20/20 Horsemanship: March 2011

Monday, March 28, 2011

Subject: News from 20/20 Horsemanship

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In This Issue

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Snow? really?

Amplify’d from www.weather.com

Mar 26

Mostly Cloudy

38°
32°

20%

38°F

Sun
Mar 27

Rain / Snow Showers

39°
24°

30%

39°F

Mon
Mar 28

Sunny

43°
29°

0%

Read more at www.weather.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/bvxe5

Me & Mellie

Loretta the natural horseman clear communication/visible results

Thursday, March 10, 2011

The boy and a hen.

Amplify’d from www.gentlebarn.org

All Because of a Tiny Hen

February 25th, 2011

We had a group of foster kids who came to the barn. All the kids gathered around me as I told them about the animals and the ranch, all except one. This boy stood in the back, eyes down to the ground, arms folded across his chest, as if to say, “you are not getting to me, I am not interested.”

I kept trying to get him interested in the animals but he would not look at me or talk to me. I finally gave up and focused more on the other kids, thinking, “Well you can’t win them all.” Just as the session was coming to an end I heard a voice behind me mumbling, “Can I hold that chicken?” I whirled around to see the closed off boy talking to me. He was not looking at me mind you, but he was talking to me and he was interested in holding a chicken! I picked Strawberry up and handed her to him to hold. He stroked her very gently. Then he started telling me about how he had a chicken when he was a child and they loved each other very much. That one day he came home from school and she was gone and he never saw her again. He told me how he missed her.

I told him how very sorry I was that happened to him and how much I understood his pain. His eyes slowly lifted and he started telling me how he lived in a foster home and no one understood him and he had not seen his parents in years, and how he wanted to be an animator but was not sure how to do it. He told me his whole life story, and he was looking right at me as he spoke. I did not take my eyes off of him, and prayed that the dialogue would never end.

He left The Gentle Barn with a smile on his face hugging me goodbye and saying he couldn’t wait to return soon. This boy had been so invisible, angry, resistant and defensive, and came alive, opened up and let me in, all because of a tiny hen named Strawberry.

Strawberry is no longer with us, she died of old age several years ago, but I was thinking of her and wanted you to know of the wonderful work she did here for almost 8 years!
Read more at www.gentlebarn.org

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/bts15

Games become training with your horse.

This sound like so much fun! Can't wait for the rain to stop so I can play it with Astro and Scottie!

Amplify’d from www.facebook.com

Horse Training Game - Carolyn Resnick
by HorseConscious - The New Horsemanship and Horse Training on Monday, February 21, 2011 at 9:47am

I’d like to start off with an interesting game I thought up. When you are training your horse, you shouldn’t be too interested in his performance. Instead of developing the bond to be able to train your horse, you should use the training to deepen the bond you have with him.

The horse will direct your leadership and you offer the program. This kind of leadership is comforting and nurturing to a horse. When a horse does not live in a harmonious herd environment, he needs us to provide socialization and leadership for his emotional well-being.

In developing a method for horses, we need to allow the horse the ability to figure out how to fit in and work within our system in the moments he is called to participate without him feeling pressured.

Not approaching him and waiting for him to come to us will develop his desire to learn how to fit in with us. Allowing a horse to become interested builds his self esteem and increases his ability to partner up with us from a willing heart. Here’s the game I came up with, hope you like it

Start your horse out a liberty in an arena or large round pen. This exercise takes two or three people and in fact it works with as many as you like. Sit in chairs about 20 feet apart and have some carrots with you under your chair. When your horse goes up to a person, they give him one carrot and no more. If the horse becomes a nuisance, begging for another carrot, shoo him away like a kindly mare would shoo a foal way when she does not want him to nurse. The horse will eventually leave and go to someone else and when he does, this person gives him a carrot and no more. Keep repeating one carrot per visit, per person. Do not try to guide him to go see someone else, just shoo him away. He can go where he likes and all we want to do is to challenge him to figure out how to work the system. If three people are playing this game and the horse just goes between two people that is alright because we are just teaching him that one carrot is all that he gets per visit and learns being driven away is a prelude to another carrot. He leans that to be driven away has a great reward and meaning. You want him to figure this out on his own.

Your role is to say no more carrots and leave me alone with any miming gestures, voice and body language that work. After he learns this, you will increase the difficulty for him by choosing the person that will offer him the next carrot. If he is begging from a person that is not chosen, that person will point to the person that is chosen and say to the horse go to… and say the persons name. This way the horse will learn names. The person that the horse is being sent to will call the horse as well. Both people encourage the horse to go to the person of choice. Continue this exercise. Once the horse has this down, place your chairs far apart and encourage the horse to trot and walk to the person who has the carrot, then eventually ask the horse to canter from person to person as directed. You can make your own variation as you wish to advance the horses schooling. The horse will show great enthusiasm for the freedom he experiences and the direction he receives and being the center of attention like a child.

Imagine what it might feel like if the roles were reversed. We are minding our own business, we come across a horse and walk up to get a closer look and in our closeness we receive from the horse a thousand dollar bill and we find that every horse we encounter will give up money and as the relationship grows they direct us to were the next honey (or should that be money) pot is.

Good luck and remember if you have problems doing this lesson, drop the exercise. I do not want horses and humans frustrated. I am sure I will have other exercises later on that may work better for you and your horse.
Read more at www.facebook.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/btre7

Sunday, March 6, 2011

New Programs

NEW ****Jr. Naturally Safe Horsemanship Program*****

This program is suitable for the more dedicated student who sees themselves owning or leasing a horse in their future.

There are 10 skills covered in a 12 week period. There is a written quiz and demonstration of skills at the last lesson. If you can show you know the material you may move up into the next program.

Details: Cost: $850.00 Includes packet for progress notes, weekly progress checks, rewards for completing assignments, additional special classes and events and more!

Basic Horsemanship Program:

16 classes

Cost: $1,140

Includes: private one hour lesson, membership into Pony Pals riding club, use of pony (you do not have to lease), farm fun day, special workshops and training and a few surprises.

Loretta the natural horseman clear communication/visible results

NEW Workshops

Special classes and workshops:

Sundays at 6:15pm and Wednesdays at 5:45pm 90 minute class

The last 20 - 30 minutes of class will be feeding time and observations.

Sunday 3/13 Fitness and the equestrian. Importance of strength training.

Wed 3/16 Trail challenge. Go on a hike and see things thru the eye of the horse.

Sun 3/20 Trail Challenge.

Wed 3/23 Fitness for the equestrian.

Sun 3/27 Trail challenge with a hand walked horse.

Fees: $15 per student per class. Must be paid in advance

Loretta
the natural horseman
clear communication/visible results

Announcements

New Programs!

Pony Pals for 5-7 yr olds

The Naturally Safe Horsemanship Program for beginners-adv. kids and adults

The Naturally Safe Trail Riders beginners-advanced for kids and adults

For those beyond that, there's the Horse-Master-Ship program where you can learn to teach and train.

Some perks include:

Special events and extra classes
Progress folders to keep you on track
Specific assignments just for YOU
Opportunity to learn to train
and much more!

Loretta the natural horseman clear communication/visible results

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Apollo

Went and saw Apollo the pony today. Cute, cute, welsh X thoroughbred, former fancy A show pony. Looks like he may be coming for a visit.....stay tuned!

Loretta
the natural horseman
clear communication/visible results

Mellie

Looks like Mellie will be leaving on Sunday. For those who did not get to say goodbye I will be sure to tell her for you!

Loretta
the natural horseman
clear communication/visible results

Helmets: to wear or not to wear? NOT an option

Remember the article about unnecessary risk vs. inherent risk? This would be unnecessary risk for sure.

Most of you know my take on this. Wear the helmet. I don't care who you are. Where you live, what you ride or where you do it.

Did you see the pic of my laying on Mellie? I wasn't even going to ride and my helmet was on.

I try not to argue with others who do not see things this way, but I am not afraid to voice my opinion to any number of the riders I know who choose to ride helmetless. These discussions have led to rather heated 'debates.' I know some of them may never change their minds, but I will continue voicing my opinion.

Amplify’d from www.horse-sense.org

One rider's helmet story by Vanessa

I promised myself that when I was released from the hospital, I would write you a thank-you letter. I hope other young adult and young-at-heart adult riders will listen when you tell them that helmets are not just for children or beginners - they are for everyone.

I am the kind of person who would never put a child or a beginner on a horse without a well-fitting helmet. Ever. Period. But I'm older, more experienced - and I don't plan on falling off of the horse I ride. :) So, the other day, I debated whether or not I needed to wear my helmet during an 'ordinary' dressage lesson. More out of habit than sense, I buckled it on.

Less than an hour later, I was in the emergency room.

If I hadn't been wearing that helmet, I would have been in the morgue.

Please understand, I am a good rider. I've been on horses for almost 20 years; I'm a Training level eventer who up until recently was riding three or four young, green horses every day. This time, I was riding a dead-quiet, sweetheart schoolmaster in a lesson.

Unfortunately, that schoolmaster was stung by the King of All Bees about ten minutes into the lesson. He bucked so hard, as I came off, I saw the top of a timer-box that is EIGHT feet above the arena floor.

I don't remember hitting the ground. I don't remember riding in the ambulance or having my clothes cut off me. I don't know what my attending physician told my parents and my boyfriend when no one could say with any certainty if I was going to be all right.

Thank heavens, I ended up with "only" a nasty concussion and (hopefully only temporarily) impaired vision. When I returned to the barn, in my tack closet I found my helmet, with a neat crack running up one side.

Without that helmet, that crack would have been in my head.

I've taken a lot of ribbing for wearing a helmet, but as my finger caught on one sharp, broken edge, the chilling reality of my situation dawned on me. It occurred to me, I'm not a kid anymore. I don't heal as fast or as well, and I have certain responsibilities as an adult. I thought, "How could I have ever explained to my loved ones that I was lying there horribly injured (or worse) because I cared more about what a bunch of strangers said and thought than about how much I meant to them?" I am not immortal -- but I *am* inestimably precious to those who love me. To them, I cannot - I dare not - make excuses.

Please, people need to understand: accidents can happen any time, on any horse. It doesn't matter whether or not you're a good rider. AND, the better the horse, the more sensitive and powerful he is, and will be when the King of All Bees visits YOUR ride.

Riding is a fun, wonderful sport, and while no one needs to be afraid of riding, everyone does need to be sensible. It's one thing to *have* an accident - it's another thing to *invite* one.

I know you believe strongly in rider (and horse and just plain human) safety - I think some people think helmets are for children and beginners. I hope you will continue to educate them otherwise, and if you feel that my experience would be a useful teaching tool, please feel free to use it.

Thank you again for your tireless effort and dedication to the *true* art of riding. And, if it is at all heartening, the more I learn (and live), especially from you, the more I am trying to take it up myself, learn from, and educate others.

Sincerely,

Thankfully A. Live :)

PS: I was an elemetary school teacher, so I'm used to tacking things up on refrigerators - my dad was a mortician, and I ended up with kind of a morbid sense of humor, especially about my own mortality. :) Feel free to change or edit the subject and/or text to suit your audience. But it did happen, and I AM Thankfully A. Live. :)
Read more at www.horse-sense.org

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/bsl1y

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Boundaries with Carolyn Resnick

I am presently studying the Waterhole Rituals and will begin learning them with a horse today. I think I will pick Gem to start with today. She can be my experiment since she is a little less complicated than Scottie. I will be joining Carolyn's next Insider Circle program this spring and am very excited about it.

Amplify’d from www.carolynresnickblog.com

When another horse sets boundaries the horse that respects those boundaries eventually has to consider the other horses feelings, which interrupts their agenda and self-interest. When this happens an automatic interest in the other horse is created. The evolution of his response causes the horse to feel friendship and respect.

I brought what I had learned from my study of how horses form alliances into my training Method. The reason communicating with a horse like a horse is so powerful is that you can create a bond that is less conditional, much like the bond horses share with one another. Once I gained the ability to communicate with horses in this way, I found a deeper connection than what most horses share. This was a surprise to me.

I had found a cross-species bond. And it is a magical bond.

From this discovery, I developed a greater appreciation for others and life brought me more meaning. It turned me into an optimistic being with a practical, altruist attitude. I developed a love for community caring for the individual and the individual caring for community. I became aware that all movements are a dance in matching patterns in the moment, both in chaotic and harmonious times. There are intervals in time that carry attitudes and needs that must be met or allowed to be. I learned how to fit in and lead horses. Anything will naturally follow a leader that brings more meaning and abundance to the needs in the moment. I lose my agenda since that does not match the moment.

In training or riding, I never address rude behavior because my goal is to inspire a feeling in the horse of wanting to be soft and polite and having a great desire to follow my lead. Before a horse exhibits rude behavior, when the moments are relaxed at liberty on the ground, I reconnect with a horse. I refresh the relationship with the daily practice of the Waterhole Rituals before I ride and train. This way I do not have to be as firm in setting boundaries if a conflict does arise. Boundaries are easy to set because the horse doesn’t have a strong interest in being rude he is naturally more willing to listen.

I go through an everyday checklist to establish the flexible boundaries that bring about a friendship, respect, and trust. Here is the checklist:

Can I move my horse way from me and not have it come back?

When we are close is my horse soft to me and gentle and gives me the room I need?

If I walk toward my horse and want him to move on will he?

When my horse is walking up to me could I stop him for coming all the way up?

If the answer is no, then I set these bounders with my horse for that day. If they are not easy to set, I share space and ask for nothing more until the segment of time evolves the relationship to a another segment of time that is easier to set bounders.

If your horse responds positively to my checklist, your horse should work with you very well in any pursuit and not be rude. If your horse shows rudeness you probably are not handling yourself appropriately toward your horse or you are asking him to do something that needs to be put to him in another way, or changed to a different subject to allow the support and connection to return between the two of you.

As I said, I make sure these four circumstances are agreed upon before any training and riding. I use the first five Rituals to reestablish the bond trust, respect, focus and willingness, and then I test the boundaries. When I ask for performance it is always a request and never a demand or an insistence. If training and riding is your self-agenda, you need to be more polite to your horse so you won’t disrupt his interest in partnering with you.

When a horse responds positively to my checklist, I ride. I am a guest on my horse’s back when I ride. Riding is a privilege he offers me and not a right. I ride suggesting my lead rather than demanding and pointing out things I do not like about his behavior. He is not my slave. He is a willing partner and if he is not willing I figure out how to put the willingness back in him without pointing out to him he has to do anything for me or that he is rude. (Sure there are times that I am strong in my leadership when I ride but only on rare occasions. I can try being strong with a demand for leadership but it is only an experiment and if that does not work I quit and let the horse have his way.)

I seldom have any problems because I do my homework on the ground first. If I have tack on my horse while I am leading him, I try to work with the horse rather than look for holes or problems. The Uberstreichen Exercises put a horse in a very willing connection with tack. After the Waterhole Rituals checklist is passed and adding in the Uberstreichen Exercises, I have a very willing horse. At this point I need to lead him in a way that will keep the dance and connection alive.

To put perspective on how to be with a horse, I want to again point to the social behavior of humans. A guest would never point out to the host at a social function that they are being rude. It is not the guest’s place to do that. It is not practical either.

A famous America Indian spiritual leader, I do not remember his name, once said: “I must find out where my people want to go so I can lead them there.” This is how we want to approach our horses when we ask the horse to be in service and go somewhere we would like him to go.

In the Waterhole Rituals we are not asking for any self serving act we are only working on relationship with the focus on team work building and creating and optimistic horse sharing a magnetic connection and a desire in the horse to want to learn, follow your lead and perform.

I hope the above make as much sense to you as it does to me and I look forward to reading your responses.
Read more at www.carolynresnickblog.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/bsdu6

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Monday, March 28, 2011

Newsletter

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Snow? really?

Me & Mellie

Thursday, March 10, 2011

The boy and a hen.

All Because of a Tiny Hen

Games become training with your horse.

Horse Training Game - Carolyn Resnick

Sunday, March 6, 2011

New Programs

NEW Workshops

Announcements

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Apollo

Mellie

Helmets: to wear or not to wear? NOT an option

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Boundaries with Carolyn Resnick

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Continuing to study horsemanship at home through reading.

Scottie

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Monday, March 28, 2011

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Horse Training Game - Carolyn Resnick

Sunday, March 6, 2011

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

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About Me

Subscribe to our blog

Join the 20/20 Horsemanship email list

Continuing to study horsemanship at home through reading.

Scottie

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Loretta's fav horsemanship books

Natural Horsemanship training and Informational Links

Article Topics

Blog Archive

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