Heron Feather

11/23/2025

Wonderful voice of reason and advice.

11/21/2025

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DRSawprDiCr/?igsh=OXQ2YTFpaHgzOWlx

Heads up people

11/02/2025

The timeless lesson? What we feel in our hands so often begins behind the saddle. I was incredibly fortunate to learn under 𝗚𝗹𝗲𝗻𝘆𝘀 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗹𝗲𝘆, who trained with 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘇 𝗠𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿, 𝗡𝘂𝗻𝗼 𝗢𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗶𝗿𝗮, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗘𝗱𝗴𝗮𝗿 𝗟𝗶𝗰𝗵𝘁𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗸 - a tradition that shaped my understanding of true connection and self-carriage from the very beginning.

Nuno Oliveira said, “𝘔𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘨𝘴 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘶𝘱 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘩.”

Decades later, 𝗗𝗲𝗻𝗻𝘆 𝗘𝗺𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻 explained the same principle in his own way, using a brilliant analogy between engagement and athletic discomfort. Both of these wise horsemen’s words still make me pause and think - not only when I feel too much in my hand, but especially when I see a pupil learning to lighten theirs.

It’s a reminder that what we feel in our hands so often begins behind the saddle - not only in the clarity of the rider’s seat and legs, but also in the strength, balance, and weight-lifting ability of the horse’s hindquarters.

So next time you feel your horse leaning on your hand, or you’re tempted to tighten or fight the contact - pause. 𝗔𝘀𝗸 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳: 𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙙𝙞𝙙 𝙄 𝙖𝙨𝙠 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙡𝙚𝙜𝙨?

With respect and gratitude to 𝘋𝘦𝘯𝘯𝘺 𝘌𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯 (𝘛𝘢𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘏𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘍𝘢𝘳𝘮) for articulating this so clearly. His full post follows - it’s well worth the read.

"My horse leans on my hands" and other similar comments----A discussion.

Let's say we jog in place---we humans. Now let's say we squat down while jogging in place.
Try it, it hurts more. Now squat lower, jog higher----It hurts still more, we pant more, we struggle more. We are feeling the effects of athletically induced discomfort.

Now imagine that you are sitting on a horse being ridden (correctly) back to front. You drive with seat or legs, create some impulsion, and simultaneously you "contain-receive-balance" that impulsion with your quiet, negotiating hands, so that the horse is being asked to take a "deeper" step, come more under himself, and lift himself more rather than simply push himself along, as he'd do naturally.

We call this things like "asking for more engagement", "asking him to carry himself".

Even though what we are doing may be careful asking rather than forceful demanding, it STILL hurts the horse. No, it doesn't INJURE the horse, but it causes him athletically induced discomfort, because when you ask him to engage his hocks, and start to lift and carry his own weight, it's the same as what you felt jogging in place while squatting, lots of physical exertion.

Now the horse, feeling the effects of being asked to be a weight lifter, (and having zero incentive to become a well trained dressage horse---hahahaha, you anthropomorphic dreamer!) the horse tries to avoid the engagement.

He can invert. He can roll under. He can lean on the bit. He can flip his head. ALL these front end/head evasions are---listen here---to get rid of the "correct" connection between the driving aids and the receiving aids, because that connection makes him weight lift, and he'd far rather not.

In other words, we FEEL the resistance up FRONT, in the bit, reins, hands, but the resistance we feel up front is because he doesn't like the pressure of engagement BEHIND. (It took me about 212 years to figure this out, by the way)

So now we MAY think, as many of us do---"My horse is "resisting" in his mouth/jaw. I need to use stronger rein aids. I need a sharper bit. I need draw reins. I need one of those leverage rigs."

(This process can turn, easily, into ugly adversarial fighting, rider demanding, scared, uncomfortable horse resisting)

NO---What we need is to think very long term about strength training.
We ask him to step under (engage), negotiate for some moments of semi-lift, back off, let him recover, ask for a little more, back off, repeat, repeat for months, tiny increments, little by little, "building the horse like an onion", one tiny layer at a time.

WEIGHT LIFTING IS SLOW. WEIGHT LIFTING DOESN'T FEEL GOOD. Yes, it will eventually turn your horse into a better athlete, but your horse doesn't know that. He isn't "being bad" when he resists, he's trying to get away from athletically induced discomfort. So----GO SLOW, HAVE COMPASSION for what he is undergoing.

End of long discussion. I was no big saint about horse training. It took me too many years to equate much of this. Don't make the mistakes I made, and that so many riders make. Be better than that.

Denny Emerson, Tamarack Hill Farm

(𝘗𝘚 𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘴 𝘪𝘵 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘭𝘺 - 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘪𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘴: 𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘢𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘥.)

10/27/2025

https://www.facebook.com/share/1BEqEexNQ5/?mibextid=wwXIfr

So good.

My final thought of the day.. I came across a really interesting post earlier about contact and it resonated with me.

I’ve always disliked the phrase “the horse has to accept the contact” and everything that comes with that idea - also the whole “between hand and leg” and " keep a strong hold of the outside rein " like thats the only way to control the shoulder concept. When I was younger and it was shown to me, it never looked harmonious and even though i was learning it never sat right with me. The horse always looked pinned in and run forward into a rigid contact. They never looked happy and no, you cant run a horse into balance.

For me now it’s different. Horses don’t need to accept the contact - the rider needs to offer a light one. The contact should be soft and responsive allowing the rider to feel the horse’s mouth but never to pull against it.

Of course, some horses have fleshier mouths, which can make it look like they’re being pulled even when they’re not just with the weight of the bit. The real point is: horses don’t need to learn to accept the contact - people need to learn what contact truly means.

If you ride with a bit , the bit should be used to promote relaxation, not to control or restrict. It’s there to help the horse find softness and trust, not to pull on the mouth or force a frame. The less we do with our hands, the better. The more we ride from our seat and aids, the more genuine the connection becomes.

When you restrict the front end, you block the hind leg and the moment that happens, all the energy, balance and freedom of movement are lost. True engagement can only come when the horse is free to move through his whole body.

This whole idea of controlling the horse and shutting him down into a strong, fixed contact is just old-fashioned. There are far kinder, more effective and more harmonious ways to train.

I am not preaching here im saying it as someone who came from this background of riding, its how I was taught from a young age - it was only in my teens i explored alternative, kinder approaches and myself and horses reeped the benefits. Nothing good comes from shortcuts in a horses training.

08/02/2025

Great article on the historical and practical use of the shoulder in.

“The shoulder-in is the first and last lesson one must give a horse,” said de la Gueniniere, the classical master who invented it, in 1733.

05/26/2025

This.

Many human athletes, regardless of their sport, use weight lifting to add strength and power.

Horses can be gotten to weight lift, too, with the same goals in mind.

One of the simplest ways that doesn’t require much rider technique is to use hills. As the horse climbs, it has to push and propel harder than it would on flatter terrain.

Another way, based upon the half halt, is to send energy into some degree of containment in such a way that the horse engages its hocks, stifles, basically sits down and lifts. This is a rather sophisticated dressage based technique, not to be confused with “riding backwards.”

This is one good reason to take dressage lessons from an educated instructor, to learn how to encourage a horse to step under and weight lift itself into greater self carriage. Be prepared to spend months, years really, as this isn’t a quick fix to learn, and it isn’t a quick fix for a horse, but must be built a step at a time.

04/19/2025

I am a Horse Trainer. By Julie Heliker

I started out with horses on a voyage of discovery as a young kid with dumb luck in my belly and fire in my eyes. Such is the nature of those hit with the horse addiction. We are adrenaline junkies at heart. I had fierce opinions and very little knowledge behind them. Everything was black and white, good and bad. Now I’m older and wiser and see how individuals need their own space to grow and a framework based on solid principles to develop properly. In horse riding and training that framework’s evolution will continue for life depending on one’s aptitude, ability and dedication.

As a horse trainer and riding instructor my fiercest skill is holding a horse and rider together while we all tremble. I temper what is dished out to what the recipient can handle. I know when to be big and wild and when to be slow and gentle- I can be all of those things that are inside me. I choose my timing so there is growth and wholeness in the horse and rider.

If I believe my training is right it doesn’t matter what the rail birds say or judge me with. That is a double-edged sword because I always have more to learn. So, I cannot totally block out the rail bird chatter. I am always discovering what works, what causes injury down the road and what is proper. I seek the good development of the horse, the good of the rider and the good of the sport. It’s where those 3 intersect that I must not stray. It’s the sport that keeps horses in a society that is quickly forgetting the value of horses. It’s the rider whose passion and joy supports horses. It’s the horse’s very nature that heal us, enhance our lives and bring purpose and satisfaction to riders. The sport brings horses to society at large who would normally not be connected to horses.

I need all three.

I am a horse trainer. I train horses- and teach riding- not just to feed it and grow it and bend it to service of humans—but simply to invite it to be seen; to become, to belong in our vastly diverse society that has so many beautiful facets.


Good of the horse
Good & proper:
◦ Training
◦ Proper physical care/vet care
Mental health of the horse
◦ Pasture / turnout management
◦ Shelter
◦ Bedding
◦ Feed/nutrition
◦ Workload
◦ Exercise
◦ Grooming
◦ Hoof care
Good of the rider
Good & proper:
◦ Training
◦ Nutrition
◦ Exercise
◦ Mental health

Good of the sport
Good & proper:
◦ Trainers
◦ Knowledgeable Sports casters
◦ Advertising in touch with horse people and society at large
◦ Promotion of excellence, techniques, technicalities & excitement of the horse in sport

08/08/2024

Congratulations Sue Klonowski on your Century ride!! 70+ percents! A lifetime achievement!!

03/17/2024

Happy St Patrick’s day!!

01/13/2024

Great article on buying horses...

Finding that needle in the hay stack----

There are thousands of horses for sale, probably several hundred thousand at any given time. Big, small, lean, chunky, old, young, every color, every breed, all price ranges from free to in the millions.

The reality is that many of these horses will come with some sort of precondition that will cause the new owner to think---“Well, I didn’t see that coming.”

It might be some sort of chronic lameness, or any of hundreds of health related issues. It might have to do with the level of training. Or temperament. Or skill level and ability for some specific use. We hear about the home runs more than we do the strike-outs. Touch Of Class winning Olympic gold makes a far better story than the one that ended up lame in some field, or worse.

But for most buyers it seems like some gigantic gambling game, and if there ARE some strategies to make finding the “right match” more likely, what ARE some?

Well, there are lots of possible answers, and I will list a few, and I invite others to add ideas.

First, I think too many people go into horse purchasing mode without CLEARLY DEFINING what it is that they want and need. Start there, write it down, discuss it, have a clear idea before you grab that checkbook.

Then, big one---Is this horse sound enough for me, and for what I want to do with it? Here’s where you must involve expert veterinary advice, even though it is not cheap. There are some buyers who will back off a purchase if the horse has ANYTHING that the vet check discovers, even if the issue is minor and unlikely to ever cause a problem. Many good horses “fail” the vet check, not really, but in the anxious minds of prospective buyers. Vets are cautious about giving opinions about long term soundness---Too many have been burned in lawsuits.
So deal with that in whatever ways you can handle.

Try not to buy what those in the trade call “too much horse.” This happens all the time. Mr and Mrs Smith take 13 year old Susie horse shopping. The child turns down the plain brown wrapper 14 year old quiet gelding in favor of the beautiful 4 year old mare. The Black Stallion syndrome strikes again. Usually against better advice from those who know better.

“Too much horse” can be simply too green, or because the horse is too high energy, or has a difficult temperament. So many fall into the too much horse trap.

Walt Gervais was a tough old guy who was somewhat cynical about the human condition based on decades of experience, He told me, “Denny, the only people who take your advice are the ones who agreed with your advice before you gave it.” They are not interested in your opinion if it runs counter to what they want to do, and they will keep asking until they find an opinion that they want to hear.

“Caveat Emptor” buyer beware, is about as accurate a saying as you can find in trying to find the right horse. If you are an expert, it is hard enough. Most top riders and trainers have had plenty of strikeouts. And if it’s tough for them, it’s a lot trickier for everyone else---.

Other thoughts, suggestions?

01/13/2024

"Rest and release are not pauses in the training; they are a significant part of the training" John Lyons

04/03/2023

This is very informative!

𝑴𝒖𝒔𝒄𝒍𝒆 𝑴𝒐𝒏𝒅𝒂𝒚 - 𝑺𝒆𝒓𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒖𝒔 𝑽𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒔
The serratus ventalis muscle, aka the ventral serrated muscle is one of the most important parts of the thoracic sling. It gets its name due to the fact that the ventral (bottom) edge of the muscle has a serrated appearance. It is a medium layer muscle that comes in a pair, with one on each side of the neck.

𝑭𝒖𝒏𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏
The thoracic sling is the group of muscles connecting the shoulder to the ribcage, as horses do not have a collarbone attachment the way people do. The serratus ventralis is the largest muscle in this group, giving it the important role of supporting the chest.

The serratus ventalis can be split into a cervical section (neck) and thoracic section (back). Both portions originate on the inside/top portion of the scapula. The cervical section inserts along C4-C7 and the thoracic section along ribs 1-8 (sometimes rib 9).

Besides it’s role in supporting the thoracic sling, when both sections of the serratus ventralis engage the forehand is lifted, actually making the horse taller. During movement the cervical section has the ability to pull the top of the scapula forward, while the thoracic section will pull the top of the scapula backwards.

Used alone, one side of the cervical section has some ability to bend the neck laterally.

𝑭𝒖𝒏 𝑭𝒂𝒄𝒕
While the serratus ventralis is a medium layer muscle hidden below the shoulder and latissimus dorsi, it is possible to see and palpate in some instances. Stay tuned for Wednesday as we will look at the serratus ventralis on some real horses.