Search results matching tag 'Training'

Getting him on the Bit?

Eclipse295 — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 07:00:00 GMT

I am trying to get my Gelding on the bit but all he does is through his head, rear, or yank the reins out of my hands and then buck. Any ideas how I can get him on the bit correctly?

Re: Mistreated and unhandled throughbred

Dreamer17 — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 07:00:00 GMT

Dreamer takes to riding like she has always done it. She is not a bucker at all. She stands tied to be saddled, groomed etc... I still have some problems with bit but , she eventually takes it, and gets rewarded for it. She responds to commands voice and some leg. Backs great with saddle and on ground. She has become my shadow. I get so much response from her it's terriffic! She is still the typical T/B and has her moody times but she has realized I am more stubborn than her and do not stop until I get my way. (Which at times has been hours) Still working on the spook thing, She has gotten better but I will not ride her outside the pasture until I know she can handle it. Cars, Trucks, 4 wheelers don't bother her much anymore, just certain sounds from the woods and motorcycles. I owe alot of what I have taught her and taught myself to the many responses I have gotten. Thank You to everyone.

Time and Patience! That's my reply to anyone in this type of situation or with any horse, dog or really any animal.

Solid as a Rock...

Pleasure Horse Girl 16 — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 07:00:00 GMT

This post was orriginally on my blog All Around Horses.

If you have ever rode a horse that is solid, you will know it. One of the most resounding charecteristics I can think of is, that they are really nice to post to!

What does it mean for a horse to be solid? How do you achieve it?
A horse will feel solid once they have a good training on them, but what makes them feel solid is not hours of riding, it is hours of training to teach them to tuck their hip under, that is what makes them feel solid. When they tuck their hip, which rounds their backs, making them feel nice and sturdy. It might also feel somewhat like what a horse feels like when they are going to buck, because to buck, they must get their hip under themselves and lift their backs. They will really swing their hips at the trot, with nice forward driving motion, that is what makes it really nice to post to. A horse moving like this will also just have their necks fall level off their shoulders (depending on the horse's confirmation, it may be slightly above or below), no restrictions or awkward feelings and it looks balanced to the observer. They will either be moving level or with a slight upward motion since their forehand is light and easy to move from side to side, so it is easy to turn, stop, pivot or spin, do roll backs, back up on a dime ect.

You achieve it by teaching your horse to really drive from their hindquarters, it frankly takes a long time to achive because the horse must build up muscles. It will not be until they can achieve this frame that you will get a nice slow western pleasure lope, walk or jog. This frame is also necessary to produce a nice flowing stride that hunt seat horses have.

I am writing this from the prospective of a stock type horse. It is slightly different for pleasure type horses but it is the same concept.

Zorro my 4 year old has been doing a lot of developing lately. After a year and 2 months of training he can do this! About 1.5 months ago he really started building up his topline muscle, he has also had a tendancy to go behind the vertical, but when he is balanced this does not happen. If I work him heavy constantly, then he looses it because he is still developing and he gets sore. Like at the MN State Horse Show, that was a 4 day show, our best day was day 1, but a lot! Day 2 he was off, and day 3 he was better because I noticed it and adressed the problem, but not as good as day 1. That is just part of training a young horse though. Zorro is an appendix quarter horse so he is a little bit slower to mature both skelitally and muscularly. That is why I waited until he turned 3 last Aug to start riding him. He just was not structurally ready to start before that and my goal is not to make a show horse in X days, my goal is to make a lifelong companion that will be showing well in his late teens with all of his joints working well. He has been playing with collection for the last 2-3 months but it is not until lately that we are really getting some consistancy (take into consideration that he got from December 2008-May 2009 off of riding). Today was the first time I have ridden him since the MN State Horse Show, so about 2 weeks. When he gets a couple days or more off his performance will be better, because his muscles are fresh and free from the previous days fatigue.

When your horse is reaching that break through point, where they are learning true self carriage, you will see it in the pasture. To a degree a horse's movement is natural, but some of it is also learned and a good chunk of it simply developed. My 7 year old did not look like a show horse when I got him at the age of 4 (as a green broke youngster, no where near the point Zorro is at now), but now in the pasture he moves with a nice level head, nose just ahead of the vertical, nice steps from behind, lifted barrel and a slight tuck of his hip...all the time. It has become his natural. That is the nice thing about a devoloped horse. They always move the way they are suposed to when it comes to their frame, it is just filling in the blanks, like extended stride or not, english or western...that is why kids can show him.

Hope this can help those out there developing their horses muscles to shape them in the right way. If anything is vague or you disagree, do not be afraid to leave a comment. Remember my comments are open to anyone, if you do not have a google blogger account, you can leave annonymous comments.

I love looking at pictures and watching videos, they help me see where I am at with my horse, I should really put some before and after pics up with both Zorro and Chaps (my 7 year old) to illustrate my point.

Re: Teaching a horse to canter

TGKnightV — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 07:00:00 GMT

Each horse is different, and at 3, yours is still growing and maturing. Her proprioception (ability to know where her feet and other body parts are and what they are all doing at any given time) is still developing.

That being said, I agree with the previous posters about taking it easy. Do lots of walk and trot, work on your transitions without drilling your horse and try to build in some hill work at the walk to help strengthen her back end. When your transitions are smooth and she is confidently balancing around circles at the trot without dropping her shoulder or hollowing her back, you can start asking for the canter along a straight line, but only a few strides at a time.

For example, walk ten strides, trot 5 strides, canter 3 strides down the long side and come back to a walk or trot. Remember to support your mare in the transition so she doesn't nosedive into the walk/trot. You can then start to build the number of canter strides slowly over time. Once she is confidently cantering the long side of the arena, you can start to work on helping her learn to balance through the corner.

Again, just take it slow so your mare has a chance to build her confidence, balance, and musculature the RIGHT way, and you should have years of enjoyment out of her at all gaits.

Good luck!!

Has anyone taken the USHJA Trainer Cert Program?

gerkensaj — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 07:00:00 GMT

Hello all,

I have been looking into maybe taking the USHJA Trainer Certification Program and I am wondering if anyone has taken it? And what are your thoughts about it?

Greg Best Clinic

kingsenglish — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 07:00:00 GMT

Someone told me that there's a Greg Best clinic taking place the first weekend of September in Westlake, TX. I can't find anything to confirm it. It's supposed to be at a barn called Silver Oaks. I've searched the Web using that barn's name, but nothing comes up. I've tried to search for Greg Best clinics, but haven't had any luck. Can anybody send me a link or any information about the clinic? I'm interested in auditing it.

Thanks.

Re: need advice!

Slwicz — Tue, 26 May 2009 07:00:00 GMT

I found all the advice you've been given very valuable...and I can empathize with your plight. I have a thoroughbred who on one day can walk into a shower stall and be fine, and on another, refuse and be spooked by the entire bath situation, hose included, just because something about the environment has changed...oh, and I could tell you a lot about his reaction to calves that buck and moo a great deal! He's had a lot of changes in his life (barns included) and the trainer who works with me is trying to guide me in my leadership skills to ensure continuity for him and for him to trust that I can take care of him. I don't know if this will help you or not, but one of the most valuable pieces of information she provided that I've used to good effect to calm him down when needed is leading and turning. I lead him everywhere I can, over and over, to ensure a familiarity with new places, old placed, and those where potential spooking might occur. However, the leading has a particular requirement and goal: My horse can look anywhere he wants, but in our walks, his head cannot come past my shoulder. The goal is for him to follow me at my pace and come to recognize that where I go it is safe to go. This also helps reinforce me as alpha and generate trust! When he tries to get ahead of me I turn him, either 45, 90, 180, or 360 degrees, depending on direction we're going, using the lead rope and swinging it gently against his rear haunch, while never looking him in the eye. It has become a foundation exercise of trust between he and I and I have used it at every opportunity to good effect.

need advice!

Live4Horses85 — Mon, 25 May 2009 07:00:00 GMT

okay so im home from the summer from school with my horse. and i am boarding my horse at a beautiful barn. it's been a week since he's been there but i feel like he's having a hard time adjusting..well mostly because of the goats and lambs that he sees when we are riding in the outdoor arena. he is petrified of them and so far when we are riding i get him to pay attention to me when we are riding..so i try handwalking him to the pen and he wants nothing to do with it. i want him to see them and maybe he'll see there's nothing wrong..and now he's scared of wash stalls and he was never scared of the wash stall up at school. maybe it's because its in a new barn and i'm trying to walk him around the barn to get him more used to it and settled down...maybe i should try some ttouches on him?

Strengthening back muscles

gerkensaj — Wed, 20 May 2009 07:00:00 GMT

I have a 7 year old mare that I am training H/J. She has an awesome trot, however when you do a sitting trot she drags her backend. My question is what can I do to help strengthen her back muscles?

1st time in the saddle....

Dreamer17 — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 07:00:00 GMT