Ride with Confidence

I am in Kemptville, Ontario this week-end assisting Chris Irwin at a 2 day horsemanship clinic.  Last night, Chris gave a demonstration called “Evolve Your Horsepower” to about 150 people.  The focus of the demonstration was how horses can help with the development of human potential.  Before this event, I answered many phone calls and emails from people asking what exactly this meant.  I often find it hard to put into words the magic that can happen between horses and people - if we allow it. And it is magic having a horse willingly give himself or herself to you - no questions asked, totally trusting, respectful and attentive.  No matter how many times I see it happen, it still amazes and inspires me.

So, how DO horses help with the development of human potential?  Whether developing leadership skills, communication skills, team building, increasing self-esteem or any kind of personal growth and self improvement, the foundation is about RELATIONSHIP.  Relationship to others and relationship to oneself. 

To get a horse to become our willing, trusting and respectful partner, requires us to develop a positive relationship with the horse.  To do that, we have to become BETTER.  We have to become the person that horse needs us to be.  We have to EARN the right to be the leader.  We have to EARN the position of authority.  We have to EARN the horse’s trust and respect.  It is not something we get through demanding nor through assuming nor through dominance.  It can not be taken from the horse, but is something the horse must give us.  It is the same with people.

If you have read my earlier blogs, you know about my mare, Jewell.  I sold her several years ago and my husband just bought her back for me last fall. In the time that she was “away” (code for the time after I sold her), Jewell had been through some tough times and has lost her trust in people.  She is head shy so I had been keeping a leather halter on her at all times.  It broke recently & I had to remove it.  She has been living out in a large field with the mare herd.  I haven’t had any time to spend training Jewell, but I do take some time each day checking each of the mares and giving them a pat and a scratch. They knew something was up the other morning when I come into the field with my tape measure and clip board for recording their weight before worming them.  As I walked towards Jewell, she left - just walked away.  I spent several minutes pushing her around the field and keeping her out of the herd.  Eventually, she stopped and allowed my to approach her.  I approached at her shoulder, scratched her, and asked her to bring her head to me by bending around me (pressure to the girth “button”) so that I could put the halter on.  All was going well until I had the halter just over her nose.  That’s when I discovered how she really feels about halters.  Up went her head and away she went leaving me in her dust.  We played the same game again until she let me approach.  Again, she left as soon as I lifted the halter to her nose.  What I learned that morning is that her trust of me only goes so far.  That over the 5 or 6 years she was “away”, people have mishandled her head enough to create a total distrust of being haltered.  She has learned that it is not safe to give her head to people and allow them to put a halter on because it will be a negative experience for her.  I absolutely know that her issue is related to the halter because later that same day, Jewell did give me her head and allow me to rub and scratch all over her face and ears.  But, I didn’t have a halter in my hands.

So what does Jewell’s story have to do with horses helping with human development?  In order to get what I want from Jewell, I am going to have to figure out what she needs from me and give that to her.  It will happen in her time frame not mine.  It will happen when I have shown her that I am trustworthy.  It will happen when I have done what she needs me to do to earn her respect.  In order to get that from Jewell, I have to become a better person.  I have to have patience and empathy for her without feeling so guilty about the experiences she suffered while she was “away” that I become an ineffective leader.  I understand that she has learned this undesirable behaviour through the hands of people.  To gain her full trust and respect (I have already gained a bit of both - but only a little), I need to commit time to building our relationship.  I need to become a better person so she can become a better horse.  It’s reciprocal, you see.

As Chris Irwin says “Don’t ask what your horse can do for you. Ask what you can do for your horse.” 

Become the person your horse deserves.

In recent years, I have been approached with requests to help with difficult training issues such as bolting, spooking, rearing, and aggressiveness.  In most cases, the horse owner wants to know how long it will take to change the horse’s behaviour.  Unfortunately for the owner, I can only answer “it depends”.  It does not depend upon the owner’s time frame or agenda.  It does not depend on the owner’s budget.  It does not depend upon the show schedule, the upcoming big trail ride or the weather.

It depends upon the horse.  It depends on how deep the behaviour is ingrained.  It depends on what caused the behaviour in the first place. It depends upon how much the horse is able to forgive and is willing to let go of the old behaviour.  It also depends upon how much responsibility the owner is willing to accept for the behaviour and how willing he or she is to change how he or she is with the horse.  If the owner isn’t willing to change their behaviour and learn a different way of being with their horse, is it really fair to expect the horse to change?

Being with a horse is based on relationship.  What is true for our human to human relationships is also true for our human to horse relationships.  I cannot change anyone else.  I can only change myself.  The amazing thing is that as I change, the people (or horses) around me will notice and be affected by my change. 

There are no quick fixes with horses … or with people for that matter.  Be wary of anyone who guarantees they can “fix” or train your horse in 30 days.  This type of training relies on “one size fits all” thinking.   Be especially wary of trainers who do not want you to be part of the training process.  You need to know how your horse is being trained so that you can continue with the same training program when you take your horse home.  Be extremely wary of any trainers who do not want you to watch them training your horse.  You need to see how your horse is being trained so you can be sure that no violent methods are being employed.  Be wary of trainers who do not or cannot provide satisfactory answers to your questions.  There is always an explanation for what is going on and why a certain method is being used.

It is unfortunate that many people have been lead to believe in the 20 minutes in the round pen to taking the first saddle, bridle and rider; the 30 day “breaking” or starting model; the 3 months under saddle and ready to compete or be the perfect, “bomb proof” trail horse.  Training must never be rushed and must be set at the horse’s pace, not that of the owner or the trainer.

Remember the answer to “how long with it take” is always the same … “it depends”.

 

You might find this thread about a difficult training situation on the Chris Irwin forum interesting. 

 “I am having a problem with a three year old paint colt, who has spent his life to date handled with Chris’ methodologies. His groundwork is impeccable, he walks trots and canters in beautiful frame and has accepted bridle and now saddle and 6 months of lunging work. The issue comes about when the rider is mounted, and he is asked to go forward. While kept in a bend, he can stand to be mounted, but when enough of the ‘bend’ is let out to allow forward movement, he will snatch his head up, rear and flip over.  Yes, he has had his teeth checked and his chiropractic work done.  This trick seems to be a manipulation as he waits until the rider is in the awkward position of letting out enough slack, makes the request to go forward and the colt knows perfectly well he should step forward.  Rather than taking the step, he just says ‘No’ by a really nasty and dangerous device.  This is not a ‘half rear’ and threat, he means business and has gone over twice now. The rider is not in good position to address the evasion as hands and legs are pretty well occupied in self preservation.

Any ideas on how this could be handled would be much appreciated. We are getting pretty close to the end of the rope with this guy.”

You can read the full thread, including my response, by following this link http://www.chrisirwin.com/forum/index.php?topic=245.0

Anne Gage - The Confidence Coach
Helping horses & humans be better … together.
www.annegage.com
high.point.farm@gmail.com

While having coffee with a good friend the other day, the conversation turned to horses and the particular problem she was experiencing with her new riding partner who is a relatively green horse.   She had recently bought him to replace her older, well schooled mare.  She was having problems with the trot to canter transitions.  The transitions were inconsistent.  Sometimes he ran into them.  Sometimes he picked up the wrong lead.  Sometimes they were okay.  Sometimes she couldn’t get them at all.

My friend was not blaming her horse. She sincerely wanted to resolve this problem both for her horse’s sake and her own.  However, she was making an assumption about her horse.  She was assuming that he “knew” what she was asking him to do and that he was capable of just doing it.

At one point she said that she didn’t mind if her horse ran into the canter because a bad transition was better than no transition.  At least she was getting the canter.  Again, she was making an assumption.  She assumed that the transitions would just get better eventually.

What my friend assumed was that her horse understood “exactly” what she wanted him to do.  She assumed that his understanding of her aids and intention was exactly the same as her understanding. 

Truth is this young horse doesn’t really know what specifically he is being asked to do.  He has been trained to understand that certain cues or aids mean he should go forward.  But, forward could mean more trot, an extended trot, a collected trot or a canter transition.  He gives a response to a cue.  If his response is what the rider was wanting, he has to be told “yes” in a way that is clear to him.  Removing the pressure of the cue would indicate that he has given the desired response.   If his response is not what the rider wanted, he has to be told “no” in a way that is clear to him.  The rider also has to make sure that the horse is set up properly in order to be able to complete the desired task.  In my friend’s case, for the canter transition, she first must make sure the horse is traveling in a balanced, forward trot with his hind quarter engaged and his back round.  Once that is achieved, she must give the cue for the canter transition.  If the horse responds by “running”, she needs to tell him “no” by bringing him calmly back to the balanced, forward, engaged trot.  Then she must give him the exact same cue for the canter transition.  Every time he responds with anything other than a canter, she must bring him calmly back to the balanced, round, forward trot.

My friend listened, nodded, and replied, “So if I let him run into the transition, he will think that is how he is supposed to do it.”  She would be training him to run into the canter transition rather than smoothly moving into the canter from the trot.

Horses are not mind readers and don’t know what we want.  Here’s an exercise to try with a friend which will give you a better idea of what it is like for the horse.  Stand with your arms stretched out in front of you and hold a lunge line between your hands to simulate the horse having the bit in his mouth.  Your friend stands behind you holding the ends of the lunge line like reins.  You close your eyes.  Have your friend move you around the arena without giving any vocal cues just by moving your body with pressure from the reins. 

My friend had been assuming that her horse“knew” what was expected and had been getting frustrated that he wasn’t responding the way she wanted.  Once she changed her thinking and understood her horse’s perspective, she was able to change her training method to help her horse achieve the kind of transition she wanted.

Rather than assuming what your horse is thinking or understanding, how can you change your perspective so that you can grow as a rider?  Assuming is a self-defense mechanism. If you assume the horse is just being difficult, or stubborn, or lazy, you can’t be at fault.  The key to good training is not assuming, but understanding.

Anne Gage - The Confidence Coach
Helping horses & humans be better … together.
www.annegage.com
high.point.farm@gmail.com

Thursday was a great day. The farrier was here. So, what’s the big deal about that, you ask? The big deal is that we were able to trim Tulip’s front feet! Tulip is a 14.3 hh, gray mare that I have been fostering from Heaven Can Wait Equine Rescue since August. (You can read her description and history on their website www.heavencanwaitequinerescue.org) . Tulip had been at the HCW for quite some time and the only way they could get her feet trimmed was to tranquilize her.

When she arrived at High Point Farm, she was aloof and very pushy. She walked with her head always turned away from people. And, never mind trying to pick up her feet. If I put my hand on her front leg, she would rear and throw her shoulder on me. Ask for the hind leg and she would kick. The lightest pressure - no more than a touch - on her halter and she would violently throw her head up and away from me. You could see in her staring eyes and braced body that she had mentally “gone away” and was ready to defend herself without thinking. She had no trust of humans and yet underneath that defensive behaviour was a kind and sweet horse.

Her re-training started with ground work to establish respect and trust. She has a large lump (calcium deposit) on her left knee and with her feet as long as they were, I had to be careful about how much and how hard she worked in any session so as not to cause her to become lame. Add to that my busy work and travel schedule in the fall and her training sessions were not as regular as I would have liked. I worked with her as much as possible and despite having an irregular training schedule, she did develop trust in me and respect for my space. She was giving her head to me rather than taking it away. She was releasing to to pressure rather than throwing herself into it.

With consistency, calmness and patience, she eventually started to give me her left front foot - actually lifting it up for me to take. Shortly after we achieved this level of trust, she would allow me to pick out her foot . This success took weeks to achieve. We went through the same process on the right front foot. It was now the beginning of December. I went on vacation for a week and thought that she might have regressed while I was away. Happily, we picked up right where we left off.

So, when my farrier arrived on Thursday morning I told him that I had a special project for him. I said I wanted to try to get Tulip’s front feet trimmed as they were terribly overgrown and unbalanced. But, I didn’t want either him or Tulip to get hurt in the process. As soon as she saw the farrier, I could see that she was very stressed - going into that blank stare, braced body, heavy, loud breathing and high head stance. My farrier is a patient guy. He asked for her front left leg and she reacted by rearing. At least she didn’t throw her shoulder on him! We decided to put her back in her stall and do a few more horses. I brought Tulip out later to try again. She was not as stressed by now, but she was definitely not relaxed either. My farrier suggested taking into a large stall where we had some room to move with her. So, with me at her head (keeping her head low) and Mike at her shoulder, we patiently did several circles in the stall until Tulip was able to stand calmly. Then, she gave Mike her foot and stood so quiet and calm while he nipped off almost 2 inches of hoof. she even let him hold her foot between his legs while he did the trimming. Same process for the other front foot. Success!!

I still have alot of work to do with Tulip. Still have to work on those back feet. But, I am thrilled with the progress she has made. I only wish she could speak and tell me what happened to her to give her this fear of having her feet handled. Somewhere in her history, she has had a bad experience - either through human ignorance or human meanness. Her behavioural problems have been human-made. It will take a much longer time to re-train these behaviours out of her than it took to create them. The lesson here … every moment you are with your horse, you are training him or her. Train your horse with empathy, consistency and understanding. Choose to be the better horse rather than the human master and commander of your horse. The results the speak for themselves.

Anne Gage
The Confidence Coach
I teach people how to be the better horse.
www.annegage.com
high.point.farm@gmail.com

Since the release of the book and movie, The Horse Whisperer, the “natural horsemanship” phenomenon has been growing by leaps and bounds.  Most horse people know the names of many natural horsemanship gurus … Monty Roberts, Pat Parelli, Cleve Wells, Chris Irwin …  all promoting their own version of this style of training.  So what’s all the fuss about?

Once you learn natural horsemanship, there is no going back.  I learned to ride and train horses in a hunter/jumper show barn.  We were all loving, control freaks that bullied our horses to comply with our will and then demonstrated our love by feeding them special treats, grooming them with special brushes and clothing them in the best blankets, boots and tack that we could afford.  Our horses’ response to these lavish tokens of our love was to roll in the mud as soon as possible after the grooming session, eat each others’ blankets, and bite the hand that fed them the treats.  What we didn’t give them was much understanding or empathy.  We didn’t get their perspective of the world.  We interpreted their spooking and resistance as behaviours that they devised simply to annoy us.  We professed our love for them one moment, and called them “stupid” the next.  On really bad days, we “shanked & yanked” … a chain over the nose and a couple (or few) very firm, quick downward pulls on the lead to ensure they knew we meant business and would not put up with any of their “nonsense”.  We didn’t understand why they could be so well behaved one day and so untrustworthy the next.  I’m sure now, that they felt the same way about us.

When I knew better, I did better.  Once I started to study natural horsemanship techniques with Chris Irwin, I saw the error of my ways.  The curtain was lifted and I saw clearly the world from the horse’s perspective.  I understood the very natural fears of a prey animal.  I saw how their behaviours are based in a strong instinct for self-preservation.  I learned how to use this new empathy to create a better relationship with any horse by making it feel safe, secure and calm with me.  My attitude changed.  My training techniques changed.  The way I move and behave around horses changed.  My relationship with horses changed.  All changes for the better.  I no longer want to “make my horse do my will”.  Now, I want my horse to want to be my willing partner.  Sometimes progress is slow and sometimes it is frustrating.  There are no “quick fixes” in natural horsemanship although some of the marketing by the big name trainers might have you believing differently.  There are, however, many rewards.  Visitors to my farm always comment on how calm and quiet my horses are.  There is no banging and stress at feeding time.  No fighting at the gate about which horse in coming in first.  No getting stepped on, knocked over, bitten or kicked.  My horses respect my personal space as I respect theirs.

Once you learn this method of training, there is no going back.  My horses & I are going forward together calmly, respectfully and in trust.

I was shocked, amazed, surprised and ecstatic on Saturday night when Chris Irwin presented me with the very first Gold Level Coach & Trainer certificate in his Train the Trainer program.    I have been studying the Irwin Method of Horsemanshp for about 6 or 7 years now.  I was double certified Silver in the fall of 2004.  At the time, the program was new and there were only 3 categories - Bronze, Silver and Gold.  Since Chris is “the master” and the definition of a Gold Trainer at the time, we all thought that Silver was as high as any of us would ever go in the program.  Then, as the program grew, 2 additional categories were added - Platinum and Diamond.  So, we all thought that maybe, one day, some of us would move up the ranks.  That was 2 years ago and no Trainers in the Training Program had achieved more than Silver. 

In the meantime, I sold my ribbon business so that I could focus full-time on working with horses and coaching riders again.  I became the Ontario Region Coordinator for Chris’ company, Horsepower Productions, and have been assisting Chris at all of the events in Ontario this year.  I spent the winter and spring focusing on training horses & getting more time in the saddle than I’ve had in years.  And, I guess all my hard work has paid off.   I’ve achieved Gold Level Certification as a trainer in the Irwin Method of Horsemanship.  Words just can’t express what an honour this achievement is.

Thanks to all the horses and people who have been apart of this journey.

Read the article recently published in The Orangeville Citizen …. http://highpointfarm.homestead.com/Articles.html

  Ride with Confidence!

www.highpointfarm.homestead.com

There is a horse in my barn that has been labelled as having a “bad attitude” by most people who have met him.  He is the type of horse that is not dangerous, but makes riding so much work that it just isn’t fun for either him or the rider.  A couple of months ago, I suggested that his owner have an equine chiropractor check him out. When horses stretch their head down, they release endorphins into their system.  This is a position that creates a feeling of calm in the horse.  However, when this horse stretched his head down while in the cross-ties, he would cross his jaw - usually a sign of stress or discomfort.

 When the chiropractor checked over the horse, she noticed that the cartilidge on his left hip bone was not connected fully to the bone.  She said this would have resulted from him “breaking” his hip possibly by banging it very hard against a stall door or a gate.  And, it was not a recent injury.  The current owner has had the horse for 5 years.  She has no memory of him injuring that hip.  The chiropractor said that it could have happened even before the current owners bought him.  After the chiropractic treatment - which the horse seemed to enjoy very much - he moved like we have never seen him move before.  He has never been lame, but always had a short step.  Suddenly, this horse floats!

After the chiropractic treatment, people started to comment on how the horse’s temperament seemed to have improved and that he wasn’t as miserable.  Hmmm …. imagine how miserable you would be if you were in constant pain for years.  We have also had a massage therapist give him a couple of treatments to help relieve the soreness in his muscles caused from this old injury.  Now, we are in the process of showing him that he can move his hips comfortably with a rider on his back.  His memory is of pain and we have to show him that the pain is really gone.  He is coming along nicely.

 I wonder how many other horses are out there labelled as “difficult” or having a “bad attitude” that are really dealing with chronic pain that the owners and trainers are unaware of.  Investing in a chiropractic and/or massage treatment might produce an interesting result … and, a new attitude!

Ride with Confidence!

www.highpointfarm.homestead.com

“Insanity: Doing the same thing over & over again & expecting different results.”  Albert Einstein

This quote should be posted in every riding barn in the country.  How many times have you heard coaches giving the same instructions over and over to the same student on the same horse and continuing to get the same result?  For example, the horse that counterbends through a corner or spooky part of the arena.  The coach instructs the student to “get him off your inside leg.  Kick him.”  Often, a whip and/or spurs are used to back up the leg.  The result … a counterbent, unbalanced, inverted, stressed horse and a frustrated rider (and, probably, a frustrated coach, too).  Using this example, lets look at why the horse is counterbent to begin with.

As a prey animal, the horse’s main goal today is to remain alive until tomorrow.  His safety & security are paramount.  His natural instinct is to moveshis body away from perceived danger.  Who knows what danger lurks in the long grass beside the riding ring or behind the standards stored in the corner.  He certainly doesn’t.  As he counterbends his body to move away from the “danger”, the person on his back is pushing and kicking and “biting” him pushing him into the danger.  Very scary & stressful to the horse.  Over and over the rider tries the same technique.  More and more the horse is convinced that corner is a bad place to be.  It just feels bad to him with all the stress being created in his body and, therefore, in his mind.

 Lets try a different scenario.  The horse counterbends at the scary corner.  The rider takes that counterbend and leg yields the horse through the corner.  The horse perceives the rider to be taking him away from danger.  This behaviour is much better aligned to his need for safety and security.  Each time his rider helps him move through the scary corner while keeping his body in a relaxed frame (level headed and balanced), the horse feels better.  Until, finally, he feels relaxed and safe enough to allow the rider to take him through the corner with the true bend.  Through this simple exercise - by trying something different - the rider has built trust with his horse.  Or, you can continue following the other training method - over and over again.  But, we all know where that leads!

Ride with Confidence!

www.highpointfarm.homestead.com