Issue 6 Be the best you can be for your horse Sept ZDJ4

Versatile
Equines
Riding in
the Halter
Developing
Curiosity
Foals first
few days
Stopping
horses
pulling
back
What is
your horse
saying?
Editors Note
What is your horse saying?
Stop pulling back
Riding in the Halter
DVD Review
Q & A Foal Handling
Which reins for you?
Clinician Review
Developing Curiosity
Book Review
Contents
Please remember the
views expressed in
this magazine are the
views of the writer
and express only
one way of looking at
things.
Editors
Note
Welcome to Issue 6.
I have done two Manawatu winters with horses and
decided that I could do without it this year! Thinking
back to those winters, all I can remember is putting
covers on in the dark, wading through knee deep
mud, battling with feeding and changing electric
fence breaks around. The horses went back to Mum
and Dads farm for the winter. They had the run of a
huge hill paddock and only had to share it with a pet
sheep, the house cow and two of the breeding bulls.
There is quite a funny story that goes with them
being in Taranaki. When I took Jewel up she was
injured, so went to a friends house. As a result Jazzy
was turned out on her own. She quickly befriended
the house cow Beverly, accompanied by Jane the
sheep! Poor Jazzy became so attached to Beverly,
that when she was taken from the paddock for
milking, Jazzy went wild! She ran around neighing
like a loose unit I am told!
After about two weeks, Jazzy must have been
yearning for some action! Mum observed the two
bulls ghting in the paddock and was concerned they
may go through the fence. Just as she thought this,
Jazzy came tearing down the hill towards them. She
charged right into the middle of the ght, broke it up,
then chased one of the bulls to the other end of the
paddock!
After eight weeks turned out in the paddock
untouched, I brought her in, trimmed her feet, had
children brush her, then used her to take the kids for
a ride.
The horses are now back with me in Palmerston
North and we are currently on holiday in Taranaki.
They have both been amazing, Jazzy has had
many people ride her, both kids and adults. She
has been out jumping and today I rode her around
Lisas farm bridle-less with 5 other horses!
Jewel is so much happier about life and her sweet
nature is nally starting to emerge. Condition wise
she is looking amazing and people are constantly
commenting on how beautiful she is looking. Both
of the girls are currently being transitioned into
bridles, Jazzy is taking to this particularly well.
Hope you are getting some quality time in with your
horses.
Enjoy the mag,
Cheryl
Pictured:
Top: Jazzy and Jewel
happily sunbathing on a
cold morning in their turn
out paddock, along with
Beverly and Jane.
Below: Jazzy and I, with
my cousin Jasmine,
Uncle Barry and Fleur.
When trying to gure out what
your horse may be saying, it is
important to take the whole
horse into account, as some
times you can get mixed
messages!
So far for me it has just been
experience, theory/study and a
whole lot of time observing
horses, that has allowed me to
begin to tap into what they are
trying to say.
Some key areas of the horse I
pay attention to are: the ears,
eyes, muzzle, nostrils, ank,
tail and hind legs.
?
What
is your
horse
saying?
The most commonly misinterpreted sign of horse
behaviour, is the horse who is an introverted type, or has
gone internal. It is a horse people will often think is so
quiet.. but are they really? People will often say, oh
my, he is asleep, but is he really?
There is a huge difference between a horse who is
quiet and a horse who is still, but this not easily noticed
by the untrained eye. What I mean by a still horse is
simply a horse that stands still, but is unrelaxed/
uncondent. A genuinely quiet horse is tension free and
standing still because they feel safe and there is no need
not to. It is very important to note that just because he
looks sleepy, it does not mean he is and just because
he is still, it does not make him quiet!
For me there are a few key indicators that show a horse
to either be genuinely quiet, or simply still.
The ears: a quiet horse will have loose ears, almost
opping loosely, if I was to touch them they would be
easy to move. A still horses ears though will have some
rigidity about them, they will be more xed.
The eyes: Much of this is a gut feeling. If a horse looks
quiet, I ask myself, is anyone home, or have they gone
off to their own personal happy land? A quiet horse will
still seem very with the world, will be easy to move if
you were to ask them to do so (eg leading forward, or
backing up) and they will be showing other signs of
quietness (loose ears, cocked hind leg etc). A horse who
is simply still, will often have droopy eyes, almost like
they cannot keep them open, it will seem as though the
lights are on but no one is home, when asked to move
they have difculty doing so, almost appearing stuck
and unable to move. The eyes can be the easiest to
misread, but give the best information when interpreted
successfully.
The nostrils: It is important to notice if the horse is
breathing regularly. Very often a still horse will be holding
their breath, or breathing shallow. A still horse will also
often have their nostrils ared slightly and this may not
be noticeable until they stop aring them. A quiet horse
will be breathing evenly and the nostrils will be relaxed.
The muzzle: A quiet horse will have a loose muzzle, often
having a droopy quality, if you were to touch the horses
lips they would be easy to move and seem oppy. It
would be easy to poke your nger into the side of their
mouth too as it would not be tight. A still horses muzzle
would have tension and at times even pursed lips.
The tail: A quiet horses tail will be relaxed and loose, a
still horse will often have its tail almost clamped.
This is a horse who looks genuinely
quiet. The ears are a bit xed, but it is
more out of curiosity than worry.
Overall this horse looks stress free,
with a relaxed eye and calm overall
posture.
This is a perfect example of a horse
who is still, but not quiet. The ears
are tense and back, the head is
upright/rigid and tilted, the nostrils
are slightly ared, the eye is wide
and alert.
Hind-legs: A quiet horse will be standing evenly on all four feet or be resting a hind leg. A still
horse will have less awareness of what its feet are doing and often stand awkwardly, almost
frozen in place. If it has cocked a hind leg it will look protective, as opposed to relaxed.
The ank: It is amazing how much tension a still horse can hold in their ank. If you were to reach
out and poke the ank of a still horse, your nger would bounce back at you. You can physically
see the tension in the ank of a horse who is not relaxed. A genuinely quiet horse however, is
loose in the ank/belly.
This is quite a hard idea to show in writing/still photos. If nothing else I hope this article causes
you to reconsider what your horse may be saying. For some readers it may be a case of removing
currently held, preconceived ideas, to look at the horse with fresh eyes. As with all things horsey,
there are exceptions to all of what I have said above, I have merely tried to state some common
themes I have noticed.
This photo clearly shows that this horse is not quiet, it is
merely still and tolerant. Overall the face is a picture of
tension, the muzzle looks particularly tense.
If you want to send in a photo of your horse for interpretation, please feel free to do so and we can
discuss this in our next issue!
This is a perfect photo to show you
what I mean by the eyes! Many
people would see this photo and
think, oh she is falling asleep. I see
this photo and think, No one is
home, Jewel has gone to her
happy place. To support this idea
of her not being relaxed, you will
notice that her ears are xed. She
looks to be standing in balance, so
that is a positive sign that she is
becoming more genuinely quiet,
but those eyes do not lie!
This article has hardly scratched
the surface of this huge topic. I
found the Parelli, Liberty and
Horse Behaviour DVD set, of
immense help!!! It is a 10 DVD set
which steps you through how to
easily and accurately interpret the
messages your horse is trying to
send.
Make it your mission to more
accurately read your horse. In
doing so you will nd you achieve
greater results, with less stress,
because you will respond more
appropriately!!!
What do you make
of the horses in
these photos?
Stop a
horse
pulling
back
The best way to not have a pulling back horse, is to
effectively prepare from the outset. Unfortunately some
horses have already developed habits around being tied
and pulling back. In this article I intend to discuss some
possible ways you can retrain your horse to be tied up.
First off you need to understand why they pull back. Most
horses pul l back because by nature horses are
claustrophobic. This means that when they are tied up, they
feel boxed in and unable to escape. Then as a result, due to
them being ight/ght creatures, they pull away in the hope
of feeling safer and getting a release. There are also those
horses who have learnt to pull back to get free to eat and do
not have fear associations with being tied. These types are
smart enough to gure out of the breaking point of the
bailing twine and pull back just enough to get free. These
horses are not as common as those who pull back out of
fear, so for the purposes of this article I will specically
discuss ways in which horses who pull back in panic, can be
reconditioned not to.
It is important to mention at this point, that most often pulling
back is just the symptom of a cause, so it is less effective to
x the pulling back by simply tying them up.
To support myself in knowing when it is time to work on tie
up, these are some things my horses must already be
competent at:
-Leading up easily at the walk and trot
-Backing up a few steps, then coming forward immediately
with no brace/pull back
-Being difcult to frighten and have undergone effective
desensitisation techniques
Once these things are well established, I ensure that I have
the best equipment to ensure success. This includes a
blocker tie ring, well-tting rope halter and a horsemanship
lead (approx 20ft long, made from yachting braid type rope).
A few rules I also have are that I never tie a horse to bailing
twine and I never solid tie them to anything. I always use a
blocker tie ring and make sure it is attached to something
The more you try to scare
your horses, often the less
you are able to!
solid. If I do not have a tie ring I loosely drape the lead rope over a fence, or
around a tie up rail (see picture on rst page of Maverick yawning). By just
draping it loosely, if the horse were to take fright they could get loose without
damaging themselves or taking out a post! I also make sure that the area I
tie up in is completely clear of things that horses could get caught up in.
The benet of the blocker tie-ring is that if the horse puts enough force on
the rope it will pull through the ring, but with 20ft of lead rope, most horses
will stop pulling back after about 15ft and nd themselves still tied! Once my
horse can condently tie with no external factors causing them to want to pull
back, I start introducing them. For example I might get the stick and string
out and do crazy things which will cause the horse to want to pull back. I
start at low intensity and up the intensity as the horse gets quieter and
harder to scare. By the end of this the horse will be unappable! As with all
things though, it may take you months to get to this point. The time it will take
you and your horse, will depend on how effective you are with your releases.
Key training components which are necessary to successfully re-teach your
horse to tie are patience, consistency, pressure and release, and not
tiptoeing around them. Remember also that horses learn from the RELEASE
of the pressure, so DO NOT release your crazy external factor, until your
horse has come still and relaxed (check out Issue 1, which explained
effective desensitisation techniques and will be key to your success. Article
names: Scary Objects and Signs of Relaxing).
As Clinton Anderson would say, heart attacks are free, give your horse one.
Check out this equipment
review from Issue 5!
Riding in the Halter
There is nothing
mythical or magical
about riding in a
halter. It is all
about what you put
in, you get out.
For many people riding in just a halter seems amazing and unobtainable. For me, I
cannot imagine starting a horse out in anything else! Do not get me wrong, I am not
a bridle hater or a bit-less rider. I just believe that a horse should be ridden in a
halter, until it and its rider are ready to progress to a bridle (if they ever choose to do
so). Im now riding my horses in both a halter and a bridle, I prefer a halter any day!
I used to start all of my horses under saddle in a bridle, until I discovered how much
safer I am starting in a halter. Not only am I safer, the exercises I do on the ground
in the halter, make much more sense to the horse when I go to ride them, than if I
put a bridle on and tried to do the same thing.
I now start all of my horses in a
rope halter and before I move to
the bridle these are some things
I take into account:
*The rider of the horse must
have an independent seat (eg-
they do not need the reins for
balance). They must also have
soft hands that can release
instantly. But they must also be
able to take up the reins quickly,
with softness, when necessary.
*The horse must be able to
quietly and condently operate at
all gaits with loose reins. They
must understand all the basic
aids for turning, disengaging and
backing up in the halter. They
must be emotionally collected,
independent of the reins.
It is only after all of these things are solidly proven in place, that I consider putting the horse in the bridle.
Then starting a horse in the bridle has another process too, but that is best left for another article!
I hear many people argue back and forth reasons why halters are bad for riding in and unfortunately they
stem from that persons lack of understanding. The following are my opinions only, but they may convince
you of why riding in the halter is the way to go for you. It is then up to you to decide if you wish to ride
permanently in a halter, do a bit of both or stay in a bridle etc.
People have told me staying in a halter is bad
There are many arguments oating around that a
horse should not stay in the halter permanently, that
they should progress to a bridle after a pre-
determined set of time or when they get to a certain
level. The two horses I currently have now I have
owned for three years. They have been ridden in a
halter this WHOLE time, with no detrimental effects! I
personally wish to move my horses to the bridle (have
just started to do so), to rene the communication
system I have with them and go competing. I am no
expert on renement by any means and only have a
few horses under my belt that I have experimented
with. So far I have found that the bridle eventually
does make the communication system you have with
your horse far clearer, so you can achieve greater
accuracy and engagement. So I go to the bridle for
advancement, not due to a lack of safety and control. So
from my experience, there is no detriment to the horse
by staying in the halter.
But my horse will get heavy and lean on the halter
Indeed horses can get heavy and lean, in the same way
they can in a bridle. The solution is the same though for
whatever piece of head gear the horse leans into, if you
let them lean, they will lean, so do not allow them to. I
do the majority of my riding in a halter currently and my
horses certainly do not lean at all, when I take up contact
on the halter, they understand to give to the pressure. I
have the same expectations in the halter, that I have in
the bridle. What you need to realise though is that if you
give the horse something to lean on, they will do it, as
they are programed to push into pressure. A horse is
only as heavy as a rider allows them to be, a lot of this
stems from the way in which the rider uses the reins. In
my world, if you are not asking the horse to do anything,
there should be NO pressure on the horses mouth/face.
When you do ask for something though, take up the
reins with commitment, so the horse clearly knows you
are asking them something. For more on recommended
rein positions check out VE Mag, Issue 2.
My horse is far too unresponsive to go in a halter
Same as above, teach them not to be. If you cannot get
this done on their backs, do it on the ground. Some good
ways to get them to soften up is by exing their head left
and right and backing up. The key to getting them soft is
to NOT release the pressure until they have given.
More on this is explained in VE Mag, Issue 2.
My horse is too dangerous
As with any thing you do, do not get straight on and hope
for the best. Set your horse up for success by teaching
them to give to the halter in non-pressure situations. If
your horse is too dangerous to be ridden in a halter,
chances are they are too dangerous to be on full stop!
You have to ride differently in a halter
It is true that when you rst start out teaching
your horses to ride in a halter, you need to
position your hands slightly differently. This
difference is because the message is being
communicated to the side of the horses face/
nose, due to the positioning of the knots on the
halter, not the corners of the mouth with a bit.
Once the horse understands the use of the
reins/halter, you do not need to do much more
differently at all, as your aids should be as small
as with a bridle. On a different note though, as
you progress and become a more competent
rider, you should be using your body to steer
and guide your horses, the reins should merely
be a back up if the horse does not listen to your
body. Then as an advancement for that, the
reins should be about holding a connection with
the horse to execute movements which are
more challenging, not to steer as such.
Halters can damage my horses face
If it was pulled on hard enough MAYBE a halter
could do something negative, I personally have
never seen this, nor heard of it. If your horse is
that stiff and braced, I am sure it probably is in
a bridle too, except then the pain goes to their
mouth, not their face! As I have already said
though, the process of going to the halter is not
just a matter of putting it on and going riding. As
with ALL training things the horse needs to be
taught patiently and consistently how to
respond appropriately.
DVD REVIEW
Parelli Connect
I have been a member of Parelli Connect on and off for years. The website just keeps getting better!
When you pay to become a member of this site, you can access EVERY SINGLE member learning
resource Parelli have ever put out. You can even view all the Level 1 Online teachings for free.
There are three membership
options, I go for option two.
With this I receive eight
DVDs yearly, four Savvy
Club magazines and have
unlimited use of the Parelli
Connect site. I really love
how you can do updates
about your horses and track
what you can and cannot do
too.
The Learning Library (see
snap shot to the right) is
easy to navigate. You can
quickly access video content
on very speci c topi cs,
depending on your area of
interest/next learning step!
Check it out here: https://www.parelliconnect.com/#/
Reader Question
What burning question do you
have that you want answered??
Question
I would love
some info on
foal handling,
particularly in
the rst few
days of the
foal being
born.
There are many different theories about the handling of foals, from imprint
training to not handling them at all until weaning. I like to do a little bit of all of it!
I have limited foal handling experience, but I did learn a lot from breeding my
rst foal Mindy (pictured above). I also learnt from the things I have read and
watched + the handling I have done of a variety of older foals.
Some key things I keep in mind when working with foals are:
*They are still horses, they have the same instincts, psychology and innate
characteristics. By this I mean that it is very important to understand their
behaviours and learning processes and not make a new set of rules for them.
*The foal should not be separated from the mare during initial handling.
*I want to get a hand/touch on them soon as possible, so I do the handling in an
area where this is easiest (especially if the mare gets upset or walks away).
*I will not halter them for the rst few weeks at least, to teach them the idea of
pressure and release and leading, I just use a string around their neck.
*I pick them up and have them relax with my arms around their whole body.
*I keep the sessions short and manageable for the foals brain.
This is Mindy the morning after she
was born. We began handling right
away. Thankfully the mare was quiet
and happy for us to handle her foal. In
this photo I am teaching Mindy to
accept pressure and relax. I wrapped
my arms around her and when she
tried to ght away, I just held her until
she became still and relaxed, then I
let her go. During this stage I also did
lots of rubbing all over where I was
holding her. During this rst day I also
rubbed her down the legs and over
the muzzle. It was during this day also
that I picked her up. I read this in a
Foal Imprinting book by Dr Robert
Miller and gured it could not do any
harm. I do think it reinforced to Mindy
that she could trust me.weird..
When the foal is born, their minds are very malleable. They have
no expectations, except the ones their mother and innate
characteristics tell them to have. So do not be afraid to have
expectations of the foal, just act like it is the most normal thing in
the world and they will believe you.
In the rst few days of handling you should be trying to set the tone
for how the rest of their lives will go. So for me personally I want a
horse who moves off pressure with no resistance and a horse who
does not over react to new situations and external circumstances.
Aka a good balance of desensitising and sensitising
Over the rst few days of being born (and beyond) I expose them to
the tools that I will use for ground work handling, including the
halter, lead and stick and string. Just like I would with an adult
horse, I do not release the pressure during desensitising until the
foal stands still and shows a sign of relaxing. It is during this time
also I will cover them in towels and blankets, brush them, rub them
with a plastic bag etc.
It is very easy to allow the foal to become pushy because they
seem so cute, and it is cute when they are tiny. Remember though
that when they are fully grown they will think that is the accepted
behaviour and continue doing it, it is no longer cute when they are
16hh!!! Just politely ask them to back up if they get pushy.
Foals are never too young to start learning to yield to pressure.
Start off very gently and non-invasively, just giving them a little
push to get them to move different parts of their body. As they are
still unbalanced in the rst few days, make sure you do not cause
them to take fright when their legs get muddled! Some good
moving exercises to do are: backing up from the chest and nose,
lowering their head down from slight poll pressure and moving the
hind end over a little bit. As they become more balanced and strong
you can start to ask them for more movements. The concept of
pressure and release is still very important, make sure you do not
release the pressure until the horse has yielded, this is how you will
make them softer and softer to yield, not harder!
In this photo Jordan is asking Mindy to step forward
when she feels the pressure of the rope around her
bum. He also used the rope around her bum as
desensitising, he kept it there until she relaxed and
stood still.
When I start to introduce yielding to the
pressure of the rope, I put a rope around the
foals neck, I do not use a halter. This is because
the natural reaction of most foals is to rear up,
often resulting in them going over backwards. At
this early stage, this is not a battle worth having
with a foal!
When teaching them to come off the pressure of
the rope, I only expect tiny steps. In one session
I may only get the foal to take two steps and the
session is over. Little and often is a great motto
to keep in mind when working with foals.
I highly encourage you all to further investigate
this interesting horse training area. You have
such an important job as the hander of a baby
horse, you need to teach it the appropriate way
t o behave and conduct t hemsel ves i n
Humansville.
I have included some links below which you
may like to use to extend your knowledge.
Links to foal handling information:
-http://www.robertmmiller.com/imprint-training.html
-http://www.thehorse.com/articles/10405/foal-imprinting
-https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32Po6Dfx1aU
-https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yxt6uXtnGKw
-https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3Wm1O5wGXw
-http://blog.downunderhorsemanship.com/post/2012/05/01/May-NWC-DVD-Foal-Training.aspx
-http://horsetalk.co.nz/2013/10/16/imprinting-newborn-foal/#axzz3EytohnlU
http://www.horsemansnews.com/articles/parelli-natural-horsemanship/517-a-good-start-with-foals-timing-is-
everything.pdf
The Reins
The type of reins I use are imperative for the
communication and feel I have with my horse. I
remember the day I rst rode with rope reins instead of
leather or webbing ones; they felt thick, heavy and
cumbersome. I eventually grew to realise though how
much clearer the communication I could have with my
horse was! Nowadays I ride ONLY in rope reins!
Since then (near on 15 years ago!), there is such a
huge variety of reins to choose from. These days I still
prefer rope reins, I tend to go for ! inch yachting braid.
For ends I either use clips or slobber straps, or both.
The length of rein I use is determined by the horse I am
riding and what type of riding I am doing that day.
Because the reins are such an essential tool for
communicating, I avoid using imsy webbing or leather
reins. I want to do the least amount possible to effect
change in my horses. The experience of the horse I ride
determines the weight of the reins I use. As my horses
progress and respond to lighter and lighter aids, I use
thinner, lighter rope reins.
Most of the reins I currently use have clips on the end,
attached to the rope by slobber straps. The slobber
straps are a fantastic tool for building softness and
lightness in your horse. This is because the slobber
straps provide weighting at the horses face (either in
the mouth with a bit, or on the nose with a rope halter),
and so the horses can feel it more immediately when
you pick up or release the reins.
How
much thought
do you give to the
reins you use? Do you
have the best reins
suited to your riding
purpose?
The pictures above show my favourite pair of
reins. The clips are light and the slobber
straps are just long enough and heavy
enough that they help make communication
with my horses clearer, without being too
heavy. I like to have clips on as a safety
measure, in case the horse was to get a foot
through the reins. This is because there is no
buckle in the middle like traditional reins for
easy release. The only change I would make
to these reins if I was to go for my perfect pair
(and when I get rich I will own them! lol),
would be to not have the clips and have the
slobber straps straight onto the bit. I would
only use reins such as these on my
experienced horses though, due to the safety
issue of not having a quick release clip.
Key factors in rein
selection:
-Length
-Weight
-Safety
-Material
-Attachments
Trigger
Clip
Slobber
Strap
Yachting
Braid
Rope
Length
This is determined mostly by the length of the horses neck.
One way to get the perfect length of rein is to sit in a
normal position on your horse and see if you can get the
middle of the reins to touch your sternum. If they do not.
they are most likely too short, if they do but there is much
slack in the reins, they are most likely too long. If you ride
with mecate or arena reins you can easily adjust them to
get the length you need. Because I ride many different
horses I have a wide variety of different sets of reins.
Weight
Getting the right weight is a mix of what feels good for the
rider and good for the horse and of course what is most
effective. Until youve felt and tried many different weights
of reins, you may not have that much of an idea of what to
go for. If you have ridden in webbing reins for a long time,
weighted reins will feel very foreign. I recommend you test
out a variety of types. Once you discover the heightened
feel you get with good quality rope reins and/or slobber
straps, you will be hooked! I also encourage you to test out
different slobber straps, there are MANY different types!
Safety
Rope reins do not break, so you need to be particularly
vigilant about the safety issues that can arise due to this.
As I mentioned above, clips on the reins can provide a
quick release if the horse was to get itself into trouble.
However, I have not had any disastrous situations as I am
careful not to let the reins get near to the horses feet.
Material
Reins are made from all sorts of different materials. I am
absolutely sold on rope though! The only issues I have
material wise is selecting the thickness and weight of the
rope, this for me can change daily and is denitely
determined by the horse I am riding. On the whole though I
prefer thinner, but heavier rope reins.
Attachments
This can be determined by the horse. For example, some
horses nd that the clips jingle too much when attached to
a bit, so prefer slobber straps or leather attachments.
Depending on the sensitivity of the horse you may like to
have light, long slobber straps, or if the horse is heavier
and less likely to listen, you may opt for heavier ones. I
prefer clip reins for my rope halters as any other type of
rein makes the halter heavy on the horses face (picture).
Mecate reins: These are reins that are
made from a 22ft line. Approx the rst
9ft of the rope make the reins, then the
left over rope makes a lead rope,
which you either hook in your belt, or
tie around the saddle horn (see
picture). Depending on the length of
the horses neck, you can adjust the
length of the reins by making the lead
part longer or shorter. A mecate rein
can be attached to slobber straps, a
halter or a bosal (pictured).

Arena reins: These are a single rope,
which is attached to the horses bit by
slobber straps. See picture below. The
length of the rein can be changed by
making the tassels longer or shorter, or
obviously by having different lengths of
rope to start with.
In this picture I have turned Jazzys
lead rope into a set of reins. As you
can see though, there is a heap of
rope under her chin, which would add
extra weight. My reins are also far
longer than preferred. For short hacks
around the place this is no major
drama, but for rening her training,
these reins would be less effective.
CLINICIAN REVIEW
When people hear Linda Parellis
story, they always want to know how
in the world a dressage rider ended
up studying with a cowboy like Pat
Parelli. She explains, Had I not
owned a horse who brought me to
the end of the road, I would never
have gone to Pat Parelli for advice.
But, there I was struggling for two
years with a Thoroughbred that I was
advised to sell to a man or put a
bullet in his head.
"I tried all kinds of devices to control
him: chambons, martingales, draw
reins, nose bands, all different bits.
But this horse would still go crazy
bolting, rearing, and freaking out. Are
you getting the picture? It was just
miserable and dangerous every time
I rode.
Then Linda Parelli who at the time
was Linda Paterson saw a video of
Pat riding bridle-less. Something told
her that this cowboy was my last chance. So she registered for a Parelli Horse Training Clinic
and showed up with a list of problems in her hand. But she never got to show Pat the list because
within ve minutes, she had learned that horses were prey animals who lived by their instincts and
when they felt threatened, trapped or unsafe, they would do whatever it took to escape. She
suddenly understood that her horse was not being bad he was simply following his
instincts. Linda says that that Parelli natural horsemanship clinic changed everything between
me and my horse. To this day Linda Parelli can ride that horse without a saddle or bridleand
remember, this was a horse who couldnt be stopped even with $200 worth of gadgets on his head!
"I dedicate most of my time now to writing down what Pat teaches so that as many people as
possible have access to this life-changing information. Im having more fun with horses and
accomplishing more than I ever thought possible, and I want to share that. "I also want people to
know that it doesnt take talent, it doesnt take bravery and it doesnt take years to get there. It
takes heart, desire and access to a phenomenal teacher whos willing to share everything he
knows in a way that is simple to understand because it builds, step-by-step, to as high a level as
you want to take it.
"Parelli natural horse training which isnt really horse training at all; its people training and a
journey of relationship and self-discovery, so lets just call it natural horsemanship rather than
horse training well it changed my life. Literally. And in so many ways. I want to share that journey
with as many people and as many horses as possible.
!"#$%
'%()**"
Developing
Curiosity
A curious horse is a
connected horse.
How can you promote the
curious nature of your horse?
How can you get them to be
curious about you, their play
pen and your goals?
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ior;. .c/.) /o ;.. oa, .c/.) /o jo o)
.or, (o/i l.//.r /io ,i. / [..; o;
/ioai oar w); io.. woa).) o) ,io/
oa /i|, /i. /i| /oo | io.. /i;
r.o/o;ij o, ,/i ).,. o) )ozz o)
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/i; jo/ or. /iroai /o| /i. /w. /
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caro;/ o) la) o wa/ao
cowwaco/o ;;/.w,
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iawo;, o; o oo /i. .or.) /io/
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O. o[ /i. iii/; o[ jo ,/i ior;.;
; la) o) r.[ oar cowwaco/o
;;/.w, | )o /i; or. /iroai ..o| o)
.coaro /i. ior;.; caro;/, ;/. /o
,io/ /i. io.. /o ;o o) /r /o )r.c/
/i.r ..r /o /i; /i. [) .ool.,
[a o) w.o[a,
Ti; or/c. ; o/ o /ro o. o; ;aci,
ro/i.r o ;oj;io/ /o ;ow. o[ w
.j.r.c.; o[ ior;.; o) caro;/, To
r.o ./ /i; ,/i oar o, ior;.;, oa
..) /o ;o, )o,, ja/ oar o.)o /o /i.
;)., /ra ;/. /o oar ior;. o) [) oa/
,io/ ; wjor/o/ o) .ool. /o /i.w,
(o ior;.; or. o/ caroa;, la/ /i; )o.;
o/ w.o /i. ...r , l. or ...r ,.r.,
/ w.o; oa io.. /i. ojjor/a/ /o lr o
;jor| /o /i.r ,or)
Jewel and her curiosity
I love the picture above of Renee and Jewel. What is so
special about this picture, is that Jewel is clearly curious
about the moon-hopper, something we had to re-spark.
I got Jewel long before I knew much about ground work, let
alone curiosity and having a conversation with horses! As a
result, it took quite a long time to re-evoke Jewels curiosity.
The main reason she was not curious, was because in our
early days I admonished Jewel for investigating things; how
dare she chew the rope, push brushes off the fence post and
pay attention to other things when I was clearly asking her to
do something! I had no idea that these were signs that Jewel
was trying to make connections with the world around her, no
idea that later on in our training this would prevent her from
actively engaging in our ground work lessons and touch it
games.
Jewel was almost robotic in our groundwork, she would walk
over the tarpaulin without even looking at it, trip over poles
because she did not reach down and sniff them to check
them out. Deeper than this she had no try, instead of being
curious about the pedestal she would just stand there
refusing to touch it, look at it, let alone step on it! It took much
time to build this back up to where she would engage with me
and our toys. It meant me putting aside the things I wanted
to do and just focussing on rebuilding her curiosity through
ONLY doing short range driving games and touch it type
tasks. A fantastic bi-product of this process, was that we
developed a much clearer communication system along the
way!
These days Jewel is super curious, at times even trying to
pull the lead/taking the reins to tell me what she wants to
investigate!
Too curious for their own good
Some horses you would be hard press to
knock the curiosity out of them! Queen was a
Kaimanawa I owned for a few years. This
picture is of what I came back to after leaving
the grooming bucket in her yard!
Queen was always a busy body, following
you around the yard when you were on a
mission, snifng anything and everything that
took her fancy.
A common sign of condent, curious horses
is that they put their feet on everything. If
they cannot do that, they try to knock it over
to put their feet on it. Queen was one of
these horses!
Nugget and the leaf
Nugget is a damaged pony, you would
not pick it looking at him as he is so
still. When he gets scared or worried he
goes VERY internal (introverted), when
you look in his eyes you can clearly see
that no one is home and he has
retreated to his safe place.
When I rst started playing with Nugget
he was almost stoic, he would not
engage with me at all, would not inquire
or show ANY curiosity to anything. I
even tried making him curious, by trying
to release when he showed any signs
curiosity. None of that worked. This is a
pony who is deeply damaged by
mishandling in this past. He is the most
extreme case of having the condence,
trust and curiosity knocked out of him I
have seen.
The day it all changed and started to look up, was the day I stopped to pick up a leaf Nugget looked at. It
was so small and insignicant, if I had been in a rush I would have missed it.
I was leading Nugget in from his paddock, after taking 20 minutes to catch him, and he stopped suddenly.
My rst instinct was to pull the lead to tell him to hurry up. Instead I turned around to ask Nugget what he
was doing, he simply looked down at the ground and sniffed a leaf. I took note of this, picked up the leaf
and put it in my pocket. The look on Nuggets face changed, he looked at me with his ears forward as if
saying, someone nally asked me what I care about, noticed the things I see.
Well, I used this leaf to lure him forward, to help him lead softly. I then gave it to him and he ate it. This
seemed to unlock the horse, we had a groundwork session like never before, he was kicking the cones
over, snifng the stick, licking and chewing easily and at times even looking at me with his ears forward!
Since that day Nugget became less and less introverted. In our rst sessions Nugget would not show any
signs of relaxing, especially not licking and chewing and cocking a hind leg. Nowadays he licks and chews
immediately after learning, relaxes quickly and looks to me with his ears forward, curious about what fun we
are going to have next! For me there is no greater reward than unlocking the mind of the horse.
Giving them the time they need: Stop Micro-managing
Horses need time to explore and make sense of the situations we put them in. Too often people are so
focussed on making the horse DO things, that they do not allow the horse to be curious.
Allowing the horse to be curious in new environments is important, the more we micromanage them and try
to console them, the worse horses will be in new situations. As an alternative I put the horse on the end of a
long lead and let them walk or run around, taking me where they want to go. I will allow them to do this until
they acclimatise themselves to the environment. I never try to MAKE them stand still, they need to do this on
their own, this will only come through them feeling safe. To force them would cause them to go internal.
Jazzy is a classic example of this, she likes to fully investigate her environment before we try to do any new
learning. When she feels safe and she has exhausted her curiosity, she settles down to work. By allowing
For example:
I take the horse up to the tarp as far as they will
go, this shows me where their threshold is. I then
walk them away to release the pressure and
reward their try for getting that close.
I then walk back to the tarp to see if their threshold
has shortened, if it has I release and walk away
again, if it hasnt I will encourage them to take a
step closer, releasing when they do.
Jazzy this time at the start, she
is more willing to settle down
to work.
When trying to get your horses
to investigate new objects,
such as going over tarpaulins
and pedestals, we need to
think less about pushing and
mor e about r et r eat i ng .
Horses gain condence any
time they retreat from a scary
object.
So instead of going up to the
tarpaulin and kicking/whacking
them until they go over, do it in
increments. Allow the horses
curiosity to take them over the
tarp, make them think that it is
their idea.
Basically, I will continue this process until they feel condent and curious enough to go right up to it. A key
thing to remember when doing this is that the horse should not feel like they are being forced onto the
tarpaulin, you want them to think it was completely their idea. Depending on how much effort the horse puts
in, depends on how big the releases are and how much I expect from them. With a horse who is very fearful,
the session might nish when the horse gets 1m from the tarp, they may not put a foot on it for 2 days, but
that is ok. It is better to be that way, than to get it done in one session with a big ght and no curiosity!
So the key things for me when fostering, developing and encouraging the horses curiosity are:
*Take the time to allow your horse to show you what they are thinking and make sure you listen!
*Cause your ideas to be the horses ideas.
*Learn what is important to your horse (eg food motivates, like Nugget and the leaf, or maybe it is safety).
*Give the horses opportunities to be curious (new environments, new play toys etc).
*Do not force the horse to do things, use pressure and release (retreat) to develop condence and curiosity.
*A horse who is uncondent/untrusting, will take longer to be curious and engage.
BOOK REVIEW
Zen Mind,
Zen Horse
"Zen Mind, Zen Horse is both
practical and profound, offering
sound advice for tapping the
wisdom of horses as natural
mindfulness teachers."
--Linda Kohanov, Author of The Tao
of Equus"
Zen Mind, Zen Horse: The Science and
Spirituality of Working with Horses is a
primer on spirituality, brain function, and the
bonds between the equine and human
species. It is written from my unique
perspective as a Harvard-trained brain
surgeon and an experienced horse trainer. It
is both a technical manual for training horses
and a guide to extracting the deeper,
spiritual lessons we can learn from these
animals and applying them in our daily lives.
It looks at horsemanship as a spiritual
journey, open to anyone,at any level of
expertise, and at any stage in their lives.
Ground work with horses provides a vital tool
for humans from a complete novice to an
accomplished horse trainer to reawaken
and strengthen the capacity of our dormant
right brain. With the lessons in Zen Mind,
Zen Horse , we can discover a reliable way to
silence our inner voice. We can move from
an i sol ated, sel f-absorbed me to a
connected, interactive we. Developing a
partnership with a horse teaches us to
summon and focus our own vital energy, the
non-verbal l i f e f orce of chi , i n our
interactions with others.
Zen Mind, Zen Horse is not just a book for those who feel the deep tug of affection for
horses; it is also for anyone who has a spiritual itch to become a better, happier and more
fulfilled individual, and wonders where to start and how to accomplish it.
No horse experience is needed to make these lessons
work. Zen Mind Zen Horse uses the exceptional power of horses to demonstrate dozens of
principles and then allows us for ourselves which ones we need most in our lives: clearing
our mind, focusing our intention, living in the moment, or forging relationships based on
integrity.
Check out more at this link, including videos! http://www.zenmindzenhorse.com/
Hopefully
out
December
2014