Cory Johnson Horsemanship

Belle....11/19/11

2011-11-28T08:31:00.000-08:00

Belles last ride! Craig and Cheryl came today to pick her up. I hope they were pleased with her progress.

I worked her today starting in the round pen. I did more ground work than I have done in the past several days. This was to show Craig and Cheryl some of the things they should be doing before they ride her. She may be a four year old, but mentally she is still a baby. TAKE THE TIME IT TAKES NOW, SO THAT IT WILL TAKE LESS TIME IN THE FUTURE! I can't stress this enough!

We loped circles, trotted long straight lines and showed off her stop. By no means is she a reining horse, but she does have a pretty good foundation on her now. Craig and Cheryl can now do what it take to move her to the next level. That next level is more about what they want to do with her, it should be fun for them!

Belle....11/18/11

2011-11-28T08:23:00.000-08:00

I am a little late posting this, but here it is...

The ride today went very well. Worked a little in the round pen, but moved out to the big pen pretty fast. Belle is doing very well and today I worked on straight lines. Lots and lots of long straight lines trotting. The more you do of this sort of thing, the better she will be about just traveling out without of of the movement in her shoulders (the back and forth, wanting to lead with her shoulders).

Belle....11/17/11

2011-11-18T12:30:00.000-08:00

I did something I normally don't do anymore, I rushed the ride. Between the dark and a 4H meeting, I knew I didn't have much time on Belle. So, I didn't do any groundwork today. It showed a little when I first got on, BUT Belle is progressing nicely and she got "right" pretty quickly.

We spent most of the ride in our big pen. Worked on trotting a lot of straight lines. As with most young horses, she wants to push her shoulders back and forth. But with just some minor corrections, she travels pretty straight. We also worked on stops. Stops are pretty important for everyone, you want your horse responsive and soft when asking for that release from the bit. So once she was a little winded (it's easier to ask for a stop when the horse wants to stop!), I put a little pressure on the bit. The reward is in the release, so as soon as she stopped and gave me a little release at the mouth....I released the pressure on her. I had stated awhile back that horse training is pretty boring to the untrained eye.....there are three keys....repetition, repetition, repetition! Doing the same things, the same way...consistently!

Belle....11/16/11

2011-11-17T14:18:00.000-08:00

Good day for Belle. After the time change and a cancer survivor/caregiver dinner the last two nights, it's good to finally get back to riding.

We started with the groundwork. I cannot emphasize this enough. If you get her mind engaged, her body will soon follow. We quickly moved into the ride, I did a lot of turning her into and away from the fence. This kinda teaches her to move her front end over, while stepping over. We also worked on vertical and lateral flexion. I would like to see her much softer and am working to that end A continuation for Cheryl and Craig will be to follow this same program with her. She is doing really well and if I can find one, I will start working her with a slicker tomorrow.

Belle....11/13/11

2011-11-14T08:10:00.000-08:00

We got back, Sunday afternoon, from the World Paint Show (watched my wife's cousins win a reserve open and a non-pro world championship in the Team sorting) and rode Belle pretty hard. She had a couple of days off, so of course the groundwork is required.

What I call groundwork has changed over the years and now means something totally different to me than it did back then. Back then, the ground work was a shortlived concept that basically did not take the horse into account. It was only there so I could get them tired and get in the saddle. NOW, it means getting the horse' mind activated. Is she paying attention to what I asked her to do on the ground? Will she yeild her hind end and step over in the front? How is she when you are just swinging your lead (or stick/string) around? All of this will translate to what you are doing on her back. Getting connected with her mind sure makes things go alot easier.

Spent most of the ride time in our big pen, working on trotting in straight lines. Most horses have a little trouble staying straight when you take them out of confinement. Belle had not troubles with staying straight as long as we were in the round pen. Once she got outside, the open space was something new to adjust too. So, we did long straight lines. Lotsa trotting and extending that trot. One of the things to keep in mind with increasing your speed is the hole / ditch / canyon concept. Belle is exactly where she needs to be right now. Weather willing, there should be a lot of good rides this week.

She is scheduled to go home on the 19th, and Cheryl had asked me to ride her with a slicker. Well, we will see by the end of the week where we are on that. Never should you push a horse farther that they are able to handle (wish I had paid attention to that when I was younger!)

Belle....11/10/11

2011-11-11T08:40:00.000-08:00

Since Belle has had 3 days off, I was prudent of me to make sure the ground work is good. Meaning "how's her mind?"

She is still a little twitchy about anything behind her and as I was twirling my stick and string around, just being friendly with her, I remembered a story I wrote awhile back about learning to handle your tools . I am much better with mine, but sometimes I still get wrapped around the axel...learn to use the tools you have and if you don't have very good ones, save your money to get you some!

Anyway, I worked her on the ground quite a bit and when she was better than we started...I got on. We started out in the round pen and worked on flexing laterally and vertically. She is pretty good laterally, and will get better the more you ride. Vertically she is a little more challenged, but then again...the more you ride, the easier it gets for her. Worked inside the pen until I couldn't see anymore and jsut spent a few minutes outside the pen walking around looking at boogers again. Pretty good day for coming off a 3 day rest!

Belle....11/5/11

2011-11-08T23:07:00.000-08:00

Started the day with ground work (you might get tired of hearing that, but that is what you are supposed to do with a young horse), she moved through them pretty well. So we moved on the the next item of the day. Yesterday I mentioned a hole with how she was traveling, the pushy shoulder thing. Today I addressed that by asking her to move away from the fence in the round pen. Meaning I asked her to travel in straight lines across the round pen. She got a lot better about staying straight.

When all seemed like it was going well, I asked her to lope. She picked up the lope slick a you please and acted like I asked all the time. We loped a little in both directions and she stopped excellent both ways. THIS was a good place to stop for the day!

Belle....11/4/11

2011-11-08T22:29:00.000-08:00

Started with the ground work today, really an excellent day for her! Really stopping pretty well and turns are greatly improving. Spend probably an hour just tuning her a little in the round pen. Then the fun part...

The first time in the big pen. She traveled ok, but was really pushy with her shoulders. Which is perfectly normal, now there was not a fence to guide her. But it did open some holes in what she understood. And it is alwasy important to go back a step or two when you find a hole. I tried to make this first trip outside one that she would not be afraid of, so we finished with some easy straight lines down the fence line.

Belle....11/2/11

2011-11-03T09:31:00.000-07:00

Another good day for Belle! The ground work still needs to be done, she still just tolerates any work around her hind end. Once she figures out that I am not back there to beat on her, then everything will click for her.

The ride was excellent. Stopping and turning at the walk are pretty good and she is getting better at both from the trot. The thing that is working the best is her mindset. She doesn't get two excited about the work and is willing to try. You cannot ask for more than that. Things went so well, I pushed up the timetable and rode her outside the round pen. Nothing fancy, just let her piddle around the barn area. See what all of the boogers were about. All in all, a really good day!

Belle....11/1/11

2011-11-03T09:07:00.000-07:00

Belle is making excellent progress. Stops and turns are going great, not as refined as we would like yet....but for the few rides she has, she is going great!

I work the groundwork everyday, she is still a little iffy about any movement around her hind end. But if I continue on the same course, she will get better about that. The ride was good! Stops and turns are getting smoother at a walk. Yesterday I trotted her quite a bit, just gettting her to travel out. Today I started asking her to turn and stop from the trot. Of course when you add a little speed, things get a little sloppy. The smoothness she developed at the walk, got rough at the trot. But she is willing, so it will get better with more work.

Belle....10/31/11

2011-11-03T08:39:00.000-07:00

Another good day today! I have said that most of horse training is pretty boring to someone watching, unless you know something about what is going on. It appears boring because it is all about repitition. Doing the same thing, the same way until the horse understands what you want.

I said today was a good day because I saw some good progress from Belle. We worked on stopping and turning again. I have pretty much stayed with these two items because when I ride her out of the round pen, I want to do both and have it happen fairly easy. Her turns are going really good, she has her mind on the inside of the turn (meaning her front legs are crossing over, instead of under each other). She is stopping pretty well too, although there is not much finesse yet. In the future of her stops, I want her to give to the bit faster. That's part of the finesse, but not all of it....I will fill in the gaps here as we get to that point.

Belle....10/30/11

2011-10-31T11:54:00.000-07:00

Exceptional day today! I'm sorry I did not have a camera available, but my daughters were otherwise occupied.

Spent a little more time on the ground work than I have in the past couple of days, which was very benificial to her. I rode today with a long stick tucked under my arm. I used it as an encouragement for forward movement, so I would have to keep kicking her in the sides. I want a horse to be sensitive when i put any kind of pressure on thier sides and yesterday I found myself having to kick a little more than I wanted to. I asked her to trot a lot more than before, but I would squeeze with my cheeks (not the ones on my face) and upper thighs. If she didn't move, I would tap her in the hind end with my stick. Did this quite a lot and she was really starting to respond to my seat before rides' end. Worked on turning at a trot and stopping from a trot, also.

Belle....10/29/11

2011-10-31T11:47:00.000-07:00

Craig and Cheryl Estes came out today to see the progress on Belle. I hope they were happy with her advancement. I personally am very happy, she is not too excitable and to this point seems will to try whatever I ask her to do.

Today I did the ground work (which I will do for probably the next 30 days, just to build upon the foundation) and really the only hole I see is when anything starts slinging around her hind end. This will change as she grows more confident. She handled well and is really attentive to any kind of pressure on her mouth.

A really good day for her...probably the only thing I can fault her on was when I was asking her to trot, she got really agitated. laying her ears back and biting at my legs. Which is a red flag that something was bothering her, so I stopped, pulled the saddle back, checked under the pad and checked the cinch. Once I had smoothed the hair over, I cinched her back up and she seemed to be ok. If a horse does something that is out of the ordinary for them, there is usually a reason. Belle was hurting a little and I was slow to adjust to the situation.

Belle....10/27/11

2011-10-28T13:29:00.000-07:00

We had rain today, praise the Lord! When I got home the rain had stopped, but it was still overcast and cloudy. I knew if I was going to get any riding in, I had to do it quick!

As always, I start with ground work. Right now I am working on desensitizing zone 5. Which is the area behind her. She doesn't just bolt and run, but she gets fidgity and wants to move away. The goal is to be able to swing a rope behind her and it not mean anything unless my body posture says it should mean something. She is a work in process at this right now.

I worked her in some circles and got a lesson on how slick the ground is after a 3/4" rain. She slipped and fell, scared her and me! But she got up (no harm done other than being dirty) and we slowed it down. When I started riding her, again working slow, we worked on turns and giving to the bit. If she is truly giving to the bit, then she will step over with her front feet. Today was a good day for riding, but I didn't get to go as long as I would have liked to. It started raining again (I AM NOT COMPLAINING ABOUT THE RAIN, we need it!).

Belle....10/25/11

2011-10-26T11:52:00.000-07:00

Light day today. Shoer came and trimmed Belle, so I did some ground work with her instead of riding. Worked on some more desensitizing. She is still a little uncomfortable when you get the stick and string slinging around her hind end. This most likely comes from lunging. All she understands is that she should be moving, that is what happens when all you do is lunge a horse. Mind numbing circles generally lead to mind numbed horses! Instead work circles, but have a purpose. See when and where you can ask them to stop. How long did it take to get them to stop? Can you turn them into the fence where you want to and how about turning them away from the fence? Can you get them to put their nose on a certain spot on the round pen? There a so many different things you can do other than just stand in the middle and whip to make them go!

Belle is progressing nicely, even with some trust issues. These mainly pop up when you are doing groundwork, but she is riding well for 2-3 rides. The trust issues will get better as long as I continue to do groundwork before I ride.

Belle...10/24/11

2011-10-25T07:05:00.000-07:00

No pictures today, just more of the same as yesterday. Yesterday when I rode her for the first time, it was more about her carrying me around. Yes, I did has for some stops and turns...but I was not really concerned about where we were going.

Today, was a little different. Started her again with ground work, making sure her mind is right before we push on to the next thing. Saddling went really well and when I finally mounted up, she was ready for some direction. She still had it in her mind that she could travel anywhere she wanted to, but I started giving her direction. We made several trips around the round pen, with her continually looking to change directions, before I asked her to turn. I did this quite a bit and finally she was waiting for me to ask before she wanted to turn. Stopping is getting better, she is a quick learner! She needs her feet trimmed before I ask for more speed, which is happening on Tuesday. More speed does not mean that the training is speeding up, I am just going to ask her to long trot and lope at different points of the ride.

From here for a little while, things are going to get boring for the outsider. So much of training is repitition, consistantly doing the same thing over and over again until the horse understands what you are asking for. Posts might get a little shorter and there might not always be pictures. But I will try to note the milestones.

Belle...10/23/11

2011-10-24T12:52:00.000-07:00

Today is the big day! I think she is going well enough that I will be able to get on her back today. Again, I started with the basics. Ground work with and without the saddle and driving. All of this builds onto what a horse understands and does or does not fear. I started with just putting weight in the stirrup, laying across the saddle and rubbing her on the off side (this is where the stick and string come in handy, if I hadn't been playing the friendly game with her in the groundwork...how could I now put my body in that dangerous position?). I did this on both sides and she only boogered a little. Once the booger came up, though, I backed up and worked some ground work. There is no point in trying to push a horse past a fear spot. Back up and try to find out what the problem is, fix it and then move forward in the progression. When we got back to the point of me getting on, she was ready.

Once I had mounted her, I did what I heard Pat Parreli say..I got the heck off! I mounted her several more times from both sides before I even asked her to move. You are in the most vulnerable position you can be in, when you are trying to swing a leg over a horse. So it makes sense to spend quite a bit of time getting it right.

I finally asked her to move out and she stepped out with little fear or trepidation. We made several trips around the round pen at a walk. I asked her to turn into the fence (the driving basic), away from the fence and one or two stops. She really did well!

Belle...10/22/11

2011-10-24T12:13:00.000-07:00

I did all of the basics that I have been doing everyday. The idea is to build on what she learns so that you are always giving her something new. Sometimes this is day to day, sometimes it is day to week, sometimes week to week. You have to develope a feel of where your horse is at the moment.

At the "moment", Belle is mentally moving along pretty fast. I have asked her to give me more and more everyday. Today, I continued on with the lessons in driving. This not only teaches her to give to the bit, but also a little about turning. Now the turns are a little ugly and on the front end, but as she starts handling better we can clean these up. I also, introduced stopping. Since she understands releasing on both side, I asked her today to give to both sides at once. The first time, it confused her...BUT the releasse is the key. Once she gave me a stop, I released the pressure. It was not pretty, but it was a stop.

****Sorry, no pictures today! My daughter Faith was not available to be the photographer****

Belle...10/21/11

2011-10-24T12:12:00.000-07:00

Started today just like all of the other days. Belle has handled everything I have thrown at her. We did groundwork, just like any other day. The foundation starts with groundwork. Once I thought her mind was right, we moved on to the saddling. She handled it really well and I put the snaffle in her mouth, just to let her carry it around for a while. She chewed and slobbered, but generally took to it well. After working on the ground, with the saddle this time, I asked her to start giving to the bit. I would run the lead rope on the off side of her and put gentle pressure on the bit, just asking her to give and turn away from me. She was going so well with that, I decided to go ahead a drive her a little. She took to the drving like a duck to water!

Belle...10/18/11

2011-10-19T12:29:00.000-07:00

Wind was blowing like crazy and it was cooler than we have had all year. This usually means horses are:

1. Feeling really good because of the coolness
2. Nervous because of the wind blowing

A prey animal, which a horse is, relies on its sight to see the danger. They look for movement, but when the wind it blowing...everything moves! So no matter how calm your horse is, when the wind blows...the horse will be on edge.

I started Belle out with ground work again, this was especially important today because of the wind. I want her focused on me and not so much on everything moving with the gusts. Once we had moved on to the desensitizing (sacking out is what I used to call it), the wind presented a challenge because it blew my blanket away from the horse on the downwind side. So there was a lot of moving around trying to stay on the upwind side so that the blanket would touch her. I then started approaching her with the saddle. This bothered her not one bit, so after pulling the saddle on and off several times...I went ahead and cinched her up. Now for the first time I generally don't pull the cinch too tight, just snug it up so that the saddle doesn't slide under her belly (there's a wreck you don't want to see). After asking her to move out and a couple of laps in the round pen, I tighten it up. This usually lets them let go of some nervousness and air.

She seems to be good minded today and none of this bothered her, so I asked her to lope some circles in the round pen. I also moved my plastic barrels so that she would have to jump them (the only difference between a buck and a jump is the planning!), she jumped over them and moved right out. No hesitation, no bobbles. All seems well and the "plan" is still in place.

A good day...done

Belle...10/17/11

2011-10-19T06:15:00.000-07:00

We spent most of the day at MDA, but I did get home in time to work Belle today. Started out with the basic groundwork, we want her to have a good foundation for her future. She is a calm and pretty steady mare and has adapted well to the groundwork. Once I felt like her mind was ready I took a saddle blanket and started rubbing her all over with it. This eventually led to waving it around and slapping it lightly against her. At one point I was twirling it above my head walking away from her and she chose to follow me around, even though I gave her the option to leave any time she wanted. She is steady as a rock and looked at me as if to say, "is this all you got?" She is still going according to plan and should be ready to saddle tomorrow, but she is a horse. They are living breathing animals, with a mind, so you never assume that everything will go according to "plan".

Belle...10/16/11

2011-10-18T14:57:00.000-07:00

Picked up Belle from Kickin' K and brought her to the house. Once at the house I worked her on the ground for the first time. She is a fast learner and picked things up pretty quickly. Worked on yeilding her hind end and she almost immediately figured out how to make the pressure go away. I also did some desensitizing, using myself to sack her out. Meaning I hopped all around her and generally looked like a fool. I hopped up and laid across her back several times. She accepted all of this like a pro! I generally do a weeks worth of ground work before I get on, but I think I will be on her back late this week if all goes well.

Hoss - 8/20/11

2011-08-22T13:06:00.000-07:00

Did not get a lot of opportunity to work with Hoss this week, so today I chose to ride him. He was really "high". He strikes me as a horse that really like to move out and work. So that's what we did. I started out in his ground eating walk, asking him to tuck his nose. Once he was consistently giving to that ask, I sped him up a little. His head went out and his nose went up! So of course, we were back (at a trot, back hollowed out) out of control again. I kept him in a trot and again started asking him to tuck his nose as we went. It didn't take him long to get more collected. I did not lope him much, just too hot to get him that over heated.

I did work on some turns as he felt like a carousel horse. Meaning he wanted to turn on his middle and felt like he had a pole guiding his steps whenever we turned. Now some ground work will clean this up, but since I was riding...I did some turns into the fence. He was more willing to turn on his hind end, but he needed to go slow to learn where to put his feet. There are still lots of opportunities for him to get better.

FYI....Hoss went home today. Good luck Robin and Lynn!

Hoss - 8/16/11

2011-08-22T12:56:00.000-07:00

Worked more on ground work and disengaging his hind end. He really has a tendency to want to work all on his front end. To get him more on his hind end, I asked him to just move his front feet left and right. He got better by the end, but will require more opportunities to get better.

Hoss - 8/15/11

2011-08-16T15:19:00.000-07:00

Before Felicia and I went down to MDA, we worked at the barn for a little while. Robin and Lynn brought a new horse, although she thinks she may switch Magic for more riding since it appears that Hoss (I wanted to call him Stripes, but Felicia would let me. BTW, he's an appaloosa) might be more ride ready. But until then, I plan on working him to see where he is at mentally. I worked on getting him to disengage his hindquarters, it didn't mean much to him. But after some work circling and disengaging he was better. I plan on working him again Tuesday and probably riding him on Thursday.

Magic - 8/1/11

2011-08-03T13:34:00.000-07:00

Came home today to help Robin load Magic to take her home. Robin brought some shipping boots, so we put the on and let her get used to them before we started loading. We did some practice loading and all seemed well. But it always seems that, with horses, just when you think that all is going to be perfect....you are reminded that they are horses and God made them that way. She was hesitant about getting into the trailer (that was brought to take her to her new home). Her first step into the trailer, the rubber mat slid and after that she wanted nothing to do with loading into a trailer. I used a stick w/a string to lengthen my arm, but we still spent about a hour rebuilding her confidence that the floor of the trailer was not going to move. Eventually she loaded, but when you have a horse that is hard to load...once you get them loaded, you should unload and do it again. Preferably you should do it several more times. Take the drama out of it, you cannot get mad. The horse is not doing this on purpose, the horse is just fearful. You are loading them into a steel cave and things that eat them live in caves. Be patient, take the time it takes. Parelli says do more now so that you can do less later. That's good advice!

Magic - 7/30/11

2011-08-03T13:32:00.001-07:00

Started the day with the direct and drive. Loaded her in and out of the stocks (tight spot, getting her used to something against her side). Also loaded her into and out of the stock trailer several times. She did real well. The ride was light today. Sometimes it's not about the length, but about the quality of the ride. She was stopping well and was relaxing her frame real well.

Magic - 7/28/11

2011-08-03T13:31:00.001-07:00

Started the day again on the ground. Did some direct and drive to get her more comfortable in tight spaces. Robin is taking her home on Monday so I want her to load and unload with no issues. She did well when I rode, worked more on the right side and she is starting to give to the feel. BUT it should be a continuing education for her. Robin came out and rode again today. She did well and we talked about asking Magic to tip her nose as Robin rode her. We also talked about stopping. You should picture yourself deflating like a balloon and melting into the saddle when asking for the stop.

Magic - 7/26/11

2011-08-03T13:30:00.001-07:00

another good day. She is getting better and better going to the right. I am really pleased with her progress. Still wants to travel with her nose pushed out, but once her right side gets "right" I think her nose will fall into place. Robin came out and rode today, I thought things went very well for Magic and Robin.

Magic - 7/25/11

2011-08-03T13:29:00.001-07:00

Good day today. She was turning well and giving better. Still struggles with going to the right, but I believe all the right things are being done to get her where she needs to be.

Magic - 7/24/11

2011-08-03T13:28:00.001-07:00

Evening ride today. Rode outside, and asked her for a lope. She feels more collected but I didn't push her real hard. Just let her get the feel of moving faster. She still struggles with giving to the right, but she is better than a few days ago.

Magic - 7/23/11

2011-08-03T13:27:00.002-07:00

Rode two times today, morning and evening. Continued to work everything to the right. She is getting better but still lots of work to build that confidence.

Magic - 7/21/11

2011-08-03T13:27:00.000-07:00

worked in the round pen today. Turning back into the fence and continuing to ask for the soft feel. She still is resistant on her right side. So I have been spending a lot of time getting her mind involved before I get on. I do groundwork before saddling and riding. Everything from disengaging her hip to direct and drive. She is better, but she still has that hole that needs work.

Magic - 7/20/11

2011-08-03T13:26:00.000-07:00

Rode in the round pen, asked her for a lope. Of course she felt awkward and that she might stumble and fall down at any moment. She carried her nose way out in front and her back was hollowed out. So I backed off, I mentioned a couple of days ago about a hole, a ditch and a canyon. This was a ditch for her, so we backed up and started asking her to tip her nose in and get her back up.

Magic - 7/19/11

2011-08-03T13:25:00.001-07:00

started again on the ground. Asking for the hip to move over and started asking her to step over her front end. This starts to help her understand a rollback. As I rode I asked her to turn into the fence. You should always ask a young horse to turn into the fence when you give the room to turn. if you are too close to the fence, it confuses them... they have no where to go. Give them room to turn.

Magic - 7/18/11

2011-08-03T13:24:00.000-07:00

Rode outside today, she did real well. Asked her for all the same things that I asked for in the round pen, just in a different environment. I typically don’t ask for a lot of speed, I want forward motion…I just don’t want uncontrollable forward motion. When a horse has a hole at a walk, it turns into a ditch at a trot and a canyon at a lope. make sure you can do a one rein stop before you can ask for more speed. This is not a big deal if you have a thousand acres, you can ride as fast as they can run. BUT, most of us don't have that option. So before I asked her for more speed, I ask for more control.

Magic - 7/17/11

2011-08-03T13:23:00.000-07:00

Again started the day on the ground working on her right side. Asking her to step over with the inside hind leg, so that it the inside hind leg steps over and in front of the outside hind leg. Its important to remember to work both sides in order to be consistent. Did more of the lateral flexing as I rode her. I want to see the eye (in the direction I'm asking) looking at me and not the whites of her eye. Again, better today than she was yesterday.

Magic - 7/16/11

2011-08-03T13:21:00.000-07:00

One of the things you notice (or should notice) when you start young horses is that sometimes you rush them a little to much. One of the things I noticed in Magic yesterday was that she had a hole in her right side. Meaning that she was not as flexible or comfortable going to the right. So I went back to the ground today. She is very uncomfortable going to the right, so I directed her between myself and the fence (direct and drive) until she was comfortable with her claustrophobia. She still needs a lot of work with this, but she is better today than she was yesterday.

Magic - 7/15/11

2011-08-03T13:17:00.000-07:00

Spent the day again doing some basics. Asking for the soft feel both directions. A soft feel means when I ask for a bend to one side or the other, she gives not just with her head to the side…but also with her chin giving also. Spent the whole time working her laterally.

Magic - 7/14/11

2011-07-20T15:01:00.000-07:00

Trying to catch up on a few updates.

One of the things I noticed as a "hole" in Magic's progress was the lack of confidence she has on her right side. She reacts to every stimulation over and above to what she does on the right. I believe that we tend to make a horse right or left handed. So today I worked on her right side. Mostly ground work, if I can do something on the ground...I should be able to do it in the saddle. I mostly, I did direct and drive. Meaning I asked her to move by giving her direction and driving her hind in thru it. As the space got tighter, so did her nerves. So the key is to know when to back off and give her more room. By the end of the workout, she was better...but this is something that will require some effort and patience to overcome.

Magic - 7/7/11

2011-07-11T07:39:00.000-07:00

Again, continued with the same excirsices. I want to make sure she is solid, she doesn’t have to be perfect, she just needs to understand the basic of what I am asking for. Today was the first ride, which is that fine line between being excited and scared for me! It is important to understand that just because she understood (somewhat) give and release on the ground, didn’t mean she was going to remember it once I was in the saddle. The saddle gives a different feel to the horse and then you add the weight of the rider. All of these are new feelings for her. So today for the first ride, I wasn’t so much interested in where we were going as I was just going. I used my stick, tapping her on the hind end while leaning back a little and squeezing with my cheeks (I don’t mean the ones on my face) to encourage forward movement (see previous post - Learn How to Handle Your Tools). I also used the stick to encourage turns into and away from the rail. When I asked her to release one direction or the other, I waived (or tapped, as needed) the stick on the opposite side until she released to the ask at the bit. The one rein stop was alright (although it still needs some work, if I had been asking for more speed she might not have stopped at all). But any flexing at the poll or stopping with two reins was non-existent. Like I said, once the saddle and rider are added to the mix what they remember changes just a little. Overall she is exactly where I thought she would be at this point.

Magic - 7/5/11

2011-07-11T07:32:00.000-07:00

Every day you should add on to what you did before, sometimes it is not a huge thing you are adding. Sometimes it is just speeding up the pace of what you did the day before and that is what we did today. I asked her to offer me more speed and quicker releases than the day before. Of course if you are asking for more speed, then the releases will be uglier! But you should try to be consistent with your cues even at a faster pace. It is also important to build as your go. I would not have taken everything I did on the 3^rd and just walked into the round pen and told her we are going to take what you learned and push you to a 15 ride horse level. She would have blown up! I started out at the same pace, built upon it, asking her to go faster (never faster than a trot) during the driving exercises. Then I backed everything down to a slower pace before I quit for the day. Sometimes it is not so much about the quantity of work as it is about the quality of work!

Magic - 7/3/11

2011-07-11T07:19:00.000-07:00

I continued with the exercises started on 7/2. This time once she was saddled, I set her up to start following a feel. Meaning I asked her to bend her head around and start with the lateral flexion. I want to be able to bend her into a one rein stop if I have to when I start riding. I started out just running the lead rope around the opposite side of her hind end (rope around the left hip and me on the right) and just building a fence with my hands (meaning I applied a steady pull, never increasing and releasing as soon as she gave into it) Basically I was asking her to turn in a small circle each time, both directions with her feet moving. Once she was doing the small circle fairly well, I started asking her to just give into the side just like I would ask if I was sitting in the saddle. This is important because she does have to understand that a cue to release to the pressure, doesn’t always mean she has to move. If all of the cues are not there, then she should only give me what I’m asking for. Once I felt she understood the process, I hooked her up to drive.

This can be a little tricky if the horse does not know what the ropes feel like. If it is a threat to them, then you end up running around the round pen trying to catch up and get them out of a bind. Here is where the ground work comes into play, using your stick and string (or the end of your lead rope) you should all ready be flicking the rope all over them. This prepares them for the contact of the driving reins. I hooked the reins to the snaffle rings and put one rein on either side and asked her to move forward. Once she was moving then I started asking her to turn into and away from the fence. This should continue until she gives both ways easily. Once she does, build a fence with both hands (Mike Kevel calls it being as steady as a fence post, once they quit pulling on the pressure..it goes away) and hold it until you get a release. It is not always going to be a big release, reward the smallest try!

Magic - 7/2/11

2011-07-11T07:12:00.000-07:00

Started out with ground work again, she has picked up the hind end disengagements and has no problem moving her front end back and forth. One of the keys for moving the front end is if she is moving to the left, the right foot needs to cross over the top of the left and vice versa for the other direction. Most of my preparation has been at a slower pace, things tend to change once you speed up the pace. If hind end disengagements are a small hesitation at a walk, then at a trot it is a larger issue and near impossible at a lope. Make sure everything is solid at a walk before moving on to a faster pace.

After some basic ground work, I saddled her. She didn’t get overly excited about the saddle. Acted like she had been saddled before (which of course, she had..Again, thanks Joe!). I also slipped a bit in her mouth and let her just carry it around in the round pen.

As she was carrying the saddle and bit around I continued doing the ground work exercises. This was important because it continues the pace and consistency of the work. Things went well and she is advancing at a good pace.

Magic - 7/1/11

2011-07-08T15:48:00.000-07:00

Did ground work. Disengaging her hind end and learning to move her front end when asked. Spent about an hour and a half working on this. She is was a little resistant at first, but eventually decided that she could get along with me.

Everything you do on the ground will translate to something you do in the saddle. As I get older, my Dad gets smarter! Groundwork is the basic foundation in starting a horse. If you can't do it on the ground, you surely will not be able to do it in the saddle.

Magic - 6/30/11

2011-07-01T13:07:00.000-07:00

Had a customer bring a new mare today. She is 3 and this is her start up in the world of riding and I look forward to the progress she will make.
Started, last night, with some basic groundwork. Making sure she will yeild her hind end and asking her to step over with her front end. She was really calm, probably due to her halter showing back ground (thanks Joe Kelley!). The only thing she was twitchy about was her back right leg, which I think was do to the way she got out of the trailer (she might have been a little sore). Stay tuned for her growth!

Annie..the Never Started and Trail Riding Prep

2011-02-21T12:09:00.000-08:00

At some point, I wil get Annie started well enough for someone to finish her. She is a solid mare and deserves more time than I can give her! We have decided to sell her...

That being said, it sorta appears that the long (about 20-25 days so far) south Texas winter is over. Next week I look forward to some riding and more work for Annie. Of course all of this will be squeezed in between the visits to MD Anderson with Felicia (The Life and Times of a Cowboy Who Married Up)...so again stay tuned and you will eventually see this saga end for Annie with us!

If you are trail riding into Houston, be sure to do some check ups on your horse. Can you stop them with one rein? Will they stand calmly when you get on? How scared do they get when a car or wagon goes by? These are all things you should know before you get on the road. If you cannot accomplish at least these in the arena or at home...do you really think you can be safe out there on the road? Take it from me, most people in cars don't know enough to slow down when a horse is on or beside the road. How many people get hurt during this time of year because they don't know thier horse or think cars will stop?

Ride safe, ride prepared!

Annie....1/1/11

2011-01-04T13:35:00.000-08:00

On this first day of 2011, we had and excellent day!

Again we worked in the round pen, spent time with the turns in to the fence. Really looking for the turn and wants to carry herself through it. One of the the things I mentioned yesterday was the softness and suppleness homework. I kinda put the cart before the horse, so to speak, in explaining what this is to me. I always work this before I start asking for any turns. If you can't bend that head around, then you can't stop them if they get away from you.

I started out by asking her to bend side to side. Most horses will do this, but if you look at that eye...they are not looking at you, this is called a false release. I kept asking her for the release until her eye connected with me. Meaning, I could see more than the whites of her eye when she bent her head around. She's a pretty sharp mare, so this went pretty fast. Once both side were going well, I then started asking for her to break at the poll. This is nothing more than asking for both sides at the same time. The key to any release, is the soft ask. Most anybody can muscle one, but softness, ask softly. My Dad calls it butterfly fingers. Annie is still pretty resistant to this, but I understand where she is coming from. Her past wreck has made her hypersensitive around her nose. Time and patience will win out in the end.

Annie....12/31/10

2011-01-04T13:19:00.000-08:00

Rode today for about 1 1/2 hours. Wasn't suppose to rain, but it did and after the first 10 minutes, I wasn't going to get any wetter.

Worked today on forward momentum. You would think with most horses being forwardholics, this wouldn't be an issue. When you get on them, at first, they sometimes forget how to move their feet. Once the forward part was going pretty well, we worked on turns into the fence. I like to turn into the fence because it really forces them, if you do it right, to walk their front end around. I give myself plenty of space between her and the fence, not to much, usually 2-4 feet. Softly ask for the turn, made sure that I have already done the home work with softness and suppleness. As she started around, I gave the cue (soft pressure with opposite leg - picture pushing her through the turn with your leg) and has she completed walking through, I released the pressure. After 4 or 5 like this, she started looking for the turn in that direction. I repeated all of this on the other side. You cannot use the fence forever, eventually she needs to learn how to move her front end around with nothing more than my cue and no physical aid. All in all...a good day!

New Years Weekend!

2010-12-30T13:57:00.000-08:00

After about a week of messy weather, things are looking up for a clear weekend right now. Haven't seen the news , but I can see clear skies. Hopefully I'll be able to ride all 4 days! Stay tuned!

Annie...12/24/10

2010-12-24T14:01:00.000-08:00

It has been awhile since I was able to ride, so I am going to start talking in hours and not days. Since Thanksgiving there have been a couple of projects around here that have consumed all hours of daylight available. We have completed residing the barn and I helped Cully a little in tearing down another building. But today…I rode. I plan on riding, weather permitting, all through the weekend and next.

Today I reviewed, with Annie, some of the things we did at the clinic with Dad. Sit back, squeeze with your cheeks and a light tap with a carrot stick (handling a stick and riding does get your hands tied up a little, but it is a good skill to learn) for forward movement. Once we were moving, with the sit back and squeeze good, I started asking her to turn into the fence. Once this was going alright I started asking for the break at the poll. All this she handled pretty well but I am still riding her in a natural bosal (fancy name for a good rope halter with a mecate tied in it). By next weekend we are going to look at putting a ring snaffle in her mouth for awhile and see how that goes. All in she probably has 15-20 hours on her, spottily! In all training consistency is the key. If I’m not consistent, there is no way she is going to improve. So the goal going forward is to ride her 4-6 hours every weekend until the time changes.

Annie....11/27/10

2010-11-29T09:28:00.000-08:00

11/27/10

Day 4 was a long one for Annie, rode her (gulp) in a clinic given by my dad (Natural Remuda Equine Learning Center) for about 5 hours total. Thought it might be pretty exciting because she had never been outside the round pen, but it went really well. Started in the round pen just to be sure there was no bucking and moved on to the arena within a few minutes.

Spent most of the time just getting her to unstick her feet. Lean back, smile and squeeze with my cheeks (I don't mean the ones on my face). Dad helped her along with a few timely, encouraging slaps with a stick and she finally freed up and started walking out. After moving out was going pretty well, we started turning her into and away from the fence. She really needed to be back on her hind end in order to complete the turns. She really did well with this, but we really had to work getting her to break at the poll. She is so fearful that I was going to hurt her face that she would raise her head in the air to get away from the pressure. Finally got her to break at the poll, semi-consistently and things got better from there. She has a tendency to attack a little when she is pressured and Dad played with her on the ground for a little while to help me with that.

All in all, it was a good 5 hours. With the time like it is (dark at 5:30-6) most of Annie's rides will be long ones on the weekend. So posts will be on the weekends.

Annie....11/25/10

2010-11-28T07:06:00.000-08:00

11/25/10

We loaded up, eventually, and headed to Utopia for some ride time with Dad. Start-up was a little rough....nothing like waiting til the day you are heading out somewhere to load in the trailer for the first time. To be honest, I had forgotten that she hadn't been in the trailer since the day she was born. It took a couple of hours, (take the time it takes, don't rush or you do more damage than good) but finally she was loaded.

When we got there, we started some groundwork. After working a while, Dad suggested I do everything with open hands. She is ultra sensitive and reacts to everything that she feels. We worked on controling her feet and movements. We did this for about 3 hours and I could really tell a difference at the end. Looking forward to tomorrow and riding her in the arena.

Annie = trouble

2010-11-10T10:04:00.000-08:00

By the title maybe you would think it is a training issue. Nope, we got her feet trimmed last Thursday and she has limped around ever since. Bummer! Had the shoer over this morning and we checked her feet, thought maybe she had been trimmed a little close. But after checking, we have decided she has stepped on something. I am going to give her some bute and put turpentine on her foot for a couple of days to help the healing along. So Eva, don't give up hope...we have had a little setback here, but I hope to be back riding by this weekend.

Annie....11/4/10

2010-11-05T12:42:00.000-07:00

11/4/10
Annie has a lot of issues with claustraphobia. You would never know it to be around her, she likes people. She will leave her feed to come and see what you are doing. So, I tend to want to move to fast...after all, nothing really bothers her...until the pressure comes. Then it can get a little western. She can sometimes be tied and all of the sudden start yanking back. She feels trapped and I wasn't attentive enough to notice the signs. Blocker rings are a good thing here, but just remember...if your lead rope is to stiff, you can break a blocker ring!

Since I am fairly freshly back from a Brent Grarf clinic, I thought it would be a good idea to put into practice some of the things I learned there. We spent the afternoon doing some ground work. She took to this pretty well but we did have a little trouble with some of the retraining I had to do on myself. The more I pay attention, the better she seems to do. I look forward to some riding this weekend, but I always need to remind myself to pay attention to her claustraphobia. She will get better with this in time.

Learning Something New....

2010-11-02T09:02:00.000-07:00

10/30/10
Went to a Brent Graef clinic on Saturday. I was only able to audit til noon, but it was enjoyable and I did learn from it. As I have said in the past, you can learn something from everyone. Even if it is stuff not to do. Brent did not fall into this catagory and I plan on using some of the things he taught. Speaking of the teacher, he was soft and smooth around both the horses and the people.

Smoothness is one of the things I am taking home to work on. Sometimes I get to going to fast and sudden. The horses he worked with, at the clinic, really thrived on his smoothness. So my goal is to be more smooth. Let each thing I am teaching, to both people or horses, flow into the next. Working with horses is all about not pushing into their bubble, it's about shrinking their bubble and them allowing you "in". Flow and smoothness breeds trust and respect. I would like to be a better horseman, so I am going to work on being smoother.

Star....10/26/10

2010-10-27T07:07:00.000-07:00

After two days of rain ( which I will not complain about), finally back to riding. Star was pretty revved up after 2 days off, but she is an older mare and came back to earth pretty fast.

She is still very reactionary on her right side, everything that happens to her on that side makes her nervous. Her left has a softer feel, so common sense says I need to do more on her right. BUT do not forget to keep working the left also.

We worked on slow collection. I would squeeze her with my thighs (with light contact in the bit) until I felt her back round up and then immediately give her release. Horses learn from the release, so timing is everything. All of this was done at a walk or slow trot. Just for a little variety we also did some slow spins.

She will move as fast as I want her to, but getting her confident on both sides of her body is going to make her a safer horse for her owners.

Annie....10/26/10

2010-10-27T07:04:00.000-07:00

10/26/10

OK, I know I have a day one for Annie....as per usuall I have been hit and miss with her. So, since I would like to send her to her new home with a good foundation, I'm starting over (again).

Started the day with groundwork. Annie has had a ton of ground work done so we moved through it pretty fast. I had only planned on getting on and off today, but that went so well I stayed on. I was riding her with a rope halter, just wanting to let her pick where she wanted to go. She had frozen feet initially, but I just made it uncomfortable for her to stand still. (wiggling in the saddle and letting my legs flop). I didn't really care where she went, I just wanted her to move. After 30-45 minutes of just wandering around the round pen, I started asking her to bend her neck both directions. She really did well, but still had some sticky feet. Before getting off for the day I did ask her to stop and she did ok with that.

She has a lot of ground basics so I am looking forward to see how she responds to the riding.

Star....10/21/10

2010-10-22T13:33:00.000-07:00

10/21/10

Star's owner came out today and watched me ride. Worked on stops and lateral movement. Star still gets pretty nervous over pressure to her right side, but is way better than when we started. I'd like to think that her owner liked the progress, but our conversation was on how much of a commitment Star is going to take. If you let her have more than a couple days off, she is regresses a little.

Anytime you have a horse, you should decide how committed you are going to be. If you are a weekend warrrior (nothing wrong with that) you will need a different kind of horse than the person who is riding 3-5 days per week. Star's owner has decided she is more of a weekend warrior with too much going on to commit to the time Star is going to need. Star is a really nice mare with ALOT of potential to do some really neat things, so if you know of anyone who is interested....contact me. I plan on putting a video (hopefully, tech challenged ya'know) out here for people to see.

She has been alot of fun to ride and is a really nice mare!

Star....10/15/10

2010-10-18T14:16:00.000-07:00

10/15/10

Good day today, we had a nice soft easy ride. By that I mean, she was soft and responsive to everything I asked her to do. I spent the main focus on stops. Doing the speed up so that I could "slow down" to a stop thing. This really helps her mind because everything is done in a slow down mode. If you do things to her to fast, she tends to lose her focus and fall apart a little. At some point she is going to have to show that she can handle some pressure, but as of now we have not reached that point.

Everything we "do" to a horse, should be to the horses advantage. It should be for the horse. By no means should we sacrifice our own safety, that should be our first priority. But once we have reached the point where we are safe, everything should be for the horse. Don't get in such a hurry to get to the finish line that you sacrifice the needed steps in between that will give you a solid horse.

Star....10/14/10

2010-10-15T06:12:00.000-07:00

10/14/10

We had beautiful south Texas day, so I rode down the road. Star felt good so we started out with her ears up, head up and tail up! Needless to say everything from fence posts to beer cans were booger points for her. She calmed down after a couple hundred yards and dropped her head, ready to travel. This ride was more just a "be a horse and get down the road" ride, than a training ride. But she did well, after getting warmed up. She is a horse that really likes to travel, she shows this by her attitude. Ears forward, head swinging side to side....always looking ahead. Once she gets the edge off, she is a real joy to ride!

Star....10/12/10

2010-10-13T07:15:00.000-07:00

10/12/10

Well, we'll call it a ride.....with the wind blowing as much as it did today, Star had her right brained thing going on...

We have to remember that a horse is a prey animal, so all movement means something to them. If the grass is moving, it could mean something is coming. Not just to hurt them, but to kill them and then eat them. This is the prey animal instinct. It is true in all horses, just way more evident in right brained horses. So with her being so twitchy, I decided some "on the ground slow down" was needed. Meaning groundwork.

Use my stick and string, played several of the games with her. One of the last things we worked on was a squeeze game. Horses are claustrophobic, they don't like to be trapped or contained. Star is normal, she doesn't like to think she might be trapped. A little background on Star....When her owners picked her up the last time, she did not want to get in the trailer. (it was even a open, big nice one). We spent 45 minutes to an hour just letting her find her way into the trailer. She eventually loaded, but was still very nervous. During the squeeze game today, I would stand 6-8 feet from a fence, then direct and drive her through the hole between me and the fence. When we started out, she was rushing through the hole as fast as she could. So we kept doing it until she would at least walk through it. She was still nervous about it, so I then asked her to stop in the hole. She didn't like that at all, but she was willing. While she was stopped in the hole, I spent some time rubbing her all over with my stick and string (desensitizing). After we got good at that, I move over to our walk through stocks and just asked her to put her head in it. Once she was ok with just her head, I asked for one foot at a time until she was all the way in. The first time, she just rushed through. That was ok, she got brave enough to go into it. We worked this from both sides a bunch of times and she got to the point she trusted me enough, that she was willing to stand in it. Again, I spent the time desensitizing her. It needed to be a pleasant experience for her to want to do it again. We went in and out several more times and we ended the day on a good note.

Do I think she is completely over being a claustrophobic? NO. Do I think she will have trouble if I ask her to do this tomorrow? Yes. But with time and patience, I believe she will get to the point she will tolerate it....maybe even like it.

How many times have we seen a horse that won't load, or won't go in the arena. Same concept, everytime they go in, it isn't a pleasant experience. Whether it is a tiny trailer, our driving or they are scared of something in the arena....it needs to be a pleasant experience. Take the time it takes now, so it doesn't take as long next time.

Star....10/9/10

2010-10-12T09:34:00.000-07:00

Saturday (10/9/10)

Star was much better today. She will most likely always be a "reactive" horse, but the more confidence she has in her rider....the less of this she will show. We started out working to the "slow downs" and 3 days of consistently doing this has certianly paid off. She was pretty solid in her stops at a walk and trot. Now, I took the same principles and asked her to do this at a lope. Started out asking for the stops at a walk, then a trot and finally a lope. She got pretty excited when asked for more speed and the stop wasn't as nice. But we moved from the "slow down" at a walk, to a trot, to a lope and back again several times. Always keep in mind that this is a transition, so the more of these you can do the better off you will be.

Star....10/8/10

2010-10-12T09:24:00.000-07:00

Ha! So much for posting Friday's and Saturday's rides yesterday....

Friday (10/8/10).....
Worked more of the the same, as yesterday, with Star. I am trying to get her to slow down her mind and wait for me to give the request. Her reactions are so quick, she is moving out of fear and not from the request. The goal should be to make the request and then her move, at the pace you want her to. The more energy I raise up in my body, the faster she should react. If the energy is low, then her reaction should be slower. She still wants to "blow" through all of her reactions.

So we worked on more "speeding up" to a slow down. If you don't know what I mean here, see the post for 10/9/10.

Star....10/7/10

2010-10-11T10:05:00.000-07:00

Thursday....A little late posting this, but will post the last 3 rides today.

If Star has much time off, she tends to fall back into old habits and comforts. Meaning she slips back into her reation mode for most cue requests. So, we worked on "slow downs". I would ask her to do a controlled stop at a walk. Then we would speed things up to a trot and ask for the same thing. All the while trying to get the same controlled reaction she gave me at a walk. Most of the ride was spent going slow to a stop and then speeding up to "go slow to a stop". She was better at the end than at the beginning, as she should be, but she needs more wet saddle blankets.

Star....10/5/10

2010-10-06T09:57:00.000-07:00

Well the county fair is over and the lambs have moved onto greener pastures. It was a busy week and not much was accomplished as far as the horses were concerned. But, back to riding yesterday!

Since Star has had a few days off, I thought it would be a good idea to review some of the things we have been working on up to this point. Traveling straight, flexion (both lateral and vertical), moving off of my leg cues, ect. After a warm up to loosen her mind and muscles, we moved into these things. As I have said before, she is really right brained and that makes her overly responsive to any cues. Meaning her actions were a "get away" rather than a "move" response. So, until she calmed a little her responses were fast. After she was in her "left mind" (thinking side) she really started responding well and was willing to try whatever I asked of her. Still wanted to be quick and fast, but almost 10 days off will get you that. Not riding today (Wednesday), but we should get some good rides in the rest of the week.

Star....9/26/10

2010-09-27T10:09:00.000-07:00

Sunday...
Another Beautiful south Texas day! Spent most of the day prepping the kids lambs for the fair. But did get some time with Star and put in some ground work. Ground work is something that I used to think was a waste of time, that I could do in the saddle what my Dad was doing on the ground. I think we all turn into our parents at some point and I find myself saying and doing alot of the things that my Dad did, and said, back then.

Back then, I was rougher and my horsemanship was rougher. I joked about the "scars" I had from some of things we did when I was in college. I gave as good as I got back then, but our thought for our horses was sometimes lacking. I can remember being hired to put a few rides on some long yearlings with a friend of mine. Our horse handling skills were definitely old school back then. We snubbed them to a center post, saddled them up and took turns being bronc riders. No groundwork, no preperation and no feel for the horse. They were bucking and that all we cared about. How many of these horses were harder for someone to finish, than if we had taken our time and went at it from the horses perspective? Probably all of them.

Ground work is fundamental for all of your riding and your confidence. I start with being able to yeild the hind end. Take your stick and string, start waving it in the air at their hip. If they don't move, you move it for them (In a horse herd, boss mare says move now and then backs it up). This has levels of pressure, from the lowest to the highest. YOUR skilll should tell you how fast that progression should be. The less skill you have, the slower the progression needs to be. Also included in this is your body language, if you want your horse to move their hip....then you should have the same look on your face as Boss Mare does when she moves another horse. Ears back, teeth bared....I said move now!

Then you should be able to make them back away from you by shaking your lead at them. Start by wiggleing your finger, then your wrist, then your elbow and finally your shoulder (each of these is a progression in pressure from the lowest to the highest). As your horses learns, they will start to back away at the finger wiggle. See body language note above, it applies here also.

Star....9/25/10

2010-09-27T08:58:00.000-07:00

Saturday....
Beautiful day in south Texas! Left early to pick up two weanlings for the kids 4H project next year. So I got a late start on Stars ride.

We again rode in the big pen, working on collection and staying in a straight line. She is really starting to transfer what I am trying to teach her into her normal patterns. Meaning I don't have to work as hard to show her what I want, she is becoming really attentive to the cues I am giving her. I normally do not just cover one or two items when I ride. I may talk about only a couple of items here, but when I ride I try to cover all the things I have been doing. I work on lateral and vertical flexion, side passing, two tracking, spins, ect. I take the manuvers she is weakest at and work the most on those (usually the ones I write about here).

The more you ride a horse, the more they pick up on the subtleties of your cues. Do I move my legs the same way every time I asked her for a lead change, if so....your horse should start to pick up on this. They will react to the cue faster, and sometimes before you even give the cue. They are reacting to the cue, based on the moves you made before the cue. This means consistency. If you change your training program everyday, then you will not be consistent and your horse will not show consistent growth.

Star....9/23/10

2010-09-24T09:58:00.000-07:00

I rode Star yesterday in our bigger pen. We mainly worked on straight lines and collection. Just because a horse has good vertical flexion, does not mean they are collected. Collection is the rounding of the back, causing the horse to drive from their back legs. Star can do this quite easily, she just doesn't want to hold it very long. But she's a "tryer", so we continue to work at it.

I recently read and article by Stacy Westfall, where she talked about giving a horse options. If you wanted a horse to try one thing, you needed to give them another (harder) option. Give them a choice. This is excellent advice, always give them an option. This works with horses and kids, but the option you don't want them to choose must be harder than what you want them to do.

A horse is going to scare, that's in their nature. They are the ultimate prey animal, escape is always their first option. A scared horse is a dangerous animal, but if you teach them to "scare in place" you can manage that fear better.

With Star I started by squeezing her with my knees and asking her for a soft release from the bit, while standing in place. I try to do this in 3's. Start at a stand still, ask for the soft release. As soon as she drops her head, I released the pressure on the bit. Do this two more times. Then try it at a walk, then back at a stand still, then back at a walk. I continued this pattern until she will drop her head whenever I squeeze her with my knees. All of this works really well by riding, but if you didn't do the basics on the ground....you will have a longer road. I spent a lot of time on the ground with her, using my stick and string to desensitze her. Rubbed her all over with it, flipped it around her head and body. Let her know, both in the saddle and on the ground, that my body language should tell her how to react. She had choices with this, she could push against the bit or she could drop her head. The dropping of her head was the easier choice, she chose it.

Your body language should be that whatever they are boogering at, is not that big of deal. I know, easier said than done. But as we ride, we benefit from those "wet" saddle blankets too. We gain confidence and skill.

Learn How to Handle Your Tools....

2010-09-23T08:51:00.000-07:00

Yesterday it rained, so instead of riding I did some work on the trailer. Checked to see how many clearance lights were out and changed the jack out. Seemingly simple items, but......when it comes to hand tools, I am challenged. The light check was pretty simple, walk around and count them (heck, even I can handle that). The jack change...well...that was a different story. After I dug the tools out of my toolbox (sockets, extensions, wrenchs, ect) and sat down on my behind on the wet ground....the comedy started. Thank the lord, my father-in-law was not there to watch....

After sitting down, had to get back up and get another extension. Seems the one I had was too short. I then sat back down and dropped the socket...watched it roll far enough away to have to get back up again. Still in good humor. Sat back down again and inserted the two extensions in the bottom of the tongue (banged knuckles, kinda cranky about that). Got first bolt off and reinserted the extensions to get the second bolt (agian banging knuckles, starting to think ugly thoughts about that), dropped nut and washer....watched them roll far enough away to have to get up again. Checked the ground to be sure I was not working on a hill. Sat back down and inserted the extensions to get the third bolt (again with the knuckles, have lost my sparkling disposition). Luckily there are only three bolts, I was starting to run out of knuckles on that hand. After a while even I start to learn how to use my tools and putting the jack back on was semi-uneventful. (only dropped, and watched roll away, one more nut/washer combo...I swear I must have been working on a hill)

This comedy of errors got me to thinking about how horsemanship is much the same. How many of us "bang our knuckles" because we don't handle our tools properly? Learn to handle your tools. If you use a 22 foot line, learn to handle it. Will you make mistakes, heck ya! I still sometimes get tangled in it. If you use a stick, does it act like a spaghetti fork? Does it feel like you are all thumbs when you are riding? If you are having some trouble, get some help. Nothing is more frustrating than having a problem and not knowing how to fix it. If I have anything more complicated than changing a jack, I go to my father-in-law. He has whole lot more experience than I. Go to someone you respect and has the experience. But more than anything practice, the more you use your tools the easier it becomes to handle them. In turn this ease of handling will start to translate into a softer, more responsive horse.

Star....9/21/10

2010-09-22T14:02:00.000-07:00

Rode down the road again last night. Star likes to travel, so again pretty fast at a long trot. Since I like a horse that will move on out, I really enjoyed it. She still likes to get a little right brained (reactive side of her brain) , but is spending less and less time there everyday. So I really look forward to the day her owner comes to ride.

So much of riding a horse like this is staying level yourself, meaning when she is scared...you can't be scared with her. A horse can feel a fly on their back, so they can surely feel when we are scared. Our muscles tense up, our energy comes up and the horse get pre-signaled that they were right. They were right in believing that whatever booger that they thought they saw, long before we did, is really there. So if we are not going to be the lead horse (and show them that there is nothing to react to), they will take matters in their own hooves and fly the coop. It takes lots and lots of practice to get this kind of trust from your horse. Do you want a horse that never scares at anything, no. But what is your level of "scare"? I want my horses to "scare in place". Meaning, I want them watching what is happening and waiting for my response.

As I have said before....you can't ride scared, but you can ride prepared!

Star....9/18/10

2010-09-20T10:50:00.000-07:00

Between 4H meetings and upkeep of the place, it is sometimes hard to fit a ride in....BUT we did get one in Saturday. Before I start telling about this, I feel the need to do a review and checkup on my horse. I hit all the check points last ride, but it has been a couple of days...so review is a good thing. Another good thing is riding prepared for anything that might happen, you can't ride scared....but you can ride prepared.

To preface these "be prepared" statements, I feel it is important to visit my younger years. I went to college at Lamar, CO and took the HTM course. Very good course, but that isn't what I am going to talk about. I went there with a bunch of guys that all thought we were ten feet tall and bulletproof, there wasn't a horse that we couldn't ride, ect. We were wild young hon-yocks (names shall not be mentioned to protect the not so innocent that might or might not have been doing something illegal), so to keep it interesting there was always a practical joke or two going on. One of our favorites was to ride up on both sides someone and jerk thier head stall off....usually your horse would just stay with the others....occasionally not. On the occasions when the "not" occourred, this usually led to the rodeo we all wanted to see! (I may talk about this a some later point, when the scars have healed) Sometimes it was as simple as undoing your back cinch....needless to say no one was safe! Was it safe, heck no! We weren't smart enough to know we could really hurt someone, but it was fun....ten feet tall and bullet proof...

Down here near Houston, trail rides are a big deal. Each come down the road with wagons, riders, trucks, trailers and port-a-potties. I don't care for the confinement of riding with a group, but if that is your thing...have fun! All that said, the "road" is what you have to be prepared for when you ride...whether with a group or by yourself.

Preflight check was completed before I left the barn, all was ready to ride down the road. Star and I headed down the road (bar ditch is the safest)....at a long trot...just traveling miles. The first few times a car went by, she got pretty excited. All of the preflight checks came into play and she calmed right down. She really likes to travel so we did a couple of miles pretty fast, now something else comes into play. The south Texas heat. You can't guard against that, just have to deal. So we walked for a while, which was probably even scarier for her! When she was trotting, she felt like she was getting away. At a walk she had to learn to deal with the issues....dogs, cars and horse eating trash! After several miles, alternating between walking a trotting, we ended up back at the barn. A successful ride. Could someone else with less experience call this a successfull ride? Hmmmm, don't know. But, we traveled straight, she listened to my cues and calmed down when I needed her to. Successfull ride!

Anytime you ride, whether in the pasture or on the road.....you can't ride scared, but you can ride prepared! If your scared, get off and do more ground work. The basics build confidence and small pens help that when you start riding. Just don't get yourself stuck in the pen, you miss so much of what God has to offer in the country side and in your horse.

Star....9/14/10

2010-09-15T15:05:00.000-07:00

Star is getting stronger, more confident ever day. That will be the case with most horses. Back in the day it was called "wet saddle blankets". I can remember hearing this as a kid, thinking "why would you wet the saddle blankets before you put them on the horse?" Seems I was missing the concept, hopefully everyone knows what this means. If not, it means riding. Riding in the pasture, riding in the arena (I usually get bored with arena work way before my horses do..) or even riding down the road (always think about the person in the car, they usually have no idea about slowing down or any of the things we know can happen while they are roaring past). I ride down the road, since I don't have access to acreage to ride on (to me that is the best, lots of ground to cover without the dangers of the road) Last evening, I did some check ups on Star in preparation of riding down the road. Can I do one rein stops (yes), do we have good lateral flexion (yes) and can we travel between the reins (stay in a straight line--yes). At this time I believe she is prepared to go down the road. Does that mean there will be no problems, no...dogs running out to the road, people unaware of how a car roaring by at 60 can scare a horse, that piece of horse eating trash blowing toward you....all these things can create issues. But if you have prepared your horse to trust you and you have spent some time in the arena or pasture (thus your confidenct will be stronger) then you are ready as you can be. As with any horse activity, if in doubt....don't do it. Make sure your fundamentals are solid. The more "wet" saddle blankets you pull off your horse, the more solid they become!

Star....9/11/10

2010-09-15T14:10:00.000-07:00

Saturday 9/11/10

One of the things I like to note in the posts are some training tips. Not all of them are useful to everyone. Take the ones that work for you and ignore the rest. That is what I do. BUT don't forget that you need to "park" your ego at the gate, you can learn something from everyone.

One rein stops are a very important safety valve. You should be able to pull your rein to one side or the other and eventually bring your horse to a stop. This requires the proper preparation, you can't get on today, break him into a run and then try to do a one rein stop. There will be a wreck of dramatic proportions, with you as the wreckee. Start at a walk, gently pull your horse to one side (asking for the release) and as soon as all forward motion stops (don't worry, they will go in circles, just hold your ground). Let go, give your horse the release. Sit a few seconds (give him time to "soak"). Repeat this until you can pick of the rein, start to ask and you get a stop. As soon as you have mastered that, move to a higher speed. As the bottle says....rinse and repeat....

On to Star, today we backed up a little and did some fundamentals. One rein stops are good for her because it interupts her pattern and makes her think. She is a horse that likes mindless work, the fear/reaction side of her brain kicking in. So, anything to break the pattern is a good thing. We did this all afternoon at all of the speeds. She was lots better and the end than she was at the beginning, as she should be.

Star....9/10/10

2010-09-15T13:53:00.000-07:00

Friday 9/10/10....

Another day a slow repetitions. Worked on stops and collection. The two naturally work together and it is hard to have a correct stop without correct collection. Collection is more than just having a horse that will flex at the poll and give to the bit. Think of collection as using your body/thighs to push the horse through his ears. You want his back to "round" up, which in turn pulls the horses hind legs up under them. Thus causing the horse to use their hind legs to move themselves forward.

All that said....this was the bulk of the afternoon with Star. Slow collected trotting (helps her to calm down) and smooth stops. She has shown a lot of growth in her development, but as I have said before training horses is all about repetition and consistent cues.

Star....9/6/10

2010-09-07T08:24:00.000-07:00

Monday...
So much of horse training is about repetition. Doing the same thing, the same way, over and over again. How can we expect our horses to be consistent, if we are not! So with Star's trust issues, being consistent is very important. The more you work a certain thing, the more confidence she gets.

Again today, collection and stopping correctly. Hold her with contact, in her frame and then when everything is right, ask her to stop. Once she stops, ask her to back up a couple of steps. Consistency leads to more trust.

Star....9/5/10

2010-09-07T08:06:00.000-07:00

Sunday....
Worked more on collection, but also worked on stopping correctly. The two are tied together and if she is collected the stop will be there. When stopping correctly I would ask her to hold her frame and come to a stop, at a walk to start with, and stop when her front end is off the ground. The causes her to break in the middle. As a rider, I should be holding myself up (high energy) and relax (picture a balloon deflating, in fact that is what I do...blow my air out) while pushing down with my body. Still very reactionary, but wet saddle blankets and patience will help to correct that.

Star....9/4/10

2010-09-07T07:59:00.000-07:00

Saturday....
Before it started to rain again worked Star. Again...slow, slow, slow....Trying to slow down her mind so that she doesn't get so panicky. She is a very reactionary horse, so all the cues are reacted to very quickly but it is more out of fear than "want to".

We worked on collection and carrying her frame. I would ask her round out her back and ride with contact. She is getting better, but everything is still very reactive.

Horsemanship Tip...

2010-09-03T07:16:00.000-07:00

Since we finally got some rain, I did not work either of the mares. So, I thought I would give out some free advice on natural horsemanship. Take this for what it is...just my way of paying forward.

There are a lot of clinicians using, some or part of some method, of natural horsemanship. We all learned it from someone else, no one has "come up" with this all on their own. Some have refined it better than others, but you can learn from anyone. Even if you learn what NOT to do. You take what you see, and use the parts that work for you. Every person learns differently, so every person likes one clinician better than others. As for me, there are 3-4 of the "big" guys I listen to and take from. Do I think they are the beat all to end all? No, I take the parts that work for me and use them.

There are two horseman that I do take for verbatum. My Dad, Jere Johnson, is one. He has rode way more horses than anyone I know and gained alot of knowledge from them. So if he tells me anything about a horse, I listen. The other was an instructor I had in college, Herb Gerhardt. He refined and reaffirmed alot of what my Dad taught me.

So, there it is...just my piece....

Annie....9/1/10

2010-09-02T06:33:00.000-07:00

Most horsemen will tell you a horse is about subtlety, that we are not built to be that way. We are direct line thinkers, so we miss signals that a horse gives us. So my advice to everyone is to "take the time it takes".

Yesterday I was going to start driving Annie on the ground because of how will she did the day before. needless to say, she was not ready. She has been driven in the past, but that was some time ago. I put to much pressure on her and she did not respond well. She resisted alot and fought the whole time. BUT, I am smart enough to know when to back off. After 20 minutes of a very "western" outing, I BACKED UP to the basics. We finished out just fine and I turned her loose in the round pen just the carry the snaffle around for a while. Sometimes when you push to fast, you can undo alot of the work you did to get to that point. Since I backed up, we were able to finish on a good note.

Star....9/1/10

2010-09-02T06:17:00.000-07:00

More of the same last evening, her trust issues really come into play on her right side. We spent a lot of time just going slow. Slow stops, slow turns...slow, slow, slow. She is more than willing to try, just really gets excited going to the right. We also worked on staying in frame, riding her with contact. She is very "light mouthed" and really doesn't want to lay on you at all. She is a fun horse to ride, but she is challenging. Push to fast and she fall apart, so the challenge is to stay patient.

Annie....8/31/10

2010-09-01T09:46:00.000-07:00

Annie is a 5 yro paint mare, out of Hot Majestic Man and Super Shady(QH-Skipa Star) that we raised. She was rejected by her mother and had a lot of handling from birth, until we found her a surrogate. Needless to say, she thinks we are part of her herd. She has been semi-started a couple of time by me, but not for more than a ride or two. So, since we have sold her to a friend, I am going to call this day one.

The first few workings with just about any horse should be on the ground. This will let you figure out their personality and get the basics started. With Annie, since she has been indoctrined naturally all her life, this was more of a refresher (she has already had a lot of ground work, so last evening she started out saddled). We worked on yeilding the hind and front end. we also worked on draw and drive ("pulling her to me and pushing her away"). She isn't really afraid of anything I have tried on her, so tomorrow we will start to drive her with lines.

As willing as she is, this should be alot of fun.

Star....8/31/10

2010-09-01T09:23:00.000-07:00

Star is a 7 yro QH mare with serious trust issues and some flight tendencies. I have worked her about 26 rides, so you will only see her journey starting at this point. With her trust issues she gets very excited any time we start something new, but these trust issue also make her very sensitive to handling. We have worked alot on lateral flexion and not getting too excited everytime I ask for it. She is very willing to try, just wants to do it really fast.

Yesterday we worked alot on what I call calming techniques, meaning doing everything at a walk. With Star's trust issues, she wants to do everything as fast as she can (escape). Doing everything at a slower pace really forces her to use her mind, instead of blindly do the "job" as fast as she can. We also worked on a proper stop, she does not really know how to carry her frame (stay collected). So I asked her to travel with some contact, asking her to round her back. This raised all of the "escape" flags for her, so again we worked at a slower pace.

Stay tuned....she will be with me for almost another month. I look forward to the progress she will be making.

The Purpose...

2010-08-31T09:59:00.000-07:00

The purpose.....just like in anything in life, there has to be a purpose for what you are doing. Having and riding horses is the same. Are you wanting to be able to do performance events, halter or just ride down the road? Do you want finesse control or just be able to be around your horse safely? Most of the horse loving public just wants to be able to be around their horse and feel safe.

My purpose is to teach horsemanship and lean toward doing it naturally.....I will teach you how to be safe around your horse and how to have a natural relationship. As I have heard before "there are a lot of ways to do something with a horse, but only a few of them are good for the horse". I feel the same way about teaching people horsemanship....there are a lot of ways, but only a few are good for the person. It all starts with confidence, you build that on the ground. Everything you work on on the ground with a horse will transfer to something your going to do on their back.

As I progress with this blog, I will be talking about my philosphy with horses and life in general.

In addition, people who have horses with me, will be able to see and read about the progress thier horse is making. So, please keep reading!

For the horse,
Cory