Gail Ivey School of Horsemanship

09/19/2024

For so many folks, it's about how much you can get done at the expense of the horse's mind. For the rest of us, it's how much of the horse's mind you can reach in a relaxed and positive way. My friend Ross will be in the US next year. Please consider hosting a clinic if you want to learn more.

C**T STARTING EVENT: ONE TRAINER'S EXPERIENCE

I have long been a critic of c**t-starting competitions. Starting a horse in 3 or 4 days and making it a competition seems counter to the principles of good horsemanship.

Nevertheless, several years ago a friend of mine told me she had been invited to compete in a horse-starting event at the Iowa State Fair. I was initially disappointed that she agreed to it. But my friend is my friend and that means I support her decisions in the best way I can. We talked about how she should approach the event and below is what she wrote to me the day after the competition ended. I think it is a fantastic read and you won’t regret the time spent.

I should preface this report by saying that Ellen Kealey is a young trainer. At the time this took place in 2017, Ellen was in her early 20s and had only been training professionally for about 5 years. She was competing against trainers with decades of experience.

This essay is long, but I believe Ellen's insights are truly fantastic and worth your time to read.

If you want to know more about Ellen Kealey you can go to her website: https://www.kealeyhorsemanship.com
__________________________

Ross,

I hope this is actually interesting to you. I learned SO much.

Day 1:

Donna (my helper) and I arrived to meet a room full of cowboys. We all introduced ourselves and drew out of a hat for horses. All of the horses were 4-year-old mares that had been living out on pasture their whole life and had some basic halter lessons as a weanling. I ended up getting the nicest filly out of the bunch. Her name is Olivia, and she was the largest horse that they brought, she was blue roan in color, and the most sensitive/reactive to stimuli. The owner/breeder of the fillies even pulled me aside to explain that she is a very sensitive mare, and to train her accordingly.

The first few minutes of the competition were spent trying to calmly catch the mare. I probably had her caught within the first five minutes and I was able to do so without getting her too excited. I calmly worked on becoming friends with her and teaching her to follow her thoughts with just my feel. I didn't introduce any stimuli for the first hour. This paid off because during my 10-minute break (which I took about halfway through) I wasn't allowed to hold a rope or touch her. I dropped the rope close to the fence, and she hardly ever took her eyes off of me. She was also trying to stick her nose through the fence to smell me and be close to me. The announcer noticed this.

Once I had her thinking forward nicely, and had some decent hq yields and fq yields, I was able to start working with the saddle pad. During the last 30 minutes of the two hours, I was able to cleanly get the saddle on, without any ruckus. The announcer commented that there was no noise coming from my corner of the arena. Meanwhile, the other competitors brought a gooseneck trailer full of tools. Tarps, ropes, hobbles, rainbow flags, mattresses, exercise balls, empty cut-up milk jugs on a string, etc. All of their horses had at least one or two extensive rodeo moments, and a couple of them were on their horses during the first day. One trainer’s round yard looked like an obstacle jungle.

The first day, I came in fourth place, which was fine because I felt like my mare was doing really well. By the time I was done, she was standing with a relaxed top line and a hip cocked to the side. I was happy with my progress.

Critique

In real life, I probably would've waited to introduce the saddle. I wish I‘d done some flag and rope work before this for preparation. I also could've had her thinking more forward. However, I avoided pushing her to go too fast because I didn't feel that she had the confidence to come back yet if things got crazy, and it would've been strictly fleeing.

Side Note: At the end of the first day, a woman (who was helping another contestant) approached me and said that my technique was really good and that they needed a dressage or English judge to offset the scores. She also appreciated that I wasn't carelessly letting my horse buck around.

Day 2:

The mare was much more unnerved and upset. By this point, the other competitors had their horses completely desensitized, and they were getting noisy with their whips, etc, and there were tons of people coming and going. It took a lot more to get her attention on me, and she was more nervous and reactive to everything going on.

I began by trying to get her relaxed and doing some groundwork. Then I introduced the flag, which she was extremely reactive to. There was no curiosity, only tension, so I had to gather the flag in my hand, and slowly introduce it while giving her support. The encouraging news is that during my break after this, she still chose to stand next to me for the duration of the time. She was still curious and would notice everything, but was looking to me for some support.

I then worked with the saddle and decided that she wasn't ready to cinch on that day. I did not want her to have a bad experience, and her mind was going quickly from all of the constant stimuli. She started a little jumpy with the saddle but was able to accept the saddle a little more by the end. I ended by rubbing her down and asking her thoughts to come back to me in various areas.

I scored very low on this day. I felt like I was put in a bit of a lose/lose situation because my horse was the only one who wasn't flooded and who was awake and aware of everything going on around her. These competitions force a lot of people to use flooding techniques, simply for these reasons.

Critique

I went into this day with more agendas than the first day. This did not serve me well. I was losing sight of my purpose, which was to introduce a new technique while not caring about what everyone else was thinking. In other words...doing what was right for the horse. I thought I might get to ride by the third day, and it was really hard for me to let this go, and be ok with myself. I knew it was not right for the horse, but it was really hard during a competition. I also began to realize that rushing them is not something that represents my style of training.

I was still receiving positive recognition from the announcer (who owns these horses). They consistently acknowledged my relationship with the horse, my quietness, and the drastic difference in technique in comparison to the other competitors.

Donna asked me:

Q. If you had to choose to be somebody's horse, whose horse would you want to be?
A: Obvious answer in my mind... I would want to be my horse. For many reasons...

Q. If there was nobody else in the arena, would you be happy with the progress that you made with the horse today?
A: Yes

Q. Would you rather flood the horse, look good in the public eye, and place higher knowing that you damaged the horse for whoever got her next? Or would you rather do things your way and score less, but know that you are doing the right thing?
A: That is a trick question.

Day 3

They put us in an arena the size of a 60 ft round pen for our 45-minute warm-up before the pavilion. This could've been dangerous, but I kept soft eyes and was able to avoid troubles (I think part of this was also luck).

I worked my horse with the flag, which she was extremely curious about today. She wanted to sniff and chew on it, so I let her and from then on it was like she accepted me touching her with it, and was able to let go and move forward from it.

After this, I did some basic rope work around her girth area to prepare her for the saddle. When I saddled her this time she was fantastic and relaxed. No hints of wanting to get a hump in her back, and was able to do some nice trot, walk, and thoughtful turns on the line with slack at times. I was beyond impressed with her. When we led them across the road to the pavilion she stayed with me the whole time, and would even softly stop and shift her weight back when I took a step back. I could cry I was so happy.

Guy Mclean on his saddle horse worked the horses loose in the pavilion. My horse did great, walk, trot, and canter with minimal stress, with my saddle on. I was then able to catch her and do my groundwork. While everyone else rode, I did all of the obstacles on the ground. I was able to get one foot at a time over the pedestal, and back her off of it softly, walk and place each foot forward and backward over trotting poles, walk over sawdust bags, and do some nice leg yielding and side passing off of the feel of the lead in hand.

While the other competitors did a walk trot canter "horsemanship" portion, I stood in the middle with my horse and kept her focused on me. I will also say that when the other riding contestants were asked to back their horses during this time, I was also asked to back my mare from the ground and my horse had the softest backup of anyone! I was so proud!

Then we each had five minutes to show our stuff individually. Everyone else rode, and two of them stood on their horses and cracked a bullwhip. These horses were so sweaty and shut down. My final run consisted of in-hand work on the ground over all of the obstacles. My horse did great, and I was so happy.

I placed last, but I was just thrilled that my horse was able to be aware, and still stay with me through all of the commotion today.

Critique

None. I am finally proud of myself, and glad that I stuck it out doing it in this way. I was not there to please them, and this was a really hard lesson to learn. I wanted to repeatedly slap myself and cry on Saturday night, but what I needed to do was stick to my technique, and let go of what everyone else thought or expected of me. I was the youngest, smallest, and only female contestant, and this was my first time attending an event like this. I'm not sure if you can compare apples to oranges anyway.

My goals for the future are to gain more experience using this technique and to learn what I can from you and Harry (Whitney). I am not sure that I need to compete against other people who are not like me again. This specific approach often takes more time at first but does not risk the horse's mental/emotional well-being. The changes are often harder to see from far away but are profound on the inside of the horse. Training horses from the inside out is more financially sufficient from a business perspective because the changes can be more lasting if they are continued. Conditioned responses aren't worth as much because the horse doesn't understand what is being presented. This technique, which can also be related to flooding can also work as a barrier between the human and the horse, mental engagement, ongoing conversation, etc.

My other critique of myself is that I wish I had thought more about what I wanted to say over the microphone during my breaks. I got so involved in working the horse, that it felt like they were interrupting me during a timed academic test that I thought was going well. I was on a roll and didn't want to stop.

I also discovered something awesome. I can't even begin to explain, and it started by listening to an interesting person who was presenting before the filly started the challenge. I can't wait to explain what I learned sometime. You might think I'm crazy, but what else is new?

I think that is most of what I experienced. I also want you to understand that I cried A LOT. Overall, I'm happy that I did this, and I learned so much, even if it wasn't easy. My biggest setback was my own critiques and comparisons.

Tired, sore, and exhausted.
Ellen

I am proud that Ellen is my friend and colleague. It’s hard for anybody to resist being competitive in front of a crowd. It says something amazing about Ellen that a young woman with limited experience was able to place the welfare of her horse first while trainers with many decades more experience were focused on getting their horses ridden in as short a time as possible.

That event took place several years ago. Ellen has continued to mature into a first-class, seasoned trainer. Her passion for working with horses and people in the best way possible shines through in all her work. Every horse and every owner should be lucky enough to have experienced working with Ellen.

Photo: Ellen Kealey at the Iowa State Fair c**t starting event 2017.

08/12/2024

I have two donkey friends who appreciate being given the time to think things through.

08/12/2024

The importance of touch.

08/05/2024

Harry has been my main mentor for 30 years. He was just the right teacher at the right time many years ago, and probably the deepest thinker and most elucidative teacher in horsemanship alive today. He also hates being on video, so this is a wonderful treat for Anna to do this interview.

07/28/2024

So, I watched the video regarding the Olympian who removed herself from the competition. I have only one thing to say. The spirit of the age has infected the world of horsemanship to the point where someone can point a camera at abuse and giggle at it.
S
M
H

07/25/2024

Another issue I see often is addressed by Ross. Many people are quite satisfied with having a horse that is obedient, and there is nothing wrong with having an obedient horse, for sure. We all want that. This is a deeper issue and it goes back to the two types of horse people in the world - those who are only interested in what they get FROM the horse, and those who want to know what they can give TO the horse.
A horse is half a ton of muscle and emotion. If you cannot supply the horse with ways to feel good inside, they will use those negative emotions to operate those muscles. Even if they are obedient, that is not a way to live a long and healthy life. Consider any people you may know that live lives full of stress, worry and anxiety. They get sick, they die young, they never seem to be happy. We all merely shake our heads and feel bad for them because we don't know what else to do. It doesn't have to be that way for them, but they don't know what else to do, either.
We don't have to have horses live that way. We are the ones in the relationship that have the ability to create a good feeling inside of them, to reduce their stress and anxiety and help them live long, healthy lives. That goes beyond having a compliant, obedient horse. It speaks to the depth of the understanding between horse and human, and how they value the interaction between them.
For anyone living in the central California foothills, especially near Sonora, consider booking Ross for a clinic next time he comes to the US.

TURNING OBEDIENCE INTO WILLINGNESS

During my recent trip to Germany, I had the opportunity to work with a horse that was super obedient and super responsive. His name was Adre. He did everything that was asked of him and it required no effort on my part or his owner’s part to have him go along with whatever idea we presented.

Well, almost every idea. The one idea he most struggled with was relaxing and finding comfort in the work.

Every molecule in this horse’s body had been trained to be obedient to whatever he was told to do. But almost no part of him had learned to feel okay about it. He exuded worry to the extreme. He never did anything wrong. Everything was polite and resistance-free. However, he just worried that any mistake might cost him his life.

Let me remind you of my definition of obedience and willingness.

Obedience is a horse doing something because it believes NOT DOING it is a bad idea.

Willingness is a horse doing something because it believes DOING IT is a good idea.

On the surface they may appear similar concepts, but in essence obedience and willingness result in very different emotional states. A willing horse feels emotionally comfortable with an idea we present. An obedient horse carries emotional anxiety about an idea we present.

I should point out that the present owner inherited this problem and did not create it. But now he was her project.

Many people would love a horse that was this responsive and obedient, however, the horse was a bundle of worry. This means there was the risk of an eruption lying just below the surface that required careful handling to avoid bringing it to the surface and a resultant meltdown.

So how do you turn pure obedience into a high level of willingness? How does one correct obedience? This seems a puzzle because we all want our horse to be obedient, so when our horse gives it to us how or why would we correct it? How do we replace the anxiety with emotional comfort when the horse is doing everything we ask?

The obvious answer is to stop rewarding for changes in what a horse is doing and replace them with rewarding for changes in what a horse is feeling.

I believe the problem stemmed from driving the horse to do something, then when it moved as the trainer wanted, the pressure was removed. This was irrespective of whether the horse felt troubled or not. In this way, not only did the horse learn that pressure disappeared when he moved a certain way but also when the horse felt troubled. On a very sensitive horse whose sense of life and death is close to the surface, we teach it that surviving pressure is dependent on both moving as told AND feeling anxious.

In my opinion, the way to approach a horse like this and turn simple obedience into willingness is to go back to square one and start again. However, this time the emphasis should be on rewarding the first inkling of a ‘try’. Reward when the horse has either a question (eg, what are you asking me to do?) or thought to try something that does not involve fleeing the pressure/feel.

If the horse moves as a means of escaping the pressure/feel, instead of going with it, we should quietly use our feel to block the escape. Get the horse’s focus back on us, then ask again. Block the idea we don’t want (eg, fleeing the pressure) and wait for the idea we do want (following the feel of the pressure). We must turn the ‘driving’ or ‘fleeing’ into ‘directing’ or ‘going with’. This is the fundamental means of turning obedience into willingness.

As a brief example, say I want my horse to turn right in response to a feel of the right rein and it does so purely from obedience. That means there will be an ill feeling inside my horse despite the high degree of responsiveness and the light response to a feel on the right rein.

To transition the obedience to turn right into a willingness to turn right I must first ensure my horse is focused on me and second thinks to the right when I apply a feel to the right rein. If it is thinking to the left (or anywhere else) I do not release the pressure/feel UNTIL my horse mentally focuses on going to the right. I wait and I wait. It does not matter if the horse is stationary or spinning or backing or leaking to the left or turning to the right. I wait. If the horse’s anxiety gets stronger I probably need to lighten the pressure. But I still wait. He is trying something. So I wait.

Then if the horse is still searching for an answer (“try”) at some point the horse will think to the right. It may be a glance or a look or shift in its weight or a change in posture. Something will tell me it changed its thought to think to the right. That’s when I release the pressure/feel. That’s when the horse is ready to be directed to the right rather than flee to the right. That’s when the idea to turn right becomes the horse’s idea and not something it does out of pure obedience and worry.

I know this is an oversimplified example and I know I have not given you enough information to make this work for you. But it is so important that you first understand how obedience and willingness work and why horses, like the one I worked with in Germany, are made to be emotionally crippled by prioritising what we can train them to do before we train them how to feel about what we train them to do.

This principle underpins almost everything I teach at my clinics. It’s hard work to train yourself I know some people don’t see the point. However, I find that people who have little interest in these ideas are people who have yet to meet a horse like the one in Germany. But one day ….

Photo: Simone asking Adre to think to the right and to then follow that thought with movement. Simone Carlson is a very experienced and talented trainer and she has got a good handle on helping Adre learn to be emotionally comfortable and willing. It was a lot of fun working with her.

07/24/2024

I love when these young folks can say so succinctly what I've been muddling about with for the past 40 years!
I have so often said, "the absence of tack is not proof of the presence of willingness," but even with tack, the mere appearance of "the circus" as she puts it, just hurts my heart so much!

03/06/2024

So, this morning, my phone notified me that "someone" had "reported" my page as fraud and the notice said I had to log in to clear this up. Please note, this is some kind of scam, but I don't know how they managed to get the notification to appear on my phone, and not on my computer. If you receive any odd looking notification from this page, please let me know immediately.

12/22/2023

Here is my Christmas gift to all of you. January is world carnivore month. Give carnivore a try for one month. If, after one month, you want to go back to your previous way of eating, I'll give you a free lesson, either in person or remote, depending on where you are. Also, whoever loses the most weight during that month also gets a free lesson.

12/15/2023

Nice video from Sam. Things I see a lot, but the people misunderstand what the horse is thinking. They apply terms like, naughty or silly or "knock it off!" MOST horses feel much more anxiety about the human than people believe, and yet can still operate and do a job for the human. If you would rather they do their job without the anxiety, let me know, I'm here to help.

"Can you recognize signs of Defensive Horse Behavior?" The video focuses on a rescue mare and highlights the common signs that horses display when they feel ...

08/24/2023

More wisdom from my friend, Ross.

WHY HORSEMANSHIP?

When I was a young fellow I would try to go to jumping clinics, eventing clinics, and dressage clinics, but it never occurred to me to enrol in a horsemanship clinic. Plus there were very few opportunities to participate in a horsemanship clinic. I can think of a handful of horsemen who ran such clinics and they were very infrequent because they made their living from training, not teaching.

The market for horsemanship training was miniscule in Australia until around the early to mid-1980s when the Americans began to make an impact. Australians like Maurice Wright, Kel Jeffrey, Neil Davies, Heath Harris, Jim Wilton, Tom Roberts, etc. dwelled on the fringes of the movement that modern horsemanship would become. Of those few only Neil is still with us and continues to be active.

However, the wave of American influence began a tsunami change in attitude about what horsemanship was about in Australia. Horsemanship no longer was just about how to lead a horse or clean their hooves or tie a hitch knot as the pony club system was teaching. Both the Aussie and American horsemen started to plant the seed of the importance of a relationship between horse and horse person and that groundwork meant more than lunging in circles. For those who may not have been in Australia or into horses at the time, it is hard to explain what a revolution this was to the average horse owner. Of course, there were good horse people everywhere who already knew what the new gurus were teaching. But it was only with the advent of modern marketing techniques did the average horse owner shift their mindset.

This brings me to the topic of this post.

One of the criticisms I read about horsemanship clinics is from people with considerable experience and even expertise in some field of the horse industry. The criticism often describes horsemanship training as only useful for novice horse people. Implied in this criticism is that once a person achieves a certain experience or success they no longer have use for further training in understanding their horse. Horsemanship is only useful for teaching the very basics and after a short time a person needs to move on to training with people more skilled at an elite level.

I want to challenge this assertion.

I’m sure most of you have heard the adage, “The more you know the more you realize you don’t know.” This is certainly true of horsemanship. Horsemanship is not “a thing”. When it comes to interacting and working with horses horsemanship is “everything.” Horsemanship is everything from when you try to halter a foal for the first time to when your horse has to stand quietly for the blue ribbon ceremony at an international competition.

As an embryonic competitor and horse trainer I used to think horsemanship was what I used when I needed to teach a horse to pick up its feet or stand tied up or load into a trailer. At that stage of my education, it had nothing to do with jumping a clear round or performing collected movements in a dressage test. But now I see it differently.

As the term implies, horsemanship is the understanding of horses. But just those six words incorporate a lifetime of learning and understanding. Horsemanship is the art of feeling what a horse will feel and do before the horse knows. Horsemanship is the art of a horse and a human being able to finish each other's sentences.

Horsemanship is what props you up when you are training a horse to perform a lead change or wear a crupper. Horsemanship is the stuff that fills in the gaps between riding across a bridge and chasing a polo ball. Horsemanship teaches you how to walk up to your horse with feel at the start of a day and how to walk away from your horse with feel at the end of a day. Horsemanship is what makes it possible to salvage the relationship with your horse even after a bad experience.

Horsemanship is a serious study irrespective of what discipline you ride or what level of skill you ride. That is why the study of horsemanship is a lifelong pursuit. That is why being a skilled horse person is its own reward.

Photo: Three mates - Six, me, and Riley.

07/23/2023

Hi, everyone! Just wanted to post a quick update. I am going through medical treatment for Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS), but I am still teaching and still accepting new students, including remote students! In person coaching is always available in the Sonora and surrounding areas.

07/10/2023

Over the years I've come to realize that the problems that appear in horses later in life began the first day a halter goes on their heads. People will not even take the time to develop a good relationship until they feel they have "control" over the horse. Now, that desire for control exists whether or not there is a halter on the horse, but that is a different topic. This fellow makes some good points about not being in a hurry to get that halter on your baby.

05/29/2023

Always love to see messages like this from my students!
"Last night S---- was THE BEST EVERRRRR!!!! That she's ever been with me so far!! Just perfect!!! Stood still and comfortable for saddling and then followed me around. She was sooooo good.
Literally could not have been more perfect. 😭❤️ sooo pleased with her progress!"

05/09/2023

Memories of my first horse, Shadow, who was born May 9, 1974.

04/03/2023

Monday Memories: My first clinic in Finland! I think the year was 1997. What a great group of enthusiastic students.

04/03/2023

I've known this lady for many years and she's a good horsewoman. Riding injuries are tough on everyone, as my friend Michelle Scully knows. If you feel so inclined to help Sara, please give or share.

Hi my name is Sara Esquivel and I sustained injuries to my spinal cord and c4-5 verte… Sara Esquivel needs your support for Spinal injury from horse accident

03/27/2023

Monday Morning Memories. One of my dearest memories and the one I am most grateful for is my time with Tom Dorrance. Without his influence in my horsemanship, I would not have built the friendships I have with people all over the world.

02/21/2023

I created this back in 2015 and although others keep redoing it and taking credit for it (which I don't mind) the important part is that considering the way the horse looks at things will get you farther down the trail without trouble for either of you.

01/23/2023

Excellent advice from Ellen Kealey.

It’s a common practice to encourage a horse to cut loose at the beginning of a session. This could be done by turning them loose in the arena, or putting them on a long lounge line. People partake in this because they believe their horse needs to burn off energy, which will make groundwork and riding easier.

I see a problem with this approach for a few reasons. A tired horse is not a trained horse, and teaching them that the first thing we do together is blast around the arena is a habit that forms quickly and can become dangerous. I observe people slowly become inconsequential to their horses, which is inadvertently taught when allowing a horses' thoughts to be everywhere else while the human is still in the picture.

I also don’t want to be the source of an anxietal state in my horse. An example of this could be turning them loose and chasing them around to get energy out. You aren’t actually removing energy but rather evoking the flight response in your horse by giving them something to get away from. If your horse comes out of the paddock ready to burst at the seams put an importance on getting him to check in, so that over time the habitual anxious work cycle doesn't get activated when you go to spend time with him.

In an ideal world, I would like become an important partner in the relationship. Whether I am leading them in from the paddock, running a brush over their back, flopping a saddle on, or sending them out on the line, it makes no difference to the attentiveness between my horse and I. I'm always working towards the day where I could saddle up and go without having to work on the “checking in” part in order to stay safe. Paddock time is play time, and for the duration that I am with my horse I don’t want to do things that would perpetuate me becoming unimportant.

Is the horse I'm working now the horse I would want to sit on? If not, then how can I make it so?

Photo: Removing the halter from your groundwork routine can be a good indication of what is really working between you and your horse. I'm really pleased with how Piper is checking in during this moment together. I do my best to continuously build on those feelings.