Catching your horse. Since Phil comes in to eat he comes to me and I halter, lead, and release him a minimum of twice daily. When I catch Phil I have actually taught him to catch me. The last thing I want to do is walk to the end of a 5 acre pasture to catch a horse. Through ground work for respect I have taught Phil to catch me.

First Ride.
Pre-ride checks. I have had 27 days to establish my relationship with Phil. The time spent on the ground will reflect how well we work together under saddle. I tacked Phil up using my roping saddle. I want as much leather under me as possible with the young horses. I did use the snaffle bridle instead of the training headstall with the distracting tassels (chose not to fight that battle). I did some ground work to see where Phil’s mental attitude was before I even attempted to mount. I was prepared to scratch my plan if Phil’s focus wasn’t on me and go back to ground work. Phil passed all “pre ride” checks. One thing I’ve noticed about horse owners is that they catch their horse, groom, tack and ride off without asking their horses “how do you feel today?’ Many “accidents” can be prevented if humans would just take the time to do a little ground work before mounting. If you have established ground work for respect with your horse, like I have with Phil, this may only be a pass to the left and right and maybe a back up from the ground. If Phil was distracted, spooky, or silly, etc. I would postpone my ride and chose to do something else constructive. Unfortunately, humans are so schedule/agenda conscious if they have made the trip to the barn, then by golly they are going to ride.

Mounting: I always use a mounting block no matter how tall the horse. Mounting blocks are the polite way to mount your horse. Now with that said you should be able to easily mount from the ground in case you are in a situation where you cannot stand on a block or tree stump. Phil stood politely as I mounted. I returned the politeness by not jabbing my toe into his side, by swinging my leg over his back gracefully and gently sitting my weight in the saddle. It is very rude to grab the saddle to pull yourself up, haul yourself onto your horse, kick him instead of lifting your leg, and plopping all of your weight into the saddle. We expect our horses to be physically fit enough to carry us, so we owe it to them to be physically able to gently mount and dismount. I purposely fiddled with the stirrups and reins. Phil stood still. Please, do not ever mount a horse that is moving. This is very unsafe. With that said, our OTTBs have to be taught to stand still for mounting. On the track the jockeys are hoisted onto a moving horse’s back; this is what our OTTBs know.

Flexion. I started by picking up one rein and asked for a soft flex. Phil, like all young horses, took this cue to move his feet. This is ok. He can turn in circles. To make the lesson correct I disengaged his hindquarters and asked him to step over until he makes an effort to give to me. As soon as Phil gives me a hint of his nose, I immediately dropped the reins. I mean I dropped them out of my hands to reward. Phil stopped turning. I continued to ask, Phil stopped turning and starting flexing without moving his feet. When he was doing this consistently I asked him to walk and flex. To reward him quicker as soon as he softened I let him change direction. An observer would accuse Phil of being drunk because we were swerving all over the arena. I was even able to pick up his foot through the feel of the rein and place it several times; this is an advanced move.

Circles. Circles, circles, circles. Since Phil is unbalanced and tends to dip his shoulder into a bend I have to really keep him between my legs. This means at all times I am supporting or directing with legs and/or hands. I make sure I am only supporting with my legs and hands and not nagging. I like to ride along the rail and turn into the rail and then turn back into the middle of the arena. Essentially I am doing figure eights along the rail. I make sure I plan, look where I am going, slightly shift my weight and support with legs/reins. I did have to modify my requests for Phil to accommodate his body build and conditioning. He cannot get under his hocks like my Quarter Horses and roll back, so I execute a little larger circle along the rail.

Test Ride: Once Phil was warmed up and fairly soft I tried out all gears. I was really surprised at how easy it was to post his trot. I didn’t have to work very hard since his trot provided the momentum. I would rate (1 being the worst and 10 the best) his canter a 10 and his hand gallop a 10+. He made an effort to turn on forehand, turn on haunches, and side pass. He even reached for the bit several times and was rewarded by a complete release.
Impulsion. Phil’s previous owner wrote Elizabeth several times about Phil’s lack of impulsion. I was even told that Phil was stubborn because he didn’t have impulsion. I want to take the time to discuss this since it is so easy to label a horse as uncooperative or stubborn. If you can’t get impulsion from your horse it is because your horse is emotionally out of control because he does not respect you. Remember, when I first met Phil I felt he was unstable. This is one of the most frustrating problems humans have with their horses. Plain and simple; Impulsion comes from respect. Respect is something you get on the ground or you don’t. You achieve impulsion by balancing your horse’s mental and physical needs. Many people will stick a band aid on a sucking chest wound and use crops, whips, or spurs to bully their horses. (NOTE: I use training spurs on some of my young prospects so I can communicate a “promise” clearly. One tap from the spur equals 100 exhausting leg kicks which only teach your horse to ignore you. I have developed a very independent leg and seat so the spur will only make contact if the ask and tell have been completely ignored). This will create dangerous habits such as rearing, bolting, ducking, bucking, as your horse will start to out think you to get away from the pressure and find a way to rid you off his back. The first time he tosses you or scares you enough to dismount you have just given him the release he was searching for and he will find his release quicker and quicker each time. Our horses are recreation for us, can we be recreation for them? As I mentioned in an earlier entry I am bored riding in circles in the arena. I try to entertain myself by trying out new things such as instead of riding along the rail going forward, I back my horse around the ring or I look at my surroundings and ask “Can I ride through, under, over, or around it”? Use your imagination.

Please feel free to ask questions!

Morning feeding: uneventful.

Releasing your horse: This is a lesson I learned quite well when I was younger. First let me tackle the basics and then I’ll tell the story. Using the correct haltering and leading techniques I led Phil to his new pasture to meet his new friends. They have been nose to nose for 2 weeks now, so I have been able to get a good idea of personality matches. When Phil and I walked through the gate my horses stood far back; they have been taught not to crowd me. I asked Phil to turn on his forehand to face the gate, asked for head down and took off his halter. He has been taught to stay with me (ground tie) until I give him the signal he can leave. I build this into all my horses so I can always exit safely. When I am a safe distance I wave him off. Phil runs to join his new friends. It is a good match. I have chosen to keep Phil in a smaller pasture near the barn, so I can continue to interact with him throughout the day. Also, I can correct unwanted behavior more efficiently in a smaller area. He can still run from me in a 2 acre pasture, but it is easier than the 5-6 acre pastures. He can always catch me (notice he is going to catch me; I’m not going to catch him) and I can put him in the round pen for some thought provoking foot work.

My story. On Christmas Eve 1988, in Chicago, I let my horse, Ptarmigan (Phil looks a lot like him only think Appendix QH not TB), out on a crisp, snowy eve. He was excited to play in the snow. I opened the gate, took off the lead, and just let him take off. Of course he let out a huge rodeo broncing buck and he kicked me in the arm with a shod hind foot. I was wearing several heavy layers of clothing, thank goodness. I stood there watching him play and felt warmness down my right arm. I went back to the barn and peeled off the layers of clothing to see blood soaking everything. I felt ok, so I thought maybe he just broke the skin. I ended up putting Ptarmigan away and driving home. I had no idea I was in shock. When I got home I felt sick and had to confess to my Mother what had happened. I was rushed to the ER and had fractured my humorous and required a cast and many, many stitches. If I had known how to properly release Ptarmigan and have his respect I would not have been injured. The ER physicians said it was my heavy clothing that prevented me from going to surgery. Can you imagine if his kick was just 1 foot higher?

Releasing Summary: Face your horse towards the gate. In this position he has to turn around to run or let out a kick. This will give you a window to go to safe distance. Keep other horses away from you. It is dangerous to have your horse’s buddies on top of you wanting to initiate play with your horse. Don’t be afraid to carry a whip to shoo his anxious buddies off. Use head down cue for proper de-haltering technique and to relax your horse. If your horse is rude take him back out of his pasture and ask him to work for you….that means move his feet like he has a purpose. Try again. Repeat until he is polite and you feel safe.

It is our responsibility to teach our horses to be safe around us.

Morning feeding: We had a record setting low last night for this time of the year. I was expecting a lot of “freshness” from my group. As I entered Phil’s pen he started hopping up and down with all four legs off the ground at once. He was very animated. Since he was being polite and hopping in his own space I left him alone. He circled in and I gave him the ritual rub. I brought in his hay and asked him to leave his food dish to clear a path for me to reach his hay rack. He backed with only a wave of 2 fingers. Talking about communicating! Remember the Alpha never walks around the subordinates; they clear a path for her.

Treating: Ok, I’m a stickler for NOT stuffing my horse’s face full of treats. If you have not established respect in your relationship, treating will lead to a pushy, demanding, mouthy horse that may even bite or strike when a treat is not presented upon demand. I like to treat my horses. It makes me feel good. I feel Phil and I have come to an agreement that I am the Alpha. At this point I can introduce treats. If you absolutely must give treats I would recommend giving them in a bowl. I have a large plastic bowl I purchased from Dollar Tree. Your horse will know the treat is from you because your scent is on the treats. If your horse is demanding a treat then I would suggest skipping the treat or give him a task and then treat….on your terms, not his. I promise your horse will not hold a grudge against you if you do not treat him. The best treat a horse can get is to be left alone.

I used the treats (I like baby carrots and apple nibblets) to ask Phil to stretch. This way Phil stretched on his own without me interfering with what degree he was to stretch. This worked really well. I was able to get Phil to track the treat with his eyes. I started to teach him to bow. Incorporated into this “game” Phil was ground tied, he used head down cue, vertical/lateral flexion, backing, and disengaging the haunches. The best part was this is bonding time. We are learning how to communicate in a relaxed, non “classroom” setting, no pressures.

Evening feeding: I forgot to feed Phil his hay! As I rounded the barn after feeding and scrubbing troughs down the hill I saw Phil as polite as can be standing in front of his hay rack. He acknowledged me with “two eyes” and I saw the empty hay rack. Wow, this is a breakthrough. In the past, Phil would pace at the gate and paw if his hay rack was empty. Of course, I have been consistent in my requests and follow throughs that he needs to be a gentleman until I get to him. Phil is really starting to “get it.” Hooray for Phil!

Morning feeding: It was a fairly cool morning and many of the other horses were a bit rowdy, but Phil remained level headed and super polite.

Still very much a colt…..

I tacked Phil up. The “girthy” behavior has disappeared and bridling is a pleasure using the head down cue. I used a different bridle on Phil today. It was one of my custom made training bridles w/yacht braid reins and a sweet iron snaffle bit. Phil could not resist shaking the tassels (from the yacht braid reins) under his chin. The leather chin strap/bit hobble (used to prevent the snaffle from pulling through his mouth) and slobber straps were a new added weight/feel.

We headed out on the trail and Phil shaking his head trying to grab the tassels was really annoying. About half of the colts I start under saddle find the tassels very fascinating. I did not correct Phil and just held the reins steady so I would not teach him that when he jerks his head he gets a release from me when I lose the reins. The lesson was on me today. I had to remain cool and stay focused on a steady grip on the reins. When Phil jerked the reins to flip the tassels I held steadfast and let him bump against himself. It is a human reaction to jerk the reins back from your horse; instead train yourself to let your horse bump against himself. Previously, I noticed Phil had a hard mouth/face in the bridle. I wanted to work on flexion, but clearly this was not the time when Phil was in “colt mode.”

When we returned home we went to the round pen. His focus was better in the round pen. I did a lot of flex and release to soften up his neck and work on softening his mouth. He softened faster and faster. He even would soften, bend and stay in position until I rubbed his nose. His head was low and relaxed. He easily gave me his nose, but he was stiff through the shoulder and he didn’t offer his face. This is ok, celebrate the little victories.

Note: I refuse to bit up a horse to get a quicker response. I feel that this is just like sticking a band aid on a sucking chest wound. I feel if a restraining device is the chosen method to get the desired results then most likely there is a HOLE in your horse’s education or yours. Instead of using tie downs, martingales, torture bits, etc. I’ll go back to ground work and try to figure out where I went wrong with my teaching. I know everyone is anxious to “work their horse on the bit” (I say this loosely) and it is tempting to rig up a martingale, but the reality is once the martingale is off your horse’s head pops back up and his back is hollow again. A long term strategy would be to slowly build your horse’s top line, promise him you’ll stay out of his mouth and ride with soft hands, ride with an independent seat, and teach him to reach for a release with vertical flexion. The goal with my lesson today was to ask Phil to become soft in the bridle and “give me his face” with only 2 fingertips pressure or less than 2 ounces.

I had a different halter on Phil. This particular halter has a lot of adjustments and rings under the chin for the lead that make noise. Phil stood on cross ties shaking his head and making all kinds of noise with the rings. He was driving me crazy, but I chose not to fight this battle; he was not misbehaving in my book in any way. The halter kept him busy while I cleaned his sheath, so it all worked out.

Head shaking: I do want to mention head shaking. This was something that Phil’s previous owner commented about to Elizabeth. Young colts will typically chomp on the bit, shake their heads, travel with their heads cocked to the side, and even travel in zig zag lines. This is completely normal. If you ignore it you’ll find within weeks these behaviors disappear. Just do not let your horse yank the reins from you. Hold steady and let your horse bump himself. If the behavior worsens and is accompanied by crow hopping, bucking, ducking, bolting, etc. you may want to check tack fit. You may also want to rule out any health issues or rider inadequacies.

Evening feeding: During feeding I was catching up on chores. Every time I entered Phil’s pen he acknowledged me with “two eyes.” This is wonderful!

Check out Sunsethalters.com for custom made bridles, halters, haltermores, sidepulls and more!