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| Rafter Diamond K Livestock Located south of Sherwood Park, Alberta which is near Edmonton, Alberta |
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| What is the lead rope connected to? Her feet - even though tied to her head, if not connected to her feet she will be where she wants to be and not necessarily where you want to go |
| Why should you teach your horse to stand? For safety & to build trust Are they paying attention to you? If their mind is not on you, then they are distracted and wrecks can happen when you surprise them with your request to do something. |
| Why would you ever want to teach this? If your horse is relaxed you will both have a better ride. No you don't have to do it every time. It is just fun to see if you can |
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| When horses lick their lips or chew with their mouths when you are working with them it is a good thing If you don't know why, then maybe you should come visit us. |
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| Why is groundwork so important? It connects the reins to the feet and leads to success in the saddle. If your horse respects you on the ground she is more likely to respect you on her back too. |
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| Why do we do this? For the smiles on the riders and the softness in their horses. Thanks everyone for your willingness to hear and try. |
| How can I use a horse's natural curiousity to help me? Dragging a scary object away from a horse will often cause them to want to find out what it is. |
| The weekend wasn't perfect but great lessons were learned in these difficulties - The little grey mare to the left had not been used by her owners for many years but circumstances brought her into use for the weekend. She was extremely ear shy and would not accept the bridle. Through the weekend she got better and her owners left with some ideas about how to continue to help her. Stormy, Ken's 4 yr old gelding, got some practice in helping Ken make a difference in the life of a troubled horse. The paint gelding below has been to several clinics for help with his right lead. Unfortunately he came up lame on the second day so they will need to continue to practice balance, straightness, bending, feel, timing and balance at home. Having his specific problem allowed for some good discussion on getting a horse ready to take the correct lead. When your horse is having difficulty it is the owners' responsibility to learn how a horse takes the correct lead and then as Ray Hunt says, "prepare the horse to the position for the transition." "In order for it to be understood it has to be effective and in order to be effective it has to be presented to the horse in a way the horse can understand." (Ray Hunt) |
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| Where should my hands be when I am riding? Your hands should be wherever they need to be to support and guide your horse. If she is not sure about something, then open your hands and use gentle bumps to keep her straight. |
| Many, many thanks to Johane Janelle who took pictures for the weekend. Our arena is not well lit for picture taking, but I'm sure you will agree she did an awesome job. If you are interested in having Johane take pics for you, you can contact her at www.johanejanelle.com |
| What are some things dragging teaches? A horse cannot see directly behind them, so they must learn to trust that their rider will keep them from being harmed by the "creature" behind them. |
| Dragging in "wiggly lines" also teaches a horse to change eyes. Did you wonder why the people were walking around the back of their horses in the pics above? Learning to change eyes is best accomplished from the ground first. |
| And why is learning to change eyes important? Because a horse has a split brain. What one eye sees is not communicated to the other half of the brain, so when an item disappears behind the horse and reappears on the other side it is a "brand new object" to be assessed for danger. Exercising both sides of the brain builds balance which develops confidence in the horse. The horse is learning confidence from you and therefore begins to respect your leadership. |
| It is also important to your horse that you are confident she can make it. Look up and think beyond your obstacle. |
| Why does my horse go sideways when I am standing on the mounting block? Because horses prefer to look straight at something they don't quite understand, they turn so they can see you squarely with both eyes and therefore with both sides of their brain. |
| Take the time to teach your horse to "pick you up" off the fence, a mounting block/box, a trailer, a rock - even if you don't need one. They will learn a valuable skill in standing still while being mounted and in trusting you when you ask them to do something. You too will gain some valuable lessons in connecting those reins to those feet so those feet put his body where you need it. |
| Aren't cavaletti's for jumping? Sure, but if you are out for a relaxing trail ride do you really want your horse jumping every low obstacle or puddle? Your horse should be able to jump low obstacles when you ask or walk them if that is what you want to do. Asking your horse to stop part way over obstacles builds feel and timing in both of you. |
| In every horse discipline except cutting, your horse should wait for you to tell him what to do and then do what you ask without resentment. Developing feel, timing and balance in both of you can be done in many ways, and the more different things you try, the less bored you will both be. This is a low teeter-totter, so when the horse steps on one end, the other end moves. For this reason, sometimes it is best to start by walking straight across the middle to gain confidence. |
| Why does my horse dig holes when tied? Usually because they learned that if they dig a hole you will come and pay attention to them - or even better, turn them loose. Retraining is hard, starting right is better. After a good ride, they are more likely to be willing to stand for a short while. Turn them out before they get anxious or bored and their patience will grow. Oh yes, and some "green snake training" (garden hose) or some other activity of interest going on around them at the same time might just keep their attention longer if it won't cause a wreck. Use your good judgement. |
| How do I get my horse to approach something he is afraid of? Work him softly back and forth without letting him turn away from it. Focus on bending and changing eyes, at the edge of his comfort zone. As he gains experience and feels your confidence without beating on him, his comfort zone will shrink and the next thing you know you will be playing soccer with your friends. If you get even the slightest change, reward him by taking the pressure off. Go do something different for a moment or two and then come back to it again. |