Question- Which Horse Training Online Videos Would You Like to See?

I hope you’re having a great summer. Summer seems to have finally arrived here in the northwest. It’s nice to spend more time outdoors with our horses. By this time you should have gotten two emails at least from me and have seen two Free Videos from Mark Shaffer. I got some feedback that one of the videos was hard to hear. I’m sorry about that. Live video feeds can sometimes be that way. I’ll try to make sure the future videos are a bit louder. I also got some feedback from one person that they could not see the videos at all. If you have any issue then be sure to download the current version of Adobe Flash and that should take care of the problem. Now I have a question for you. I am busy working with Professional Horse Trainers to bring you more online video horse training in workshop format. I’d like to provide what you want so please let me know which type of training you would most like to see from the following list. Western Pleasure Western Riding Horsemanship Showmanship Lunge Line Trail Hunter Under Saddle Please just send me an email at railandpatternhorse@gmail.com and tell me your top 2 or 3 types of online horse training you’d like to see. Or you can go to my blog post and give me some feedback as well. This is the link to my blog post : HorseTrain

How to Register and Get Around the Horse Training Site

Finally after months of work Rail and Pattern Horse is offering the first Online Horse Training Video Workshop.

In This Video I Show You How to Register for the Horse Training Membership Site.

In This Next Video I’ll Take You Into the Workshop Membership Site so You Can Look Around.

Horse Training Lessons in Online Video Workshop

Horse Training Online Video Workshop

How to Train Your Horse and Improve Your Horsemanship Skills Goes to an Online Video Format…

New Technology now makes it possible to Learn How to Train Your Horse and Improve Your Horsemanship Skills from the comfort of your own home.

Now you can watch an online video with How to Instructions as often as you need to until you understand the concepts and actually turn information into knowledge.

Then as you practice the exercises that you’ve watched over and over again in the Video, with your horse your body and your horses body will turn the information into what is called muscle memory. Just like when you drive a car…your foot automatically knows when to put the brake on….

You will begin to learn how to ride your horse using this same muscle memory. Now you will learn an exercise and then be able to move on to the next exercise much more quickly because you are really getting it….rather than just having more information.

Information>>>Turns Into Knowledge>>>Knowledge Turns Into Muscle Memory>>>

The results…You Learn Horsemanship Skills – Faster – Better – Have More Fun – and You Will  Quickly Move On To Learning More!

Online Horse Training Video Workshop with Multiple World Champion Mark Shaffer. 8 Week Step by Step Training.

Join us – Head to this Link and Register. Time and space is limited.

http://www.railandpatternhorse.com/horsetraining

Train Your Horse 3 Methods to Horsetraining [Video]

Get Your Horse Trained…3 Methods

With over 25 years in the Horse Industry I’ve seen 3 main methods used to get your horse trained.

Buying an already trained horse is not on this list. Let me explain why: First of all no horse is ever 100% trained. They need continual training and reminding of how to perform just like you and I need continual practice and exercise in anything in which we want to excel.

Second: I’ve purchased many horses that are supposedly trained only to get them home and find out they didn’t know nearly what I thought they should. Therefore they needed to be trained to my way of wanting a horse trained.

Not to say that you shouldn’t buy a trained horse, just remember that a trained horse is a subjective term. And even with the best of training, every horse needs continual training and work to stay in tune.

The 3 methods to Get Your Horse Trained:

1. Send them to a Professional Horse Trainer for Full Time Training
2. Train Your Own Horse
3. Combination Method >>>Work with a Professional Horse Trainer on a Part Time Basis and Train Your Own Horse on a Part Time Basis

I’ll cover each of these Methods in more detail in upcoming posts. Until then>>>

Take the Reins to Your Success

Worlds Smallest Horse is Born

Horse lovers take a look at the Worlds Smallest Horse

Horse lovers take a look. No matter how old you get you can still enjoy having horses. While I love my big 16.3 H gelding it would be quite fun to have a small horse. I guess as a horse lover you can always down size and still get your horse fix. I could fit 30 small horses in my barn. I bet my husband would just love that!

Take a look at this fun video…

Einstein. The smallest Horse In The World. Born April 22, 2010 in Barnstead New Hampshire at Tiz A Miniature Horse Farm. Owned by Charles Cantrell and Rachel Wagner.

Einstein weighs 6 Lbs and is 14 inches tall. Music in video called Raspberry Blues by David MacVittie and Anna Schaad. www.AnnaSchaad.com.

You Tube Video

Teach Your Horse To Side Pass

The Side Pass is a Great Horse Training Exercise

Teaching your horse to side pass is an exercise that has many benefits that most of us never think about. Mark Shaffer says “the side pass is the lope” he explains that what ever issues you’re having at the side pass are the same issues you’ll have with your horse at the lope. I don’t know about you but I never thought about the side pass in that way before.

Mark’s clear way of giving instructions helped me to learn how to side pass my horses the “right” way, for the first time. In the past I’ve taught my horses to side pass but I was really never getting their body in this “right” way to achieve real results. After learning from Mark Shaffer how to correctly teach my horse to side pass I was amazed at what a difference doing it “right” made in my horses movement and all his gaits.

I’m offering a Free Video of  a live clinic with Mark Shaffer teaching the side pass on this site and here. Do yourself a favor and check it out. The Side Pass is one of those exercises that every horse needs to know how to do.

I found this article with pictures on teaching your horse to side pass from Clinton Anderson and thought I’d share it with you as well. Regardless of the discipline you ride the Side Pass is something the horse needs to know.

Clinton says ” The lateral movement of side-passing helps to free up your horse’s ribcage, shoulders, and hindquarters. It teaches him to move his feet in a rhythmic, even way, without using his hindquarters for forward impulsion. It helps him learn to keep his shoulders, ribcage, and hindquarters aligned. Teaching your horse to side pass will help you make the most of his natural athletic ability.

In addition, using your legs to direct your horse’s ribcage in a side pass helps you upgrade to “power steering.”It makes your horse more easily maneuverable on the trail, around cattle, in traffic, or when negotiating tight turns–including those needed when going through a gate.”

You can find the whole article from Clinton Anderson here .

Enjoy!

Women in Particular Need this -Today’s Motivational Quote

“No one can make you feel inferior without your consent. ” Eleanor Roosevelt

Women seem to have a hard time with allowing men to take advantage of them. No this is not man bashing, its just a statement of fact. I’ve seen it way too many times.

But it happens with men and women so beware.

It for sure happens in many relationships with horse trainers. Horse lovers trust yourself first and the trainer next.

Men and women trust yourself, your gut feelings first before you take on what someone else has to say.

Great Webcast coming up on Rehabilitating the Lame Horse

Hi all- I just heard about a Free webcast coming up on Lame Horse Rehabilitating. Michigan State University does some really good webcasts. Be sure and sign up early for this.

http://myhorseuniversity.com/resources/emails/March_2010/Rehabilitating

See the information and links below.

Rehabilitating the Lame Horse
Narelle Stubbs :: Michigan State University
March 23, 2010 | 7 EDT | Learn More

This webcast will explain how rehabilitation and physical therapy principles can be applied to the horse with respect to lameness, loss of performance, performance enhancement, injury prevention and principles of conditioning. Exercise based rehabilitation techniques, including mobilization and dynamic core muscle exercises, and how these can be applied to your horse will also be discussed. This information will be presented to you from an evidence based perspective and highlight some of the current research in this field taking place at the McPhail Equine performance center at MSU.

Narelle StubbsPresenter Information
Narelle Stubbs is a visiting research associate at the Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine. Narelle is a Physiotherapist, University of Sydney Australia graduate and is completing her PhD candidature requirements at the University of Queensland in Australia. Since 1998, Narelle has been the Official Australian Equestrian Team Physiotherapist, treating both horse and rider in many forms of equitation at the World Equestrian Games (1998, 2002, 2006) and the Olympics (2000, 2004 and 2008).

Great Bridle less and Horsemanship Video

This is a great video of a horse trainer in Texas on a Mustang. Horses are truly amazing animals.

Enjoy!

Teach Your Horse to go Bridle Less

Lead Departures with Your Horse ( Video)

This is a good basic video on getting your horse into the correct lead. It also shows the first stages of getting a lead change on your horse.

Here are two URLs to find this video at You Tube

railandpatternhorse

Find it under the  Training List

and also at its original home site at :

eXhorses

Free Style Dance with Horses In Dixie ( Video)

This is a fun and great video. Horses are such amazing animals. You don’t even have to ride to have fun and achieve your goals with a horse.  It’s worth your time to watch this.
Horses can teach us as much as we teach them.

Dixie National Free-Style Reining: Diane Ward Mustang Exhibition

You can also find this video at Rail and Pattern Horse You Tube site under Favorites:
http://www.youtube.com/user/railandpatternhorse

and at    http://www.youtube.com/user/horseandmusic

Enjoy!

5 Horse Trainer Rants and 5 Gratitudes

I’ve owned, bred, raised, worked with and been involved with quarter horses for over 10 years now and before that paint horses and before that a mixture of no particular breeds. I had my daughters involved in 4H and open shows when they were growing up. I got into breed shows when I owned paint horses and then quarter horses and starting showing at the AQHA breed shows.

After I started breeding and raising horses I really got more involved with professional horse trainers. I had young horses that needed to be trained, shown and sold for many years.

So I’ve built up a bunch of my own opinions on the horse training industry and things I like and dislike about horse trainers in particular. Not that you asked but I decided to share some of those rants and gratitude’s with you today….

Let’s start with the “rants” or said another way some of the things that drive me nuts about horse trainers.

These are in no particular order…just a general rant session..

My Trainer Rants

1.Trainers or worse yet trainers assistants lunging my horses

Now in general the horse is usually stalled if they are in training so lunging them is one of those good things to do to get them warmed up before the trainer or I ride. But allowing the horse to run wild on the lunge line, kick, buck, jerk on the lead rope, lope on the wrong lead and in general be out of control.  This I hate. My thought has always been, if I have hold of my horse in any way, whether leading, lunging or standing I expect them to show respect and know they are under my leadership. This is not the time to do what they want to do. If I want to let them loose to do what they want to do then I let them loose. I don’t hold onto them or attempt to lunge them and still allow them to run wild. I always have to retrain my horse when I bring them home from a trainer who has allowed them free rein on the lunge line.

2. Advising and leading a client to buy a horse for the trainer not the rider/ owner.

I’ve had it happen to me and seen it happen over and over again. A trainer may want a horse in their program for them to show in a particular event. So they get a client to buy the horse supposedly for them…the client / owner when in reality the trainer is only looking out for their own professional best interest. They want a horse to show in a particular event for that year. This has nothing to do with what the owner may or may not want. Clearly not a trainer who is really working for their client. These type of trainers need some good business skills training.

3. Either not allowing or not wanting the owner to ride their own horse…because they will mess them up

You own the horse right, you bought and paid for the horse, you pay for the horses feed, board and training. But your trainer does not want you to ride the horse because you will mess him up. And when you do they go behind your back and talk about how you messed up your horse after they have trained him. Well here goes guys…too damm bad. You are training the horse for the owner not for you so the owner needs to learn how to ride the horse and if one or two rides is going to mess up the horse then you are sadly lacking as a trainer. And its you who needs to go back to trainer school. Oh I forgot most of you don’t bother to go to trainer school. You just decide you are going to be a trainer and put your shingle out for us non suspecting customers who don’t know you don’t really know how to train. ( a bit harsh perhaps, but quite true none the less)

Now to be fair there is a time period when a trainer is trying to get something done that you may need to allow them to work on your horse without you riding the horse. But give me a break….it doesn’t take a year or even six months to get there unless the horse is an unfit horse for an amateur owner to begin with. I’m usually the first person on my young horses. Then when its time to really get down to business I send them out to someone who can sit a buck if they need to.

4. Hearing but not listening to me the client and what I want out of the relationship

When I hire a trainer I tell them about how long I’ll be there. I know my budget and I know how long I plan for the horse to be in training. I never lead a trainer on, if I want to get the horse ready to show to sell, I tell them that and I also tell them how long and how much money I’m willing to put into this horse to get there. If I’m not sure whether I want to sell the horse or keep it for myself, I tell them that as well. I still tell them about how long I expect to have the horse in training. I am always totally honest and up front.

But I still have trainers who think they know my budget better than I do and who think I’m somehow at fault when it comes time for my horse to go home… however they sure aren’t willing to give away their training time.

I even had a trainer tell the other clients in the barn to not help me with my horse at the last show of the year because I was taking my horse home. Now this trainer knew all along that I planned to take the horse home after this show so it was no surprise. So how childish was this??? and do you really think I will ever take a horse back to this trainer when he has that kind of business ethics and poor customer service. Hardly!

5. Telling me what my goals should be with my horses

So this is a little one but a big one as well. I have horses because I love my horses. I also love working with my horses and I love most of the experiences with horses. For me its not just about showing a horse. It is about the process, the journey, the ride. Showing my horses is fun and even having my horses shown and watching as the proud parent is fun. But it is not the end all of horse ownership for me.

So if I have a really good horse and I want to play with my horse at home and never show this horse. He is after all my horse and it is my right to do with my horse as I choose as long as my horse is not harmed. So get off my back. Your goals as a horse trainer have nothing to do with my goals as a horse owner.

Wow I think I have wanted to say these things for years. And there is more but I’ll stop here.

Now I know this is a long post but my mama said you had to say something nice about people and there is a lot that is nice to be said about trainers so here goes.

My Trainer Gratitude’s:

1. Riding the buck out of my horse

I’m a decent rider but a cautious rider and I’m not sure I can push my horse through some of the phases they have to go through to become a fully trained horse. I appreciate the trainer who is willing to put their life and limb at risk to ride and train my horse for me.

And yes I am paying them for this service…but I work my own horses and I know how long it takes to ride and really work a horse so let me tell you…when you sit down and figure out how much a trainer makes an hour…wow…most of us would not even flip burgers for that amount.

The job of horse trainer has to be one of passion because its dangerous, clients expect immediate results and are extremely personally involved with the process and the pay is lousy.

2. Show my horse and get them used to all the scary things in the show pen

Having had young horses for years now, I know that it takes a lot to not only get the horse trained but then to take them out to various show pens to get them acclimated to all the scary things a horse sees in these new places.

The trainer is willing to take the horse around, deal with their fits of oh my gosh that thing is going to eat me and oh no you are  not going to pass me on the rail. If the horse acts stupid then its the trainer who is on their backs not me. I appreciate their willingness to take it in stride and train my horse so that they are safe, sound and quiet for me to ride.

3. Act as my agent and help me sell my horse

I love all my horses and its always a hard thing for me to let go of any of them. But if you raise horses you can’t keep all of them…although I have tried. It’s very nice to have a trainer who will show your horse to their best ability, work with the potential buyer and handle a vet check and all the little things that come up in a horse sale.

4. Listen to my thought processes

Now for me this is huge. I think out loud…ask any of my children or husband. So I solve my problems and make my decisions by thinking out loud and talking with other people. Namely if it is about selling a horse, or working out a horse problem or how to do something with a horse, or making a decision which horse to sell or which one to keep –only because I bred them as a business to sell and must sell  some…

What a royal pain it must be for a trainer who has a client like me…and I know for a fact there are many of you just like me out there…

It takes a good listener, a good communicator and a patient trainer to not only train your horse but put up with all the interactions with clients as well.

5. For being a good coach

The Olympics are going on right now in Vancouver , BC and if you look you’ll see that anyone who wants to compete at this top level has a coach. It’s no different in horses. No matter what your breed may if you to show at a top level you must have a coach. Even if you want to stay local and show open shows…there is nothing like having a coach to help you.

Your horse trainer coach can see things you can’t see, know when you are about to make a mistake and help you avoid them. They bolster my confidence because I will try harder and do more daring things when they are on the sidelines giving me instruction than I will if I’m riding by myself.

I appreciate the trainers patience as they work with me to help me improve my horsemanship skills. There is nothing like having a good trainer who is also a good coach to help you achieve your goals as a rider.

Wow this turned out to be a book…Okay I best be off.

Please feel free to comment, add your rants and your gratitude’s. Maybe we’ll turn it into a book. LOL

Horse Lovers Goals May Be Simple

Yesterday I spent the day with a friend whose mare has just foaled a pretty filly for him by HH Redrock. The sun was shining and it was a beautiful day. The barn where the mare and foal reside is located in the unlikely middle of a busy suburban area south of Seattle.

The owner of the barn and I chatted about the upcoming show season and I asked her if she was planning to show this year. Her response to me; she wasn’t sure she would bother with the competition. She went on to say that what she really enjoyed was just being around her horses and watching them. Learning how to improve her horsemanship skills and even cleaning stalls and keeping her small farm up.

Her enjoyment was simple…being around her horses. Her horses don’t have to be top show horses or even a particular breed for her to find pleasure in them. She doesn’t have to have an expensive horse of top bloodlines and her horses don’t have to do anything but be. They bring her pleasure by being there and doing just what horses do. Eat, poop, roam around and look for a bit of attention once in a while.

It reminds me of how we as humans often look for purpose and meaning in our lives when really to God and our parents, children, grandchildren, wife or husband- all we have to do is just be…to bring them pleasure.

But I digress from my purpose which is horses and how they don’t have to do or be anything but horses for a real horse lover to find pleasure. We may choose to show our horse or we may choose to just let our horse hang out in the pasture and pet them as we go by in our day to day chores. It is often times the simple things that bring us the most joy.

Warm up Horses for us Over the Hill Gang

You might be asking what hill is that? Well my hill is the over 50 age bracket hill ( I just can’t bring myself to admit to more than that)

and how is warming up horses different for me than you 30 somethings out there…here goes…

My horses and I have had the winter off from any real training or horseback riding so we are a bit soft shall we say. The snow has left us early this year making the ground in my outdoor arena workable so I’m beginning the process and believe me it is a process…of getting them and me ready.

In my 30’s I would have lunged them good and hopped on for a ride. Now I spend about a week slowly bringing them and me along. I start out in the round pen just letting them have a go around one way at a walk and jog and then the other way. Next I ask them to lope but only for one lap around and then let them go back to jogging. The first two  days are usually no more than 15 minutes as I allow them to warm up their muscles.

Since my muscles are soft and in need of building up I have to assume theirs are the same. Over the next week I gradually increase the time I’m asking them to work along with the exercises themselves. After the first couple of days I put them on a short lunge line instead of allowing them to move free in the round pen. On the lunge line I ask them to slow down and listen to me and begin to slow down to more collected gaits.

After their work on the lunge line and still working from the ground I ask them to side pass from both left and right, back up, give to their head both left and right sides, disengage their hip on both sides, turn on their forehand  from both sides and stand quietly without moving when I drop the lead line and ask them to stand.

I still put them out in the pasture for a while but I always take them back to their stalls first to ensure they don’t get the idea that as soon as we are through working they get to run and play. Otherwise it doesn’t take them long to begin to anticipate the play time that is coming and want to speed things up to get to this play time.

Somewhere along this week I’ll put the saddle on them as we do our ground work so they can get used to the feel of it on their backs again. At the end of the week they are more ready to get to work under saddle and so am I. They are showing me respect and listening to what I’m asking of them and they have gradually been asked to work to the next more difficult step so the final step with me on their backs is just one more next step.

Which one of us is this process for you might ask, the horse or me?

Well I’d answer..I’m not a trainer and I don’t have a 30 year old body anymore and I need to be safe so this works for me and them.

If you ride your horse all winter then you don’t need this warm up time but you still need the ground work exercises. All the good clinicians I’ve ever heard are big on doing ground work and working with my horses through the years I’ve seen how important it is. More on that later…after all I need something to write about tomorrow don’t I?

The Real Meaning of Ride Your Horse in Western Pleasure

Ok maybe it’s just me and you haven’t fallen into this particular horseback riding trap…Or maybe you have and just don’t want to admit it. What’s the trap? Read on and find out…

You love your horse and aren’t sure how to really get them finished for a particular riding discipline for example western pleasure. So as a responsible owner you send them out to a Professional Trainer to be trained. Read more

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