wake up when their rider has intention about "getting the job done" and finding a stall. If more people worked on their own energy levels in the saddle to range from 1-10 our horses would be more responsive.
Game 2- Water Cup Handoff Relay- Team of three riders who must move at the same pace (walk heading out and trot and the return trip) and must handoff a cup of water to their team mate. Whoever has the fastest time AND the most water wins.
Object: Intention when riding, finesse when one hand is off of the rein, communication to their team mate when passing off the rider, and relaxation while carrying the cup of water so as not to spill it.
Game 3- Carrot on a stick Team Race- Rider has no reins and is being "led" by the person on foot that is holding the carrot- except they have to navigate obstacles while doing so. Then team switches for return trip home. Whichever team has the most carrot remaining and the fastest time wins.
Object: Although I don't personally choose to feed my horses treats because I don't want my horse to be with me for the sake of "food motivation," many horses at some point in their life have been "bribed" with treats. Ideally, if you are playing at liberty your horse should follow you because he wants to be with you. In this case we happen to have MANY food motivated horses and one Percheron thundered her way around the "course" to win the class.
Game 4- Follow the Leader- Most trail classes have the person riding the course, so this time I set up obstacles that included: Walking on tarp, walking on empty plastic bottles, dragging a 8' tree branch (still with the leaves on it,) backing the horse through an L, carrying a heavy duty black garbage back (had to let the air get inside so that it was inflated while being carried,) and dragging a sled across the finish line.
Object: Many people handle their horse on the ground by "working around the horse" instead of having their horse "work around them." The point of this game was to show when you had to accomplish a specific task, using only physical communication through the reins or lead rope, could the person effectively direct their horse's brain, head, shoulders, ribcage, hindquarters, and could they increase and decrease their horse's energy all with the distraction of "stuff" happening (bags, branches, tarp, etc.) close by.
Game 5- Sit A Buck- Bareback class where the rider places a dollar bill under the inside of their thigh. Announcer asks riders to demonstrate tasks, slowly increasing the difficulty until all riders are eliminated except one. This particular class increased to where riders were jumping fences and doing flying lead changes.
Object: Too many people are "reliant" on equipment to keep them on their horse. Pulling off your saddle is a great way to assess just how balanced you are.
Game 6- Banana Race- This was a literal race where riders could go as fast as they wanted- while carrying a peeled banana that had been dipped in water. Whoever finished with the fastest time and most banana won. There were three obstacles in the arena that the riders had to go around- the original winner did not pay attention and go around all three.
Object: Moving one's horse out at speed, feeling balanced riding with one rein, maintaining clear communication with your own horse while having the distraction of passing other horses at high speed and still having to ride accurately.
Game 7- Horseless Race (Partners)- This is one of my favorite events, and I actually do this as an exercise in some of my clinics. One person who will be "the horse" is blindfolded. The second person is the "rider." The rider only has "reins" (in this case a piece of baling twine that is held by the horse) to communicate. The rider must then steer the horse over a jump, weave cones, back through poles, etc.
Object: This is a great way to find out if you are a "heavy" or unclear rider. It forces the "rider" to have to assess how to communicate with their "horse" in a way that the "horse" can differentiate between slow, fast, turn, etc. It's great for the "horse" to feel what it's like to be "lost" due to unclear communication from their rider.
Object: Riders have to communicate with one another and their horse. They have to "plan" when they are going to ask what of their horse. They also must be clear to ride accurate so they don't accidentally "bump" their partner. Their timing must be accurate in order to work together.
The wind started to pick up by the end and we did get weather in the afternoon. It was another great experience that riders and horses both seemed to come away the better for!
See you next time
Sam
Word of the Day: Directing a Horse's Thought
Directing a horse's thought- communicating a person's intention to the horse's mind. The person's ability to have the horse literally look towards the planned direction of movement or focus. This also leads to re-direct ability, or getting the horse to "let go" of his thought, and re-focus on where or what the human is asking. This influences the quality of the physical movement that follows.
Travels in Denver- Off Topic
Okay, I couldn’t help it. I HAD to write this blog. I know it’s off topic- perhaps I can make a few equine related comparisons for you. But this one is about people. People traveling. More specifically, people traveling through the Denver International Airport. It’d been years since I passed through that airport. I’ve decided to go along with the “Mile High City” nickname they should call the airport “The Mile LONG concourses.”
The reason I know this is because both times that I arrived, it was at a gate in the single digits and, of course, my outgoing flight was at the gate somewhere in the high 80s. Even after walking a good 400 yards down narrow and long corridors (no I’m not exaggerating) from the plane to the airport building itself, I then took FOUR moving sidewalks and STILL had to walk to more to reach my next departure gate. At least I didn’t have to worry about not getting my daily work out, usually this is accomplished from the farm chores, but hey, I guess an airport will do.
Keep in mind I tend to look for “good deals” in buying tickets, but certainly when it comes to these outrageous times of charge, charge, charge it’s the small things that add up! So I carry on my bags to save money and work on my upper body strength. My “usual” is one duffle bag, and although deceivingly “small” compared to some of the so called “carry on” armored tanks people call luggage these days, my bag is usually around 35 lbs plus.
Here’s travel hint #1 of the day- If you’re technologically advanced enough to check in for your flight via the Internet, click on the option to “change your seat”- this will show you how full your plane is in advance. If it looks like it’s going to be a full flight, make sure you DO NOT pay the fee to check your bags. This is another peeve of mine- higher plane ticket prices AND we have to pay for FOOD and LUGGAGE????
I remember the days when passengers received free overnight toiletry bags, playing cards, snacks and more! Every seat there was a pillow, a blanket and headphones. Now a days it’s usually $20-30 PER BAG- plus if your bag is “overweight” (old days used to be 75lbs) now it’s usually 40lbs, you pay an extra fee. If you have golf clubs, skis and other odd shaped luggage you get yet another fee.
So back to checking out how full your flight is. Be a cheapskate if it looks full, pack in a bag that is semi passable as a “carry on” and then when your gate opens ask how full the flight is, or the desk agent may mention it’s a “full flight” and then you can either check your bag at the gate or at the front of the plane. And NOT just for that flight, you can actually check it all the way through to your final destination. And guess why you would go through this trouble? Because then you get to check your bag for FREE. Yes, free. Case and point I just stood next to a family of three who spent $180 EACH WAY because they checked their bags, instead of waiting to bring them to the door of the plane like I did. Hmmm.
Ok, so back to Denver. Here are a few things I noticed along the way:
A couple walking two Chihuahuas on leashes get stopped as they are about to board because they don’t have “proper stowage containers” for the dogs to be brought on (they each had one of those over sized “shoulder bags” for each dog. The funny part was these were tea cup dogs- that means that each weighed less than three pounds- and their owners looked as if they were related to a few sumo wrestlers.
Next I noticed that it took two people just get the crowd to line up. First there was a gate person checking tickets and then there was also one making the boarding announcements. These days instead of boarding the plane by seat numbers, most airlines use a group number, which is ALWAYS printed in bold black ink on a person’s boarding pass. Can you guess how many passengers get in line even though their boarding section hasn’t been called yet????
And yet somehow counting sections from one through four became highly confusing. Also getting in line seemed to be difficult for a lot of folks out there. Inevitably, the line that the ground crew would close (designated with that portable stretchy material that can make portable “aisles”) but people would still line up in them. It became a bit of a comedy act to see how many times the gate agent would have to open and close the temporary gates because people had got in the wrong lane.
Then there was the commotion with the standby passengers. If you haven’t experienced this, a standby passenger is trying to get a different flight than what they were originally ticketed for (same destination but earlier time) or the flight was oversold and they did not check in early enough to guarantee themselves a seat. Yeah how about that one for customer service? You buy a ticket, but if you don’t check in according to the current “rules” of the FAA your seat may be given away even if you show up.
So anyhow, I saw on the screen above the ticket counter there were 14 folks on standby. Once all passengers with assigned seats check in, the ticket agent will then begin to assign the “extra” seats to the standby passengers by printing them a boarding pass. This all happened “business as usual” until two agents realized their computers weren’t talking to one another and neither could tell what seat had already been assigned, therefore causing double assignment of one seat…. So those poor standby passengers that had their hopes high once they had their new ticket in their hand, quickly deflated as they were called out of the boarding line and back to the ticket counter.
Next there was the issue of those passengers who had ignored the “please check your large carry on bags” announcement and instead had insisted that their luggage would fit on the plane. This sort of traveler is very persistent. As I watched them attempt to function I usually get an overwhelming feeling to put them in a round pen and flag them as I would a horse telling them “That’s not going to work, try something else.” But back in reality they just keep trying the same thing and surprisingly, it doesn’t work each time they do the same thing over and over. (This seems to be the case with a lot horse owners and how they interact with their horses.)
Before this happens though, there is a process. The person is sure they are going to make their suitcase fit. Even after numerous attempts with the oversized contraption falling out of the undersized overhead compartments people will keep heaving, pushing, sweating try all angles of shoving to get that darn luggage stowed. But I will give this personality type credit, they don’t give up- no matter what, or at least not until some poor flight attendant has to pry their fingers off of their luggage and send it to the front of the plane for checking.
As all of this was happening, I unwillingly was affected by the above sort of person. I personally experienced the “case of the poor vertically challenged flight attendant.” I’m allowed to call him that because I too happen to be of the shorter height (a whopping 5’2”) and can empathize with what it takes to stretch your frame to reach the six foot high overhead compartments. Except this time the compartment the flight attendant was attempting to reach for was above my head- and my aisle seat. And the more he “heaved” to try and get the compartment door shut, the more he leaned into me. Now if you imagine sitting in a seat and having someone stretch out their body as “tall” as they can- especially if the are male, you’ll come to see that clear visual image of this particular flight attendant’s package a mere two inches away from my face. No matter how far away from him I leaned to be polite, he leaned harder into me. Hmmm.
Or let’s talk about the other outbound flight experience I had in Denver. After gallivanting a mile down the concourse I finally reach my gate and realized it was a “mini” gate because I was heading out to such a remote location that not many people wanted or needed to fly there. There also happened to be three other mini gates alongside mine. They used four of those “portable” lanes (the ones I’d mentioned earlier) that outlined where to line up when it came time to board the plane. Each “lane” was marked with a sign, except instead of being in numerical order according to the gates numbers, they were marked like this: “Gate 67-69, Gate 68, Gate 68-69, and Gate 72.” Hmmmm. I wonder who came up with that numbering system.
It was then that I looked up at the board behind the ticket counter and saw that there were four flights departing out of these four gates within two minutes of each other… Two leaving at the same time…. Okay- I’d love to hear the air traffic control tower when those planes were about to take off… Then an announcement comes on to start having people line up for their flight. Except even though there are four gate agents, only one of whom appears to have gone through this procedure before. So they decide to be fair, they are all going to take turns practicing speaking on the PA system- one for each upcoming flight. Except in all of their excitement, they forgot that there’s only ONE machine that can read the passenger’s ticket barcode as they board. This means three flights have now lined up prematurely. There’s nothing worse than people and waiting- especially when it comes to getting on the plane, to getting off the plane, or waiting for their luggage, etc.
Then because two of the newbie gate agents are so nervous, they rush through their announcements without enunciating. This caused much confusion when passengers start to realize there is a flight to “Rock Springs” and there is also one to “Palm Springs.” Two very dramatically different destinations that can sound identical when mumbled over a PA system filled with static.
So basically, numerous people lined up in the wrong line for many reasons. One reason was the lack of clarity in the announcement. The second was due to the unclear signs on the lane numbers because you had two options according to how the lanes were marked…. And this brings me to the third reason for confusion.
Once a passenger managed to actually get past the gate check in process, they then had to walk another ½ mile to the actual plane. Now remember these were not very popular destinations so we were all flying on puddle jumpers, or a plane that only has about 12 rows. These planes you board by walking outside onto the tarmac of the airport and climbing stairs to board. Except they are so small that if you carry anything larger than a laptap, it won’t fit in the overhead compartment. So there is a “baggage check” where you can drop off your bags before you board the plane.
Now this all sounds fine and dandy, except there wasn’t just one plane parked outside, there were four. None of which were marked. None of which the ground crew seemed to have a clue as to where they were going. On my plane alone we had three people board the wrong plane. Luckily they were “ejected” from the plane before they’d settled down, but the bad news was they’d had their bags checked with the ground crew. So the ground crew then had to dig through the luggage and find these people’s bags. The other bad news was our crew had no idea where to direct them to find the correct plane. I happened to be sitting in a window seat and watched as one poor woman tried three planes before she found the right one.
And they wonder why passengers are so angry these days?
Sam
The reason I know this is because both times that I arrived, it was at a gate in the single digits and, of course, my outgoing flight was at the gate somewhere in the high 80s. Even after walking a good 400 yards down narrow and long corridors (no I’m not exaggerating) from the plane to the airport building itself, I then took FOUR moving sidewalks and STILL had to walk to more to reach my next departure gate. At least I didn’t have to worry about not getting my daily work out, usually this is accomplished from the farm chores, but hey, I guess an airport will do.
Keep in mind I tend to look for “good deals” in buying tickets, but certainly when it comes to these outrageous times of charge, charge, charge it’s the small things that add up! So I carry on my bags to save money and work on my upper body strength. My “usual” is one duffle bag, and although deceivingly “small” compared to some of the so called “carry on” armored tanks people call luggage these days, my bag is usually around 35 lbs plus.
Here’s travel hint #1 of the day- If you’re technologically advanced enough to check in for your flight via the Internet, click on the option to “change your seat”- this will show you how full your plane is in advance. If it looks like it’s going to be a full flight, make sure you DO NOT pay the fee to check your bags. This is another peeve of mine- higher plane ticket prices AND we have to pay for FOOD and LUGGAGE????
I remember the days when passengers received free overnight toiletry bags, playing cards, snacks and more! Every seat there was a pillow, a blanket and headphones. Now a days it’s usually $20-30 PER BAG- plus if your bag is “overweight” (old days used to be 75lbs) now it’s usually 40lbs, you pay an extra fee. If you have golf clubs, skis and other odd shaped luggage you get yet another fee.
So back to checking out how full your flight is. Be a cheapskate if it looks full, pack in a bag that is semi passable as a “carry on” and then when your gate opens ask how full the flight is, or the desk agent may mention it’s a “full flight” and then you can either check your bag at the gate or at the front of the plane. And NOT just for that flight, you can actually check it all the way through to your final destination. And guess why you would go through this trouble? Because then you get to check your bag for FREE. Yes, free. Case and point I just stood next to a family of three who spent $180 EACH WAY because they checked their bags, instead of waiting to bring them to the door of the plane like I did. Hmmm.
Ok, so back to Denver. Here are a few things I noticed along the way:
A couple walking two Chihuahuas on leashes get stopped as they are about to board because they don’t have “proper stowage containers” for the dogs to be brought on (they each had one of those over sized “shoulder bags” for each dog. The funny part was these were tea cup dogs- that means that each weighed less than three pounds- and their owners looked as if they were related to a few sumo wrestlers.
Next I noticed that it took two people just get the crowd to line up. First there was a gate person checking tickets and then there was also one making the boarding announcements. These days instead of boarding the plane by seat numbers, most airlines use a group number, which is ALWAYS printed in bold black ink on a person’s boarding pass. Can you guess how many passengers get in line even though their boarding section hasn’t been called yet????
And yet somehow counting sections from one through four became highly confusing. Also getting in line seemed to be difficult for a lot of folks out there. Inevitably, the line that the ground crew would close (designated with that portable stretchy material that can make portable “aisles”) but people would still line up in them. It became a bit of a comedy act to see how many times the gate agent would have to open and close the temporary gates because people had got in the wrong lane.
Then there was the commotion with the standby passengers. If you haven’t experienced this, a standby passenger is trying to get a different flight than what they were originally ticketed for (same destination but earlier time) or the flight was oversold and they did not check in early enough to guarantee themselves a seat. Yeah how about that one for customer service? You buy a ticket, but if you don’t check in according to the current “rules” of the FAA your seat may be given away even if you show up.
So anyhow, I saw on the screen above the ticket counter there were 14 folks on standby. Once all passengers with assigned seats check in, the ticket agent will then begin to assign the “extra” seats to the standby passengers by printing them a boarding pass. This all happened “business as usual” until two agents realized their computers weren’t talking to one another and neither could tell what seat had already been assigned, therefore causing double assignment of one seat…. So those poor standby passengers that had their hopes high once they had their new ticket in their hand, quickly deflated as they were called out of the boarding line and back to the ticket counter.
Next there was the issue of those passengers who had ignored the “please check your large carry on bags” announcement and instead had insisted that their luggage would fit on the plane. This sort of traveler is very persistent. As I watched them attempt to function I usually get an overwhelming feeling to put them in a round pen and flag them as I would a horse telling them “That’s not going to work, try something else.” But back in reality they just keep trying the same thing and surprisingly, it doesn’t work each time they do the same thing over and over. (This seems to be the case with a lot horse owners and how they interact with their horses.)
Before this happens though, there is a process. The person is sure they are going to make their suitcase fit. Even after numerous attempts with the oversized contraption falling out of the undersized overhead compartments people will keep heaving, pushing, sweating try all angles of shoving to get that darn luggage stowed. But I will give this personality type credit, they don’t give up- no matter what, or at least not until some poor flight attendant has to pry their fingers off of their luggage and send it to the front of the plane for checking.
As all of this was happening, I unwillingly was affected by the above sort of person. I personally experienced the “case of the poor vertically challenged flight attendant.” I’m allowed to call him that because I too happen to be of the shorter height (a whopping 5’2”) and can empathize with what it takes to stretch your frame to reach the six foot high overhead compartments. Except this time the compartment the flight attendant was attempting to reach for was above my head- and my aisle seat. And the more he “heaved” to try and get the compartment door shut, the more he leaned into me. Now if you imagine sitting in a seat and having someone stretch out their body as “tall” as they can- especially if the are male, you’ll come to see that clear visual image of this particular flight attendant’s package a mere two inches away from my face. No matter how far away from him I leaned to be polite, he leaned harder into me. Hmmm.
Or let’s talk about the other outbound flight experience I had in Denver. After gallivanting a mile down the concourse I finally reach my gate and realized it was a “mini” gate because I was heading out to such a remote location that not many people wanted or needed to fly there. There also happened to be three other mini gates alongside mine. They used four of those “portable” lanes (the ones I’d mentioned earlier) that outlined where to line up when it came time to board the plane. Each “lane” was marked with a sign, except instead of being in numerical order according to the gates numbers, they were marked like this: “Gate 67-69, Gate 68, Gate 68-69, and Gate 72.” Hmmmm. I wonder who came up with that numbering system.
It was then that I looked up at the board behind the ticket counter and saw that there were four flights departing out of these four gates within two minutes of each other… Two leaving at the same time…. Okay- I’d love to hear the air traffic control tower when those planes were about to take off… Then an announcement comes on to start having people line up for their flight. Except even though there are four gate agents, only one of whom appears to have gone through this procedure before. So they decide to be fair, they are all going to take turns practicing speaking on the PA system- one for each upcoming flight. Except in all of their excitement, they forgot that there’s only ONE machine that can read the passenger’s ticket barcode as they board. This means three flights have now lined up prematurely. There’s nothing worse than people and waiting- especially when it comes to getting on the plane, to getting off the plane, or waiting for their luggage, etc.
Then because two of the newbie gate agents are so nervous, they rush through their announcements without enunciating. This caused much confusion when passengers start to realize there is a flight to “Rock Springs” and there is also one to “Palm Springs.” Two very dramatically different destinations that can sound identical when mumbled over a PA system filled with static.
So basically, numerous people lined up in the wrong line for many reasons. One reason was the lack of clarity in the announcement. The second was due to the unclear signs on the lane numbers because you had two options according to how the lanes were marked…. And this brings me to the third reason for confusion.
Once a passenger managed to actually get past the gate check in process, they then had to walk another ½ mile to the actual plane. Now remember these were not very popular destinations so we were all flying on puddle jumpers, or a plane that only has about 12 rows. These planes you board by walking outside onto the tarmac of the airport and climbing stairs to board. Except they are so small that if you carry anything larger than a laptap, it won’t fit in the overhead compartment. So there is a “baggage check” where you can drop off your bags before you board the plane.
Now this all sounds fine and dandy, except there wasn’t just one plane parked outside, there were four. None of which were marked. None of which the ground crew seemed to have a clue as to where they were going. On my plane alone we had three people board the wrong plane. Luckily they were “ejected” from the plane before they’d settled down, but the bad news was they’d had their bags checked with the ground crew. So the ground crew then had to dig through the luggage and find these people’s bags. The other bad news was our crew had no idea where to direct them to find the correct plane. I happened to be sitting in a window seat and watched as one poor woman tried three planes before she found the right one.
And they wonder why passengers are so angry these days?
Sam
Assessment of Cross Country Day
I rushed back to the desert for a few days of catching up, dealing with a crashed computer and then repacked and was on the road again. I find the airport a perfect place to watch human behavior- which of course gives me a MILLION ideas on different blogs that would be funny to write. But, before I hope up on the pulpit, I want to first finish my assessment of the cross country school from the cancelled show. If you missed that blog you can find it here: http://learnhorses.blogspot.com/2010/02/one-day-horse-trials-ca-play-by-play.html . Flying gave me time to review my teaching and preparation for my students and how our Show turn Schooling cross country experience.
First I’d like to just state that I was impressed with all three of them. When I thought about what I had actually “taught” while at the course, it was more of the specifics in technique, what each fence was asking of them, the pros and cons to different approaches to the same jump, along with a few other factors that could affect the quality of their ride such as weather, footing, where to “make up time” with a gallop, possible distractions, etc.
As we started out in the warm up that morning another trainer with several of her riders showed up to school. Keep in mind two out of the three students I’d brought had never even SEEN a course, never mind had watched a rider “on course.” As they overheard the “instruction” from the other trainer their jaws seemed to drop. In one sense I guess they are lucky for having been a bit “secluded” from the “real world training mentality.” The other trainer was a great example of the norm. Comments such as “Kick more, go harder, drive him…” And then we watched with our hearts in our mouth as the poor horses stumbled, scraped, crawled, chipped on, jumped long and struggled in numerous other ways over decent size SOLID jumps. It definitely seemed to be a 50/50 chance of the rider AND horse making it over – together- AND- in one piece.
I told my students to “not look” and we continued on. What impressed me most is because I didn’t have my PA system to help “instruct them” from afar- here were “real life” opportunities for them to use all of their acquired “tools in communication” with their horse. To watch the riders not get overly focused on the jump, but rather continue to ride with a priority to attain QUALITY flatwork BEFORE they presented a jump- even if it meant taking a few moment to help their horse if he was struggling- to witness the literally INSTANT change in the horse’s willingness to try and to participate was amazing.
In one sense I wished my riders “knew” more about the all too common “quick fix” ways of working with horses in order to appreciate their own level of clarity in being able to assess their horse and themself. Once that was accomplished, they would continue on with the task at hand, using numerous ways of communicating with their horse to find that ideal clarity for an ideal and rewarding ride.
Remember that two of the horses had never even SEEN a cross country jump. They completely relied on communicating with their rider to attain a positive experience through quiet, balanced jumping that allowed the spectators to breathe easily as they watched. Banks, ditches, drops, water obstacles, leaving the “group of horses” and then coming back towards them, cold/windy weather, slippery footing throughout, motorcycles, trucks, dogs & kids on bicycles were a few of what they encountered on the course that day.
Another great, but totally different experience was also the third combination of horse and rider. The rider had never ridden a course but had watched a few competitions. Her horse had cross country experience, but he was basically “manhandled” when ridden. He thought to jump a course that he had to be running at full speed, on the forehand and for the most part was jumping out of fear. It was so awesome to watch his rider work through “trial and error” using tools we’d created as a foundation in building their partnership and clear communication. She was able to take a horse that at the beginning of the ride was on the verge of a total mental melt down and physical explosion, to reach a mental calm and availability in order to try approaching the task of cross country with a completely different emotional and mental perspective and physical relaxation.
I don’t think the riders were really aware of how much they had helped their horses nor how different that day’s events could have turned out had they not maintained their focus and clarity throughout their rides. It was moments like that from the teaching perspective that “makes it all worth it.” To know that the students maintained independence and to think without having “had their hand held” (as is the case with so many “students” these days) was a great success.
Hats off to the brave (and crazy as some may think) newly discovered cross country fans who left that day grinning ear to ear….
Sam
First I’d like to just state that I was impressed with all three of them. When I thought about what I had actually “taught” while at the course, it was more of the specifics in technique, what each fence was asking of them, the pros and cons to different approaches to the same jump, along with a few other factors that could affect the quality of their ride such as weather, footing, where to “make up time” with a gallop, possible distractions, etc.
As we started out in the warm up that morning another trainer with several of her riders showed up to school. Keep in mind two out of the three students I’d brought had never even SEEN a course, never mind had watched a rider “on course.” As they overheard the “instruction” from the other trainer their jaws seemed to drop. In one sense I guess they are lucky for having been a bit “secluded” from the “real world training mentality.” The other trainer was a great example of the norm. Comments such as “Kick more, go harder, drive him…” And then we watched with our hearts in our mouth as the poor horses stumbled, scraped, crawled, chipped on, jumped long and struggled in numerous other ways over decent size SOLID jumps. It definitely seemed to be a 50/50 chance of the rider AND horse making it over – together- AND- in one piece.
I told my students to “not look” and we continued on. What impressed me most is because I didn’t have my PA system to help “instruct them” from afar- here were “real life” opportunities for them to use all of their acquired “tools in communication” with their horse. To watch the riders not get overly focused on the jump, but rather continue to ride with a priority to attain QUALITY flatwork BEFORE they presented a jump- even if it meant taking a few moment to help their horse if he was struggling- to witness the literally INSTANT change in the horse’s willingness to try and to participate was amazing.
In one sense I wished my riders “knew” more about the all too common “quick fix” ways of working with horses in order to appreciate their own level of clarity in being able to assess their horse and themself. Once that was accomplished, they would continue on with the task at hand, using numerous ways of communicating with their horse to find that ideal clarity for an ideal and rewarding ride.
Remember that two of the horses had never even SEEN a cross country jump. They completely relied on communicating with their rider to attain a positive experience through quiet, balanced jumping that allowed the spectators to breathe easily as they watched. Banks, ditches, drops, water obstacles, leaving the “group of horses” and then coming back towards them, cold/windy weather, slippery footing throughout, motorcycles, trucks, dogs & kids on bicycles were a few of what they encountered on the course that day.
Another great, but totally different experience was also the third combination of horse and rider. The rider had never ridden a course but had watched a few competitions. Her horse had cross country experience, but he was basically “manhandled” when ridden. He thought to jump a course that he had to be running at full speed, on the forehand and for the most part was jumping out of fear. It was so awesome to watch his rider work through “trial and error” using tools we’d created as a foundation in building their partnership and clear communication. She was able to take a horse that at the beginning of the ride was on the verge of a total mental melt down and physical explosion, to reach a mental calm and availability in order to try approaching the task of cross country with a completely different emotional and mental perspective and physical relaxation.
I don’t think the riders were really aware of how much they had helped their horses nor how different that day’s events could have turned out had they not maintained their focus and clarity throughout their rides. It was moments like that from the teaching perspective that “makes it all worth it.” To know that the students maintained independence and to think without having “had their hand held” (as is the case with so many “students” these days) was a great success.
Hats off to the brave (and crazy as some may think) newly discovered cross country fans who left that day grinning ear to ear….
Sam
Word of the Day: Communication with the Horse
Communication- the sending and receiving of thoughts between the horse and person; each needs to safely express themself. Each needs to be mentally available to believe what is being conveyed. There needs to be adaptability in the energy and intention in both the human and horse.
Hoofprints & Happenings Spring 2010
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Word of the Day: Avoidance
Avoidance- This is a horse who is mentality unavailable or "shut down." He will create methods to evade communication with his handler or rider usually because of defensiveness, a lack of clarity, pain, and distrust. Physically he may display behaviors such as tucking his chin towards his chest evade the bit, his focus is often not where he is at physically, if experiencing pain he may raise his head to avoid discomfort. In many cases, people use severe equipment to "make" the horse comply. Instead, they need to revisit the quality of communication and mental availability in the horse to recognize what triggers the horse to avoid scenarios.
Subject: A page from an 87 yr. Old horsewoman's handwritten Journal: I ride.
That seems like such a simple statement. However as many women who ride know it is really a complicated matter. It has to do with power and empowerment; being able to do things you might once have considered out of reach or ability. I have considered this as I shovel manure, fill water barrels in the cold rain, wait for the vet, farrier, hay delivery, change a tire on a horse trailer by the side of the freeway, or cool a gelding out before getting down to the business of drinking a cold drink after a long ride.
The time, the money, the effort it takes to ride calls for dedication. Atleast, I call it dedication. Both my ex-husbands call it 'a sickness'. It's a nice sickness I've had since I was a small girl, bouncing my plastic model horse and dreaming of the day I would ride a real horse. Most of the women I ride with understand that meaning of the sickness.' It's not a sport. It's not a hobby. It's what we do and-- in some ways-- who
we are as women and human beings.
I ride. I hook up my trailer and load my gelding. I haul to some nice trail head somewhere, unload, saddle up, whistle up my dog and I ride. I breathe in the air, watch the sunlight filter through the trees and savor the movement of my horse. My shoulders relax. A smile spreads across my weathered face. I pull my floppy hat down and let the real world fade into the tracks my horse leaves in the sand. Time slows. Flying insects buzz loudly, looking like fairies. My gelding flicks his ears and moves down the trail. I can smell his sweat and it is perfume to my senses. Time slows. The rhythm of his walk and the movement of the leaves become my focus. My saddle creaks and the leather rein in my hand softens with the warmth.
I consider the simple statement: I ride. I think of all I do because I ride. Climb rocky slopes, wade into a lily-pad lake, race a friend across the hayfield... all the while laughing and feeling my heart in my chest. Other days just the act of mounting and dismounting can be a real accomplishment. Still I ride, no matter how tired or how much my sitter bones or any of my other acquired horse-related injuries hurt. I ride. And I feel a lot better for doing so.
I think of the people, mostly women, that I've met. I consider how competent they all are. Not a weenie in the bunch. We haul 40 ft. rigs, we back 'em up into tight spaces without clipping a tree. We set up camp, tend the horses. We cook and keep our camp neat. We understand and love our companions, our horses. We respect each other and those we encounter on the trail. We know that if you are out there riding, you also shovel, fill, bathe, wait and doctor. Your hands are a little rough and you travel without makeup or hair gel. You do without to afford the 'sickness' and probably when you were a small girl, you bounced a little model horse while you dreamed of riding a real one.
"My treasures do not chink or glitter, they gleam in the sun and neigh in the night."
Horses don't have horse problems, they have people problems!
The time, the money, the effort it takes to ride calls for dedication. Atleast, I call it dedication. Both my ex-husbands call it 'a sickness'. It's a nice sickness I've had since I was a small girl, bouncing my plastic model horse and dreaming of the day I would ride a real horse. Most of the women I ride with understand that meaning of the sickness.' It's not a sport. It's not a hobby. It's what we do and-- in some ways-- who
we are as women and human beings.
I ride. I hook up my trailer and load my gelding. I haul to some nice trail head somewhere, unload, saddle up, whistle up my dog and I ride. I breathe in the air, watch the sunlight filter through the trees and savor the movement of my horse. My shoulders relax. A smile spreads across my weathered face. I pull my floppy hat down and let the real world fade into the tracks my horse leaves in the sand. Time slows. Flying insects buzz loudly, looking like fairies. My gelding flicks his ears and moves down the trail. I can smell his sweat and it is perfume to my senses. Time slows. The rhythm of his walk and the movement of the leaves become my focus. My saddle creaks and the leather rein in my hand softens with the warmth.
I consider the simple statement: I ride. I think of all I do because I ride. Climb rocky slopes, wade into a lily-pad lake, race a friend across the hayfield... all the while laughing and feeling my heart in my chest. Other days just the act of mounting and dismounting can be a real accomplishment. Still I ride, no matter how tired or how much my sitter bones or any of my other acquired horse-related injuries hurt. I ride. And I feel a lot better for doing so.
I think of the people, mostly women, that I've met. I consider how competent they all are. Not a weenie in the bunch. We haul 40 ft. rigs, we back 'em up into tight spaces without clipping a tree. We set up camp, tend the horses. We cook and keep our camp neat. We understand and love our companions, our horses. We respect each other and those we encounter on the trail. We know that if you are out there riding, you also shovel, fill, bathe, wait and doctor. Your hands are a little rough and you travel without makeup or hair gel. You do without to afford the 'sickness' and probably when you were a small girl, you bounced a little model horse while you dreamed of riding a real one.
"My treasures do not chink or glitter, they gleam in the sun and neigh in the night."
Horses don't have horse problems, they have people problems!
One Day Horse Trials, CA - The play by play
Whew I’ve finally had a few minutes to sit down and jot down some notes from the weekend… Below is a quick timeline and great example of “expect the unexpected…
Enjoy!
• 9 am We complete the final packing- loading horses @ farm in AZ
• 3pm arrive (yes, that is an HOUR of windy, twisty, road not fun with the horse trailer) we enter thru the wrong gate- and wind up driving thru the cross country course. There’s no one around except the “honey do” husband finishing last minute chores…
• 4pm We find our wet stalls- the water is literally running off of the hill through the temporary stalls. (Student’s horses are designated in separate stalls even though we’d requested them next to each other,) unload horses while dodging ever increasing streams. We unload the horse trailer and convert it into our “sleeping quarters” and set up the enclosed trailer as our temporary “spill over space”
• 4:30 Three students and I head out to walk the cross country course twice in rain soaking wet, and the wet footing is a bit concerning…
• 5:30 Just as we arrive back at the trailers we are informed that the competition has been cancelled! BUT, if it dries up the next day we can school the cross country if weather permits. While we were walking the course some of the families that traveled with us started a fire at our trailers, got dinner started (hot dogs boiling on the reliable Coleman camping stove…) We realized we had no cell phone service to warn the other people coming out to watch my students that the competition had been cancelled. We were told there was a land line but when we tried to use it, the water had damaged the lines and we could not get a dial tone…
Trying to sort our gear.
Enjoy!
• 9 am We complete the final packing- loading horses @ farm in AZ
• 10am The horses, students and stuff loaded and we’re on our way (heading into a very brooding storm!)
• 12pm We hit rain showers in the southern CA mountains
• 2 pm exit Temecula parkway
• 3pm arrive (yes, that is an HOUR of windy, twisty, road not fun with the horse trailer) we enter thru the wrong gate- and wind up driving thru the cross country course. There’s no one around except the “honey do” husband finishing last minute chores…
• 4pm We find our wet stalls- the water is literally running off of the hill through the temporary stalls. (Student’s horses are designated in separate stalls even though we’d requested them next to each other,) unload horses while dodging ever increasing streams. We unload the horse trailer and convert it into our “sleeping quarters” and set up the enclosed trailer as our temporary “spill over space”
• 4:30 Three students and I head out to walk the cross country course twice in rain soaking wet, and the wet footing is a bit concerning…
• 5:30 Just as we arrive back at the trailers we are informed that the competition has been cancelled! BUT, if it dries up the next day we can school the cross country if weather permits. While we were walking the course some of the families that traveled with us started a fire at our trailers, got dinner started (hot dogs boiling on the reliable Coleman camping stove…) We realized we had no cell phone service to warn the other people coming out to watch my students that the competition had been cancelled. We were told there was a land line but when we tried to use it, the water had damaged the lines and we could not get a dial tone…
Trying to sort our gear.
The dog "Ace" had other ideas about the sleeping arrangments.
• The NEXT day as I start to write this blog my computer COMPLETELY crashes and I spend the next two days swiping the hard drive and restoring all the old files… NOT fun…
I hope you enjoyed the “journey”! Sam
• After checking on and feeding horses, we all changed out of our soaking wet clothes- despite our layers of rain gear. First we set up our folding chairs inside the enclosed trailer and ate by flashlight… With the help of hot chocolate we slowly began to thaw and we were able to move our portable fire close to the side door of trailer… From the one vendor that had arrived early we were able to borrow an extension cord for my plug in heater, but after rigging 5, yes FIVE cords together it left little power received at trailer so the heater only worked at ¼ of its original strength. The horses were unimpressed with the leaky stalls wrecking their dinner but ate and drank.
• 7:30pm The rain finally stops! We move out all the chairs and hang wet clothes around fire to dry, we realize we have no batteries for the air pump for our air mattresses, but manage to jury rig a different air pump and are able to inflate the mattresses without them getting wet.
• 9pm the rain has started lightly so we head to bed. In our attempts to go to sleep, we realize the plastic bags that had carried the shavings we taped up in the opening of the trailer is now flapping with the suction of the wind forcing it in and out of the trailer, one air mattress has a leak, three leaks inside of the trailer causing rain water to drip on the two people sleeping below, and the rain continues throughout the night.
• 6am We are tired but awake, I jump start the day with cowboy coffee, and NO it’s not raining!!! With the horses fed, we clean up all of the “show stuff” we’d brought and just keep out the gear needed to school cross country. A hearty breakfast of pancakes, sausage, eggs, muffins and cowboy coffee gets us going.
• 7:30am Riders head out for a hack down the road to let the horses stretch after being cramped up in the small stalls and the long trailer ride. There horses are a bit stressed with the wet, wind and being at new place.
• 8:30 All three riders and I head down to the warm up in still soaking wet jumping arena, as we’re on our way, other competitors pull up and ask us where to park. We realize they have not been informed of the show’s cancellation…hmmmm
We had to wipe off the mud from the bottom of the rider's boots because their feet kept slipping in the stirrups!
My sleeve was the only "rag" we had.
• Cross country schooling for the next three hours- a great experience for all three riders and horses. After a quick pack we are on the road by 1:05pm
• “Alternative” directions given for the return trip home wind up detouring us NW by a 1:30 hr driving time…. After trusting the GPS (when it finally got service once we were out of the mountains) we find ourselves wandering through neighborhoods, stop signs and huge drainage ditches- not ideal for hauling horses or trailers of any sort.
• 2:30 We are relieved as we pull onto I 10 and have an uneventful journey with us arriving home in AZ at 6pm- all the while keeping in touch by phone to hear the “play by play” of the super bowl score was (I didn’t even have a clue it was that weekend)
• 6:15 As I transfer my gear into the truck I left at the barn I find it has a dead battery…
• The NEXT day as I start to write this blog my computer COMPLETELY crashes and I spend the next two days swiping the hard drive and restoring all the old files… NOT fun…
I hope you enjoyed the “journey”! Sam
Follow Us! One day horse trials in CA! 3 Competitors
I’m writing this update right before I head over to the barn for the final review of packing, loading horses and students and then hitting the road. If technology decides to cooperate I will be able to upload a cross country and stadium course walk that I will do with students, (pictures and lecture included,) and a play be play of "You're first horse trials!" This will include Dressage, Stadium and Cross Country all ridden in the same day as this is a schooling show. Stay tuned... The weather forecast is rain all day today (five hour drive) and then just before my three riders start the competition tomorrow the rain is supposed to die down.
These three riders have NEVER been to a competition like this before and are proving to be good sports... Here’s a little on their background.
Combo #1 has an advanced rider but the horse has a history of being "manhandled" when he feels any level of stress. He then mentally checks out. He’s a gorgeous thoroughbred that has already competed in these sorts of events, but never feeling good about it. He also has a racing past, which he resorts to when his brain gets fried. So the goal for him is to participate in the event and to stay mentally available. His rider's goal is to feel like she is "taking the horse" for the rider, rather than hoping to survive it.
Combo #2 has a SUPER laid back ranch horse that will try and address whatever you put in front of him, even though he's not the most athletic of horses. As long as his rider stays focused and rides accurate, they'll be able to "take on" anything presented to them.
Combo #3 has come a LONG ways. This was an abused ranch horse (with stifle and tendon injuries) that a novice rider took on after she inherited him and quietly persisted with. We were saying the other day if anyone had ever told her three years ago she'd be jumping (he's super tight and catty) what she is today and having her horse respond and try the way he does now, she'd have never believed it. During times of stress will still cause his brain to check out, but as long as she is persistent and doesn't accept the "minimum" he tends to be able to let his concerns go and refocus on the job at hand.
Stay tuned!
These three riders have NEVER been to a competition like this before and are proving to be good sports... Here’s a little on their background.
Combo #1 has an advanced rider but the horse has a history of being "manhandled" when he feels any level of stress. He then mentally checks out. He’s a gorgeous thoroughbred that has already competed in these sorts of events, but never feeling good about it. He also has a racing past, which he resorts to when his brain gets fried. So the goal for him is to participate in the event and to stay mentally available. His rider's goal is to feel like she is "taking the horse" for the rider, rather than hoping to survive it.
Combo #2 has a SUPER laid back ranch horse that will try and address whatever you put in front of him, even though he's not the most athletic of horses. As long as his rider stays focused and rides accurate, they'll be able to "take on" anything presented to them.
Combo #3 has come a LONG ways. This was an abused ranch horse (with stifle and tendon injuries) that a novice rider took on after she inherited him and quietly persisted with. We were saying the other day if anyone had ever told her three years ago she'd be jumping (he's super tight and catty) what she is today and having her horse respond and try the way he does now, she'd have never believed it. During times of stress will still cause his brain to check out, but as long as she is persistent and doesn't accept the "minimum" he tends to be able to let his concerns go and refocus on the job at hand.
Stay tuned!
Word of the Day: Bombproof Horse
Bomb Proof- more currently known as a "husband proof" horse. This is frequently the inaccurate description of a horse known for its seemingly calm, quiet, unflappable manner that makes people feel secure in permitting inexperienced riders to mount up; typically these horses are very confident in controlling familiar situations but can become extremely hard to manage in new and unfamiliar situations rather than being available to receive help and support from the rider. These horses are the ultimate example of a Patternized animal.
Honesty & Horses- A Few Thoughts While Flying Back from WY
As I was driving the four hours from my remote WY hideout to the Salt Lake City Airport I began composing this blog in my mind. Then as I boarded the plane for the first leg of my trip home I encountered a young family with two small children with their father relying completely on his Seeing Eye companion. As his trusted pal guided him carefully and calmly down the narrow plane aisle I felt a slight lump in my throat and started to think back to all the times that I'd felt that same feeling from horses that I had been working with.
My personality is very much "Need to see it/experience it in order to believe it." As I interact with society I am constantly stressed by the general "chaos" people accept as their lifestyle and their feelings towards this "living in the gray" to think that this level of stress is normal to have in their lives.
In my opinion many people are drawn to horses because there is a calm that the horse can offer us. The person may not realize what exactly it is that the horse is offering, but I find there is an honesty in our horses that is rare to find within people. The horses treat us with an honesty that the rest of society does not. In doing so, they wind up building a relationship with us, and because of the "safety" and "honesty" they offer us, they end up being a person's emotional outlet.
After settling in on the plane I opened the in-flight magazine and was struck by the irony with the first article I read, which was written by the Harvard Business Review and was titled "The Long Term Effects of Short-Term Emotions."
I will include the first paragraph:
"The heat of the moment is a powerful, dangerous thing. We all know this. If we're happy, we may be overly generous. If we're irritated, we may snap. But the regret- and consequences of that decision- may last years, a whole career or a lifetime. At least the regret will serve us well, right? Lesson learned- maybe."
Here people were thinking that operating in the "chaos" was the norm and that good things would result of it. For years I'd been working with people trying to clear the "gray" areas out of their relationship with their horse, and now a BUSINESS magazine was trying to do the same thing to get people to make clear black and white business decisions. Wow.
Horses tend to strive at operating within the "black and white" area and that is what allows them to survive and gain confidence in life, leading them to clarity and a calm mentally, emotionally and physically. It is unnatural for people to demand that of one another, but with horses, it's mandatory for clear communication and trust building. There is something about surrounding oneself with animals that demand honesty from us at all times that is emotionally relieving for us. I can't recall the number of times a client and their horse has struggled and persevered to reach that euphoric high from finding a clarity with their horse. Their tears tend to come flooding out soon after!
Working with the horses is rewarding to me because no matter what has happened in life their honesty never waivers. They aren't moved nor do they care about however "good or bad" our day was. They don't care if we woke up in a good or bad mood. What they do care about is the honesty that affects the quality of our communication and OUR mental availability towards them. If WE are not 100%, how can we ask our horses to be? I joke in some of my clinics about "leaving reality at the door" when a person heads out for a ride.
I believe if we treated our horses as if our life depended on it, just as the man with the seeing eye dog on the plane did, the honesty and clarity of our interaction and how we communicate with our horses would allow us to build a trusting partnership in our horses from the start…
To honesty- Sam
My personality is very much "Need to see it/experience it in order to believe it." As I interact with society I am constantly stressed by the general "chaos" people accept as their lifestyle and their feelings towards this "living in the gray" to think that this level of stress is normal to have in their lives.
In my opinion many people are drawn to horses because there is a calm that the horse can offer us. The person may not realize what exactly it is that the horse is offering, but I find there is an honesty in our horses that is rare to find within people. The horses treat us with an honesty that the rest of society does not. In doing so, they wind up building a relationship with us, and because of the "safety" and "honesty" they offer us, they end up being a person's emotional outlet.
After settling in on the plane I opened the in-flight magazine and was struck by the irony with the first article I read, which was written by the Harvard Business Review and was titled "The Long Term Effects of Short-Term Emotions."
I will include the first paragraph:
"The heat of the moment is a powerful, dangerous thing. We all know this. If we're happy, we may be overly generous. If we're irritated, we may snap. But the regret- and consequences of that decision- may last years, a whole career or a lifetime. At least the regret will serve us well, right? Lesson learned- maybe."
Here people were thinking that operating in the "chaos" was the norm and that good things would result of it. For years I'd been working with people trying to clear the "gray" areas out of their relationship with their horse, and now a BUSINESS magazine was trying to do the same thing to get people to make clear black and white business decisions. Wow.
Horses tend to strive at operating within the "black and white" area and that is what allows them to survive and gain confidence in life, leading them to clarity and a calm mentally, emotionally and physically. It is unnatural for people to demand that of one another, but with horses, it's mandatory for clear communication and trust building. There is something about surrounding oneself with animals that demand honesty from us at all times that is emotionally relieving for us. I can't recall the number of times a client and their horse has struggled and persevered to reach that euphoric high from finding a clarity with their horse. Their tears tend to come flooding out soon after!
Working with the horses is rewarding to me because no matter what has happened in life their honesty never waivers. They aren't moved nor do they care about however "good or bad" our day was. They don't care if we woke up in a good or bad mood. What they do care about is the honesty that affects the quality of our communication and OUR mental availability towards them. If WE are not 100%, how can we ask our horses to be? I joke in some of my clinics about "leaving reality at the door" when a person heads out for a ride.
I believe if we treated our horses as if our life depended on it, just as the man with the seeing eye dog on the plane did, the honesty and clarity of our interaction and how we communicate with our horses would allow us to build a trusting partnership in our horses from the start…
To honesty- Sam
Word of the Day- Assessment
Assess(ment)- Of the horse
To evaluate the mental availability, emotional state, and physical softness of the horse. This is a foundational key to build a partnership with your horse. By recognizing the horse's starting point, can help a person understand how to proceed in the session to address, support, and guide the horse to let go of fear, tension, or defensiveness.
To evaluate the mental availability, emotional state, and physical softness of the horse. This is a foundational key to build a partnership with your horse. By recognizing the horse's starting point, can help a person understand how to proceed in the session to address, support, and guide the horse to let go of fear, tension, or defensiveness.
Bits- NOT the quick fix... A few thoughts..
This was a recent question from a new client... all too often people seem to look for a "mechanical" band for an issue rather than address the issue in itself...
Question:
My 15 year old QH has a hard mouth. I currently ride him with a full cheek snaffle twist and with a standing martingale. But sometimes he outs his head down and tries to yank me down. I don't know what to do. Many people have suggested a harsher bit or spurs but I really don't know. What should I do? I need more control.
Answer:
Thank you for writing, hopefully I can offer some alternative ideas and suggestions from what you might be thinking. Too many times our horses tolerate what we ask of them, but as we increase the intensity or performance levels, they start to show signs of stress, worry, insecurity, fear or "acting out" in dangerous or unwanted behavior. Most of their behaviors are seen as "suddenly" appearing, which is wrong. Many times horses attempt to communicate in many shapes, ways and forms when they are having a problem. Too many times people ignore their horse's pleas for help and guidance, forcing the horse to comply physically while he is mentally and emotionally stressed out.
Imagine if you were being taught something new by someone. If you had some concern or worry about, and they just kept telling you "it'll be fine" and you went along trusting them. Then what if "it" didn't turn out to be fine and you reached of point of being completely worried for your safety. What would you do to get them to believe you could no longer "tolerate" what they'd been telling you? You would do whatever it took to get them to believe you were REALLY having a problem. It is no different with our horses.
Too many times people are satisfied with "good enough" or "close enough" because they get so focused on the end goal, instead of the quality of the ride that will allow them to achieve the end goal. If the ride quality at ALL times is good, then the end performance will be the ideal without having unnecessary stress for either the rider or horse.
Most "run away" horses or horses that do not stop when we would like them to, do so because something is scaring them or making them emotionally uncomfortable and therefore they respond by physically trying to get "away." The only natural defense a horse has to protect themself is to run. The tack and equipment you use are only addressing the symptom (the not stopping) not the issue (your horse being mentally available to listen to your aids from the saddle.) The stronger and more severe equipment you put on your horse will only create more stress and worry in him. It may temporarily appear to be an easy and quick fix that will force him to contain his frustrated or worried feelings until the day he finally is pushed to his limit and he explodes. By only addressing the equipment used and it's effectiveness will only delay your lack of controllability in your horse for a short period (like putting a band-aid on a wound that requires stitches.) I would say you need to go back and assess the clarity of your aids and the mental and emotional availability of your horse in order to create clear two way communication.
Break his "running away" down into steps. You might ask yourself these questions: When does he start to get strong when you ride? What kind of bit and other equipment do you currently use on him and why? Does it fit him correctly and is it effective? How soft and responsive is he towards your aids during your sessions when not running barrels? How effective are your aids? Does he respond worried if he is distracted, leaving his barn mates, riding in a group, etc.?
My guess is that he probably shows you signs of panic before he actually takes off. If you try to address this while it's happening, you are merely responding to his panicked reaction. You need to be able to recognize and RESPECT his behavior before or even when he STARTS to get panicked and be able to intercept his thoughts of running by offering him a better alternative. Keep in mind he will not listen to your aids unless they are both clear and effective.
Number one: The bit stops your horse. It does not ever stop your horse. His mental availability and respect of your aids is what allows him to physical stop.
Number two: Would you get into a car if you knew the steering or brakes only sometimes worked? If you wouldn't do that, then WHY would you not make it a number one priority to address steering and brakes when riding a thousand pound animal that has his own ideas and emotions about life?
Number three: Most horses have what I call a teenager attitude towards people. When someone offers the horse something most horses respond with a "Why should I?" attitude. Instead, our goal is create a mental availability in our horses in order to have them offer "What can I do to make this work?"
Number four: Most people are reactive riders. They wait and see being "hopeful" about how their horse might respond. Then they decide if they like or dislike what their horse is offering. Instead you must TAKE YOUR HORSE FOR THE RIDE rather than going along for the ride. You need to tell your horse AHEAD of time what you are going to ask of him instead of hoping he'll figure it out.
Number five: Horses and people are "patternized" beings. They get very comfortable with what they know and as soon as something different is presented they fall apart. How often do you change your routine of when you catch horse, where you groom and tack him up, when you ride him, what you ask of him throughout a ride, etc. Your horse should be available to try and do whatever you make ask of him at any time, anywhere.
So even though your horse has been ridden for years you may have to go back to some of the basics and re-evaluate you and your horse. In your case I would gather that there is general lack of clear communication between you and your horse. There are many ways to break down his lack of willingness to lope at various speeds. Because he is currently confident that when asked to lope it must be at a full out speed, that is all he thinks he needs to offer you. You are going to have to be able to influence his brain with alternative ideas, clarify how and what aids you use, and help him start to gain confidence when he mentally addresses you so that he can then offer alternative physical responses, rather than the current conditioned brainless responses.
First look at yourself, you will need to evaluate how you are using what aids, when, why and with how much pressure and then break down exactly when your horse mentally "tunes you out." Remember that a horse can feel a fly land on his skin, if you are creating a lot of "activity" with your aids and not getting a response, your horse is tuning you out.
Many horses are what I call "shut down" (mentally unavailable) due to boredom and routine rides. It will take a lot of creativity to create interest in your horse so that he will begin to enjoy participating in the ride rather than tolerating the ride. You will also have to establish black and white lines that clarify which of his reactions to your aids and what behaviors will be acceptable and those that are not. The faster you can catch an unwanted response, the faster he can "let it go" and try another response.
The faster you acknowledge that he achieved your "ideal" response, (giving him a break, move on to something else, etc.,) the more confidence he will have to increase his level of mental availability and physical performance. As you increase your own awareness and thought process you will begin to be able to pin point where and when you need to do something different in order to get an alternative response from your horse.
Also you need to become aware if your horse only has a hard time slowing at the lope, or perhaps you may not have noticed, but I would guess, that asking him to perform various energy levels within the walk, jog/trot, he probably also has a difficult time doing- this only becomes worse the faster he moves, which is why at a lope he feels slightly out of control.
Many times when working on a repeated exercise, horses try to please us by trying to do what is "right" ahead of when we have asked them. In reining your horse probably has been conditioned to perform the pattern, rather than waiting for specific cues or direction from you. You need to have his mind available at all times to consider what you are asking, even if in the middle of a pattern. If you can influence his mind, then you can change his outward actions. The more he realizes you are helping him throughout the ride, rather than fighting to control his speed, the more sensitive he will be to listening to your aids.
Last but not least. Keep in mind that race horses run their fastest when they are straight... Mentally many horses are way ahead of where there are physically moving, so if your horse is moving too fast, offer him a circle, turn or specific task that will act as something to get his brain to slow down, and tune back in to where he currently is at. You can slowly make the task more specific, until he offers to slow down... then continue on with your ride as if nothing interrupted you... Soon it'll only take one rein about to offer him a circle, turn, etc. and he'll slow down... Again, check your body language... If your weight is forward, similar to that of a jockey, you are offering your horse to run faster... If you weight is back in the saddle you are offering him to slow down...
With patience and clarity you will start in small steps (literally) to begin creating the opportunity for a two way conversation. This will allow both you and your horse to gain confidence in the other which will then lead to a trusting and fulfilling partnership that will allow you to both enjoy a quality ride. Remember, when your horse shows signs of rushing, nervousness, concern, worry or stress he is not trying to act naughty, rather he is asking for your help.
Sam
Question:
My 15 year old QH has a hard mouth. I currently ride him with a full cheek snaffle twist and with a standing martingale. But sometimes he outs his head down and tries to yank me down. I don't know what to do. Many people have suggested a harsher bit or spurs but I really don't know. What should I do? I need more control.
Answer:
Thank you for writing, hopefully I can offer some alternative ideas and suggestions from what you might be thinking. Too many times our horses tolerate what we ask of them, but as we increase the intensity or performance levels, they start to show signs of stress, worry, insecurity, fear or "acting out" in dangerous or unwanted behavior. Most of their behaviors are seen as "suddenly" appearing, which is wrong. Many times horses attempt to communicate in many shapes, ways and forms when they are having a problem. Too many times people ignore their horse's pleas for help and guidance, forcing the horse to comply physically while he is mentally and emotionally stressed out.
Imagine if you were being taught something new by someone. If you had some concern or worry about, and they just kept telling you "it'll be fine" and you went along trusting them. Then what if "it" didn't turn out to be fine and you reached of point of being completely worried for your safety. What would you do to get them to believe you could no longer "tolerate" what they'd been telling you? You would do whatever it took to get them to believe you were REALLY having a problem. It is no different with our horses.
Too many times people are satisfied with "good enough" or "close enough" because they get so focused on the end goal, instead of the quality of the ride that will allow them to achieve the end goal. If the ride quality at ALL times is good, then the end performance will be the ideal without having unnecessary stress for either the rider or horse.
Most "run away" horses or horses that do not stop when we would like them to, do so because something is scaring them or making them emotionally uncomfortable and therefore they respond by physically trying to get "away." The only natural defense a horse has to protect themself is to run. The tack and equipment you use are only addressing the symptom (the not stopping) not the issue (your horse being mentally available to listen to your aids from the saddle.) The stronger and more severe equipment you put on your horse will only create more stress and worry in him. It may temporarily appear to be an easy and quick fix that will force him to contain his frustrated or worried feelings until the day he finally is pushed to his limit and he explodes. By only addressing the equipment used and it's effectiveness will only delay your lack of controllability in your horse for a short period (like putting a band-aid on a wound that requires stitches.) I would say you need to go back and assess the clarity of your aids and the mental and emotional availability of your horse in order to create clear two way communication.
Break his "running away" down into steps. You might ask yourself these questions: When does he start to get strong when you ride? What kind of bit and other equipment do you currently use on him and why? Does it fit him correctly and is it effective? How soft and responsive is he towards your aids during your sessions when not running barrels? How effective are your aids? Does he respond worried if he is distracted, leaving his barn mates, riding in a group, etc.?
My guess is that he probably shows you signs of panic before he actually takes off. If you try to address this while it's happening, you are merely responding to his panicked reaction. You need to be able to recognize and RESPECT his behavior before or even when he STARTS to get panicked and be able to intercept his thoughts of running by offering him a better alternative. Keep in mind he will not listen to your aids unless they are both clear and effective.
Number one: The bit stops your horse. It does not ever stop your horse. His mental availability and respect of your aids is what allows him to physical stop.
Number two: Would you get into a car if you knew the steering or brakes only sometimes worked? If you wouldn't do that, then WHY would you not make it a number one priority to address steering and brakes when riding a thousand pound animal that has his own ideas and emotions about life?
Number three: Most horses have what I call a teenager attitude towards people. When someone offers the horse something most horses respond with a "Why should I?" attitude. Instead, our goal is create a mental availability in our horses in order to have them offer "What can I do to make this work?"
Number four: Most people are reactive riders. They wait and see being "hopeful" about how their horse might respond. Then they decide if they like or dislike what their horse is offering. Instead you must TAKE YOUR HORSE FOR THE RIDE rather than going along for the ride. You need to tell your horse AHEAD of time what you are going to ask of him instead of hoping he'll figure it out.
Number five: Horses and people are "patternized" beings. They get very comfortable with what they know and as soon as something different is presented they fall apart. How often do you change your routine of when you catch horse, where you groom and tack him up, when you ride him, what you ask of him throughout a ride, etc. Your horse should be available to try and do whatever you make ask of him at any time, anywhere.
So even though your horse has been ridden for years you may have to go back to some of the basics and re-evaluate you and your horse. In your case I would gather that there is general lack of clear communication between you and your horse. There are many ways to break down his lack of willingness to lope at various speeds. Because he is currently confident that when asked to lope it must be at a full out speed, that is all he thinks he needs to offer you. You are going to have to be able to influence his brain with alternative ideas, clarify how and what aids you use, and help him start to gain confidence when he mentally addresses you so that he can then offer alternative physical responses, rather than the current conditioned brainless responses.
First look at yourself, you will need to evaluate how you are using what aids, when, why and with how much pressure and then break down exactly when your horse mentally "tunes you out." Remember that a horse can feel a fly land on his skin, if you are creating a lot of "activity" with your aids and not getting a response, your horse is tuning you out.
Many horses are what I call "shut down" (mentally unavailable) due to boredom and routine rides. It will take a lot of creativity to create interest in your horse so that he will begin to enjoy participating in the ride rather than tolerating the ride. You will also have to establish black and white lines that clarify which of his reactions to your aids and what behaviors will be acceptable and those that are not. The faster you can catch an unwanted response, the faster he can "let it go" and try another response.
The faster you acknowledge that he achieved your "ideal" response, (giving him a break, move on to something else, etc.,) the more confidence he will have to increase his level of mental availability and physical performance. As you increase your own awareness and thought process you will begin to be able to pin point where and when you need to do something different in order to get an alternative response from your horse.
Also you need to become aware if your horse only has a hard time slowing at the lope, or perhaps you may not have noticed, but I would guess, that asking him to perform various energy levels within the walk, jog/trot, he probably also has a difficult time doing- this only becomes worse the faster he moves, which is why at a lope he feels slightly out of control.
Many times when working on a repeated exercise, horses try to please us by trying to do what is "right" ahead of when we have asked them. In reining your horse probably has been conditioned to perform the pattern, rather than waiting for specific cues or direction from you. You need to have his mind available at all times to consider what you are asking, even if in the middle of a pattern. If you can influence his mind, then you can change his outward actions. The more he realizes you are helping him throughout the ride, rather than fighting to control his speed, the more sensitive he will be to listening to your aids.
Last but not least. Keep in mind that race horses run their fastest when they are straight... Mentally many horses are way ahead of where there are physically moving, so if your horse is moving too fast, offer him a circle, turn or specific task that will act as something to get his brain to slow down, and tune back in to where he currently is at. You can slowly make the task more specific, until he offers to slow down... then continue on with your ride as if nothing interrupted you... Soon it'll only take one rein about to offer him a circle, turn, etc. and he'll slow down... Again, check your body language... If your weight is forward, similar to that of a jockey, you are offering your horse to run faster... If you weight is back in the saddle you are offering him to slow down...
With patience and clarity you will start in small steps (literally) to begin creating the opportunity for a two way conversation. This will allow both you and your horse to gain confidence in the other which will then lead to a trusting and fulfilling partnership that will allow you to both enjoy a quality ride. Remember, when your horse shows signs of rushing, nervousness, concern, worry or stress he is not trying to act naughty, rather he is asking for your help.
Sam
Word of the Day- Anticipative Horses
Anticipate- Many horses tend to be mentally ahead of where they are physically because of concern. The action or movements of the horse tend to be exaggerated and over-reactive mentally and behaviorally.
Contributors causing a horse to become anticipative can include:
Contributors causing a horse to become anticipative can include:
- lack of confidence
- lack of clear communication from the rider
- riders that "drive" the horse rather than help them learn to think through scenarios
- riders that don't offer a clear mental and physical release when the horse tries
Because the horse is mentally unsure, it limits his ability to be mentally available or willing to accept the human's influence. This causes excessive, undesired, and sometimes dangerous movement. This often leads to a vicious cycle creating fear in both the horse and human.
Word of the Day: Accordian Effect
Accordion effect- shortening of the top line: from the tips of the ears to the neck, through the back along with the hindquarters, and into the horse's hocks. This creates a stiff and resistant movement similar to that of a needle moving in a sewing machine; movement has a more up and down action rather than stretching forward in a relaxed manner. The horse is lacking a "forward-thinking" mentality his entire body is scrunched up similar to that of an accordion rather than stretched out and relaxed.
Word of the Day: Tolerating
Tolerating- a horse's lack of mental availability despite his physical interactions. Often assessing for softness in his movement and his mental and emotional response towards the human will display a rigid, tight, and often dramatic responses.
Anticipation- In both the horse and rider
As we sat around in blustery WY swapping horse stories the other night I realized there was one common theme. Anticipation. The focus happened to be about team roping, but my thoughts on this subject still apply to ALL riders and their horses.
In this day and age riders are starting to expand their equestrian activities rather than just sticking to one specific discipline. This is great for both the horses and riders and encourages them to raise their level of awareness, their horse's mental availability when presented with different tasks (rather than the same routine,) and it allows them to evaluate and use tools to offer clear communication no matter when and where they are needed.
As I listened to the group I realized I was hearing horror story after horror story about people either having had experienced themself or having had witnessed roping accidents. The most common occurrence had to do with after a rider had caught a steer.
Once the steer has been caught the rider uses their coils in their hand to "dally." A coil is the excess rope that is held in neat and organized circles in their hand. Some of these are released as the rider throws their loop at the desired steer. A dally is when the rider has caught the desired steer they then take their rope and wrap it around the horn of their saddle in order to maintain control over the steer they caught.
In this sort of roping things happen very quickly because the riders are competing for who has the fastest time in catching both the head and the heels of a steer. This can become dangerous if the rider does not keep track of their coils and has caught a three or four hundred pound steer that is showing resistance towards having been roped. After the steer is caught the coils need to be easily and quickly separated from the rest in order to dally. If there is any slack between the steer and rider, if the coils are not neatly held or are accidentally dropped while the rider is trying to dally, a rider can get their fingers and hands literally ripping off from the force of rope tightening/wrapping around their hand as the caught steer is trying to make his get away.
As with anything, the faster things "have to happen" the more pressure and intensity both the rider and horse feels. Here are a few things I see happen all too often:
• Seeing a horse feeling pretty troubled in the box (the area they wait until the steer is released form the shoot and the rider begins chasing it to catch it.) Serious accidents have happened from a horse becoming anticipative about the upcoming run and they can get pretty light on their feet. You'll see this commonly in sports that require quick bursts of speed such as race horses, barrel races, team roping, etc.
• Often the rider is more concerned with their performance and accuracy with throw of thier rope they accidentally end up ignoring areas of horsemanship that need to be addressed BEFORE they head out of the box or to a competition.
A lack of quality horsemanship and awareness seem to be the worst contributors towards how a horse and rider handle ANTICIPATION.
There are many parts of clear communication with a horse that need to be established (not just on the day of the event or competition) so that going into an event the rider and horse feel confident and clear in how they interact with one another.
In this case, if a rider is solely focused on the actual roping of the steer- how are they ever going to GET from the box to the steer with any accuracy, speed and control if they're horse is worried, anxious, insecure, etc. Too many times because of patternized (click link for blog definition) practices (i.e. practicing by riding the horse numerous times out of the box trying to attempt a catch rather than focusing on doing it a few times with a calm, confident and quality ride.)
Instead if the rider took the time to create clear communication through the use of their aids rather than reactively riding (click link for blog definition) or responding after the fact, they can "tell" their horse while the ride or run is happening what they need their horse to do. If a rider winds up being hopeful (see blog definition) that their horse will do what he's supposed to do they have no clue as to what and how their horse will respond as they come out of the box.
Because the horse gets used to not being told by his rider, he winds up taking over and starts getting anticipative because it does not make him feel good to come out of that box "on his own." Just as with people, they like to know what the "plan" is.
The next element in this particular discipline is the steer itself. The rider and horse have no idea what the steer is going to do as he comes out of the shoot. So they have to be ready for whatever may need to get done in order to rope the steer. If the horse has only previously been taught that "he's on his own" then he will tend to anticipate (many times causing a time fault for leaving the box early, also known as "breaking the barrier.")
Once a horse reaches a certain degree of stress they typically reach an "unreasonable" state. This is where the horse takes over and the rider winds up "going for the ride." Again this is another undesirable and potentionally dangerous situation. Once he takes over, especially in an event like team roping, if you need your horse to quickly turn, slow or speed up, you have less of a chance that you horse is going to perform as you need him to when "you've got to get the job done." This lack of responsiveness, mental availability from your horse and unclear communication is the largest contributor to an accident waiting to happen that my have been preventable by taking the time to address the quality of horsemanship with your horse ahead of time.
So whether you are a roper or a Dressage rider, a trail rider or a barrel racer, the next time you head out to ride start to assess if you horse may have a degree of anticipation in him. If so, start to break down into little steps how and what you ask of him and then how he responds. He'll tell you if your communication is clear, and he'll certainly show you if it's not.
It's more "work" to be a safe rider, but in the long run it decreases the level of stress you carry with you as you step into the saddle and in turn the more relaxed and confident you are, so will your horse be.
In this day and age riders are starting to expand their equestrian activities rather than just sticking to one specific discipline. This is great for both the horses and riders and encourages them to raise their level of awareness, their horse's mental availability when presented with different tasks (rather than the same routine,) and it allows them to evaluate and use tools to offer clear communication no matter when and where they are needed.
As I listened to the group I realized I was hearing horror story after horror story about people either having had experienced themself or having had witnessed roping accidents. The most common occurrence had to do with after a rider had caught a steer.
Once the steer has been caught the rider uses their coils in their hand to "dally." A coil is the excess rope that is held in neat and organized circles in their hand. Some of these are released as the rider throws their loop at the desired steer. A dally is when the rider has caught the desired steer they then take their rope and wrap it around the horn of their saddle in order to maintain control over the steer they caught.
In this sort of roping things happen very quickly because the riders are competing for who has the fastest time in catching both the head and the heels of a steer. This can become dangerous if the rider does not keep track of their coils and has caught a three or four hundred pound steer that is showing resistance towards having been roped. After the steer is caught the coils need to be easily and quickly separated from the rest in order to dally. If there is any slack between the steer and rider, if the coils are not neatly held or are accidentally dropped while the rider is trying to dally, a rider can get their fingers and hands literally ripping off from the force of rope tightening/wrapping around their hand as the caught steer is trying to make his get away.
As with anything, the faster things "have to happen" the more pressure and intensity both the rider and horse feels. Here are a few things I see happen all too often:
• Seeing a horse feeling pretty troubled in the box (the area they wait until the steer is released form the shoot and the rider begins chasing it to catch it.) Serious accidents have happened from a horse becoming anticipative about the upcoming run and they can get pretty light on their feet. You'll see this commonly in sports that require quick bursts of speed such as race horses, barrel races, team roping, etc.
• Often the rider is more concerned with their performance and accuracy with throw of thier rope they accidentally end up ignoring areas of horsemanship that need to be addressed BEFORE they head out of the box or to a competition.
A lack of quality horsemanship and awareness seem to be the worst contributors towards how a horse and rider handle ANTICIPATION.
There are many parts of clear communication with a horse that need to be established (not just on the day of the event or competition) so that going into an event the rider and horse feel confident and clear in how they interact with one another.
In this case, if a rider is solely focused on the actual roping of the steer- how are they ever going to GET from the box to the steer with any accuracy, speed and control if they're horse is worried, anxious, insecure, etc. Too many times because of patternized (click link for blog definition) practices (i.e. practicing by riding the horse numerous times out of the box trying to attempt a catch rather than focusing on doing it a few times with a calm, confident and quality ride.)
Instead if the rider took the time to create clear communication through the use of their aids rather than reactively riding (click link for blog definition) or responding after the fact, they can "tell" their horse while the ride or run is happening what they need their horse to do. If a rider winds up being hopeful (see blog definition) that their horse will do what he's supposed to do they have no clue as to what and how their horse will respond as they come out of the box.
Because the horse gets used to not being told by his rider, he winds up taking over and starts getting anticipative because it does not make him feel good to come out of that box "on his own." Just as with people, they like to know what the "plan" is.
The next element in this particular discipline is the steer itself. The rider and horse have no idea what the steer is going to do as he comes out of the shoot. So they have to be ready for whatever may need to get done in order to rope the steer. If the horse has only previously been taught that "he's on his own" then he will tend to anticipate (many times causing a time fault for leaving the box early, also known as "breaking the barrier.")
Once a horse reaches a certain degree of stress they typically reach an "unreasonable" state. This is where the horse takes over and the rider winds up "going for the ride." Again this is another undesirable and potentionally dangerous situation. Once he takes over, especially in an event like team roping, if you need your horse to quickly turn, slow or speed up, you have less of a chance that you horse is going to perform as you need him to when "you've got to get the job done." This lack of responsiveness, mental availability from your horse and unclear communication is the largest contributor to an accident waiting to happen that my have been preventable by taking the time to address the quality of horsemanship with your horse ahead of time.
So whether you are a roper or a Dressage rider, a trail rider or a barrel racer, the next time you head out to ride start to assess if you horse may have a degree of anticipation in him. If so, start to break down into little steps how and what you ask of him and then how he responds. He'll tell you if your communication is clear, and he'll certainly show you if it's not.
It's more "work" to be a safe rider, but in the long run it decreases the level of stress you carry with you as you step into the saddle and in turn the more relaxed and confident you are, so will your horse be.
Weathering the weather while retaining "Mental Availability"
Over the past few years Mother Nature has offered more than her share of natural disasters challenging both humans and animals in extreme situations ranging from devastating fires, floods, earthquakes, heavy snows, long winter freezes, to "long term" power outages/shortages. I was inspired to write about this topic after a wet wintery day.
I'm sure you've all experienced a day like today no matter where you live. For those of you living where I spend my winters (SW AZ,) the following weather report is rare and usually only happens once (yes, ONCE) a year because the norm precipitation is less than several inches for the ENTIRE year... According to the Weather Underground website it was reported today as follows:
"Very windy. Showers with a chance of thunderstorms. Rain will be heavy at times. Southwest wind 30 to 40 mph in the evening...becoming 15 to 20 mph after midnight. Gusts to 55 mph in the evening...becoming 30 mph after midnight. Chance of measurable rain 90 percent. High Wind Warning in effect until midnight MST tonight... Flash Flood Watch in effect through Friday afternoon... Tornado Watch 8 in effect until 10 PM MST this evening... "
I'm not going to give you the common "How prepared are you..." speech but rather something else. I'm also not going to focus on things such as riding on a windy day, or desensitizing a horse towards those "life threatening plastic bags" that whip past on windy days. I'm also not going to talk about evacuation preparedness for your four legged friends.
The point of this entry is to encourage you to be prepared by helping your horse ahead of time. As someone once told me "Expect the unexpected." You never know what you might face with your horse, but why "wait and see" how the both of you will handle an unforeseen event?
What I am going to address is how to get from POINT A (where your horse currently is) to POINT C (where he needs to end up) in an emergency situation while experiencing the least amount of stress possible (for BOTH of you.)
You may be asking why I called my second point "C." This is because there is also a POINT B that too often is forgotten about or not addressed with enough priority because typically during times of stress, panic, worry, fear, chaos, bad weather, and traumatic situations all too often people's and horse's brains check out. This of course is the WORST possible time for this to happen.
Point B that I've mentioned could be various situations. It might be the actual loading into a horse trailer to evacuate a property. Or it may be needing your horse to cross (while you lead him) the ditch/stream/river to get to higher or safer ground. It could be needing to have your horse ponied, roped, hobbled, tied or herded somewhere for his own safety. Or how about when you get that flat on your horse trailer or have engine problems and need to unload your horse on the side of a busy road. It could also be having SOMEONE ELSE having to handle your horse (they may not interact with him the way "mom" does) but he will still need to be participative.
You'll find if you've read any of my past blogs or if you've visited my website one of my main focuses is working on creating a horse's mental availability. So how does a horse's mental availability have anything to do with bad weather or an emergency situation?
I have found a horse's physical actions are a reflection of his mental and emotional status. If he is feeling confident and relaxed on the inside, he'll be physically cooperative and happily participative on the outside. I wrote a recent post about not being "hopeful." You might take a moment to review it. Being challenged by a stressful situation and still having to "get the job done" with your horse is NOT THE TIME to start neither “training him” nor when you want to be "hopeful" in how you interact with him.
The point of this blog is to stimulate YOUR thinking about "POINT B." I'm not going to explain literally "how to" prepare for point B. There is no way we can ever expose our horse to ALL the situations he might experience in life. Instead if AHEAD of time (who knows when the unexpected event will occur) you have built a trusting partnership based on clear communication with your horse he will be mentally prepared and available under any circumstance presented to be helpful and REASONABLE. This will eliminate unnecessary stress for the both of you.
Your goal should be to encourage our horse to "TRY" to think about what it is that you are asking of him (even if he's never experienced the scenario before.) On the calm quiet days you will need to take the time and put in the effort to build a solid foundation with our horse by teaching him to mentally address and focus on whatever you may present.
By preparing ahead of time and without the stress of a "crazy" situation you will have established the tools in communication necessary to SUPPORT (not physically manhandle or force) your horse to explore his options and then participate in a reasonable manner during a stressful situation. Your end goal is for him to be mentally available to search for the "right" answer no matter the situation, circumstance or stress level without him having a complete mental break down.
Keep Warm! Sam
I'm sure you've all experienced a day like today no matter where you live. For those of you living where I spend my winters (SW AZ,) the following weather report is rare and usually only happens once (yes, ONCE) a year because the norm precipitation is less than several inches for the ENTIRE year... According to the Weather Underground website it was reported today as follows:
"Very windy. Showers with a chance of thunderstorms. Rain will be heavy at times. Southwest wind 30 to 40 mph in the evening...becoming 15 to 20 mph after midnight. Gusts to 55 mph in the evening...becoming 30 mph after midnight. Chance of measurable rain 90 percent. High Wind Warning in effect until midnight MST tonight... Flash Flood Watch in effect through Friday afternoon... Tornado Watch 8 in effect until 10 PM MST this evening... "
I'm not going to give you the common "How prepared are you..." speech but rather something else. I'm also not going to focus on things such as riding on a windy day, or desensitizing a horse towards those "life threatening plastic bags" that whip past on windy days. I'm also not going to talk about evacuation preparedness for your four legged friends.
The point of this entry is to encourage you to be prepared by helping your horse ahead of time. As someone once told me "Expect the unexpected." You never know what you might face with your horse, but why "wait and see" how the both of you will handle an unforeseen event?
What I am going to address is how to get from POINT A (where your horse currently is) to POINT C (where he needs to end up) in an emergency situation while experiencing the least amount of stress possible (for BOTH of you.)
You may be asking why I called my second point "C." This is because there is also a POINT B that too often is forgotten about or not addressed with enough priority because typically during times of stress, panic, worry, fear, chaos, bad weather, and traumatic situations all too often people's and horse's brains check out. This of course is the WORST possible time for this to happen.
Point B that I've mentioned could be various situations. It might be the actual loading into a horse trailer to evacuate a property. Or it may be needing your horse to cross (while you lead him) the ditch/stream/river to get to higher or safer ground. It could be needing to have your horse ponied, roped, hobbled, tied or herded somewhere for his own safety. Or how about when you get that flat on your horse trailer or have engine problems and need to unload your horse on the side of a busy road. It could also be having SOMEONE ELSE having to handle your horse (they may not interact with him the way "mom" does) but he will still need to be participative.
You'll find if you've read any of my past blogs or if you've visited my website one of my main focuses is working on creating a horse's mental availability. So how does a horse's mental availability have anything to do with bad weather or an emergency situation?
I have found a horse's physical actions are a reflection of his mental and emotional status. If he is feeling confident and relaxed on the inside, he'll be physically cooperative and happily participative on the outside. I wrote a recent post about not being "hopeful." You might take a moment to review it. Being challenged by a stressful situation and still having to "get the job done" with your horse is NOT THE TIME to start neither “training him” nor when you want to be "hopeful" in how you interact with him.
The point of this blog is to stimulate YOUR thinking about "POINT B." I'm not going to explain literally "how to" prepare for point B. There is no way we can ever expose our horse to ALL the situations he might experience in life. Instead if AHEAD of time (who knows when the unexpected event will occur) you have built a trusting partnership based on clear communication with your horse he will be mentally prepared and available under any circumstance presented to be helpful and REASONABLE. This will eliminate unnecessary stress for the both of you.
Your goal should be to encourage our horse to "TRY" to think about what it is that you are asking of him (even if he's never experienced the scenario before.) On the calm quiet days you will need to take the time and put in the effort to build a solid foundation with our horse by teaching him to mentally address and focus on whatever you may present.
By preparing ahead of time and without the stress of a "crazy" situation you will have established the tools in communication necessary to SUPPORT (not physically manhandle or force) your horse to explore his options and then participate in a reasonable manner during a stressful situation. Your end goal is for him to be mentally available to search for the "right" answer no matter the situation, circumstance or stress level without him having a complete mental break down.
Keep Warm! Sam
Today's Chuckle...Cliches of the Equine World
Some of you may have seen this before and others may not have... I have EXPERIENCED most of the following scenarios, whether it was a competitor, trainer or student... I hope you can chuckle at the cliches used to describe the riders of each discipline. When people ask me "What TYPE of training do you do?" or "What's your method?" I find many are frusterated because they can't easily catagorize what I offer into one grouping. It's the same for my clinics; in one clinic we may have as participants an unstarted horse, a Dressage schoolmaster, a trail horse, a green broke horse and a "bomb proof" one. People are astonished that they can all LEARN from one another no matter their experience, background, discipline, etc. The following has been reprinted with the persmission of the it's original author. Enjoy! Sam
THE BACKYARD RIDER:
Usually found wearing shorts and a sports bra in the summer; flannel nightgown, muck boots, and down jacket in the winter. Drives a Ford 150 filled with saddle blankets and dog hair. Most have deformed toes from being stepped on while wearing flip-flops. Has a two-horse bumper-pull trailer, but uses it for hay storage, as her horse hasn't been off the farm in 6 years. Can install an electric fence, set a gate, and roll a round bale, solo. Rode well and often when she used to board her horse, 5 years ago. Took horse home to "save money" and has spent about 50 grand on acreage, barn, fence, tractor, etc. Has two topics of conversation - 1) How it's too hot/cold/wet/ dry to ride. And 2) how she may ride after she fixes the fence/digs drainage ditches/stacks 4 tons of hay.
THE NATURAL HORSEMANSHIP DEVOTEE:
Looks like a throwback from a Texas ranch, despite the fact that he lives in the suburbs of New Jersey. Rope coiled loosely in hand in case he needs to herd any of those kids on roller-blades away from his F-350 dually in the Wal-Mart parking lot. Cowboy hat strategically placed, and just dirty enough to look cool. Levi's are well worn. "Lightning" is, of course, this natural horsemanship guy's horse. Rescued from a bad home where he was never imprinted or broke in the natural horsemanship way, he specialized in running down his owners at feeding time, knocking children off his back on low-hanging branches, and baring his teeth. The hospitalization tally for his previous handlers was 12, until he was sent to Round Pen Randy; after ten minutes in said pen, he is now a totally broke horse, bowing to the crowd, and can put on his own splint boots (With R.P. Randy's trademark logo embossed on them) R.P.R. says, of all this, "Well, shucks ma'am, tweren't nuthin'! It's simple horsemanship. With this special twirly flickitatin' rope ($47.95 plus tax), you'll be round-pennin' like me in no time!"
THE ENDURANCE RIDER:
Wears Lycra tights in wild neon colors. The shinier the better, so the EMTs can find her body when her horse dumps her down a ravine. Wears hiking shoes of some sort, and T-shirts she got for paying $75 to complete another torturous ride. Her horse, Al Kamar Shazam, used to be called "you bastard" until he found an owner almost as hyper as he is. Shazam can spook at a blowing leaf, spin a 360, and not lose his big trot rhythm or give an inch to the horse behind him. Has learned to eat, drink, pee, and drop to his resting pulse rate on command. He has compiled 3,450 AERC miles; his rider compiled 3,445 (the missing five miles are the ones when he raced down the trail without his rider after performing his trademark 360.. Over-heard frequently: "Anyone have Advil?" "Anyone got some food? I think last year's Twinkies went bad." "For this pain I spend money?" "Shazam, you bastard-it's just a leaf" [thud]!
THE HUNTER RIDER:
Is slightly anorexic and trying her best to achieve the conformation of a 17-year-old male in case she ever has a clinic with George Morris. Field marks include greeny-beige breeches and a baseball cap when schooling or mud-colored coat and hardhat with dangling chinstrap when competing. Forks over about a grand a month to trainer for the privilege of letting him/her "tune" up the horse, which consists of drilling the beast until its going to put in five strides on a 60 foot line no matter WHAT she does. Sold the Thoroughbred (and a collection of lunging equipment, chambons, side reins) and bought a Warmblood. (Bought a ladder and a LONG set of spurs.) Talks a lot about the horse's success in Florida without exactly letting on that she herself has never been south of the Pennsylvania line.
THE DRESSAGE QUEEN:
Has her hair in an elegant ponytail and is wearing a visor and gold earrings sporting a breed logo. A $100 dollar custom jumper (also with breed logo) is worn over $300 dollar full-seat white breeches and custom Koenigs. Her horse, "Leistergeidelsprun dheim" ("Fleistergeidel" for short) is a 17.3-hand warmblood who was bred to be a Grand Prix horse. The Germans are still laughing hysterically, as he was bred to be a Grand Prix JUMPER, but since he couldn't get out of his own way, they sold him to an American. His rider fell in love with his lofty gaits, proud carriage, and tremendous athleticism. She admires mostly while lunging. She lunges him a lot, because she is not actually too keen to get up there and try to SIT that trot. When she rides, it's not for long, because (while he looks FINE to everyone else), she can tell that he is not as "through" and "supple" as he should be, and gets off to call the chiropractor/ massage therapist/psychic, all of which is expensive, but he WILL be shown, and shown right after he perfects (fill in the blank). The blank changes often enough that the rider can avoid the stress of being beaten at Training 1 by a Quarter Horse.
THE EVENTER:
Is bent over from carrying three saddles, three bridles, three bits, and three unrelated sets of clothing (four, if she is going to have to do a trot up at a 3-Day). The hunched defensive posture is reinforced by the anticipation of "a long one" a ditch and a wall, and from living in her back protector. Perpetually broke because she pays THREE coaches ( a Dressage Queen, a jumper rider, and her eventing guru, none of whom approve of the other) and pays trailers/stabling/ living expenses to go 600 miles to events that are spread out over 5 days. She is smugly convinced that Eventers are in fact the only people in the world who CAN ride (since Dressage Queen's don't jump, the H/J crowd is to afraid to go OUT of a ring, and the fox hunters - a related breed - don't have to deal with dressage judges). Hat cover on cross-country helmet is secured with a giant rubber band, so she can look like her idol, Phillip. Her horse, (who has previously been rejected as a race horse, a steeplechase horse -- got ruled off for jumping into the in field tailgating the crowd -- a jumper, a fox hunter, and a polo pony (no bit stops this thing) has two speeds: gallop and "no gallop" (also known as stop 'n' dump). Excels at over jumping into water, doing a head first "tuck and roll" maneuver and her horse exiting the complex (catch me if you can!) before his rider slogs out of the pond. Often stops to lick the Crisco off his legs before continuing gaily on to the merciless oxer jump just ahead. Owner often threatens to sell, but as he has flunked out of every other English-riding discipline, it will have to be to a barrel racer.
THE BACKYARD RIDER:
Usually found wearing shorts and a sports bra in the summer; flannel nightgown, muck boots, and down jacket in the winter. Drives a Ford 150 filled with saddle blankets and dog hair. Most have deformed toes from being stepped on while wearing flip-flops. Has a two-horse bumper-pull trailer, but uses it for hay storage, as her horse hasn't been off the farm in 6 years. Can install an electric fence, set a gate, and roll a round bale, solo. Rode well and often when she used to board her horse, 5 years ago. Took horse home to "save money" and has spent about 50 grand on acreage, barn, fence, tractor, etc. Has two topics of conversation - 1) How it's too hot/cold/wet/ dry to ride. And 2) how she may ride after she fixes the fence/digs drainage ditches/stacks 4 tons of hay.
THE NATURAL HORSEMANSHIP DEVOTEE:
Looks like a throwback from a Texas ranch, despite the fact that he lives in the suburbs of New Jersey. Rope coiled loosely in hand in case he needs to herd any of those kids on roller-blades away from his F-350 dually in the Wal-Mart parking lot. Cowboy hat strategically placed, and just dirty enough to look cool. Levi's are well worn. "Lightning" is, of course, this natural horsemanship guy's horse. Rescued from a bad home where he was never imprinted or broke in the natural horsemanship way, he specialized in running down his owners at feeding time, knocking children off his back on low-hanging branches, and baring his teeth. The hospitalization tally for his previous handlers was 12, until he was sent to Round Pen Randy; after ten minutes in said pen, he is now a totally broke horse, bowing to the crowd, and can put on his own splint boots (With R.P. Randy's trademark logo embossed on them) R.P.R. says, of all this, "Well, shucks ma'am, tweren't nuthin'! It's simple horsemanship. With this special twirly flickitatin' rope ($47.95 plus tax), you'll be round-pennin' like me in no time!"
THE ENDURANCE RIDER:
Wears Lycra tights in wild neon colors. The shinier the better, so the EMTs can find her body when her horse dumps her down a ravine. Wears hiking shoes of some sort, and T-shirts she got for paying $75 to complete another torturous ride. Her horse, Al Kamar Shazam, used to be called "you bastard" until he found an owner almost as hyper as he is. Shazam can spook at a blowing leaf, spin a 360, and not lose his big trot rhythm or give an inch to the horse behind him. Has learned to eat, drink, pee, and drop to his resting pulse rate on command. He has compiled 3,450 AERC miles; his rider compiled 3,445 (the missing five miles are the ones when he raced down the trail without his rider after performing his trademark 360.. Over-heard frequently: "Anyone have Advil?" "Anyone got some food? I think last year's Twinkies went bad." "For this pain I spend money?" "Shazam, you bastard-it's just a leaf" [thud]!
THE HUNTER RIDER:
Is slightly anorexic and trying her best to achieve the conformation of a 17-year-old male in case she ever has a clinic with George Morris. Field marks include greeny-beige breeches and a baseball cap when schooling or mud-colored coat and hardhat with dangling chinstrap when competing. Forks over about a grand a month to trainer for the privilege of letting him/her "tune" up the horse, which consists of drilling the beast until its going to put in five strides on a 60 foot line no matter WHAT she does. Sold the Thoroughbred (and a collection of lunging equipment, chambons, side reins) and bought a Warmblood. (Bought a ladder and a LONG set of spurs.) Talks a lot about the horse's success in Florida without exactly letting on that she herself has never been south of the Pennsylvania line.
THE DRESSAGE QUEEN:
Has her hair in an elegant ponytail and is wearing a visor and gold earrings sporting a breed logo. A $100 dollar custom jumper (also with breed logo) is worn over $300 dollar full-seat white breeches and custom Koenigs. Her horse, "Leistergeidelsprun dheim" ("Fleistergeidel" for short) is a 17.3-hand warmblood who was bred to be a Grand Prix horse. The Germans are still laughing hysterically, as he was bred to be a Grand Prix JUMPER, but since he couldn't get out of his own way, they sold him to an American. His rider fell in love with his lofty gaits, proud carriage, and tremendous athleticism. She admires mostly while lunging. She lunges him a lot, because she is not actually too keen to get up there and try to SIT that trot. When she rides, it's not for long, because (while he looks FINE to everyone else), she can tell that he is not as "through" and "supple" as he should be, and gets off to call the chiropractor/ massage therapist/psychic, all of which is expensive, but he WILL be shown, and shown right after he perfects (fill in the blank). The blank changes often enough that the rider can avoid the stress of being beaten at Training 1 by a Quarter Horse.
THE EVENTER:
Is bent over from carrying three saddles, three bridles, three bits, and three unrelated sets of clothing (four, if she is going to have to do a trot up at a 3-Day). The hunched defensive posture is reinforced by the anticipation of "a long one" a ditch and a wall, and from living in her back protector. Perpetually broke because she pays THREE coaches ( a Dressage Queen, a jumper rider, and her eventing guru, none of whom approve of the other) and pays trailers/stabling/ living expenses to go 600 miles to events that are spread out over 5 days. She is smugly convinced that Eventers are in fact the only people in the world who CAN ride (since Dressage Queen's don't jump, the H/J crowd is to afraid to go OUT of a ring, and the fox hunters - a related breed - don't have to deal with dressage judges). Hat cover on cross-country helmet is secured with a giant rubber band, so she can look like her idol, Phillip. Her horse, (who has previously been rejected as a race horse, a steeplechase horse -- got ruled off for jumping into the in field tailgating the crowd -- a jumper, a fox hunter, and a polo pony (no bit stops this thing) has two speeds: gallop and "no gallop" (also known as stop 'n' dump). Excels at over jumping into water, doing a head first "tuck and roll" maneuver and her horse exiting the complex (catch me if you can!) before his rider slogs out of the pond. Often stops to lick the Crisco off his legs before continuing gaily on to the merciless oxer jump just ahead. Owner often threatens to sell, but as he has flunked out of every other English-riding discipline, it will have to be to a barrel racer.
Tip of the day: KEEP A RIDING JOURNAL
Whether you are a trail rider, a weekly "lesson" participant, or a die-hard clinic auditor/participant you can get MORE out of your time, effort, and money spent by keeping a riding journal.
Now, hold on and don't sigh yet... I'm not recommending a "write everything that was said or learned" journal. Instead think of it more as something to highlight 3 focus points from your session.
Staying Neutral
Don't focus on the big or obvious things and don't write your opinion such as "I like that my horse..." Write your entries from a neutral perspective rather than an emotional one and jot just several focus points that you worked on with your horse. The sooner you can make your entry after your ride the more accurate it will be. "Life" can happen and even just a day or two later you'll forget a lot of what you had noticed during your last session with your horse.
What to write about
You may want to include: what, when and how you asked something of your horse. Then observe the level of his participation mentally, emotionally and physically to your communication. You'll find his physical participation will be a reflection of his mental end emotional availability towards you.
Why keep the journal?
Many times we think we "know" our horses, but all too often the little details escape us. Once you start to make it a point to raise your level of awareness when working with your horse, you'll find that you'll also start to "learn" a lot more about both yourself and your four legged partner.
Examples journal entries:
• How long into a session when working your horse either from the ground or when riding does it take for him to sigh, like his lips or blow his nose?
• Is he "patternized" and require a "routine warm up" or is he mentally available to address whatever you offer whenever you might present it?
• Does he "always" respond in the same manner when you ask a specific task of him?
• Evaluate yourself when you present one specific task for your horse. What did you learn about you? How, when, and why did you do what you did? What are other wise you might be able to communicate the same desired result using different aids?
Keep in mind
Health Wise- if you notice odd physical behavior (coughing, runny nose/eyes, soft stool, etc.) make a note of it. A lot of times it can help prevent or diagnose an on-coming health issue. Keep track of worming, vaccinations, shoeing, etc. and notice if there's a correspondence to a change in your horse's health.
Lameness- if you start to notice your horse becoming sore after a certain type of workout you might be able to "break down" what is causing this and prevent any long term damage.
Learning from YOU
Learn from the past- REVIEW past entries in your journal once month. You'll be amazed at how fast your level of awareness and sensitivity increases once you make a point of noticing the small details. You'll also be amazed at how much you "thought you knew" but then had forgotten as you advanced on. It's always a good idea to go back and review the basics no matter what level rider or horse you have.
Enjoy! Sam
Now, hold on and don't sigh yet... I'm not recommending a "write everything that was said or learned" journal. Instead think of it more as something to highlight 3 focus points from your session.
Staying Neutral
Don't focus on the big or obvious things and don't write your opinion such as "I like that my horse..." Write your entries from a neutral perspective rather than an emotional one and jot just several focus points that you worked on with your horse. The sooner you can make your entry after your ride the more accurate it will be. "Life" can happen and even just a day or two later you'll forget a lot of what you had noticed during your last session with your horse.
What to write about
You may want to include: what, when and how you asked something of your horse. Then observe the level of his participation mentally, emotionally and physically to your communication. You'll find his physical participation will be a reflection of his mental end emotional availability towards you.
Why keep the journal?
Many times we think we "know" our horses, but all too often the little details escape us. Once you start to make it a point to raise your level of awareness when working with your horse, you'll find that you'll also start to "learn" a lot more about both yourself and your four legged partner.
Examples journal entries:
• How long into a session when working your horse either from the ground or when riding does it take for him to sigh, like his lips or blow his nose?
• Is he "patternized" and require a "routine warm up" or is he mentally available to address whatever you offer whenever you might present it?
• Does he "always" respond in the same manner when you ask a specific task of him?
• Evaluate yourself when you present one specific task for your horse. What did you learn about you? How, when, and why did you do what you did? What are other wise you might be able to communicate the same desired result using different aids?
Keep in mind
Health Wise- if you notice odd physical behavior (coughing, runny nose/eyes, soft stool, etc.) make a note of it. A lot of times it can help prevent or diagnose an on-coming health issue. Keep track of worming, vaccinations, shoeing, etc. and notice if there's a correspondence to a change in your horse's health.
Lameness- if you start to notice your horse becoming sore after a certain type of workout you might be able to "break down" what is causing this and prevent any long term damage.
Learning from YOU
Learn from the past- REVIEW past entries in your journal once month. You'll be amazed at how fast your level of awareness and sensitivity increases once you make a point of noticing the small details. You'll also be amazed at how much you "thought you knew" but then had forgotten as you advanced on. It's always a good idea to go back and review the basics no matter what level rider or horse you have.
Enjoy! Sam
Being HOPEFUL: The missing link in communication
Hopefulness. Waiting and Seeing. Reactive Riding. Taking the "try" and willingness out of your horse.
What do all of the above have in common? They are a domino effect that occurs in the riding world far too often. Let me explain.
Each of the following three scenarios is acts of "Hopefulness" by riders:
Have you ever experienced or witnessed someone riding down the trail and seen something "scary" before your horse did? What did you do? A common response is the rider will hold their breath as their horse gets closer to the scary item, sitting very still in the saddle, and perhaps asking their horse to look the opposite way from the item as they "snuck by." Then they waited, and were silently hoping their horse didn't have a melt down as they passed by. Afterwards they let out a "sigh of relief" that nothing dramatic had happened.
Or how about the horse who was inconsistent about his willingness to load in the trailer. After he was caught as he was walked to the trailer the handler is chanting in hushed tones under their breath a message of hope "that today the horse would load willingly and not have it turn into the 5 hour fiasco like it had last time."
What about as you watched (or experienced) someone approaching a jump, half way through their barrel pattern or was building a loop while waiting in the box, what was going through your head (or what appeared theirs based on their facial expression) before the horse was asked to perform? And then what was the reaction from the rider AFTER the round? "I wasn't sure what he was gonna do..." "Whew, glad that's over with..." "Well THAT was a little scary..." "I hope that doesn't happen again..."
Many equine enthusiasts talk about communication between horses and their owners. This in itself is a whole other topic for another entry. What I want to mention is what about the LACK of communication between the rider/handler and the horse. All too often I see horses that have been deemed a "bad" or "ill behaved" horse. When I actually watch the interaction between the rider/handler and the horse often I find myself staring at a horse with a totally blank expression or confused look on his face due to "silence" from his rider/handler.
Then when the horse starts showing signs of worry, concern, stress, or other dramatic behavior, because he doesn't know what is gong on, he is punished or reprimanded for it. Instead the rider/handler ought to be having a CONVERSATION with the horse. The horse needs to be told AHEAD of time what is going to be asked of him. All too often the person winds up being "hopeful" and then after the horse offers a physical action does the person address him. By now, it's too late. The rider is REACTING after the event. This is what I call REACTIVE RIDING.
When people sit down in that saddle their brain tends to focus solely on themself. Instead if they treated their horse like they were "on the same team" and told the horse what the PLAN was ahead of time, the horse would have a better chance of offering the desired response to the handler or rider. BUT in order to have a plan, one must be THINKING (again, another blog topic) AHEAD of time of what, how and when they will ask something of the horse.
People tend to HOPE their horse will figure out what is going to be asked of them without ever offering any physical, spatial or verbal communication. Then when the horse doesn't respond as the handler/rider had wanted, the horse is reprimanded but never shown what the desired response had been. So the horse continues to stumble mentally and emotional, therefore physically, due to his continual existence in the "gray" area when interacting with a human. Eventually the feeling that he "just can't get it right" overwhelms him and he mentally checks out. Once he's mentally gone, there's no chance he'll physically comply.
When a horse reaches this point, people term them as being "naughty," lazy," "disrespectful, 'bad," etc., when in fact this is not the case at all. After trying all of his "options" if there is no communication from the handler/rider, the horse eventually gives up trying to figure out what it is that the person is asking of them. This is how people take the "try" and CURIOSITY (again, another blog topic) out of their horse.
In summary, by being HOPEFUL you will end up WAITING AND SEEING how your horse is going to respond in the future. This means you are now RIDING REACTIVLY which causes your horse to be operating in the "gray" area which will eventually TAKE THE TRY out of him and cause much stress to both of you.
So the next time you head out to visit with your four legged friend, please keep this in mind:
IF YOU DON'T TELL YOUR HORSE CLEARLY AHEAD OF TIME DON'T EXPECT HIM TO BE ABLE TO READ YOUR MIND AND PERFORM AS DESIRED.
Until Next Time...Sam
What do all of the above have in common? They are a domino effect that occurs in the riding world far too often. Let me explain.
Each of the following three scenarios is acts of "Hopefulness" by riders:
Have you ever experienced or witnessed someone riding down the trail and seen something "scary" before your horse did? What did you do? A common response is the rider will hold their breath as their horse gets closer to the scary item, sitting very still in the saddle, and perhaps asking their horse to look the opposite way from the item as they "snuck by." Then they waited, and were silently hoping their horse didn't have a melt down as they passed by. Afterwards they let out a "sigh of relief" that nothing dramatic had happened.
Or how about the horse who was inconsistent about his willingness to load in the trailer. After he was caught as he was walked to the trailer the handler is chanting in hushed tones under their breath a message of hope "that today the horse would load willingly and not have it turn into the 5 hour fiasco like it had last time."
What about as you watched (or experienced) someone approaching a jump, half way through their barrel pattern or was building a loop while waiting in the box, what was going through your head (or what appeared theirs based on their facial expression) before the horse was asked to perform? And then what was the reaction from the rider AFTER the round? "I wasn't sure what he was gonna do..." "Whew, glad that's over with..." "Well THAT was a little scary..." "I hope that doesn't happen again..."
Many equine enthusiasts talk about communication between horses and their owners. This in itself is a whole other topic for another entry. What I want to mention is what about the LACK of communication between the rider/handler and the horse. All too often I see horses that have been deemed a "bad" or "ill behaved" horse. When I actually watch the interaction between the rider/handler and the horse often I find myself staring at a horse with a totally blank expression or confused look on his face due to "silence" from his rider/handler.
Then when the horse starts showing signs of worry, concern, stress, or other dramatic behavior, because he doesn't know what is gong on, he is punished or reprimanded for it. Instead the rider/handler ought to be having a CONVERSATION with the horse. The horse needs to be told AHEAD of time what is going to be asked of him. All too often the person winds up being "hopeful" and then after the horse offers a physical action does the person address him. By now, it's too late. The rider is REACTING after the event. This is what I call REACTIVE RIDING.
When people sit down in that saddle their brain tends to focus solely on themself. Instead if they treated their horse like they were "on the same team" and told the horse what the PLAN was ahead of time, the horse would have a better chance of offering the desired response to the handler or rider. BUT in order to have a plan, one must be THINKING (again, another blog topic) AHEAD of time of what, how and when they will ask something of the horse.
People tend to HOPE their horse will figure out what is going to be asked of them without ever offering any physical, spatial or verbal communication. Then when the horse doesn't respond as the handler/rider had wanted, the horse is reprimanded but never shown what the desired response had been. So the horse continues to stumble mentally and emotional, therefore physically, due to his continual existence in the "gray" area when interacting with a human. Eventually the feeling that he "just can't get it right" overwhelms him and he mentally checks out. Once he's mentally gone, there's no chance he'll physically comply.
When a horse reaches this point, people term them as being "naughty," lazy," "disrespectful, 'bad," etc., when in fact this is not the case at all. After trying all of his "options" if there is no communication from the handler/rider, the horse eventually gives up trying to figure out what it is that the person is asking of them. This is how people take the "try" and CURIOSITY (again, another blog topic) out of their horse.
In summary, by being HOPEFUL you will end up WAITING AND SEEING how your horse is going to respond in the future. This means you are now RIDING REACTIVLY which causes your horse to be operating in the "gray" area which will eventually TAKE THE TRY out of him and cause much stress to both of you.
So the next time you head out to visit with your four legged friend, please keep this in mind:
IF YOU DON'T TELL YOUR HORSE CLEARLY AHEAD OF TIME DON'T EXPECT HIM TO BE ABLE TO READ YOUR MIND AND PERFORM AS DESIRED.
Until Next Time...Sam
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