In September 2007 I arrived home with my dream horse, a green just backed 4yr old Lusitano Mare called Xinita. My children and grandchildren helped to find a nickname for her as Xinita(shenita)is a bit of a mouthful! We settled on Noo Noo. It is the name of the hoover in Teletubbies, a kids program. She would gently hoover you with her muzzle and always hoover up hay.
Noo Noo hacked along the lanes with my older horse to babysit her. My aim was to compete in dressage with her, but I didn’t want to rush into just schooling. I soon found that Noo Noo was a very strong willed lady. I took her to some competitions as a five year old, so at a low level. I had grown more and more interested in Iberian horses knowing that to win at competition you needed a Warmblood. The way they can collect and work in collection fascinated me. She would be fantastic one day and really wild the next, so our results competing were not consistent.
About 2 years ago I had her saddle checked and the saddler decided to change the width. I was not sure when I saw … Read more
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Posted in Advice on May 17th, 2013
As the current Insider Circle and Extended Circle course is closing, I would love to have my students, as well as my readers, add something to my blog in regards to leadership and what you have gained with the connection and feel with your horses. You are also invited to add a poem to my poem.
In my online course, as you may recall, we started Sharing Territory with my guided meditations to help you on your journey. This is so important to bring forth the 5-heart felt strings of connection. I want to end the course with a poem because I believe that it will keep you close on the path in harmony and unity with your horse going forward.
Am I aware?
Who can my horse be now?
If I am aware of my horse’s changing moods, he is more respectful and it draws him to me and I know more in how to respond to him with my leadership and direction.
Is he always the same or is he always growing and becoming?
Am I growing and becoming? Of course I am, this is what it is to be alive.
If I do not acknowledge my new … Read more
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I met Carolyn a few years ago. I was introduced to her by a mutual friend (thank you Barbara!) However, unlike her students, we met socially through having horses in common. In the beginning of our relationship we talked horses, but not about Carolyn’s work. We were friends for a year before Carolyn shared her Method with me.
Once Carolyn and I started talking about horses more in depth regarding her method things got interesting. Anyone who knows Carolyn, knows her poignant questions. She reads people and horses like a psychic. It is an amazing skill that I see from working next to her in the classrooms as she is coaching students.
One day while we were talking about some funny new thing my horses had come up with, Carolyn asked me, very cautiously, how I felt about my relationship with my horses. I told her that I was very happy. My horses loved me, I loved them and we had great times trail riding and spending time together. It seemed like an innocent question, but I could tell I had just stepped into the “Carolyn Zone” and my life was getting ready to be changed.
I remember talking about … Read more
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A horse needs manners to be able to go on a picnic. A good gas pedal helps!
Horses do not see us as family members to be trusted until we give them reason for their trust. They do not always like our agenda. They like us, but they generally have to put up with so much from us, that it can get in the way of how easy it is to train them. We are generally in a hurry and we can forget to make a connection with them before we tell them what to do. We tend to use tack in a way that makes a slave of the horse. Many times we make them go to events when they do not necessarily want to be there. When a horse shows his spirit we are uplifted, but was the horse feeling this dance or only frightened? When things go wrong we often look for a quick fix. I see less than a few people taking the time to become a true horseman and this for me is the best part of life.
I see that people are resonating to my method and it is raising the consciousness in how … Read more
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Here is what several students have asked me to write a blog about:
Taking Territory – the 3rd Ritual of the Waterhole Rituals:
I no longer teach this Ritual in my online courses for a couple of reasons. One thing is that I have developed many games that will get the same result and require less skill. I still use this Ritual myself, but seldom.
For those of you who are not familiar with the Third Ritual, Taking Territory, its purpose is to create respect and it raises your position in the pecking order. You can gain the right of passage to be accepted in the horse world as a leader. Taking Territory is not about chasing a horse around; it is about Taking Territory away from your horse when he is not paying attention to you.
All animals in nature experience the loss of territory in social interactions and it is what builds their character and social behavior to fit in and be responsible in the community. You can Take Territory easily with a horse by surprising him in order to initiate his flight response.
The Proper Guidance:
This ritual is a ritual which is seldom used without … Read more
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The way we approach our horses in every day actions can make a big difference. My parents, when I was growing up, suggested that I look at how my horse sees my behavior and to look deeply into how my behavior could affect my horse’s attitude towards me.
Practicing this, to this day, causes me to approach relationships in my life with more consideration. The more I think of what my horse needs the more he surprises me with what he has to give back.
I went to look at a new horse that might be coming to my ranch. It was so touching, after spending less than an hour with him, when I went to leave he called out to me like a horse does when his best friend or his mother is being taken away from him. He will be coming here for my Bitless riding course.
I am not going to tell you about him except that it was a momentous meeting. As time goes by with my work with horses I am surprised how the door into another dimension continues to open wider.
When I have experienced this kind of connection with a horse, it … Read more
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There is a Place to be, in quiet times, with Horses that is Magical
It creates a spontaneous ability to dance with a horse and have a horse want your leadership in a free environment. Of course sitting in the chair is not the whole answer, but it creates the bond needed for the dance. By giving a horse a sense of freedom while Sharing Territory, you grow the bond that you need for the rest of Waterhole Rituals to be effective.
I ask my students, to sit in a chair while Sharing Territory to grow the bond. Here are a few reasons:
- By sitting in a chair you are more aware that you truly have no agenda, and your horse soon sees that too.
- It is relaxing to sit in a chair and your horse picks up on that.
- You can not move your chair easily, and this causes you to be more careful around your horse. You pay more attention to your personal space by keeping him at a safe distance from you. This teaches respect in a very easy way.
- It teaches your horse not to be afraid of objects that you may drag around with you.
… Read more
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