Mary Valley Equine Training Centre

27/10/2023

Why the Chair Seat is NEVER OK..........

Written by Jochen Schleese, adapted by naree

whether you ride dressage, jumping, etc, the correct riding position applies to all disciplines

Imagine this - try walking with your butt sticking out, your back and butt far behind your heels, and your knees bent like you're sitting on a chair. Can you maintain balance?

It's challenging, right? Now imagine doing this on a moving horse.

You become heavy, pressing your feet forward and hanging on the reins.

But there's a better way!

Now, align your shoulders, hips, and ankles. Bend your knees slightly, just like when riding. Can you feel the difference?

You're balanced, MUCH lighter on your horses back, and can react better. Your weight is in your heels, enabling your horse to move freely.

So why settle for "Chair seat", when riding balanced is a win/win for both horse & rider?

Book a lesson now & learn how to make the necessary corrections to achieve a balanced seat!

03/05/2023

A great video by Dr Gerd Heuschmann, concisely explaining & demonstrating how I feel about modern dressage.

Relaxation, fun, softness, suppleness, willingness, correct paces + gradual, gymnastic progression is the focus & foundation of my own riding & teaching.

01/04/2023

We are excited to announce our partnering with Tredegar Horses for a Trick Riding Barrel Clinic all the way at Belli Park/ Eumundi QLD📍 This April School Holidays!

This is an amazing opportunity to learn from 2 experienced Trick Riders, Billie & Kadey as they come together to create the ideal atmosphere for beginning your Trick Riding journey.

📲Please text Kadey on 0421 455 975 for all bookings!

19/06/2022

this business will be closed for consultations until 5 july 2022.

your business is important to me, so please make contact via text on 0409 320 284, and i will get back to you as soon as i can

10/01/2022

Recommendation from Adrian Rota & Kelly O’Connor - attended 6 & 7 November 2021

'We were looking for an experienced equestrian trainer for our 11 yo girl (Maddie) that needed fine tuning in taking her and her pony to the next level. We found Naree & she ticked all the boxes we needed. Naree has an amazing way to teach young equestrians with her brand of patience and kindness which she could identify quickly what needed attention first. With the microphone headsets Naree could easily communicate so gently but firmly instructions and encouragement to Maddie who then focused on Naree and could action as she performed in the arena with her pony Blacky. We couldn’t be happier with the way Naree engaged with Maddie. The facilities are great which made for 2 fantastic days of learning and fun! We are coming back for round 2 and furthering Maddie’s homework to now also venture into western riding training skill sets. We would recommend Naree as an equestrian trainer extraordinaire! Thank you Naree!... you made our visit a blast! ... and you and Peter made us feel so Welcome!

Adrian, Kelly & Maddie!'

08/11/2021

this business will not be open for appointments from 16-30 november

so please book in to avoid dissappointment :)

13/04/2021

testimonial from janelle

'just wanted to let you know how much i appreciate your kind constructive words and feel very enlightened and excited to develop some changes........thank you for awesome lesson yday, i really enjoyed it. i have always enjoyed my endurance riding but now i have my joy back. in training too. haha. you have a real talent for figuring out horses and their riders and how to approach everyone uniquely :-) you are one heck of an instructor. you have pinned me straight up. love it. joy, joy..........sammy did well in first endurance ride this weekend & placed 3rd, very proud. found him to be more focused on me & even tho not perfect there was improvement since i have been seeing you'

29/10/2020

wondering what to buy for christmas?

Gift certificates now available for Mary Valley Equine Training Centre

contact Naree to order

01/07/2020

2 of our agistment horses enjoying a special bond & their 5 acre lush grassed paddock. photo taken by owner

28/06/2020

AT WHAT AGE SHOULD BE 'BREAKING IN' OR 'STARTING' OUR HORSES?

interesting info re when a horse's bone structure is fully mature (or when the growth plates fuse), ready for full workload. Very relevant to the age we break in, and how hard we work our horses of different breeds........

Excerpts from 'Timing and Rate of Skeletal Maturation in Horses', 2005 By Deb Bennett, Ph.D

DO ALL HORSES OF ALL BREEDS MATURE SKELETALLY AT THE SAME TIME?

There is no such thing as an ‘early maturing’ or ‘slow maturing’ breed of horse. No horse on earth, of any breed, at any time, is or has ever been mature before the age of six (plus or minus six months). So, for example, the Quarter Horse is not an “early maturing” breed – and neither is the Arabian a “slow maturing” breed. As far as their skeletons go, they are the same.

WHEN IS A HORSE SKELETALLY MATURE?

There is a “growth plate” on either end of every bone behind
the skull, and in the case of the pelvis, there are multiple growth plates. He is mature when all of these have converted to bone.

THE SCHEDULE OF GROWTH-PLATE TO BONE CONVERSION

The process of converting the growth plates to bone goes from the bottom of the animal up. Refer pic below.

Coffin bone - fused at birth
Short pastern – birth - 6 months.
Long pastern – 6 months - 1 year.
Cannon bone – 8 months - 1.5 years
Small bones of the knee – 1.5 - 2.5 years
Bottom of radius-ulna (elbow) – 2 - 2.5 years
Top of radius – 2.5 - 3 years
Humerus – 3 - 3.5 years
Scapula – 3.5 - 4 years
Hindlimb – lower portions same as forelimb
Hock – 4 years
Tibia – 3 - 3.5 years
Femur – 3.5 - 4 years
Vertebral column - at least 5.5 years. The taller the horse, the longer its neck, the later the last fusions will occur.

And for a male, add six months.

So, for example, a 17-hand Thoroughbred or Saddlebred or Warmblood gelding may not be fully mature until his 8th year.

AT WHAT AGE SHOULD I 'START' OR 'BREAK IN' MY HORSE?

You can work a horse very hard when he is mature, but if you don't want to significantly damage the animal, you have to wait until he is mature, at four to six years old, before asking him to carry you on his back.

You don't have to wait until all these growth plates have converted to bone, but the longer you wait, the safer you and your horse will be. Some breeds of horse, eg the Quarter Horse, look mature long before they actually are mature.

Traditionally, ''breaking in' would look something like:
2 years - introduce the horse to all kinds of equipment and situations
3 years - crawl on and off of him
4 years - saddle him & lead him off another horse
5 years - saddle him and start teaching him maneuvers or the basics of whatever job he’s going to do
6 years - he’s on the payroll

i encourage you to have a good read of Deb Bennett's entire paper.............................................

14/06/2020

this business will be closed from 23-26 june, so the remaining school holiday time slots will book out fast

book in now for your school holiday lessons and intensive sessions ;)

04/06/2020

Attendance at this business premises is STRICTLY by appointment only

04/06/2020

18/03/2020

Pony previously in training. Section B - Welsh Pony mare, 12.1hh

12/03/2020