Hey folks, in our part of the country Spring is in the air. Many people are dusting off their horse tack and looking at which clinic they may attend. This causes me to think back over the clinics I’ve done and people that I’ve helped over the years. In the beginning days of this clinic stuff, I and many of the others out there would offer a clinic or Workshop based on the experience level of the participants. Things would roll along nicely for the most part because all were looking to learn foundation basics and particularly horse safety.
Well, that was 10 or 15 years ago. I’ve been on this Natural Horse roller coaster for over 40 years. It’s a new world out there now. Like Bob Dillon said, “the times they are a-changing”. Many folks now get their foundation training from pod casts and from video lessons. Having done so, they are now wishing to apply their newly learned expertise on an advanced clinic or on a Specialty Clinic like Working Equitation or Reining Cow Horse or any of the very many newly designed clinics. As a result, one of the biggest complaints Jody & I hear is about inexperienced riders participating in an advanced clinic. The sad part is that the inexperienced riders do not consider themselves to be so. They spent hard earned money and valuable time participating in the social learning and feel entitled to ride in any venue that they wish.
So what do we do? This video clip just touches on thoughts about the subject. The entre video discussion is on our LS Ranch Video Library under Discussions and Clinic Safety and Solutions. There are many ways to still make the clinic experience valuable and fun and safe. We covered and videoed a few of these at a clinic in Missouri last year. Take a look and see if something there would be of value to you.
In the meantime, stay safe, get your horse out and have some fun. See you down the trail.
Dave & Jody
Hi folks, we've just added a new video to our Riding Collections in LSRanch Naturally Video Library.
Many years ago while the late, great Doug Williamson lived near Bakersfield California, I would ride with him as often as I could. Pat Parelli, my mentor, told me when someone of quality is near you, go and ride with them, learn what they offer, see how it works in your operation. Well, I take him at his word and ride with the best often as I can.
On one of my rides at Doug’s place he showed me how he likes to help his horse stay quiet and relaxed while in an environment that is just buzzing with energy. At that time, I was experimenting with Ranch Versatility competitions and I really needed something like that. Mr. Williamson showed me a pattern that he calls “Circle-Stop-Sweep”. It had similarities to Pat Parelli’s “Clover Leaf” but did not require as much area. Western Horseman magazine did an article on this maneuver several years ago.
I play with this pattern here at LS Ranch quite a lot. If I find my horse or mule really jazzed up or anxious about something, this pattern becomes a “trigger” to help them find relaxation. Over the years I’ve found that simple relaxing patterns used diligently can trigger a desired emotional response and the horse seems to not even be aware of what just happened.
Doug Williamson’s pattern involves circle, a soft stop, easy and soft half turn then a departure. The tricky part for the human is that, like our Clover Leaf, we will not change directions just change the circle all the while being as soft as possible. If we’re going left I’ll ride a left circle, then stop, execute a half turn and ride off to the left again making what ends up to be two tangential (don’t tell my mom I said that) circles with the intersection being where I stop. From above it looks like a figure of eight; but it’s not ridden as one
I was fortunate to ride many times over the years with Doug Williamson, and this pa
Hi folks, the other morning while listening to Neil Pye talk about the value of phases and how easily they can be over-done, I was reminded of something that Pat Parelli told me many years ago. It still surprises me how I could learn something of value and over time let it slip away. Yes, as our horses mature and grow in their development we need to adjust and modify how we address them. Most folks just call it “adjust to fit the situation”. But, I’m thinking that we need to be careful to not abandon the good things we learn early just because we’ve moved on to more seemingly better things.
Pat Parelli teaches about 4 phases of pressure. Most of the clinicians going these days say the same except they will call it “Suggest, Ask, Tell, Promise”. I’ve learned that phases are important to a horse as it allows them to detect what’s about to happen; then make a decision accordingly. For some reason many folks begin to feel that phases are just for teaching and not for improving. We all know by now that it’s the release that teaches and when you release matters as much as the release itself. I remember way back hearing Bill Dorrance say to release when he’s thinking about doing it. Well, that’s tough enough when things are going slow and nearly impossible at speed.
I strive to encourage my horses to move off the slightest pressure. I pointed this out on an Eclectic Horseman’s video from last year. What I did not address was how to accomplish this. My horses can feel a fly. Why do I need to apply pressure greater than a fly weighs? Here’s where Pat’s advice has served me well. I believe that we would like our horses to move off phase one, or my suggestion. Most people are pleased and contented with their horses yielding with phase 2 or 3, or Ask or Tell. Pat pointed out to me that the phases all have 4 phases contained within them. That my “suggestion” or my “ask” is made up of 4 phases.
Keep in mind that I’m not talkin
Hi folks, the fencing on 3 sides of our ranch has to be at least 80 years old, maybe even close to 100. Other than the parts that we have replaced over the years the older wire has become more of a visual deterrent than a physical impediment. Often just leaning on it will cause it to snap. At that time, we’ll replace a longer section with new wire.
As I was riding in the very back of the ranch a while back and saw a top strand broken. There just happened to be a small roll of wire hanging on a nearby post; so, I decided to do a quick repair and note it to be replaced later (boy that’s a joke). So, I got off my mare, set her at a place about 20 feet away where she wouldn’t be hurt if more wire were to snap loose while I was working. I hobbled her and set to repairing. Which brings me to the reason for this discussion. HOBBLES ! !
To many folks hobbles are a mystery and are fearful of even trying to use them. To those of us who use our horses in our daily work, hobbles are a necessity. The word hobble itself is not clearly understood by many. A hobble is anything that connects two items together and can be later removed. In our part of the country, we use a flank cinch and hobble it to the front or main cinch to prevent it from sliding back into our horse’s flank. We may have a hobble between our reins and our romal in a bridle situation. In this case I hobbled my mare’s 2 front feet to discourage any traveling. She can shuffle around a bit to remain comfortable; but she cannot leave.
I have read nearly every book that Louie Lamour and Will James have written. In these great and very informative books, they would often state that the cowboy bedded in for the night hobbling his horse to graze throughout the night. This is a common tradition east of the Rockies. Many folks packing into the back country will hobble their horses to graze. I used to do that until I learned better. I have several times, being a slow learner, walked 2 or 3 miles f
Hey folks, this morning while using my nice horse Harmony to help me with a 2 year old Hanoverian, she was kind enough to remind me that we had not spent all that much time preparing for this very much refined operation. All went well, she helped me wonderfully, and the 2 year old learned quite a bit about pulling back and leaning on the lead line, and even better, the comfort that comes from softly yielding to a steady feel.
I’d like to point out that working one horse from another is not for the faint of heart. Many things can go wrong in an instant. The next thing you know a line is around your hand or leg and each horse may be going in a different direction. The goal is to help the project horse and you depend on your saddle horse to constantly be putting you in a position to provide meaningful advice to your project. In just a few minutes Harmony began telling me “I got this Dave, here I’ll scoot over there, does that help” On and on my mare got better and better which allowed me to help our project.
This morning’s work brought to mind the value of genuine foundation work. More importantly the values of recognizing that the foundations needed for today’s exercise were enormously more advanced than the foundations I used when I was just starting Harmony. Over the years as we’ve continued to work towards constant improvement, each step along the way required that I have some basic skill sets in place and that these skill sets were different for each step along our way.
Yes the rock bottom basic skills still permeate our ongoing growth; but ever changing newer skills become necessary to manage our newest and latest projects. Harmony and I will continue to grow within our abilities that continue to change within each of us. I constantly remind myself of my friend Pat Parelli saying “Dave, advanced horsemanship is just the basics done excellently”. This is so true; but, which basic skill is needed at a particular moment? They will diff
Folks, Jody & Dave have assembled 3 separate new videos and have uploaded them onto their Video Library on LSRanchNaturally.com. The first is a simple explanation of the snaffle bit. It’s reasons, it’s purposes, and it’s effect on the horse. The second is an explanation of the Spanish Hackamore. Why it allows us to continue with Natural Horsemanship skills as we become even more in tune with the inside of our horse. The third is an explanation of the California Spade bit and how we become closer to our horse through correct usage of this sophisticated tool (in the right hands). Throughout history the expertise and style of the Californio Vaquero has been admired and copied and sadly modified. This video merely shows how it works in a Natural Horseman’s hands.
The video clip below is an assemblage of short excerpts from each of the three videos now available in the “Discussions” section of the library. Without going into a tedious explanation of each of the tools, these videos can clear up any misconceptions you may have about them and enlighten you to their usage and impact on your horse.
Please note: Facebook adds the close captions. You may want to turn them off.
Jody & I hope you find a way to enjoy these videos as well as gain some insight into how Natural Horsemanship that was taught to us by Tom & Bill Dorrance, Ray Hunt, and is still taught by Pat Parelli can take you to levels in horsemanship that you may have only dreamed about.
Enjoy and we’ll see you down the road.
Hey Folks, Jody & Dave just added two new videos to their Library on www.LSRanchNaturally.com.
Judy is helping a two year old PRE manage footing that at first seems unstable. In fact it’s a teeter-totter and Jody is working from the ground. It’s great to see how she is able to help him understand and build some confidence in an area that is usually very bothersome to a horse. You’ll be pleased to see how her patience and comforting demeaner significantly affect him and encourages him to try something a little new and scary and to succeed.
Dave is showing you a pattern that he learned from Pat Parelli that really helps your horse manage his weight shifts and his balance through a smooth and flowing maneuver utilizing corners of your arena. This pattern shows work at the walk, trot, and lope (canter) while helping your horse maintain the impulsion that you’re looking for. You’ll see Willow bring out her dad’s Thoroughbred then find her mom’s Quarter Horse again while all the while continuing on the simple, but not easy, pattern.
The purpose for these ranch videos is to give folks some sample patterns that you can use with your horse and some insight of what to do when things aren’t going just the way you wished. Most of you have gotten to the stage that you can see the little things and see how simple things affect your horse in a big way. Jody & I ride every day with many different horses each needing their special attention. Hopefully there’ll be something for you too.
Give the full video a look in our LSRanch Video Library at www.LSRanchNaturally.com
See you down the road.
Here's Dave helping Willow with a corner's pattern in a smooth & flowing motion.
Hi folks, while I was looking over some old photos of activity here at the ranch, I was reminded of the time some while ago when Martin Black was holding a clinic here we began discussing how some horses seem to naturally backup well and others just complain and drag their feet as though it were the worst thing imaginable.
Later I was helping a student with his backup, and noticed that I had not put much emphasis on where we were backing to. The English may be poor; but the focal point becomes very important. I recall Pat Parelli telling me years ago to have eyes in the back of my head and to see where I was going backwards. Then, when my horse puts a little effort into going backwards towards my focal point to release the pressure and give him some relief.
As I think more about it, I am reminded that Mother Nature does not give my horse a good backup. He would rather wheel and run than to backup. Just about the only time a horse backs in nature is when challenged and he can’t turn to run. Occasionally we’ll see a horse attack another when one is in a corner and can’t run the other will back violently and kick him. Fortunately, we don’t see that as often these days.
From the very beginning of my journey in natural horsemanship I have searched for ways to get myself to really use my focus, to establish a focal point; then go to it. Trying, often unsuccessfully, to not rely on merely technique. I am regularly reminded by my mentors that backing helps our horse become better at practically everything else.
You do yourself and your horse a favor spending time improving your backup. When asking for a backup I do my best, which means I don’t make it all the time, to merely disallow forward motion with the reins and with my legs get my horse to look for a place to be; then make sure that he’s comfortable when he gets there.
Over the years I’ve noted that the best of techniques may not provide you with a soft smooth backup depending upon your attit
Hi folks, I thought I’d visit about my not-so-little mule Annie. We’ve moved on up to the snaffle bit now and she is going really nicely. Each ride she gets softer and needs less pressure to register my intentions. She has helped me considerably regarding that prior sentence. I know that she could from the beginning feel the pressure of the natural hackamore and then from the snaffle. What she didn’t realize at first was that the pressure was advise on how to get it to go away and find some lost comfort. I’ve used Pat Parelli’s techniques to show me how to utilize Bill Dorrance’s great advise of “Set it up and Wait”.
I would apply steady pressure, hold that for a bit (longer for mules), then add rhythmic pressure while maintaining the same steady pressure. (Pat Parelli). I would not change either until Annie made an effort to yield to the steady pressure. (Tom & Bill Dorrance) The length of time for this to process has gotten less and less until now very little rhythmic pressure is needed and the steady pressure is down to ounces, for the most part. Like every other 3 yr old this all periodically falls apart.
Where she has helped me the most is in working through an idea that she has that does not coincide with mine. With a horse, whenever they want to veer left or right you can often add a little rhythmic pressure on the rein opposite of their direction and they’ll come on back to your previous spot. You certainly don’t want to pull or heave on the opposite rein for sure. With most mules, adding that opposite steady feel or driving game they will just lean into you all the more and a major confrontation will ensue. Which I did several times under the guise of holding steady and just kidding myself. Getting tired of the contest of who’s gonna blink, I decided to go along with her but only for 2 or 3 steps; then pick up the rein that was in the direction she wanted to go and just continue the turn going back to where I wanted in the
Folks, many years ago in 1985 I was fortunate to be standing next to Dr. Robert M. Miller of Foal Imprinting/Early Learning fame. We were watching Pat Parelli demonstrating. Dr Bob said to me “there’s one of the few people who really understand the value of positive control over each end”. I took that to heart and have ever since paid close attention to who is controlling the ends, me or my horse. This has helped me for many years by being able to, at any time and at any speed influence my horse’s hindquarters or forequarters laterally for direction changes or longitudinally for speed adjustments
In our LS Ranch Video Library, we have 4 main collections of videos. In the collection labeled “Riding” you can scroll to the video marked Indirect to Direct. In this video I transition my nice mare Willow through a pattern of moving the hindquarters followed by moving the forequarters in a smooth and flowing motion. No pauses, no stops, and only a minor stutter here or there. We graduate from a walk on through a trot, then on to a lope. You’ll be able to see the adjustments that I need to make to enable her to respond as I’m looking. As we progress with this maneuver, we transition from indirect to direct rein management on to leg aids and turning on the haunches. After a while the reins are only slightly used.
This ability to address each end of my horse has been extremely valuable to me while competing in Cowboy Dressage, Ranch Versatility, and with working with my cattle. This short video clip below gives a small example of how I like my horses to respond to this maneuver.
See the entire video at www.LSRanchNaturally.com click on Video Library, go to collections and select Riding.
See you down the trail. Dave & Jody.
So folks, Dave got his act put back together and we’ve set up our video library in a pretty secure spot.
We’d like you to take a look at some things that we do regularly here on the ranch. All of this is pure Natural Horsemanship using Parelli Foundation Skills to open us up to all of the many things that we can accomplish with our horses.
We’re not trying to teach you anything; but to show you how using these foundation skills cause many great things to just appear later on. The idea of this library is to let you sit on the fence at our ranch and to see and hear (hopefully) what Jody & I had in mind while playing with our horses (and an occasional mule).
We’re excited to present this to you and certainly hope you can glean some value as a casual observer of some pretty nice things happening.
Go to www.LSRanchNaturally.com
click on the library. I promise you’ll see it. And carry on from there.
We hope you’ll enjoy it as much as we did putting it together.
Here’s a little sneak peek. It’s 2024, can you still do sneak peeks?
See you down the trail or maybe here at the ranch.
The LS Ranch specializes in natural horsemanship taught by Dave Ellis and Jody Grimm. We invite you to join in with our clinics, conversations and family!
