May The Non-Force Be With You
Aug 26th, 2010 by Carolyn Resnick Method
It’s really touching that people have been responding so deeply on the subject of such a small issue regarding a horse being so unwilling to have a halter put on, or the horse being so freaked out about the need to rip away from a human, because of the distasteful feeling of being with a human.
I appreciate that many people are willing to take the long journey to build a relationship with a horse as Robin and Carry have done with Pony.
In the traditional programs of leaning how to fix problems with horses, the problem gets fixed from an overall system and does not take in to consideration of the needs of the individual horse and human. Recently I watched a Youtube of a horse, he has a similar problem as Pony, not as bad, but still a problem of putting a bridle. The method just used force and persistence at the time the horse was fighting to get away.
I am working on my book and I just finished my prologue and what I wrote really pertains to the subject of how to approach really big problems such as with Cary’s experience with her horse. It requires not a formula but to know how to follow a code of conduct that brings about connections and solutions.
There is not a formula. What you are doing is communicating in a way that exhibits your intentions. You approach the horse by winning his trust and favour in a way that can be mind altering to him to enjoy the very act that intimated him.
You only interact with your horse in the moments the horse is at peace and does not in any way feel the human is taking away his power and freedom and well being.
It requires the willingness of the professional to work with the horse as well as the human and meet the individual requirements of both in the moment.
It requires a professional to give whole heartily of yourself and to make adjustments that the code of conduct keep you to.
It is not about approach and retreat, it is more than that. It is the knowing when to approach and when to retreat and that is driven by the universal code of personal boundaries that allow the bond to evolve. Approach and retreat sound so cold and manipulative to me. What is happening for Robin is that she is speaking to Pony through the language of connection and following a code that the horse can begin to trust and recognize as the way of the horse.
If you have a chance to watch Robin’s Youtubes they are really wonderful. I watch them all the time. I want to strongly encourage everyone to attend Robin’s clinic if possible. I have found her clinics to be fun, enjoyable, and life-enhancing! Robin has a great sense of humor that is not to be missed!
How I gain knowledge is by observation and being inspired by what I see. I do not look at anything which does not draw my interest. To feel the feelings of connection that exists in the moment, is where I receive my knowledge that brings the dance that I share with horses.
When I observe I do no not try to figure out anything I just enjoy and allow the experience to inspire me. When this happens a solution automatically presents itself. The most powerful evolution to my own knowledge even to this very day is remembering to allow time to pass with out effort. To know that the pause allows the evolution and the bond to grow on its own while seeking guidance from horses and learning more about the way of horses. I follow this path.
Well, we have another weekend coming up and another opportunity for a new horse and humans sightings.
Remember I would love to read your stories on your new horse human sightings!
Have a great weekend! May the “Non Force” be with you!
Carolyn
PS By the way, if you are a graduate of my 2009 or 2010 Insider Circle or In a Box programs, there are only 2 places remaining for the 10-day Clinic I am running at my ranch in December. To book/secure 1 of the final 2 spots, please see the email Mark sent you or get in touch as soon as poss using the Contact page.
No related posts.
Breakthrough! Oz is 15 and has only been handled with dominance until I got him a few months ago. I have been trying to demonstrate to him that our relationship will be different, based on leadership and respect.
He does nothing that would hurt me but he has been playing a dominance game with me, like he is only tolerating me to get what he wants.
This morning that began to change.
I was asking him to do things and rewarding him with carrot pieces. He did the things that he wanted to do but when I asked him to move out and wait (which he knows how to do), he decided that he would move out but not stand and wait; instead he went out but immediately returned to me for his treat in a demanding sort of way.
So, I decided to drive him from behind. He walked a little then turned and faced me and I kept walking until he had to turn and walk more…he trotted while I walked on…I kept halting but he would not halt when I did, so I kept driving him. I remembered the “walking the horse down” line and just decided that I would take lots of time to walk him down.
I did not have a result in mind; it just felt right to keep walking behind him, not in anger or frustration, just walking with him, almost like sharing territory but with movement.
Once I reached that mindset, his head dropped, he relaxed and when I halted so did he. I went over and gave him his treat and turned to walk away and He Walked at My Side just like in Carolyn’s videos!
He bacame pushy again after a few minutes so I sent him away again.
Now I get it. I have been courting Oz and now it is time for Oz to court me.
You are right Carolyn, for me it is not following a “method” but having a method that I can use which changes the way I think.
Kalee
I haven’t seen my horse friend sitting w/her horse yet, but she did ask me what she could do to bond more w/her horse. It was funny because she asked me at work and I had to keep following her around to finish answering her since I had alot to say! So maybe a soon to be new human sighting!
What really stuck out to me in this post is your statement that it is not about a formula, but about a code of conduct. What a lovely relationship-based (versus legalistic-based) way to interact with our horses.
Blessings,
Hannah
Dear Carolyn,
I wanted to share an experience we had on Friday with ST with humans.
My husband and I ended up spending an extended period of time in an auto dealership on Friday. It was about 3 hours. During this time there was a fair amount of sitting and doing nothing.
At first all of the sales people and manager just went about there business. Then sometime after the two and a half hour mark, we noticed that the sales people had started to view us as one of them. They started to include us in their jokes as they went about their day and talked about needing to bring us food because we had been there so long.
I told my husband, “see Sharing Territory works on humans too”. We had a good laugh about it and how it was kind of interesting to see the social experiment unfold right before our eyes.
~Holly
Thank you again for your words Carolyn. I like how you highlight the fact that it is not just about approach and retreat in the language of horses.
There are so many things that I do differently since taking you WR course. It has opened up a whole new world for me and my horses.
I love how my horses all run to the gate when I go out. It is such a feeling when they leave their grass or hay to greet me. I walk my dogs around our 11 acre field a couple of times a day and the horses quite often follow us around on the other side of the fence. Of course I slip under the fence and scratch a few itchy spots on everyone. I never really knew what it was to have a trusting relationship with my horses until I learned your methods.
BTW I loved your story Bonnie B. I could picture the whole scenario.
Dear Carolyn,
I am motivated to tell a story because of Kerrie’s statement that horses learn by watching (something you wrote about in your blog book). It is, to me, a new horse sighting too, but this horse is not one I work with. It is a horse that has watched me work with my horses.
I often work my horse Folly in a sand ring that is beside a large paddock that contains many geldings. I have to go through this paddock with my horse to reach the sand ring. I have spent many hours there, sharing territory and performing the other waterhole rituals with Folly. We are easily seen by the geldings who are often lined up along the fenceline that separates their paddock from the sand ring.
One day last week I left Folly in the sand ring and went into the gelding paddock to get an armful of hay for her from the round bale feeder that is always full of hay for the geldings. While I was gathering the choicest hay I could find (it wasn’t great hay), I noticed several “quids” lying in a depression in the bale. A quid is a mouthful of hay, chewed and moist at one end, which has been spit out by a horse, usually because the horse cannot chew the hay well enough to swallow it. Since the hay was not so good, I wondered if the quids were dropped by a picky eater.
The next day, I had to pass alone through the paddock to retrieve something I had left in the sand ring. I had just entered the paddock and had secured the gate behind me, and as I turned around, a horse named Turbo was walking toward me, directly in my path.
Turbo is a tall, elderly and thin appendix quarter horse, who keeps to himself and is often pushed around by the other horses. I have occasionally chatted with his owner, but I have never interacted with Turbo himself. He has certainly never approached me before.
Turbo walked directly up to me with his ears forward, and so I did the Hello ritual with him. He had been at the feeder before he came over, and he had a swatch of hay sticking out of one side of his mouth. As soon as the Hello ritual ended, Turbo quite deliberately opened his mouth and dropped a quid at my feet. It was identical to the quids I had seen on the round bale the day before.
So it was Turbo who was unable to chew the hay. I picked several fistfuls of grass and fed them to him, and he had no trouble eating it. I reported the incident to the barn manager, who already knew about the problem and told me that he has been bringing Turbo in at night and feeding him chopped alfalfa hay, which Turbo is able to eat.
I can only think that Turbo approached me because he had observed me with Folly and knew that I was open to feedback from horses. Perhaps it was also because he had seen me at the feeder the previous day. In any case, I had a strong feeling from him that his approach to me was deliberate and there was a reason for it.
It does seem that horses learn by watching, and they draw conclusions about what they see. The new horse may be one that has seen you with horses and knows you for a friend. These rituals have opened my eyes to the depths of horses’ minds I never knew existed.
Oh yes, they can think!
Peace and harmony to you,
Bonnie
Greetings all:
Something powerful and extraordinary happened yesterday with little Capricho who was so terrified of all humans only a year ago, which seems germane to our topic.
The back story: after reviewing the work of Michelle Dennis, who works with an entire herd, a question presented itself which I asked Michelle in a series of emails, and she said it was as I suspected: horses watch one another and compare results, and she said she did find it easier to work with a group of horses than one alone. They learn watching each other. Hence our decision to begin all over again, and start sharing territory with all five.
To teach the horses motivation to follow me, I relied on Carolyn’s advice in the recent blog collection, to a student whose horse started putting back its ears when taking treats. Carolyn said the horse believed it was having to take the treat away, instead of receiving a gift. Her advice was to hide some carrots and help her horse “discover” them to create a sense of leadership and reliance.
Our three hectare field is volcanic ground, parts of it covered with thousands of stones. We developed a strategy to teach the others motivation in following me: while my husband, entirely new to horses, feeds them their oats, I steal away and put a carrot behind a number of stones across quite a large area, which I mark by balancing one stone atop another – a trick the horses can’t yet figure out. I would take each one out for this modified easter egg hunt, zigzagging through the stony patch, and they instantly went from dragging feet to maximum interest in following my lead, first on halter then at liberty.
Two days ago Capricho was in the corral playing the carrot game as we took turns sending him between us for a carrot, learning to respond to his name, and because he got so many extra carrots I did not take him for his turn at the carrot hunt. As we were leaving to go home, he came to me the way our dog does when he wants us to toss sticks to fetch. Talk about an invitation! He came to my side, swung his head towards the carrot patch, and looked back and asked me to please take him on the carrot hunt. I had lost track of where I’d put carrots (broadly scattered) and wasn’t sure any remained, told him I doubted there were any, and asked if he still wanted to look and he said yes, so off we went. As we went I realized he watched me very carefully. If I said “this way” or “that way” or “stop” he was totally attentive (we found four carrots). I never asked him to do anything for no reason. It’s just that I had a lot of prowling around to do in order to locate the carrots.
I realized the entire psychology was changing, that he was admitting his need for me to himself, unable to find carrots alone. He was looking to me as a leader. It was a beautiful time. Also he has begun whinnying again. We have quite an opera among all five when we visit them.
So yesterday we decided not to treat or feed (they graze) and just walk the field, just to share territory, in order not to become “carrot machines.” All the horses approached us and followed a while, after which the other four dropped back to graze. But Capricho stayed with us the entire 25 minutes it took to walk the parameter, not even stopping to graze. He just walked with ears perked forward, full of delight to be with us. No demands, no mugging around for carrots, asking only for pets. Just like a very loyal dog would do. It was just amazing. He put forth his face to my husband (before no one could touch him but me) not with mouth open for food, but wanting to have his face and neck patted – pure affection, trust, and relationship.
It seems we have had some kind of Rosetta Stone experience here, and I hope everyone is blessed by it as we are.
Hi,
I have so far only read your book and watched you DVDs but I absolutely love the way you communicate with horses. I always read the blog since it is so helpful and inspiring!
I live in Australia and was wondering if you ever come over here to do clinics?
Also I read in one of the answers to this blog something about a journal and a competition. Would you mind letting me know about the details or where I could read up about that?
Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge with us!
Dear Linda,
The contest is for the students in the Insider Circle and the in the box programs. This next year I will have two more Insider Circle and In the Box programs. One in the late Spring and one in the Summer just like this year. After everyone has finished these courses I offer the next step which is a 10 course with me. The program is to advance their skills even further. It is open to 10 people and one free spot for the Journal winner. The Journal is on the notes they have kept of their experiences in what they learned and what they found valuable.
Because you live so far away I think this course would be ideal for you. You can also come to my ranch and study with me in a private or semi private clinic. I hardly travel any more. Australia is too far away for me.
I could also take a working student from Australia that would lean from me and then take my method back with them. I would need to find a person that is really experienced with horses and is already an excellent trainer coach and knows how to connect easily with horses and humans.
Dear Carolyn,
Thank you for today’s post. I am currently working with this issue with the 3month old baby who loves people, and being touched everywhere but somebody came and forced a halter on her and yanked it hard so she now freaks when I bring it out. Small steps, creative games, and showing her that i will never imprison her and with support of this blog and the WHIC ning site i am sure we will overcome this.
Regarding the dec retreat; i am currently writing my journal book, is it too late for it to be considered for the competition to win a place on the retreat?
Thankyou, as always,
joanna
Dear Joanna,
Oct 1 is the deadline. I will pick the winner from the first 10 journals. I have four at this time.
I have to tell you how much I enjoy the title of this blog — it really says it all. The more I play with the ideas learned in your course this summer, the more adept I feel myself becoming and the less use I make of halters and ropes, even when the horses are wearing them.
Yesterday evening, dressed for dinner in a skirt and sandals, I accompanied a friend retrieve two yearling TBs he bought at auction. After watching his groom struggle to load the first colt without, apparently, being able to see that his efforts were upsetting the baby and making it impossible for the colt to walk into the trailer, I took the line from him. Just by reading the two colts and never asking for more than they could accept in the moment, I got them both loaded, calmly and willingly, in a few minutes. The lines were taut only for seconds at a time. The colts seemed happy to follow my leadership and actually loaded quite easily. The crowd of track-hands that gathered to watch seemed quite impressed by the accomplishment of the inappropriately clad (and shod) woman.
Only later did it occur to me that much of my efficacy came from the things I learned in your course. Not the rituals, exactly, but the principles they incorporate; the pause and the allow; the mental attitude of abiding confidence and joy I am beginning to be able to put on and take off like a cap; the feeling of reaching for and reading the horse’s mind. At the time, I didn’t think or plan, just did what the situation required. The feeling of satisfaction came later and was profound. Although I am no novice and probably could have loaded the colts even before I became immersed in studying your ideas, I must thank you for the changes in me that made loading those colts genuinely effortless.
This morning I brought the eight horses I am riding regularly into the barn from the pasture, fed them, took them singly from their stalls and parked them in the aisle near the door where I groomed each of them, paste wormed them, picked their feet and put on hoof-sealer, fly sprayed them, put on fly masks and led them back to pasture — all without putting on a single halter or using any sort of line, not even once. Years ago, I would not have believed it possible. Not with young thoroughbreds or horses fit enough to jump 4 foot courses.
Dear Candle,
Your messages on your phone are full. I am trying to reach you.
Let me know when I can reach you.
Carolyn
Sorry, I am presently unreachable by phone. My cell phone escaped from my pocket Wednesday evening when I was riding around the farm. I searched for it Thursday and borrowed a friend’s phone today to repeatedly ring my cell as I rode approximately the same route, hoping to hear it ringing, but to no avail. Maybe it fell in the pond and was swallowed by a gator. More likely, the battery died and it wasn’t capable of ringing. Anyway, tomorrow I will go to town and replace it. If they can restore my programed phone numbers, I can call you. If not, please call me again on Sunday, I’m sure to have a new phone (hopefully same number) by then.
I will try to reach you on Sunday.
Dear Carolyn,
I must offer further apologies for being hard to reach. It seems that the insurance I’ve been paying on my cell phone contract stipulates that replacement phones will only be provided from some central location (by overnight mail, I am assured), rather than simply handed over at a retail outlet, which would be infinitely more convenient. I won’t repeat my comments when, desperate for a phone, I found this out. Needless to say, I will not be renewing my contract with that provider again. But the long and short of it is — I am still phoneless. They promise my new phone will be delivered Monday, for what that may be worth.
Hi,
I am new to horses and just began using Carolyn’s method and I am having a blast trying the different waterhole rituals with my first horse, Oz.
Oz is 15 and well trained under halter and saddle – way more than I may ever be – but he has never had that bond, the deep connection, that significant dance, which is what I am seeking to build with him.
I want to say what I believe Carolyn’s work offers my horse and how grateful I am to have Carolyn on my team.
Personal experience taught me that we can heal the injuries from our past – those traumas that others inflicted upon us – we can heal that ourselves and we can become whole, healthy human beings.
However, once we are healed, we must wait for someone to come along who can give us the experience that we were denied when the abuse/neglect occurred. We may be whole, healthy individuals but without the experience of deep connection, love and respect, we may be surviving life instead of thriving.
That is the gift I believe Carolyn’s work offers the horses…the respect, the love, the connection that enable them to thrive and live a life really worth living.
I have been lucky enough to receive that gift, a grace bestowed from others, and it is what I’m able to give Oz by using Carolyn’s method. I am grateful beyond words that I found this wonderful method that trains ME how give that gift to Oz.
I’m on a new journey and I look forward to hearing about yours.
Kalee
Dear Kalee,
I like to be seen as being on a team to help horses and humans to a better deal.
It is true we can heal ourselves but we still need more even after we are whole. We need love respect connection loyalty commitment and caring and to enjoy loving and being loyal and enjoy being committed and enjoy caring and after that it is nice to have friends become family and to be able to connect for connection sake alone. I will ask everyone on my next blog to share their story. Thank you for sharing your.
Thank you, Carolyn. This week’s blogposts have been great food for thought, as always!
I couldn’t watch the video, though. But, having seen you at work with Marilynne, I can picture the rhythm and the depth of the work.
Love reading your posts, so I can keep up to date on the goings on at the School!
Love,
Martin
Dear Carolyn,
I really liked watching the video and also your explanation in this blog about the fact that it is a language of connection that we are watching Robyn using and not just a method that is mechanical.
Learning to feel the connection and then act, in the moment, on what is felt–all the while staying open to what each new moment feels like and not assuming. That thought helps me to realize what I am aiming to have in all of my moments with my horse.
Holly and Gunny
PS–I am still working on getting all my ducks in a row to be able to come to the Dec. clinic. I keep telling myself that if I am meant to be there, an opening will still be available when it all comes together.
Dear Holly,
I do hope you can make it to my clinic.
checking in, enjoying reading
Dear Carolyn;
I don’t know if this counts as a horse/person siting, but yesterday I was at a stable where I am learning how to work with horses and the trainer was teaching a 3 yr old how to ride a thoroughbred. I thought it was way too much horse for her, but it is not my place to say anything. I am just a spectator. She (the instructor) was trying to get the horse to trot and the horse was very reluctant. As soon as she was able to get the horse to trot, one of her collies came out from nowhere and bit the horse on the hind leg causing the horse to kick up and threw the little girl to the ground and almost trampling her. Luckily, the instuctor pulled the little girl from under the horse before she could get trampled. It took awhile but they (the instructor, and the parents) were able to convince the little girl to get back on. The 3 yr. old is able to steer the horse all by herself, (which I thought impressive), after only 6 lessons. She will be 4 in about 6 more weeks, but it was odd to see such a tiny thing on such a big animal.
Thank you for the opportunity to share.
Catra
Chances are the horse did not want to trot because it wanted to keep the little child from tumbling off in the first place. Horses have an amazing sense for knowing when the rider is unbalanced or not ready for a task… the trainer should have listened to the horse.
I am sooo tempted to travel from the UK to your clinic… Oh me oh my, what to do!!
)
It’s a fine line maintaining this two-way politeness, and a challenge to allow the lines of communication to remain open both ways. My young man has a sense of pride and dignity that conventional horsemanship might consider inappropriate and potentially troublesome – but if success were measured in their terms of compliance I believe his co-operation would rival that of his peers who are given no voice and no choice in their lives. People also say they don’t have time for this way of relating to their horse, but I find it brings faster progress with fewer challenges because he is basically well disposed to his human and her ideas.
When he arbitrarily decided it wasn’t safe to allow me to scrub the soles of his feet this week I could have haltered him and had him hop around while I forced it on him. Being only mildly reluctant I would probably have succeeded, but I would have had to do it that way every time. It actually took very little time to discuss the matter within his boundaries and show with little well rewarded increments that this was really nothing worth his attention. The result is there is no resistance physically and also none mentally or emotionally to me or the task.
Truly thanks Caroline for giving me such a joyful way to relate to my horse.
Hi Carolyn,
In lieu of this recent blog, I was wondering: how would you approach necessary situations for the horse’s health and safety like trimming feet and tending to a bad wound on a daily basis? My little guy is two and is great but has not developed complete respect for me as of yet; these are two things that must be done. I am certainly not abusive, but I do force him to handle the situation (with some breaks of course). Like anyone else, I don’t have hours and hours for him to take it all in. Any suggestions?
Thanks so much!
Katie
This is the first I’ve heard about your December clinic. If Mark sent me an email, it must have been filtered out by my spam-protector or something. I am very interested in attending. Could you please ask Mark to try sending it to me again? Or provide another way for me to get the details? If there is any possible way for me to afford it, I will be there.
Great post. I really like the quote below, Carolyn. This is something I will
revisit and keep in mind.
“How I gain knowledge is by observation and being inspired by what I see. I do not look at anything which does not draw my interest. To feel the feelings of connection that exists in the moment, is where I receive my knowledge that brings the dance that I share with horses.
When I observe I do no not try to figure out anything I just enjoy and allow the experience to inspire me. When this happens a solution automatically presents itself. The most powerful evolution to my own knowledge even to this very day is remembering to allow time to pass with out effort. To know that the pause allows the evolution and the bond to grow on its own while seeking guidance from horses and learning more about the way of horses.”
Coming from the “traditional” school and journeying somehow to where I am now with my training, I was taught many “forceful” methods to do things with horses that they didn’t like. This never quite resonated with me. Which is probably why I kept looking for more knowledge and skill. I was not shown any other way until finding the Waterhole Rituals. As soon as I learned them, I was able to creatively engage my horses participation in some activities they previously hated or feared. I now can always, with some thought, come up with a creative game to engage a horse to want to participate with me in whatever we may do together.
Carolyn,
Thank you for sharing the story of Carey and Pony. Having worked with Robin it is eary to see her in the video doing what she does with Pony and made me smile a lot.
True and I are now walking side by side a little more each day with my hand in her mane or on her back. She is quite comfortable with this and I am so joyful about it. A few months back I would not have dared because it would have been unsafe. Picture before with a response of pinned ears, teeth, snake neck and swinging rear. Picture today with two beings quietly walking side by side both without concern and enjoying the interaction.
The other horses of our little herd are watching and Raisin stopped to wait and walked by my side just like True to his stall from the field. He got a bit ahead and I let out a note of concern and he stopped and backed up. He did the same with John and seems to really like the idea of heading back to the stall without a halter and staying with us rather than trotting ahead. We have never asked him to do this, he volunteered. Be he is watching what we do with True all the time.
The night before last I went up to True who was just at the beginning of playing with her beloved Toy and she first ignored me(briefly although I would like to see this go away, but this time I think she was thinking about what she was going to do) and then looked up with forward ears, not pinned. I quietly asked her to step back, she did and kept her ears forward. I handed her a piece of apple and left. John and I were outside and she came to the fence, hung her head over and she looked like she was in some dreamy translike state that we were somehow invited to join. We both pet her and visited, it was a completely different experiece than her usual paddock perky hi. I felt like some kind of transformation had happened.
Have a wonderful day and if anyone is considering Robin’s clinic I highly recommend you sign up and not only will you very much enjoy and learn from Robi, you will enjoy being in the company of the “blog herd.” Those who are on a similiar path of getting to know the souls of their horses, an extra gift in my opinion.
Dear Carolyn,
you have taught me so many thing, but the single most important one may well be what you said in the blog today: there is no formula. A formula like “approach/retreat” is cold, and lacks real connection.
My new horse/human sighting, working with the UE’s. Lili and I have been very creative with them (they are not a formula!). Farah suggested that we could use them to teach Lili half steps instead of the traditional whip here and whip there and pull here and push here approaches. Using different variations of the first 5 Ueberstreichens is not just teaching her to release her poll and come through the back as I ask her to halt, step forward, step back, shorten her stride, step under etc., but it amazes me how it engages her intelligence, and how intelligently and enthusiastically she responds, and that our connection once again becomes richer and deeper as she develops physically.
Have a great weekend.
Christian
P.S. I wish I could sign up for the 10 days in December, but the timing is impossible for me.
Dear Christian,
Thank you for this letter. I wish you could come as much as you would like to come. I am so happy you are finding the value the the uberstreichen exercises. They are meant to be used as you are using them.
What a powerful and perfect example of the effects of this Method!
I have just completed the “In the Box” Program, and signed up for your class in CA, Carolyn. I am forever altered by this method, and I think the reason is so simple!
I actually feel a bit rediculous admitting this, but until I began working with the Waterhole Rituals, I could not understand how horses thought.
I was under the impression that they needed to be rewarded within 20 seconds (after doing something great), or they would not understand the point of the reward. This would be the same as assuming that they do not reason things through. Once I decided to accept this training method I began to experiment with my own little heard and the results are absolutely amazing.
My colt, Milagro, has such a dominant attitude with me, that you (Carolyn,) even suggested that I not work with him until I became more facile with the method.
I decided to simply create some strong structures for building respect during feeding time, and now, he only gets his dinner when he waits behind his feed bucket, and offers to stretch his head to me in a “hello”.
I rode him for the first time last weekend and it was nothing short of a marvelous miracle. All of the horses in the barn now, even the abused ones who had terrible head issues, will let me easily slip on a fly mask befor getting dinner.
They too will now wait behind their feed buckets with UNDERSTANDING!
BY GOD!
THEY CAN THINK!!!!!
YIPEE!
This only gets better and better. It is more rewarding than I will ever express.
Thank you Carolyn!!!!!!!
hi erica, i just feel exactly the same, thank you for sharing
Hello!
I had a neat experience with “choices” today with my horse.
I have never shown a horse before, and this mare certainly has never been in a show either and really only has 1 full year under saddle. She does, however, have extensive liberty and ground skills, which makes her APPEAR as though she should do well with everything under saddle. BUT… we ALLLL know that things are not quite the same from the ground as they are in the saddle… ESPECIALLY at a show!
I have always really liked a particular ‘braveness’ about my horse. She will cross over any obstacle, approach any scary thing, stand up on whatever I ask of her, with very little effort or ‘training’ on my part. Tarps were her “thing”… she would go over them, under them, run on them, load into trailers with them flapping overhead… but guess what I forgot to practice with her…. RIDING OVER THEM!
Fast forward to our first show a few weeks ago- we are in the trail class, which we won… BUT, not before she nearly ditched me at the sight of a TARP (of all the scary things in there… the one she is seemingly the most comfortable with freaked her out the most). Ever since then, mostly because I was not able to go back and ‘re-school’ her to show her the tarp is okay and that YES you CAN handle this, she spooks at everything.
So, today, I took a tarp into her paddock while I cleaned poop. My plan was to only use a neck rope and just see what we could do. Well, as it turned out, it was WIND STORM of the century today and that tarp was definitely going to eat us both! Naturally, she ran off, but when she saw that I was still fidgeting with the tarp, fixing the edges, laying it flat down again, etc, etc… she decided that running with the other horses was NOT as good as hanging out with me!
All by her self over the next 30 minutes, she came over, pawed the tarp, smelled the tarp, stood on the tarp, followed me over the tarp. The wind would kick the tarp up and she would fly back 5 steps, but then, the next time only 4, then 3 then eventually she would stand there even with it flapping up in her face.
I did NOT plan to approach the tarp this way. I was going to calmly lead/ drive her one foot at a time and reward and retreat and all that jazz, which may have worked too… but SHE was the decision maker in how far she was willing to let this crazy tarp go and it also showed me that she TRUSTS me well enough to stand at liberty near (and on) a wind whipped tarp, not because she HAD to, but because she CHOSE to…
Pretty cool.