Changing Equine Behaviour

26/07/2024

Sometimes, you've just got to get on with it, no matter what challenges may face you!

This boy is star pupil this week 🌟

He is going through the backing process with me and for this week's session we were faced with the farmer and a crop of hay 🌾 and when a job's got to be done, a job's got to be done! 🚜

For those of you who train with me, you know I'm all for changing only one variable at a time during training. Well this was quite a big variable to add into the mix, but he was absolutely outstanding! I tested his basic responses as always, and deemed it perfectly safe to carry on with our session as normal, and here we are!

This is a definite first for me! Backing a horse right next to a bale wrapper machine!

Clever lad! 🐴🖤👏🌟

12/02/2024

Last week I met this lovely family who have welcomed a very sweet ex-racehorse into their lives 💙

They contacted me as they have been having great difficulty bridling him, which is making getting him ready for a ride a fight and a chore rather than the pleasure it should be ☹

We had two sessions together and already the difference in his behaviour is dramatically improved. Instead of him charging around the stable, lifting his head out of reach for bridling, he is now standing still and actually lowering his head, making things so much easier for his young rider to get him ready 😊🐎👏

02/02/2024

I have to share with you this lovely review 💞 I am so proud of the dedication and commitment shown to the training, this shows in the progress they have made together 🤗 it is so rewarding - there really is just no better feeling!

I first met Belle in October 2023. Her owner was at a complete loss with her. She was difficult to lead; charging, rearing and managing to break free, she didn't like being groomed or tacked up, and she was really quite dangerous in the stable; spinning, weaving and frantically charging around.

Fast forward to this time last week when I left the pair riding around the outdoor arena totally chilled and relaxed 🥰🐴

"Hi Amy, I cannot thank you enough for what you have done for myself & Belle. After buying what I thought would be my dream horse certainly proved not to be as you found out from our first session. From then you have been truly amazing not only with Belle but with me as I lost all my confidence in handling her and riding and you proved to me that she wasn’t a lost cause from the sessions we have had together. You totally believed in me that I could change her as I was completely stuck in the present and not looking for the future that was to come with the training techniques you have showed me and upon doing this the change in Belle just keeps getting better & better. I was so ready to give up but with your help I now have a horse that I have Fallen in love with and never thought I’d see the day my 9 year old daughter can turn her out and bring her in as this would never have been an option before and I want you to know my appreciation for your time, your knowledge and dedication to myself & Belle I couldn’t thank you enough you are truly a fantastic trainer and your guidance has been priceless, I would recommend you to anyone in a heartbeat, thank you so much"

01/02/2024

Did anyone else feel like that was the longest January ever?! I haven't managed to get much riding in this year so far but it's always a good time to revisit the basics on the ground as a start! If you're like me with no arena facilities it still means you can work your horse without actually riding. And we've done a lot of it in the dark! 😎👍

03/01/2024

Wishing everyone a Happy New Year! 🥳 Hope you all had a great festive season.

I am back to work and am currently working through my list of emails and messages 😍🐴

Bear with me as there are quite a few 🐻🤩 it's ok though, Bob is helping 😉

24/12/2023

Wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 🎄🥳🎆
It's been a very busy 2023 for me, working with lots of new horses and of course my lovely regulars 💕

May you all have a happy and successful 2024 🐴

30/09/2023

I love this explanation of rhythm and tempo 🎵🎶🥁

Let’s talk about the difference between rhythm and tempo. I hear these words used incorrectly all the time, and it’s more than just a nit picky thing to correct. It’s a very important concept to understand.

Rhythm (in dressage) is the footfall of the gait - 4 beats for walk, 2 beats for trot, and 3 beats for canter.

Tempo is the SPEED of the rhythm. You can discover your horse’s ideal Beats Per Minute (BPM) for each gait.

A huge moving warmblood and a tiny Shetland pony have the same rhythm in trot, but they have VERY different tempos.

If you have a RHYTHM problem, you have a big problem. If the walk is lateral (leaning towards 2 beats rather than 4), or the canter is a 4 beat canter - this is a big problem. Could be a physical issue with the horse, but you will need good help from a pro with a rhythm fault.

Most riders have a TEMPO problem - too fast, too slow, too varied. Ideally, the tempo should be like a metronome - steady and reliable, and YOU have to set it for the horse. (Side note - it’s super easy to download a free metronome app on your phone and ride with one. It will be seriously annoying to find out how NOT steady your tempo is 😂. But it’s very helpful to discover your horse’s BPM for each gait and try to stay steady.)

The rider has to be like the conductor of the orchestra - you SET the tempo for the horse, but you don’t play all the instruments. Tell your horse how quickly (or slowly) to march in walk, push in trot, and jump in canter. Then leave him alone and only adjust when that tempo goes too fast or too slow. You have to be a quiet, feeling rider to notice immediately when the tempo begins to slow down or speed up too much.

Illustration by Susan DiFelice Design

27/08/2023

It was so lovely catching up with my Equitation Science Instructor and Mentor (Equitation Science Training) over the last couple of weeks 🐴🥰 sharing a few beers 🍻 reminiscing over old travel stories 🌏 and discussing ES principles 📚 Managed to squeeze lots of lessons into our busy schedules too, I'm very excited to see how Bob progresses with some new exercises for us to try 🤩 that is, if summer actually ever arrives so I can get some riding done in my field 🙈😎🐴☀️🙏 🌧☔

13/08/2023

So thrilled with 2x🥇 in our dressage yesterday after fantastic lessons on Friday with my Equitation Science Instructor and Mentor, Julie of Equitation Science Training 👏⭐❤

Anyone who trains with me, knows how passionate I am about the ES method of training and when I knew Julie was planning a road trip from the South of England heading up to Scotland I hoped she would pass by our place, and I'm so glad she did 🤩

Bob is my ex-racehorse who I've had for 3 years. His anxiety has reduced massively during this time thanks to ES methods, but our lessons with Julie on Friday dramatically improved our performance yesterday 🥰 I love this little horse and it's so nice to see how far we've come.

We've just waved Julie off on the rest of her travels after some more lessons this morning 👋 but look forward to her return on her way back south 🙏

In the mean time we have plenty of homework to practice, but first, Bob can have the rest of the week off 😴 he's had a very busy weekend 🥰🖤

02/06/2023

It's always lovely to hear how people are getting on after training with me 🥰

I recently helped a show jumper who was having trouble when she took her horse into the main arena. Once her horse was going forwards he would jump a clear round but she was having severe difficulty getting him away from the warm up arena and into the ring, he was napping, rearing, spinning, pig rooting and bucking!!

We revisited the basics (of course!) and worked on clearing up the Go aid. She had a successful weekend competing last weekend winning both her classes! Well done! 👏🏆😊

31/05/2023

This horse used to be described as "lazy" 😴

He was a "kick along" ride. You couldn't hack him out without carrying a stick and I rode him in spurs to get him to move forwards, especially in the arena.

That was all before I found Equitation Science and learnt that horses aren't actually "lazy". That is an anthropomorphic term us humans use to describe animals. Think about it 💭 ...a horse in the wild would be dead if it were "lazy" 🐎🐆 and I bet your lazy horse can move when he/she wants to!

A better way to describe this is that they are not responsive to the leg aid to go forwards. They don't know how to release the leg aid pressure from their sides and so do nothing/move backwards/switch off to it.

This is easily retrained using correct timing of pressure/release techniques. It makes life so much easier for us, you're not constantly on at them to move forwards or keep moving forwards 🥵 and it's way nicer for them 😊🐴

30/05/2023

When Blue Blue says "No, not today thanks!" 🤭 I put his headcollar on and he literally rolled over and passed out, then started dreaming with his little legs moving 🤣

I let him have a snooze for a few minutes 😴 then he had to get up and do some work.

We started jump training today in the form of poles on the ground and then asking him to step over some wider planks. He was a very good boy 🥰 He was unsure at first but worked it out 🤩 then we had a few canters up the field, he is so cool!!! 💙

27/05/2023

Throwback to teaching this one Park 🛑

By gaining control of the horse's feet we can create a calm, relaxed horse who doesn't feel the need to move, which is an activation of "flight mode".

We train the front legs initially (because the back legs are attached and tend to follow what the front ones do).

This guy could literally have stood on a postage stamp 🤣📮 He worked out that he would be corrected for moving his front feet so kept them still, but because he still wasn't fully relaxed in the exercise, edged his back feet forward as far as he could 🤔😆

Top effort! ✋

26/05/2023

Has anyone else taught their horse to levitate? 🕴️ it's taken years 🤣

Happy Friday everyone 😎💙🖤

25/05/2023

Woohoo is it finally summer? 😎⛱🌞
The hot weather and sunshine means we have to protect those little pink noses 💕

Is applying suncream to your horse one of those jobs you dread? Do they lift their head high or just won't let you anywhere near them at all?

This is easily resolved using correct negative reinforcement methods in the form of touch (the pressure) and release (the reward). It's actually how they train us in the first place to not be able to get suncream on their faces!

It's the same principle used when worming too! 🐛

I have to admit I took this video because I thought it would be a great before and after! However, because of his correct groundwork training he actually really wasn't bothered about the whole suncream application thing 🧴

He was ready to go get his tan on 🤣😎👏

24/05/2023

Little Mr Blue Sky demonstrating the mounting process 💙 Such a good boy!

He is newly backed.
I broke the mounting process down;
✅Taught to stand still
✅Taught to stand still at the mounting block
✅ Backed ba****ck
✅ Habituated to saddle and girth
✅ Backed with saddle (this is different for them due to the added pressure from the girth)

Is your horse easy to mount? Will they not stand still at the mounting block? Move away from the block? Sn**ch the reins? Move off before you have your feet in the stirrups? Buck or bronch when you get on? Bolt?

There is no reason why they shouldn't stand like this with correct training.

Get in touch to have this behaviour resolved and make the mounting process calm and relaxed for both of you 💞😊🐴

23/05/2023

🐴 Backing 🐴

I offer a unique backing service where I take horse and owner through the whole process together in their home environment 🏡

This is nice for the horse as they stay in familiar surroundings, and nice for you as you get to see the whole process from start to finish, and are involved in all of the training 🥰👩‍🏫

I love taking owners through the backing process with their horse and watching them learn together. This means that everything I teach the horse, the owner understands how, and the reasons why, making the training clear for everyone.

It is a step by step process with weekly lessons and homework to practice in between 📚

I've had lovely feedback from many owners who have thoroughly enjoyed being involved.

For more information drop me an email 📧 [email protected]

15/04/2023

This week I had the pleasure of working with this lovely pair who had been having problems when mounting. This horse would not stand at the mounting block and bolted when his rider got in the saddle, unfortunately causing injury and a big confidence knock 😔

We went back to basics and re-taught mounting from the beginning, layering each level and ensuring the horse was nice and calm before we moved on to the next step 🛤

I like to think of it like constructing some scaffolding. You can't build the next section if the previous level isn't solid and sturdy 🔧🔩

We taught him Park and worked round his anxieties at each stage of the mounting process. By the end of the session his owner was mounting safely by herself, and her horse was nice and calm - the way I like them 🖤

This is not a quick fix, it's a behaviour transformation. I received this video yesterday of them doing this all by themselves 💞 I really do love helping people and solving the problems they are having.

"I wasn't expecting this outcome, and this quickly, to see him that relaxed and happy is just lovely"

Equitation Science really is the BEST thing! I felt the relief as she got back in the saddle. And it's that feeling, and seeing smiles on faces as to why I love what I do 👏🥰

24/03/2023

Some lovely feedback from an owner who was so desperate to change her pony's aggressive behaviour. "I did about 40 mins training with him and he was really good!" He only tried a little nibble today instead of the aggressive biting behaviour he has been doing 😬

Aggression manifests itself in many ways including biting, kicking, striking with forelegs and barging.

This owner was desperate for help with her daughter's pony who has became progressively worse over the last few months.

We revisited his basic responses, as all behaviour problems stem from deficits or confusions in these areas. Now that these have been repaired and made clearer for him, his aggression has rapidly reduced.

The session began with him clamping his ears back, biting, launching forwards, rearing and striking out with his front legs, to ending the session with his owner feeling much more confident and in control with the pony standing independently and quietly on the buckle end of the reins 👏

It's lovely to receive such positive feedback after just one session together 🙏🐴

05/03/2023

Day off for me ✅
No rain✅
Dry pony ✅
Groundwork syllabus completed ✅
Backed ✅
What a little diamond he was 🙏💎💙

02/03/2023

A great 4th loading session yesterday, despite the delightful weather! 🙈🌧

As predicted, the mare walked straight onto the ramp and into the trailer with absolutely no hesitation 🙌

This is why I love Equitation Science. It's a scientific process that can be worked through methodically. If there is an issue, revert back to the basic responses and build on these. Almost all problems completely resolve by doing so 🙏

Here's a photo of sunnier times 😎☀️

01/03/2023

Following on from yesterday's post.. we are going to wait til Spring 😩🤣🌧🤦‍♀️🦛

28/02/2023

Planning on backing this one tomorrow 🙈😱😖😩🧼🚿🤦‍♀️

27/02/2023

Don't you just love it when you're training a nervous traveller and in the second session you're making great progress, then a child zooms past on a bike 🤦‍♀️🚴‍♂️ and the anxiety goes off the scale, then in the third session the horse goes straight onto the trailer 👏 calmly and yawning showing relaxation which is brilliant, but then a neighbour starts drilling into an outside wall literally as the horse is standing inside the trailer 🙈🤯🧰 could not have timed it better! 👏⏰

On the plus side, if she can cope with all of this, she can cope with anything. It is a process after all 😉

Next session she should walk straight on the trailer and we can work on offloading safely and calmly 🙏💕🐴

23/02/2023

🎓 It's all official! 👏

I am now on the Equitation Science Practitioners List for England 🥳

https://esi-education.com/espractitionersint/

22/02/2023

It's important to habituate the horse to the bridle properly. ES techniques continue to amaze me ⭐

Blue Blue's first time with his bridle on since coming to me 💙

The first part of the video shows him after I put his bridle on, absolutely not happy with the bit in his mouth at all! The second part of the video shows him 10 minutes later having used ES techniques to habituate him properly by revisiting the basic responses. Much happier! 🥰

0 Likes, 0 Comments - Changing Equine Behaviour () on Instagram: "It's important to habituate the horse to the bridle properly. ES techniques continue to amaze me ⭐ Blue Blue's first time with his bridle on since coming to me 💙 The first part of the video shows him aft...

22/02/2023

A different horsey day yesterday visiting these guys for my birthday day out 🥳🐴