Putting the horses needs, both physical and psychological, at the forefront of training.
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BEACH SESSION VACANCIES
Friday 18th October
If you’ve never taken your horse to the beach before and would love some guidance, here is your opportunity!
These sessions are 1.5 hours duration, private or pairs, and are a lovely way to introduce your young horses to the beach.
Three spots are available for the above date🐴💕
There are many different ways to ask a question.
Choose the way that encourages the horse to think with confidence.
Ask small questions, because you can put them all together later in bigger questions!
Use subtle cues- if you’re loud in your body they will either become worried or simply shut you out.
Encourage the horse to try by rewarding the smallest attempt. Reward by pausing!
Be patient as they try to figure it out.
Be prepared to break things down even further if the horse needs that. If you are listening to them they will let you know!
Just remember, if you put too much pressure on and the horse becomes stressed, they are not going to give the correct response you are looking for! This is not their fault but yours- you moved too quickly or you weren’t clear enough.
Listening to the horse is the most important part of training, but it’s the kind of listening us modern humans aren’t used to…. We can’t use our ears, so we must use our eyes, our empathy and our intuition.💕
Two spots are left for this two day clinic at Lorne, in a beautiful location opposite the Kerewong State Forest.
Who’s in?!!🙌🏼
🐴🐴
This is Phoenix.
He is here to stay with us until he is ready for a new home. Phoenix has some trust issues I am working through slowly as time allows. The fact that I don’t have a lot of time to do this right now suits him perfectly, as the time in between sessions allows him to let down and just enjoy being a part of my little herd, observing how much they trust me, and hopefully thinking that maybe I am worth trusting too. 💕
Once he is ready to move to a new home, which could take many months, I will be able to precisely pick the right owner for him👌🏼🥰
💨💨FACT- When the blasting wind lifts the edge of the tarp up behind you, you grow an extra 3 hands at the wither🫨😑😂
I don’t want to change what we already know…. I only want to change how we see things.
Once we change the way we see things, surprisingly, we change the way we do things. All on our own, in our own time, in a way that feels good for us and for our horses💕
Two spots left for this, grab a friend and book in for a day of fun and learning!
This workshop has been developed specially for those with young or green horses, or for those of you who are green or nervous owners😎💕
DATE CHANGE- CUNDLETOWN
Due to wet weather this workshop has been postponed to SUNDAY 15th September! Still two spots left😁🐴
"People often mistake kindness for incompetence" - LS Horsemanship
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I was working with a client yesterday, who also happens to be a very good bodyworker with excellent feel -
Her horse has kissing spines and presented with spinal stiffness and acute reactivity over his mid thoracic region. He is also reluctant to move forward, hypervigilant and often finds himself in freeze.
We were working through helping him to downregulate to release his back, neck and shoulders to find more freedom through his body.
What was really fun about this was that this was something she had been playing around with, recognising the benefits of it and how it positively influences his emotional and physical state. She was also REALLY good at it, but because it wasn't what the current rhetoric around rehabilitation -
It wasn't poles, or baited stretches, or progressive loading -
She hadn't given herself permission to do it more regularly.
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I have several friends who are horsemanship trainers and the thing they struggle with time and time again is that people will choose quick results, at the expense of their horse's emotional and physical wellbeing, because the slow considered approach doesn't feel like they're achieving anything.
As a result they get clients after horses have been traumatised through cruel training practices which envoke fear and pain (even if the horse's human has different intentions to this)
The road to rehabilitation then becomes even slower; meanwhile people on the yard watch and snigger:
"She's not even doing anything with her horse"
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For me, I believe that the skill around training isn't that you can stop a horse presenting the unwanted behaviour.
This skill is demonstrated by knowing full well what that horse is capable of demonstrating... and yet you ensure that you never knowing take the horse to that place.
Training that is kind and systematic to help your horse to feel safe.
It focuses on empowering both horse and human to make good decisions through positive affilations instead of punishment, flooding and fear.
❤️
Spring is almost here, and this means the best beach weather is on its way!!☀️
Anybody interested in a beach training session should get in touch!! We have one day set aside for September and one for October. 😎🐴
I keep seeing less than desirable hoof angles in horses I see. Every week I see at least one or two.
If these horses are getting around like this long term, there is bound to be some really big problems soon or down the track.
It’s up to owners to learn good from bad, right from wrong when it comes to their horses hooves.
It’s not reason to sack a farrier/trimmer or start telling them how to do their job…. But awareness is key and you are the advocate for your horse!!
So please study angles, know what looks right and when too much toe is too much toe…check for thrush or seedy toe regularly and treat when necessary.
Your farrier/ trimmer gets paid to do the job, but don’t be fooled into thinking that all of them care deeply about the quality of their work or ultimately your horses comfort.
Educate yourself🤓🙏🏼
https://youtu.be/4fbNVH_gdXk Proper foot balance is important to the long term soundness of all horses. Although the appearance of the foot will differ somewhat between horse breeds and the type of activity the horse is used for, there are some basic parameters of foot appearance that apply to all h...
Love hitting the beach though😜
A very nice way to start the day!
Assisting a client who started his own horse recently with the first outing outside the round yard into the big open paddock. 🐴💕
Yes 🙌🏼
“First you go with them, then they go with you, then you go together “.
~Ray Hunt
The first step of that is about giving up control, which I think is one of hardest things for people do, with horses and with life.
Anyone with horses should be always seeking to improve themselves and their knowledge…. Continuously until the day we die or god forbid decide not to own horses anymore!😳
Currently, I am seeking to improve my communication in the saddle by improving my seat and aids.
First up for me was breathing, and learning some tools to become aware of my (shocking) posture🥴
Thank you Anke Hawke Balanced Dressage, I truly believe you have your work cut out in shaping up this old cowgirl, looking forward to more🙏🏼
Photo credit PP’s Photography 🐴
The deeper you dig the more complex things get when it comes to horses emotional and physical well-being.
I have no greater advice than this.. Dig away if you feel the need, and relish in the journey of learning and doing right💕
DATE CHANGE- CUNDLETOWN
Due to wet weather this workshop has been postponed to SUNDAY 15th September! Still two spots left😁🐴
It’s a very mindful consideration in letting a horse eat grass while working on chronic separation anxiety.
While the horse is anxious, he may like to eat grass as a distraction so that he isn’t present in the situation. It’s food diversion.
So, I take the time to work with the horse until we can experience pockets of calm, times where we stand out in the open, well away from all the other horses, and he just breathes….. this is when we can stand, relaxed, and graze with a calm and present mindset.
To get to this point was a lot of backing up when he swung his body around to face me, stopping to observe things that worried him, walking slowly, medium paced and fast, until he could match my speed perfectly. This gave him focus and it gave him connection, which helped him to feel safer out alone.
It may be a long while until he can cope under saddle away from other horses but as long as we continue the small increases in distance with the same exercises he will get there!!
In short- if you can figure out how to get the horse feeling safe with you, he will cope alot better away from the herd.
To feel safe, a horse needs a leader who can lay boundaries, be consistent in mind and body communication and who can empathise with him, all at the same time🤓💕
Could not be truer a word spoken Ian Leighton Horsemanship- and this is why the majority of my clients who send their horse to me receive a blended version of help- if it’s possible I visit the client at home for a few sessions with them and their horse- then if it’s considered needed the horse may come to me for some more concentrated sessions with the owner encouraged to be a part of as many as they can.
It’s not about polishing horses, it’s about putting the horse and owner on the right path for them both to be able to succeed, and this cannot be done without assessing and working with both parties👩🦳🐴🙌🏼
Thought for the day:
I still get asked regularly if I can take a young or green horse to further it’s training.
Often as not the request includes a story about how everything was going ok but then one day outside pressures caused it to act up.
The request is generally to enhance it’s knowledge or change their mindset so that they can handle all types of scenarios and be calmer and better behaved.
Often these requests are never attached to an aside like “can you teach me how I should handle and ride a green or inexperienced horse?”.
The onus is all on the horse to be able to carry (no pun intended) the rider through any situation that may arise and keep them safe.
That is too much responsibility for a young or green horse.
Your horse needs some support and help while it gains experience.
Regardless of your knowledge of horses or riding or a particular discipline you may find a green horse a challenge if you are inexperienced with them.
Many older horses can be much more forgiving of mistakes and have more experience of the world.
It takes more than a stint at a trainers to make an experienced horse.
Often there is a way through but it takes the help of people with the experience. Hands on help.
It also takes a little fortitude and the ability to not make your horse feel trapped with your hands or legs no matter what occurs.
Most of what is called acting up would not have occurred at all if the rider had acted the way the horse needed them to.
The first thing that it takes is the recognition that to ride young or green horses you may need to have yourself trained.
It’s the little things.
It’s always the little things, because these are what we build on to eventually achieve the big things.
Almost always, everything can be helped, changed, fixed or improved.
It will only feel like progress if you allow yourself to celebrate the little things along the way.
And if it feels like progress, you can just about guarantee it is🙌🏼😁
Happy birthday to all the horses out there who’s real date of birth is unknown💕💕
Blackjack is officially 8 years old today. Happy birthday my beautiful boy❤️🎂
Working on the ground with a horse should feel just like like dancing 💃🏽
But, those who know me know I have a strange way of explaining things sometimes, and often I find myself saying ‘it’s like a school of fish, be a fish with your horse’🤔😂
You ‘go together’ and it flows and it’s easy.
I think of fish perhaps because they are in the water, there’s more fluidity in their movement- but if I really think about it, fish are mostly forward moving….
Well, with horses I love to move with them softly in all directions.
Easy, when you don’t have scales 🐟
There are still a handful of spots left at the Taree workshop (Cundletown) Wednesday August 21st
Message for more info😊
Meditation in Motion….Life simply pauses when we are riding on the back of a horse💕
If it doesn’t feel like that, just remember that it can if you work at it😊
When working and developing the client horse….
There is always an expectation, from the trainer and from the client, and there will always be a positive result so long as they both honour this👉🏼 do the work on the horses timeline, not ours🙏🏼💗
Winners are grinners😁
Some really beautiful moments posted, thank you to all who entered and especially those who took the time to leave some words along with their photo🥰🙏🏼
I have picked the 3 winners based on the connection I saw between horse and human. I really loved these special pics from….
Olivia Carson
Jane Tudor
Madeline Warner
Thanks Ladies, your beanies will be on the way next week🙌🏼
GIVEAWAY TIME🙌🏼😆
I have a small handful of these cute beanies left and would LOVE to give some away to my fellow beanie-wearing horse addicts😍
All you have to do is make sure you LIKE my page, SHARE this post and then in the comments I want you to share your favourite pic, a beautiful moment in time with just you and your horse/s…. I will pick my favourite three to send beanies to!
I’ll start with one of my own favourite pics in comments…..😉
*3 winners will be notified in comments via a reply to their photo tomorrow night (Friday 26 July) 6pm
Postage cost will apply outside of NSW.
🫶🏼🦄
Welcome to Xander, who is here to be started under saddle. He is the most beautiful boy, a 6 year old Arab gelding (never too late to start) and more than ready for the next stage in his life🦄💕
I know I am going to throrougly enjoy my time with this boy🙏🏼
GIVEAWAY TIME🙌🏼😆
I have a small handful of these cute beanies left and would LOVE to give some away to my fellow beanie-wearing horse addicts😍
All you have to do is make sure you LIKE my page, SHARE this post and then in the comments I want you to share your favourite pic, a beautiful moment in time with just you and your horse/s…. I will pick my favourite three to send beanies to!
I’ll start with one of my own favourite pics in comments…..😉
*3 winners will be notified in comments via a reply to their photo tomorrow night (Friday 26 July) 6pm
Postage cost will apply outside of NSW.
🫶🏼🦄
There are lots of things we want to achieve when riding our horses.
I can look at this picture and see a number of things I would like to address.
But good things come in time.
This is my first ride on this mare.
She has been out of work for 18 months after she was started under saddle.
Quite simply, I’m super happy that I was able to sit on her, walk and trot around in the halter, with her feeling lovely and relaxed and soft the whole time.
✅ First ride a success
The End.
Training your horse to load into the float as opposed to luring with food.
Dopamine blindfold- perfect description from Emotional Horsemanship by Lockie Phillips🙏🏼
Suri left for home last week.
I’ve waited a while to post on her time here as I’ve been spending time reflecting on things.
She came with baggage.
And she has gone home carrying a little less of that baggage.
Her owners and I are not sure at this stage whether things will make a huge turn-around but we are hopeful that with continuing bodywork, good nutrition and gentle work with the areas she was unhappy with, that we might see that change in time.
It would have been an easy quick fix if I had only addressed her aggressive behaviours, but that would mean shutting down her motivation to communicate and ignoring the pain she is in. I could have created a compliant horse who is afraid to think for herself.
Instead, the path I choose is the long one but the right one, where we give her time, fix the physical problems and see what positive things begin to blossom from this.
Monkerai, NSW
2422
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This week I paid a visit to Hunter Horse Haven in Port Stephens for the first time. I was warmly welcomed by committee members and volunteers, and quite impressed how organised and tidy the place was and how well looked after all the rescued horses and ponies were. I had been contacted to make an assessment on two of the horses there for suitability for a woman who was interested in adopting them. One mare out of the two was deemed suitable which is great, the other little mare needed time and more work before she would be ready. Charity organisations like these play a very important role in the lives of horses who need help. Your donations not only go towards the costs of rescue and rehabilitation, they also contribute to training and assessments such as these for help in successfully rehoming these precious ponies💗🙏🏼 https://www.facebook.com/share/x8wvS83VHwDSUFqm/?mibextid=kFxxJD
I might not have a huge following….. but it’s not huge numbers I’m after, it’s those who genuinely want to come along on this ride with me😆🐮🐮🐮
Don’t bother to watch this video or read these words if you’re looking for exciting footage or definitive answers…. I want to show you a snippet of some of the work I do with horses that display behavioural issues. There’s a stigma with training these days around consent based training- I do actively practice as much of this as is possible, however not every ‘no’ from a horse is beneficial to withdraw from. Particularly if I’m trying to figure out a problem. So, when I’m doing things that end up being a bother to her, I am feeling sorry in my mind and I keep it to a minimum, but I feel it is a necessary part of the process. Much like a physical wound that might be stinging badly but needs to be cleaned up to help the healing process. This mare is clearly sending me a message that she is not ok. It is more specifically around girthing, mounting and dismounting only, so the areas I would be advising the owner to investigate would be saddle fit, tenderness or tightness in the body, nutrition and/ or ulcers. The other area to consider is the emotional tie to the behaviour. Which is why, despite her very clearly telling me no, I choose to remain seated and see what it is that is triggering her. This is not a practice that I would continue with this horse until she goes home… But for me to get a better idea of the WHY it’s imperative in the first week that i take notes (listen) to her problems, steer away from anything that causes major reactions but continue the work gently across a handful of sessions until I have more of an idea on where to go with her. It’s important to me to film and watch some of the first sessions like these so I can see what they look like from a distance…. I hadn’t noticed the way she was standing while I was getting on. It doesn’t look comfortable, and this will be something to address with a body worker in the coming week. Awareness is so important if you want to establish trust and build a solid relation
Little Foxy girl- we will miss your big personality and we hope you are a good girl in your new role as kids pony🦄😍 Foxy spent a couple of weeks here to gain some more exposure and get her big backside back into work! She definitely was only here for the social aspect (boys🤨) but did manage to get through it all with flying colours😁
This boy certainly can switch on to movement- first session at liberty and looks like we’ve been practicing all week😜 Ravu is a 9 year old registered ASH gelding sired by the great Acres Destiny, and is officially on the market. Suit campdrafting, mustering, trails. Experienced home a must, as is a home over the range as he has become mildly itchy over here. Anyone interested can send a pm and details will be passed onto his owner.
#livehorses #breathehorses #spendeverycentimakeonhorses
How I think I look when I skip, and how I ACTUALLY look are worlds apart🤣 Excuse the athleticism😉 while I explain what I’m doing here…. I’m working with a young horse that’s lacking forward and needs encouragement…. I can either build energy and then direct it AT her… or I can build energy and use it myself and help influence her to step up. Leadership. This little mare has lots to say about things. A big opinion for a little girl…. It’s my job to show her we can achieve things together and that I want a partnership, not a dictatorship when it comes to work. The last thing I want is to shut her down and make her ‘compliant’. She is allowed to have her opinion, and by her letting me know, it becomes my mission to convince her she can be ok with what I’m asking. 🦄
To me, this is such an important part of starting a young horse. And I’ll admit- my favourite part🤭 There’s a bunch of stuff going on here, but the most valuable is the trust that is needed between horse and rider to attempt new things, even when the horse isn’t sure. I’m not asking him to try these things for me, I’m convincing him he can do this for himself. Establishing confidence in a young horse is so important to get right as a trainer… fail that and I’ve failed the horse!
If your horse is worried about something, you should strive to understand how you can help💗 Blackjack has always had a bit of worry with floating…. He loads fine and travels fine, however just the idea of going somewhere gets him stressing as soon as he sees the float hooked onto the car! Just to put it into perspective, we’ve hardly had any outings at all, less than a handful of social adult riding club days for experience, and a couple of leisurely trail rides. When we are out, it’s all low stress and he is always calm. What I do, and I find it really helps, is bring the float out an hour before we go somewhere. He sees it and runs away, clings to another horse or just hides in the corner of the paddock…. Eventually though, it seems once he has time to calm himself, he will approach the float, then retreat but this time not so far away. Sometimes he will approach 3-4 times to really check it out. This day, while eating my breakfast, I caught him rolling right near the tailgate after he had done his approach retreat thing. Rolling out all that worry is what worked for him, and after this he was calm and went back to grazing, at peace with knowing what was soon going to be happening. Sometimes, all they need is time. You can’t always fix it for them but you can do things in a certain way that allows them to fix it for themselves👌🏼🦄
I know of many horse trainers who, like me, wear the constant guilt of not having the time or making the time to continue developing their own personal horses…. For me, this year has been particularly difficult as I’ve navigated through some pressing issues with Blackjacks level of soundness… I’ve had to scale back and settle for a few sessions of groundwork or the odd trail, while I decide on the best way forward for him. Today was a pretty good day, though if you look closely enough you can see some discomfort in his hind end. Next week, we are looking forward to getting him the scans and tests we need to determine what treatments to use to heal him🙏🏼 We haven’t done much in liberty, but he is very tuned in to me and makes playing around in this way so much fun🥰 There are times you see me ‘lose’ him but it only takes a wiggle of the flag and a gesture to hook him back in…. I didn’t realise until I watched this how much I look down while moving around- it’s definitely not great for my posture 😂 however, I feel it is just a part of the communication in those moments. I cherish the connection I have with this boy, he has taught me more than anyone can imagine about language, empathy and training with love😍🦄
I can tell everyone we spent hours on this, teaching all the animals at liberty for weeks on end. But no, being the honest human I am I will say this just happened….. and from the moment after the still picture, it all fell apart🤣 Fiona has just moved to a new home, and the ‘herd’ has become quite tightly knit as they get used to their new surroundings. An entertaining session to day the least, with the entourage following us for the entire hour as we worked on settling techniques for Molly in her new place🥰🦄
AJ Equine is a brand new Local Business, based in Bobs Farm, Port Stephens
We aim to cater for a range of different needs in the horse industry, from led pony rides at events and parties to regular riding lessons for children from 5 yrs up to adults.
We have a number of quiet horses and ponies here for beginner riders to intermediate. We also welcome anyone wanting to bring their own horse here for a lesson, or have a lesson on their own horse at home (we come to you).
We specialise in educating the complete beginner using a relaxed, gentle approach that encourages a positive experience each and every time. Perfect for children starting out, or for adults wishing to get back into the saddle after a bad experience or many years away from horses. Helmets are provided, clients must wear long pants and safe closed in shoes.
Our lessons are tailored individually and range from 30 mins to an hour, not only covering riding but also basic horse management and safety skills. We use lovely, patient horses and ponies in a safe enclosed sand yard and offer a larger area to work in once confidence has been established.
For horse owners struggling with their own horses, whether it be a lack of confidence in themselves or bigger issues concerning the horse, we can help in a range of ways including problem solving, training & re-educating horses. Call us to discuss further.
