RoaR ‘Horse & Rider Training’

27/12/2022

13/11/2022

❤️

“Thoroughbreds, they’re too high strung.”

No, it’s because you shove him in a stall without enough turnout and companionship to keep his mind and body happy. Sorry to break it to you, but the 10lbs of sweet feed exacerbates this issue too. Flight is bred into these animals, it’s our job to keep them as comfortable and happy as we can.

“They’re such hard keepers, my feed bill is through the roof.”

Cut out the grain and replace with quality, 24/7 forage. Stay on a deworming schedule, and scope/treat ulcers accordingly. Happy tummies make for a happy weight….. and no, 4 flakes of hay a day is not enough.

“Every thoroughbred I’ve known has horrific hooves.”

Figure out the root cause, and create a plan. Shoes are not the cure-all. Diet and proper exercise is a huge part of this issue. No, 25 more supplements, a different grain and hoof oil will not help.

“They are SO injury prone!”

Keeping them in a small paddock and a stall is not “spoiling them” or keeping them “safer”. What’s the first thing a horse wants to do after a night of turnout?….. RUN, BUCK, ROLL, JUMP, REAR and after all that, a shoe is loose or a leg is hot. Allow them to be horses and be able to spread that energy throughout the day and night with a herd.

No matter the issue, don’t blame the breed. Your expensive, fancy breeds out there? Yeah, the thoroughbred made those. Those beautiful western Quarter horses? Yeah, the thoroughbred helped shape those too.

From the racetrack to being reliable ranch horses, the thoroughbred is truly one of the most adaptable, honest breeds. Yet, why do we criticize them more than any other breed? Outdated practices. Those days of “A coffee can of oats.”, “Hard tie him to a tree for a day.”, “2 flakes of hay in the morning, 2 flakes at night.”, “Ride him until the pad is wet and he won’t fight.”, “Stall him so he won’t get hurt or cause problems.” and “They’re horses, they’ll get over it.” Those days are over.

Horses need now, more than ever, acceptance, compassion and understanding. Thoroughbreds have done so much for us, we are overdue on giving back to them. What breed has the largest heart of any other? The thoroughbred, both metaphorically and literally. Get the thoroughbred, your soul will thank you.

-Ella Gray

28/10/2022

25/10/2022

Oh so this. 💖🙌

13/10/2022

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=185266167359538&id=100076284663228

Over the years, I’ve worked with hundreds of terrified, badly handled or completely unhandled horses. Horses that chased me out of the yard. Horses that had been taught to kick and fight and buck.
No matter how difficult the horse was, no matter what problems I had and no matter how frustrated I felt, my NEVER EVER list applied in every situation. And it always will.
Here's just some of my NEVER EVER LIST:

1. It’s never ever okay to use a flag or a tarp on any horse, no matter how frightened the trainer may be.
2. It’s never ever okay to use restraints or to rope a horse’s legs.
3. It’s never ever okay to tie any horse up to pull and fight.
4. It’s never ever okay to run a horse in a round pen in the hope that he’ll eventually come to you or ‘learn to respect you.’
5. It’s never ever okay to use special halters and gadgets on a horse’s head.
6. It’s never ever okay to hit any horse around the head with a flag.
7. It’s never ever okay to saddle a young horse and let him buck around.
8. It’s never ever okay to leave a horse in a yard with a saddle or a bit and bridle on, in the hope that ‘he’ll get used to it.’
9. It’s never ever okay to push a horse to the point where he’s sweating and distressed.

See more here:👇
www.fearfreehorsetraining.com/no-ifs-buts-or-maybes/

25/08/2022

YOU CANNOT BECOME “THE HERD LEADER”.

I hate having to break it to you but you cannot become the herd leader… no more than a horse can become the leader of a herd of rabbits, or a cougar can become the leader of a herd of horses. Not only you don’t spend 24/7 living with your horses and don’t have the same needs as them but also the "all-mighty herd leader" is more of a man-made concept.

Recent studies on movement initiation in feral groups have shown the following:
- Initiation by departure can be displayed by any member of the group. Anyone can lead, anyone can follow!
- Initiation by departure is not limited to particular females. e.g. lead mares.
- Departing high-ranking horses are followed by other more often than low ranking one.
- The most motivated horse initiate departure. For example, marches towards water are almost always initiated by lactating mares.
- Departing by herding is only displayed by males.
(K. Kreuger, Flauger, B., Farmer, K. and Hemelrijk, C. Movement initiation in groups of feral horses. Behavioural Processes 103, 91-101.)

Another important thing to remember is that horses avoid aggressive dominance display. Aggression is counter-productive to their survival goal. Think; if feral horses spent all their energy fighting most of them would be injured, in poor condition and they would kill each other or be killed by predators. There is little aggression in stable herds, however abnormal level of aggression may be seen in domestic horses kept on livery yards that run inappropriate horse management. A training system holding beliefs such as “learn to be the alpha horse” and instructing you to use aversives (therefore aggression) to move your horse and his body parts is not based on science and is not natural. (No matter what they decide to call it!)

Learn more:
- Read this short article “Who is in a lead?” by ethologists Lucy Rees and Victor Ross who study the natural behaviour of Pottoka ponies. https://goo.gl/TYsSss
- Another great article by Simon Margulis, made with the same ponies “Moving feet”: https://goo.gl/pQjR4C
- Are you confused by what I mean by “aversives” check out this short article: http://goo.gl/QkvASd

18/08/2022

Susanne Carter is so excited with the positive change in her horses that she is going to study the ES diploma- How awesome 🙌

18/08/2022

Thank-you Quentie for your review!

Joseph is a sweet boy. I can’t wait to see you both out and about 😊

18/08/2022

https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2022-08-18/horse-welfare-stable-social-isolation-immunity-behaviour/101341016?utm_campaign=abc_news_web&utm_content=facebook&utm_medium=content_shared&utm_source=abc_news_web&fbclid=IwAR0r436CB1VgfDsyJ7BLuKlc7czVyvtJRcp7mgWUj_Vg5JS0oAh5k6IFsJw

Horses kept alone in a stable displayed signs of stress in their immune system compared to those kept in a group, a new study has shown.

16/08/2022

Training both Horse & Rider together = Positive results

Some great words from Natasha with her thoughts on re-training her horse Sparkles with us 😊🐎❤️ (full review on our review page)

05/08/2022

Horses are amazingly tolerant, giving creatures.

It unfortunately means they’re often exploited due to the ambitions of the human. After their basic needs are met, you must be very thoughtful in the training of your horse.

Your first duty is to preserve the purity of the paces. What does this mean? Walk has 4 beats, trot has 2, canter has 3, gallop has 4. ALWAYS. If not, something is wrong biomechanically, and your horse is at risk of injury. BTW impure paces can usually be detected in a photograph, even though it is only a “moment in time”, AND this applies to all disciplines.

Strapping a horse’s mouth shut with a crank/flash (or other) noseband very often contributes. The fact is, a horse cannot maintain full range of motion with his hind legs if he can’t move his tongue and jaw. FACT.

For jumping, if the horse bolts off - away from, towards, or after a jump, putting on a bigger bit and a martingale will not fix it. If a horse hesitates or stops, pulling out the whip will NEVER make him more confident.

These are just a few hints that your horse is asking for HELP. Go back. Consolidate the basics. Another wonderful thing about horses is they're retrainable. If you ignore the hints, eventually the horse will either break down, or will SHOUT to get your attention, and you will get hurt.

After all, horses are dangerous. We tell everyone that. But actually they are not. We wouldn’t be able to ride them if they were truly dangerous. You know what’s dangerous? People are.

Ponder this excerpt from Franz Mairinger’s book “Horses are made to be Horses”:

I recall an incident in Sydney when we had a lame horse with a very bad tendon, and the rider wanted to start the horse the next day. We asked Roy Stewart, the veterinary surgeon, and he said, ‘Yes, that’s the trouble. People always think that horses are made for man, but that’s not true. Horses are made to be horses’. I thought about that a lot, and decided that if I should write a book I would call it Horses are made to be Horses.

(Franz Mairinger was the first coach of an Australian Olympic Equestrian Team, his excellent book is out of print, but can occasionally be found second hand - buy it if you see it)

(Picture credit Thinking Art )

02/08/2022

There are many OTT re-trainers out there doing such a fantastic job with both Thoroughbreds and Standardbreds, I applaud their dedication and hard work ❤️ 💪 👏🏻

It is important you can keep the training consistent once you take them home. Get the foundations right before you start with your chosen discipline!

If you find yourself needing some support, we are here to help you and your new horse together to continue their training, create new habits, refine movements and delete unwanted behaviours.

I am here to help and support both horse and rider/handler

▪️Training you & your horse together

▪️On or off site

▪️Accredited Compassionate Training

~ RoaR message or call for a quick chat! 0407-803-004

Tania 😊

31/07/2022

Embrace change, open your mind to new information ~ RoaR

17/07/2022

ES is not a method .. so what is it?

There are so many training methods popping up on your Facebook feed it can become so overwhelming. Who do you follow, why are you following them and do you agree and understand their training methods?

Equitation Science is Not a method, it is a lens in which we look through to understand horse behaviour, ethology, learning theory and every other aspect of horse training and keeping - let’s train together

17/07/2022

Welcome little black mare- excited to have her with me.’ Air Mail” aka Bennie 8 yo

OTT - raced last two years ago- has been in a paddock just chilling and now here with me!

I lost my Buddy around Easter time and have been looking for a horse to not really replace, but fill the empty ❤️ space he has left.

If you have a recent OTT and or OTTSB and would like to start your new journey with me and Bennie send me a message 😊 Tania