Posts Tagged ‘training’
Stuff I Hate
There are so many differences in riding styles, training approaches and where our horses fit in our lives, that I can’t pretend to know or completely understand the philosophy behind each.
Personally, I have studied western riding, with a smattering of first and second level dressage and some basic hunt seat thrown in for good measure.
The dressage came in because Ray Hunt told me to, the jumping came in from curiosity. I am by no means an expert in these areas, but I have ridden with qualified instructors, read like crazy and combined my new information with my own knowledge from riding western.
The horses I train do regular cavaletti and pole work and the foot control I work towards is taught using exercises I learned while riding dressage. I still use rail exercise I learned while riding pleasure horses to create drive and you can’t beat a good barrel or pole pattern to get a horse thinking and using his body while going full speed.
While taking on this cross-training approach I learned to keep an open mind to different disciplines, but I also developed some pretty strong opinions on what we, as horsemen, do totally wrong. There are training practices across the board that drive me CRAZY!
So here’s my first post on Stuff I Hate.
Cavessons/Noseband- designed to keep the horse’s mouth closed or at least prevent a horse from evading the bit by opening the mouth too far. This includes drop, flash, crank, figure-eight etc.
When I began exploring the mechanics of horse training beyond the pull and crank approach I was in my teens. The very first concept I was taught was to control a horse’s feet through my legs and hands.
“If you’ve got the feet you’ve got the horse.”
I have heard variations of this theme from every worthwhile horseman I have ever worked with, no matter what the style of riding.
The next hard cold fact I learned was if a horse opened his mouth against my hands it was ALWAYS because I didn’t have the feet under control.
I realized horses open their mouths in resistance, in pain or both. It was an effective communication from my horse, I didn’t have to be an advanced rider or a successful trainer to understand the problem. Mouth open, something’s out of whack, mouth closed, something is working.
So why in the world would I tie his mouth shut?
A noseband restrains the freedom of the lower jaw by literally tying it to the upper jaw.This pretty much kills the concept of a supple or relaxed jaw.
To my mind, I’d use a noseband so I can cheat. I could jump ahead to the fun stuff without being thorough in my basics. I could ride without worrying about my hands. I could force my horse to perform maneuvers we weren’t ready for. I could ignore his pain.
I am just not that kind of rider.
None of my horses wear nosebands of any kind, ever.
From chronic gapers to brand new babies, I let them tell me what the deal is through their mouth. My job is not to gag the horse to shut him up, it’s to work on gaining control of the feet and watch his gaping maw gradually relax and close.
I have found that bending and flexing through the ribs with my legs, lots of hold and release and pretty much ignoring what’s happening with a horse’s mouth works best. As the feet get where they need to be, the neck begins to relax, the poll flexes as it should and the mouth closes.
If a horse is gaping and dragging my hands forward, it’s not a matter of tying his mouth shut and pulling back, it’s figuring out how to push him forward and release the drag, again, this is done with my legs, not my hands, I know we’re getting somewhere when the mouth closes and I don’t feel like I’m water skiing in the La Brea Tar Pits.
Nosebands suck. Horses don’t need them. What they need are riders who take the time to analyze the problem from an open mouth and learn to ride well enough to help the horse close it….through the feet.
“WAH! My Trainer Ripped Me Off!”
There are a lot of bad trainers.
There are also a lot of good ones.
There are a few great ones.
I considered myself a good one.
I was good if my client wanted a quiet, easy to ride horse with good manners and a nice handle.
I could build a pretty decent cowhorse too, but I wasn’t fast enough. My three-year-olds ran like the other trainers two-year-olds, but weren’t worth much to show until they were four.
People in my circle knew this and liked me to start their colts, fix a problem or give them lessons. But when the colts were started and the problems fixed they took them to a cow horse or reining trainer who got more done at a faster rate of speed.
It used to really chap my hide too, but it was my lot. On the upside, I am proud to say I never lamed a horse. Ever. Not my colts, not the horses who came in wanting to kill me, none of them. But I was too slow.
I was a good instructor. I always assumed owners were as eager to solve the puzzle of the horse they owned as much as I was. I loved getting a horse and rider working together, headed for a common goal.
I offered one free lesson a week with each horse in training. The client could ride the horse in training, another one of theirs or one of mine. I wanted them to understand how I was training their horse and how to ride it when they went home.
Maybe 20% took me up on those free lessons. The majority dropped them off and picked them up and seldom rode during the 30, 60, 90 days I had them. Most never came out to watch the horse be ridden, unless it was at a show.
This was not unusual. I didn’t get it, but not visiting, riding, or watching a horse be worked was the norm. In many ways it made my job easier, but it was sure strange.
This is why I am slow to jump on the “let’s out the trainer bandwagon.”
I’m not saying things don’t go wrong. I’m not saying there aren’t a myriad of cruel boneheads out there training horses. I agree the horse training business is filled with liars, braggarts, scam artists and lazy fools.
But I am saying this, it’s the clients damn fault.
Yes, you, the client, is at fault.
Horse got skinny? Why weren’t you there the during the 30 days it took to get him that way?
Your horse is covered with spur and whip marks?
A careful check of the horses in stalls will reveal rubs from a snaffle, lumps from a spur, bumps from a whip, sore backs, dead eyes, hanging heads, depression, anxiety, all of it. Again, regular visits and time spent just petting your horse in the stall would reveal the first time the hide of your horse was opened. That’s when it’s time to start asking questions, not when the horse is dying from abscessed wounds.
If you don’t check the other horses before you bring yours in, it’s on YOUR head. If you don’t check your horse personally, it’s on YOUR head.
Sometimes, people will scrape up their money and send their horse out to a highly successful trainer in another state. The excuse I get then is (insert appropriate indignant whining here), “I couldn’t afford go out there, I put all my money into his training.”
I don’t care how successful a trainer we’re talking about here, if you hate the way they train, then you won’t be happy with the end product. Some trainers are extremely successful and extremely abusive. Some trainers are extremely successful, but still happy to rip you off by taking your money even though they’ve kicked your horse to the curb.
Believe me, it’s not unusual for a horse that isn’t going to make it in the show pen, being handed off to an assistant to learn on, or better yet, to stand idle in a stall for months.
If you don’t regularly go out to visit and watch your horse being ridden, then there is nobody to blame EXCEPT YOURSELF.
I received a letter from a woman who had her horse in cutting training with one of the better cutting trainers in the country. A big winning, money earning guy who came with fantastic recommendations. Her horse was there for two years. Yes, that’s right, two years.
When the horse came home it was barely broke.
She had spent thousands and thousands of dollars having a very expensive and well bred horse trained to cut. And ended up with a horse not even suitable for every day riding.
What happened? My guess is the horse wasn’t going to be competitive. It was bumped from the program and nobody thought to mention it to the very regular writer of those fat monthly checks. This is not honest. This is not fair.
The whole mess could have been prevented by asking for monthly videos of the horse’s progress. Written analysis, by the trainer, of his prospects in the show ring. Surprise visits. Asking for a show date and going to it. trust me, the trainer will either ride the horse like he should, or send it home - if you are there, in his face, getting what you are paying for.
If you are going to send your horses away for training, then do your research and follow their progress. If you’re not happy, yank them.
Ask what to expect in a certain amount of time. What will my horse know at 30 days, 60 days, 120? When can I ride him/watch him work?
Ask what you can expect of the finished product. Depending on the trainer, you could easily end up with a half wild billy goat that only knows how to work a cow. Nothing else. Not every trainer works on ground manners, most don’t take them out of the arena, and unless a nice jog comes with the sport, it might never be taught to the horse.
A rope horse will put himself at a cow’s hip, but he won’t necessarily know his leads. Some cutters forget how to lope because their training consists of a trotting warm up, cutting practice and back to the stall. A Parelli trained horse might side pass around a barrel and put his nose on a stick, but that doesn’t mean you can get on hip.
I usually recommend looking at show records, finding an up-and-comer who is hungry and building a reputation, and then begin to watch her. Check the facility, is it safe and clean? Are the horses content, fat and shiny? Is there a healthy horse to rider ratio? Ten horses per rider per day is not unusual. Are there assistants? How do they ride? Take some lessons, talk to owners, go to shows. being an integral part of a barn will go a long way to protecting your horse.
Most of all, accept responsibility for your horse, take the time to find a good trainer you can access. Believe me, they’re out there. If you’re offered free weekly lessons, well, take the dang things.
The World of Crap Rescues and Trainers
OK folks.
It’s time to for me to take a deep breath and plunge hard into the side of this blog which takes on bad rescues and trainers in the equine world.
It seems the transition between Fugly/Mugly is smoothing out.
Readership is up, we’ve broken a record or two, in a good way, and the boss is happy.So I might as well start rocking the boat.
I’m learning to navigate the minefield that came with this blog, and the potential explosions from the people who read it, and am feeling brave enough to start to tackle some of the tougher questions.
I’ve been asked about specific rescues which are falling on their faces and trainers who, well, seem to suck at their jobs.
Personally, I am in the process of trying to out a rescue in my area which has gone from barely hanging on, to neglecting the horses in their charge.
The rescue I’m after was one that I was personally involved with while still a reporter for the Fountain Valley News here in Colorado.
I have been frustrated at every turn in my attempts to bring attention to what is going on at this place.
The rescue has a stamp of approval from the humane society, police and media.
This is in the face of horses which go downhill instead of improving after being brought to the rescue.
There are healthy horses which are turned into starving wrecks, crippled horses turned out to pasture with healthy ones and left to fare as best they can, unsafe
treatment of volunteers, selling horses to anybody who shows up with a trailer and cash, I could go on.
Believe me, I understand the frustration of watching this go on and getting nowhere when you try to sound the alarm.
When it comes to bad trainers, I have covered this ground pretty extensively cross the street at my other blog, the Mugwump Chronicles.
I’m more than happy to cover it again over here, and will begin to post my thoughts and opinions on client/trainer responsibility.
In order to out a rescue I’m going to need more than disgruntled, uncorroborated complaints. It has nothing to do with not believing the writer, it has to do with what it takes for me to unleash the power of the readers of this blog.
You guys have a huge voice and can be an incredibly effective tool in increasing awareness or putting pressure on public officials.
This voice can only be diminished to a weak joke if we go howling after people or institutions that don’t have a documented history of abuse.
How do we get this documentation? This is where I am pretty green.
I have looked at a few rescues and one trainer pretty thoroughly since I’ve begun writing over here and haven’t found anything on them which allowed me to write about them in good concience.
The rescues I looked at seem to be in trouble. At this point in time I don’t know how they can’t be.There are horses in trouble everywhere and sound business practices (as in only taking in the amount of horses you can support) don’t seem to go hand in hand with people crazy enough to run a rescue.
The good ones are turning horses away, the bad ones, or the rescues on the edge, keep taking them in. All of them seem to be at capacity.
I’m planning on approaching the problem of when to out a rescue by exploring the subject like I would any story, as a reporter.
Here is a list of the interviews I have either set up or am in the process of arranging.
The founder and head trainer of an accredited, award winning horse rescue, which I have 100% faith in and am able to whole heartedly support, Front Range Equine Rescue.
The brand inspector who inspects stock at the worst sale barn in my area.
The biggest kill buyer in my area.
The cowboys who work the yards and ride the horses during the sales at the auction.
People,other than myself, who have experieced local rescue nightmares.
Veterinarians I respect.
Cathy Atkinson, one of the best researchers I know.
This will get me started and I will share each step with all of you.
In the mean time, your thoughts and suggestions on how to nail these “rescues” would be much appreciated.
Want me to nail a rescue? Give me dated photos of horses when they came into the rescue and after they’ve been there 90 days or so.
News stories, court records, police reports, any type of public, legal documentation will make me willing to write about these schmucks.
I’m open to any and all research techniques and tips you want to send me.
When it comes to trainers, I definitely need more than a note saying, “My club hates so and so, please reprint the stories we wrote dragging his ass over the coals.”
I need proof folks. My idea of cruelty and yours could easily differ.
There is a specific trainer I have in mind, a John Lyons certified trainer, Randy Byers. I’m willing to post his name because he has already been a guest of this blog. Do you remember when Cathy posted a video of him riding a young draft type horse (maybe a Fjord or Haflinger?)
He was riding this horse like an absolute idiot. The horse was loaded down with a cavesson, running maringale, his fat ass and very rough hands, which were handily using a whip. I do believe he also was using spurs.
He was jerking and sawing and whacking this poor baby around. The video was taken by the owner who yanked her horse out of training. If I remember right she had specifically stated she did not want any of these training “tools” used on her horse.
My trainer brain kicked in immediately as I watched the video. I was taught, and firmly believe, to be the most quiet on the least responsive horses and the most deliberate on the flightiest.
In other words, I work hard to sensitize a slow moving horse and to desensitize a quick and jumpy one.
Draft breeds tend to be friendly, amiable and willing to tune out their trainers. It doesn’t mean they don’t feel pain, are dull, or stupid. It means they need to learn to respond to a feather light touch and to work to understand their training, not shut it out. This takes time, thought and patience.
In essence I felt Byers was an insensitive clod, a bad trainer and deserved what he got.
The next time I heard about our friend Mr. Byers, I was sent a video of him riding a resistant, adult and very high strung mare.
I didn’t care for his technique, which was about the same as his approach to the draft, but I understood what he was doing. The horse was resisting moving its hindquarters in response to his legs. It was very locked up in the shoulders and neck and wanted to rear. He was using his whips to force the horse to listen to his leg and unlock the hind end. The horse was arguementative and angry. He got after her pretty hard but did release her when she finally gave in.
I suspect this horse was there because she was a problem. He was tackling her problems in a way I understood, even if I didn’t agree. I did not consider his approach abusive, just kind of stupid.
The first video I would have posted, the second I would not.
Byers was recently busted hiding in a trailer load of horses he was trying to illegally take into Canada, so he seems to be self destructing quite nicely on his own.
Again, want me to out a trainer? Give me substantiated proof, I’ll be happy to help.
So there’s my outlook on just a portion of the the sad world of equine abuse. Many of you have more experience than I in this area and I would really appreciate your advice and expertise.
Let’s work together and go get the bastards.
Helmets and Morons
I went on a long trail ride with 15 people yesterday.
They were all competent riders and had years of horse experience behind them.
I was enjoying our ride immensely until the group stopped for a lunch break.
There was a lot of meandering and picking the perfect place to stop to eat and rest the horses.
All well and good, although I’m a “eat a granola bar and boogie” kind of rider. I put my impatience aside, loosened my mare’s cinch and spent some time taking some photos of the beautiful fall day.
Then I noticed the box of wine. I have to be honest, I’m not a tee-totaller by any means, but I never drink when I’m riding. It seems incredibally unfair to make my horse deal with the mind changes that happen when alcohol is involved.
We were also at altitude, which doubles the impact of a glass of wine.
The group ate lunch, had a great time and nobody seemed drunk.
There was a 76 year old man riding a three-year-old colt. He is a long time appaloosa breeder and was on one of the horses he had raised.
His daughter and son-in-law were also on the ride.
The group began to move around, gathering up their food, packing up trash and getting their horses ready to go.
As I was swinging into my saddle the Appy colt went trotting past.
“Man down!”
The worst thing you could ever want to hear on a ride deep in the wilderness. The elderly rancher was flat on the ground.
There were two nurses on the ride and they ran to his side. He was disoriented and had a large gash on the back of his head.
After a thorough assessment they were sure he had nothing broken, was reasonably steady and definitely had a concussion.
I was told by one of the riders who saw the accident it was a tragic comedy of errors, if such a thing is possible.
The daughter and son-in-law had him mounting his horse from a rock on the downhill-side of an extremely steep slope. He was tired and the wine had him about on his ass. As he lugged himself into the saddle the colt lost his balance and fell over backwards, flipping him in the air and head first onto the rocks.
The group began to argue among themselves. The rancher said he was fine and wanted to continue the ride. Some were saying listen to him, let’s just go.
A woman who had not been drinking kept repeating, “He should NOT get on the horse. We need to call for help.”
She was ignored.
When the rancher asked for the fifth time, “What happened? Did I fall off my horse?”, the group finally conceeded he shouldn’t finish the ride.They still refused to call for help.
It was decided to take him back to a parking lot we had past about two miles before we stopped and try to get him a ride back to his trailer.
The sober woman kept saying, “He should not get on his horse, he could fall off any time.”
The old man was put on his horse and the group rode out, heading for the parking lot.
Another rider said to me, “If he had been wearing a helmet none of this would have happened.”
Maybe.
All I could think of was, Or the idiots could have used some common sense!
First and foremost, why were they drinking alcohol?
Was the rancher truly in condition to be on this ride?
Why on God’s green earth was he riding a three-year-old?
If his kids hadn’t had a drink would they have helped him get mounted on the correct side of the hill, or were they just stupid?
There were not one, but two nurses on the ride, why didn’t they join in on the insistance he not be moved?
My second story involves a helmet devotee who I firmly believe is setting herself up for disaster. She won’t even lead a horse without a helmet on.
Her potential danger lies much deeper than the protection she feels is guaranteed by her helmet. It’s a combination of a deep-seated fear of all horses, no matter how gentle, and a refusal to try to learn to actually ride and handle them.
Instead she jumps from one training or communication “method” to the next, convinced she can mold the horses to her expectations without actually sucking it up and learning about what makes them tick and how to get along with them.
If a horse sucks back while tied once, it must have been abused and should never be tied.
Won’t pick up it’s feet? Then it must have been abused and she will spend months teaching the horse to accept her presence,she never rides while she’s being accepted into it’s presence.
Cold backed? Lots of chiro.
Won’t bridle? Takes a week long clinic on reading the horses emotions through massage and meditation.
She spends weeks relaxing the back or softening the poll of a very gentle, national champion who will soften and collect on a breath.
At a get together not so very long ago she was eager to show us how spectacular her riding skills had become. She began with a series of lead changes, but never noticed her horse had only changed in the front. 10, 11, 12 “changes” and never felt the bump of the cross-fire.
It was fairly spectacular to watch. She didn’t want any input because her current trainer had assured her she was correct. I’m guessing her current trainer had given up.
She then proceeded to give very esoteric instruction to everyone on whatever they were working on. How to breath, how to sit, how to use their hands.
After our arena work we headed out on a trail ride. This ride was on flat ground, with a few gentle slopes, one water crossing and wide, well-groomed trails.
After the first slope, which her 20-year-old mare plodded up at a sedate walk, head low, ears and tail relaxed, she became so frightened she dismounted and led her the rest of the way.
When one of the horses (not hers, this mare is a gem) refused to cross the water she jumped in with her advice. She stood in the water, directly in front of the horse, offering it cookies. If the gelding had decided to jump for it he would have squashed her flat.
After 10 minutes of this nonsense I asked if the owner of the horse wanted help. She said yes and three minutes later we were across and on our way. Sheesh.
During our ride and her hike she worried about flags on a flag pole across the park, across the street and at the back of an apartment complex. She worried about a non-working construction site two blocks away. She worried about hikers with dogs and without dogs, areas where the trail wound through the trees and areas in the open. Her mare never looked left or right, just plodded along in complete disinterest. She never got on her horse.
She screams if a horse jumps, she jumps off and runs if her horse raises it’s head, it goes on and on.
Yet she continues to present herself as a trainer, continually working on horses which need no work and never trying to work on herself.
She gives riding lessons.
This woman is going to get hurt, I don’t care if she wears two helmets and full body armor.
A helmet can’t save anybody from their own stupidity.
I don’t have a problem with helmets. I know they save lives. I also know knowledge, logic and solid riding skills are what truly keep horses and their riders safe.
The rancher is still in the hospital with a major concussion, but should be OK.
The fearful yet faithful helmet wearer is still awaiting her doom.
Standing Tied-
Now I feel like we’re getting somewhere.
I love having people jump in to talk about how, when and why their horses are trained.
Can I please point out I have yet to knock a style of riding. I don’t care what kind of saddle is tossed on a horse’s back, or if one is at all, my goal has, and always will be, to give the horses in my life the best chance at a successful future I can possibly give them. I like to get input from all sides of the horse world, it helps me keep my tool box filled.
I can’t see into the future. I want to think my two remaining horses will be with me until the end of their days. But reality tells me I have very little control of what may happen to me or my beloved animals in the coming years.
A year ago I would have told you I hoped to keep my final three until the end of their days. When a former student made a solid offer on one of the three I ended up selling her so I could afford to keep the other two.
What made this student offer me a decent price for a horse living out on a field? It wasn’t her show career, which was extensive, it wasn’t her breeding, which was random, it was her basic training.
The mare is kind. She tolerates mistakes. She stands tied. She loads, she’s good with her feet, she doesn’t jump, leap, crowd, bully or ignore the people who handle her. She will live in a stall, pen or pasture. She knows her leads, even if the rider doesn’t, stands to be mounted from a block or the ground, and doesn’t require a perfect seat to perform. She behaves for the farrier and the vet.
Yes, she has a good mind. She was also trained in every way I could come up with to make her a delight to deal with. The reasons were not to show off or to be right, they were to give her the best chance of survival in a world that, for the most part, offers the majority of horses a shortened life span at the least and a very brutal end at the worst.
Don’t get me wrong, I love to show off, that’s where the fancy spins and slide stops come in. As far as I’m concerned, that’s just icing on the cake. How the cake is baked is the important part. I feel it is the duty of every person involved with horses to do their best, at whatever level they are at, to improve the chances of survival for the horse or horses they spend time with.
I have taught horses at all levels to stand tied. During my time as a trainer I only managed to rise to mid-level in my chosen field, reined cow horse. When this is as high as you go, you earn a lot of your living starting colts and fixing problems. Horses who couldn’t or wouldn’t tolerate pressure were the bread and butter of my business.
If a horse had no previous issues, but no training either, I began teaching them to give to pressure by ponying them from another horse. They were turned, pulled, towed, turned some more until they were jogging along comfortably with the horse.
My next step was to teach the horses to respect my space and move their hips and shoulders away from me while I was on the ground. We then got into leading, stopping and standing while I moved around them etc.
When it was time to be tied the horse knew to find relief from pressure by moving forward. I would tie the horse with a rope halter and a stout 10 foot lead. I tied to something that I knew could withstand a struggle.
My rope was wrapped several times, but not tied off, so I could step in if things got ugly, give the horse room to pull out some rope and still have him connected when he quit pulling. I tied him and moved off far enough for the horse to know I know longer held him.
As soon as the horse stood quiet for a minute or two, no pawing, whinnying or fussing of any kind, I would let him go for the day. I increased time each day and had them tied with the gang by the end of the week.
Horses who panicked or sucked back were treated differently. I had a fifty foot rope for them. I tied the rope off on the halter (no snaps) and wrapped the rope like I described above. If the horse freaked or flew back I had a good forty-five feet of rope to let him reel out. When the horse was done, why surprise, surprise, he was still tied. I reeled him back in and we began again.
When it comes to horses I have the patience to watch paint dry and grass grow, I did this with a horse for days if needed. I never had it not work. The key was to always stay calm, never yell or scream, never run or panic, no matter how wild the horse got. Just reel them out and back in and never, ever, have the horse become untied unless I chose to untie him.
So, now you know what I did. What do you guys do? How do you teach a horse to ground tie? How about standing in cross ties? How do you handle a horse that won’t tie? The more information shared the better off the horses will be.
