Our arena is finished! 🥳
If you are interested in hauling your horse in to our farm for a lesson, simply go to the website. When you go to book an appointment, click on “Haul-In Session.” It’s that easy.
On the other hand, if you’re not quite ready for a structured lesson off property, you are still welcome to come and school. There is also a place to sign up on the website to come and do just that.
Let me know if you have any questions!
#theidealconnection
Watch to see how smart Frolic is!
Teaching your horse the difference between the “Stand Cue” and “Recall Cue”
🗣️ Before you get started, remember that it is really important for you to plan ahead when it comes to your verbal cues. Think of everything you plan to teach your horse in the future, and make sure your cues won’t be conflicting in any way.
✋🏼 Stand Cue: In this video, you’ll see that I give Frolic a square to stand in. You can also place a mat down for mat training, or you can use a target for target training. I prefer a square in this instance, but that is personal preference. For the stand cue, Frolic must not leave the square. It is preferable that all four feet are standing quietly.
📣 Recall Cue: After the horse learns the Stand Cue, I begin introducing the Recall Cue. I prefer to use the horse’s name, although some people prefer to say a key word, such as “Come” or “Here.” Once the horse is standing in the square, and I’ve created distance and duration, I then call their name as their Recall Cue. The minute they begin walking, I mark that behavior, but I don’t reinforce until they come all the way to me.
💡Keep in mind - you will go TO your horse to reward them for standing, while your horse will come TO YOU so you can reward them for responding correctly to the Recall Cue.
#theidealconnection #clickertraining #positivereinforcementtraining #equinewelfare #ethicalhorsetraining #groundwork #flatwork
Sometimes, the most profound thing you can do for a horse is acknowledge how they feel about being tacked up and ridden.
The whole process can be intrinsically rewarding and FUN for the horse, as long as we acknowledge every small try on their part and hold space for them when they experience challenging emotions, such as frustration and confusion.
For this horse in particular, he seems to be overwhelmed the minute he steps in to the arena. His owner is incredible and does all of the right things, and so now we are trying to bring joy back in to the ridden work.
To begin, she establishes connection and begins finding rhythm and relaxation in her own body and her own breathing. Once he quiets his mind and becomes more present, he tunes in to this and begins to do the same. Then we take these things in to the walk, and we observe if he can maintain calmness. If he becomes too stressed at any time *or* if he has some beautiful moments of relaxation, we come back to the halt and start the whole process over again.
If you can imagine when he first comes in to the arena, feet planted, thoracic sling dropped, head held high and mentally distracted, then you’ll appreciate the last picture… completely relaxed, without wrinkling his nose… and “dropped.”
LOVE LOVE LOVE 🫶🏼
#theidealconnection #dressage #classicaldressage #relaxation #centeredriding #paint #groundwork
Thoughts on Connection part two
Thoughts on Connection part one
