Smile!
Slow motion of a lovely boy learning to smile today. Notice the little lip wriggle as he works it out, the perked up ears and joyful expression, the little tilt of the head. These are all the tiny things we should be paying attention to - feedback from our horses. His happy expression and instant try tells us he is enjoying learning this new trick.
Most horses do get a lot of joy out of simple, fun tricks and it’s very rewarding to teach them!
A little snippet of where Mr Snowflake is at with his liberty and tricks these days!
Rear, laydown, little circles, big circles, draw, Spanish walk… not sure if there’s anything this little smartypants can’t do! ❤️❤️❤️
Paddy went home on the weekend after three weeks here as his first outing away from home!
Being only a yearling, little Paddy’s sessions were kept short and had a big focus on giving him confidence in a new setting.
During his three weeks here, little Paddy learned:
⭐️ Basic ground work skills including understanding how to move off pressure and familiarising him with the training process.
⭐️ improving handling skills (leading, tying, float loading, feet etc)
⭐️ Building bravery through curiosity with unknown objects and obstacles
⭐️ Improving proprioception with a range of obstacle challenges requiring him to carefully place his feet
⭐️ Building bravery with regular explorey walks and teaching him how to stay safe around people when feeling nervous
His lovely owner has done a wonderful job with him and took him home armed with a very detailed report of Paddy’s time here, as well as short-term and long-term individualised goals for him.
Great work little man! Look forward to seeing the lovely gentle horse you will grow into 😍
Can’t even complain because I’m just so grateful to have rain!! Bring on the dirty ponies!
Teaching young ones is such a passion of mine 😍 Little Paddy (affectionately known around here as Paddycake!) is doing such a great job with his first trip away from home.
In this video, I’m helping him understand to:
- Move off gentle pressure during movement
- Apply his knowledge of shoulder yields into a new situation (I.e; walking on the circle)
- Walk circles and change direction
- Keep your focus and attention on me whilst working
Within this, I’m checking for understanding and acceptance, which is seen through relaxation. He keeps his inside ear on me, lowers his head and shows me that he understands the task. What a good boy!
Sometimes I’ll do this one more as a forward moving ‘falling leaf’ style pattern if you have a rushy horse, or they need a bit more space.
My beautiful boys enjoying a snuggly snooze in the sunshine!
Miss Honey Bee snoring in the background 😍
Surely I’m not the only one who still to this day sees my horses laying down and squeals “ooh he’s laying down!” And then runs to the paddock for photos and cuddles 🤣🤣
Training the lay down, session one with Snowflake!
Training the lay down, session one with Snowflake!
Snowflake’s first ever time working on the lay down and he got it almost instantly. He may just be the smartest kid on the block 🤫
Trained at liberty just by shaping behaviours from head down, to pawing sand, back legs coming under and then front legs buckling. Snowflake is making it look much easier than it is, usually this takes a fair while to get each stage and put them together!
Cowgirls Gathering 2023 was an absolute blast!! The liberty competition gets better and better every year, and this year I was blown away by the incredible talent of everyone who entered. It’s such an amazing thing to be part of, and I’m so excited for the future of liberty moving forwards!
Honey and Poncho nailed their performance, looking adorable as ever in their Grease costumes 😍 We kept our performance fairly simple so that we could go out there and just have fun together, and we certainly achieved that! I was so, so proud of how calm they stayed in a very challenging atmosphere, and get teary when I think of how lucky I am for them to trust me so much out there. They did not leave my side once, did their parts to the absolute best of their ability and just really gave it their all. I love my little liberty team more than words can say, and will forever be grateful for these experiences that I get to have with them!
We managed to place third! 🥉😱 out of six competitors in the opens, which must have been a really tough call for the judges because everyone was so incredible and all the performances were very unique! I just have to put a shout out to the ridiculously talented Breanna Jayne Horsemanship who continues to amaze me with the new moves she brings out, you are such a beautiful performer and your liberty work is second to none. I will strive to be as incredible as you are one day ! 😘
Congratulations to everyone who put their hat in the ring, whether you placed or not you are all so amazing for giving it a go and leading Australia in such a new discipline and way of working with horses.
I have to say a massive thank you to so many beautiful people who have supported me throughout all of this. For those who came up and wished me luck prior to the performance, your kind words are always so appreciated! To my hubby who is there to celebrate my successes and help me pick up the pieces when I fall down ❤️❤️ To my crew of besties who
Sneak preview for our liberty competition tomorrow! 😍
Pulled out of the paddock, filthy as can be. One wash with Pelipa Park Equine Products and we are good to go! 🤩 All ready for a liberty comp tomorrow!
🐴 What to do when your horse says “No”🐴
Something important to wrap your head around, is that there is no true ‘yes’ from a horse if they have no option of ‘no.’ (Leslie Desmond)
What I mean by this, is that in order to create true willingness from a horse (a true ‘yes, no problem, what’s next?’ feeling), you have to hear and acknowledge when they say no.
Have a look at Cookie in this video below. All I’m doing is using purposeful touch to check in with him physically and mentally, searching for tension that he needs some help with. He’s been rather cranky and reactive at times during our training, and it’s my job to work out what he needs from me to help him through that.
I definitely found an area of tension and filmed so others can see a very clear ‘no’ from a horse. Already with me standing behind his shoulder, he’s very wary and uncomfortable. When I lightly rest my hand up near his back, he shows a huge amount of tension and is very clearly not okay with it.
In this instance, I keep my hand very light (barely touching, just drawing his attention to the area), and stick with him gently until I see a positive change (sigh, blow out, lick/chew, poll lowering, blinking, ear twitching etc). Then I take my hand away.
Sometimes it’s difficult to know whether tension like this is mental, physical, or a combination of both, but Cookies wonderful owners are willing to do whatever it takes to help him out. So he will be getting some bodywork next week to see if there’s something more going on in there.
In the meantime, I’m very aware of his communication to me when he tells me that he’s above threshold, I acknowledge his reaction, slow down and soften, and see if I can offer him some relaxation to let go of his tension.
If I was to get mad at him, or try and correct this behaviour, all I would achieve is either a great big fight (never fun), or a horse who stops communicating with me altogether because they know I
Better late than never!
Pockets training video 😍 I just love putting these together as a little something to remember the special journey I have with each beautiful pony that comes into my care. I’m always grateful to be part of so many ponies lives!
When pockets arrived, she was very nervy, very wary and distrusting. Super sweet and gentle, but just very anxious.
The first day I got the whip out, we spent a solid 20mins with her absolutely RACING circles around me because I’d raised the whip about 20cm off the ground, not even pointed at her 😅
Flags and things flapping above her head, VERY scary!
Leading her on her off side, VERY scary!
Unknown things around in the environment, NOT to be trusted and usually resulted in spooking fairly on top of her handler 😅
Pretty much any distraction she could find around the arena was more important to her than paying attention to me. I had to remind her constantly that I still existed 😂
With only a couple of weeks together, I am so proud of the shift in Pockets mentally. She has a long way to go and is still a bit worried about being away from other horses, but she now understands pressure, understands whips and is happy to work around them. She is relaxed, engaged, focussed, willing and enjoying her training. To be working at liberty after only a couple of weeks is absolutely huge.
This little pony has a great attitude and will come a long way with her lovely owner who is very committed to continuing her training.
Look forward to seeing where you two end up Amie McConnell! ❤️❤️❤️
Confidence-building with this pretty lady means going right through all the foundations, looking for gaps in understanding or areas that may have been a little rushed in the past, and helping her through those.
Something as simple as catching and haltering, I noticed a bit of hesitation and reluctance from Pockets with haltering her in the paddock. I wanted her to know that I see her anxiety, and rather than ignore it or push her through it, I backed off and allowed her some space. Our horses emotions are always welcome, and by acknowledging how she’s feeling, I can help her through to a place where she feels confident knowing that she has a say in how her training goes 🥰
It may not seem like much, but allowing time to do your foundations properly will pay dividends in future training!
