Dressage Positively with Laurel Watson

27/02/2023

The day your Cleveland Bay does a 1/4 canter pirouette & you laugh out loud thinking of all of those who mocked R+ training for dressage and told you he couldn't.

20/02/2023

19/02/2023

Sometimes you just have to do something that is outside of the box to move forward.

Leo is a 17hh Cleveland bay who maybe spends too much time at the round bale, weighing in close to 1500 lbs.

He has never been accused of being a light mover, but I would argue that today we have changed his self carriage almost over night.

Leo is my dream horse. A horse big enough for this 5'8" girl to feel like her legs aren't wrapping underneath her horse's belly when she rides.

I had dreams of extended trot across the diagonal, comfortable canter pirouettes and tempi changes.

What I got was a uncoordinated mover who was on the forehand and having a really hard time engaging.

I was encouraged by some highly recognizable trainers to do all of the traditional dressage exercises, told hundreds of times to add more leg, watched one trainer beat the crap out of him with a whip to see him only move an inch and told by another he just couldn't be a dressage horse.

It was then that I started listening to my horse. As I stood there frozen watching this trainer whip him on his butt while telling me it has to get ugly before it gets better, I finally heard Leo tell me loud and clear that he COULD NOT MOVE.

And this started our journey of exclusively using positive reinforcement in our training (to the extent that I can, as negative reinforcement training is so entrenched in the way we are taught as equestrians, it sometimes slips out).

So, with the direction from Leo to help him to be able to move, we started on a journey of lots of bodywork and deliberate exercises to build and strengthen key muscles.

Teaching him to rear (levade) is the exercise we are currently working on to literally build his quads and to teach him to engage his core.

The first week he could only back up.

The second week, he started to lift one front leg.

The third week he started to hop up.

Last week he was able to engage his core and quads and carry his body weight over his hind end for a brief moment.

Today, he is able to easily squat all 1500 lbs of his round bale loving self by engagimg his core and using his quads.

Now, he is not dragging his hind toes.

Now, he is freely moving into trot.

Now, he is light on his feet and knows where his body is.

Now, we can move forward in his training.

What a difference a day makes.

So proud of him. So proud of me for thinking outside the box and not succombing to the limitations of trainers who don't understand anatomy, the process of building muscle, strength training and increasing flexibility within the horse while building strength. Proud that I listened to what he was telling me as I am his advocate.

12/01/2022

Turbo the barn kitty takes his positive reinforcement reward in the form of play time.

25/12/2021

Merry Christmas!

14/12/2021

What type of fitness conditioning do you incorporate into your training progam?

07/12/2021

My thoughts on Positive Reinforcement: Do you want to consistently train your horse to come to you or to run away?

25/11/2021

Thankful for all the moms and dads out their who got their daughter their first horse!

18/11/2021

Sleeping horses are amazing.

Quite some time ago, I was invited to a natural horsemanship performance. At the end of one of the performance, the girl asked her horse to lie down. It reminded me of another circus performance I went to years ago in San Diego where the show ended with the trainer asking all of the horses to lay down. In both cases, it appeared to be part of the show, a natural ending. A metaphor that it was now time to lie down and rest after a hard performance. It was beautiful and the crowd really responded.

So, of course I went home thinking I’m going to train my horses to lay down. After coming home, I searched and found several articles and videos that taught you how to do it. Sadly, many of them required tying your horse’s leg up and leaving it that way until they lost their balance and fell, hopefully gracefully, to the ground. Do that enough times and the horse will learn to immediately lie down to avoid the unpleasantness of having its leg tied up with a rope around its fetlock secured around its neck.

Oh my god, are they serious? Who does that to their horse and thinks it’s a good idea? At any given time, I can go out and lay down with my horses, why would I need to tie their leg up? That seems totally counter productive and if we’re being honest, cruel and maybe even a little bit dangerous if you have a big hunk of a Cleveland Bay that weighs 1700 pounds like I do.

But then I remembered back to when I had just 3 horses: Bill (my retired Appendix racehorse), Cisco (Mark’s Tennessee Walking Horse) and a little Morab that was boarding at our farm. I’d walk out to the barn to check on them at night. In the beginning, if they were laying down they’d automatically get up. I’d always feel bad, they were resting and I interrupted them. I felt like a bad horse mamma.

So, I started leaving the light off when I checked on them, yet they’d still get up. I tried tip toeing into the barn and being much quieter. I was able to get closer, but as soon as I got to the paddock, they’d get up. I oiled the barn door. Then, instead of coming through the barn, I started coming in over the fence. Nothing seemed to be working. They were still getting up.

Winter came and it was getting colder at night, so I just resigned to watching them from the fence. Then I’d sit on the fence for a bit. And then one night with a full moon, I made my way over the fence and just sat on the ground with them. None one stirred. I sat with them, just listening to the sound of their breathing.

I don’t really know when it finally dawned on me that the whole time, they knew exactly what I was thinking and were responding to my thoughts. At first, it was a nightly check in – they were ready to check in with me which meant standing up and coming over to check in. Eventually it became a ritual of me joining them in their time of rest. Sometimes all three would be down, sometimes they’d just be standing, head lowered and eventually one would go down and then the next and finally the third.

I never did train any of them to lay down on cue. The rest time with the herd became too precious to make a game out of it. To this day, if I go out to the pasture and the horses are napping, it’s automatic sacred time to spend with them and no matter how busy I am, I will sit down and just be with them.

As I’ve added more modalities to my tool chest, it’s become a sacred ritual to spend the full moon with them and have a herd Reiki session*. These sessions are always quite magical, inspiring and energizing. I find there no need to teach them to lay down. No need to get them off balance. Instead, we balance each other in a sacred ritual of sharing breath and moonlight. Just being one with the herd.

Sleeping horses are amazing.

This is Dressage Positively.

17/11/2021

There is a ritual that happens at our house in our pantry every night. I have nicknamed “the after-dinner dinner snack”

Yes, you heard that right – the after-dinner DINNER snack. It was a ritual that Mark started. A few of our dogs are older. In other words, they have no more teeth left, so we add water to their kibble and let it soak until the next meal so they can eat soft food. Yes, we know there is soft canned food available. We have 7 dogs, several over 40 lbs. Canned food gets expensive. Don’t judge!

So, after every meal, we have to put dog food into the metal bowls and they dog’s of course notice, so they follow us into the pantry. Anyhoo, Mark started this night-time routine of giving the dogs a few pieces of kibble after making the next meal. This ritual has also bled into the after-breakfast breakfast snack.

At first it drove me absolutely batty. Why are you feeding them again? I’d ask. They literally just ate. The dogs would the follow me into the pantry when I was feeding them and I’d tell them that was a daddy thing and mommy didn’t do snacks after dinner. Then I started feeling guilty – why should he have all the fun?

And it really didn’t dawn on me until this morning why this is such a valuable ritual for our dogs and why I wished I had started it 15 years ago.

The after-dinner dinner snack was how Holly Berry the jumping bean chihuahua learned how to sit and be patient for her meals.

The after-dinner dinner snack was where Cocoa Pebbles started gaining confidence and hanging out with the big dogs.

The after-dinner dinner snack is how I trim the dog’s nails.

The after-dinner dinner snack was where I taught Cocoa Pebbles how to sit, shake, lay down and almost sit pretty.

The after-dinner dinner snack teaches all of our dogs manners. They have to stand or sit and wait patiently for their turn to get just one piece of kibble. In doing so they don’t develop any kind of food aggression. They become confident with other dogs. Positive reinforcement training in action.

And I’m not going to lie, it’s quite a rush when your dog (or horse) comes running to you for their training session. Oh-so-much better than any negative reinforcement training I can think of!

Positive reinforcement training isn't only for the dogs!

16/10/2021

Tarffulo's bed head.

17/08/2021

Does your horse seek you out?

Or does it look to hide when you approach?

26/07/2021

Its Olympic time, so I thought I'd share this article with links to several studies about nose bands. Bottom line, a tight noseband is never good for your horse.

https://www.proequinegrooms.com/tips/equipment-and-tack/science-about-tight-nosebands-your-horse

Let's look at the science and research we have about tight nosebands on a horse's bridle. From bone changes to sores inside the mouth, there are plenty of reasons to use loose nosebands.

01/06/2021

Love these texts after sharing positive reinforcement training with my clients.

24/05/2021

To all of my mule lovers and CA riders, you won't want to miss this.

Keeping a loose back after a long haul! Rolling, part of Fanny’s daily maintenance routine for healthy movement!

Excited to be presenting 2 clinics at the Bishop Mule Days Celebration!

Wednesday 8am
Thursday 2pm

Come check out what relaxation bodywork can do for your mulie!

29/04/2021

https://thesoulofahorse.com/city-of-houston-police-horses-all-barefoot/

40 Horses from all breeds and backgrounds all working 8-10 hours every day on the asphalt, concrete, and marble of downtown Houston. Barefoot and Bitless! All thriving, healthier than ever, with vet bills cut in half. Which pretty much shoots holes in the theory that all horses cannot go barefoot. A...

26/01/2021

REWARD YOUR HORSE
for something
EVERY DAY!
Even if there are
some days when
YOU have to
LOOK HARDER to find it!

22/01/2021

Do you horses greet you at the gate like this each day?

Do you want them to?

I love this look.

I get it every morning ...

Every time I pull my car into the driveway.

Whenever I move toward the fence.

The horses just want to be with me.

And yes, I do use treats in my training, but that's not why they want to be with me.

The reason they want to be with me, is because ...

--> I listen to them.

--> When they greet me, I will greet them back.

--> When they tell me they don't understand by not doing what I ask, I break it down into smaller pieces.

--> When they tell me they can't physically do the movement by avoiding it, I release the tension.

--> When they feel overwhelmed mentally, I let them walk away AND wait for them to come back, on their own time.

--> When they try to do what I ask, I reward them.

This is Dressage Positively (TM).

Way more than treats, Dressage Positively (TM) is a way to to create a relationship with your horse of honest and effective communication so that you both get your needs met.

21/01/2021

Why Dressage Positively?

Let's face it, I don't look like the stereotypical DQ you see at horse shows.

You know the one that schedules her test at noon so she can sleep in, feign being held up so the kids groom her high dollar warm-blood for her and all she has to do is get on and head into the arena for her test after her trainer warms up her horse.

Yeah, so not me.

I'm up at dawn, feed the dogs, feed the horses, then revisit my notes from yesterday and write out my lesson plan for the day.

Have some fun playing with some stuff on the ground or in the saddle - depending on what the horse needs that day.

All before the scorching FL sun and humidity gets to be too much.

Then I finish up my afternoon doing bodywork on my clients horses before I come back home to feed my herd and my pack.

Then maybe, just maybe (if I'm not hosting a coaching call for my equine business coaching clients), I get to spend some time with the hubs.

Glamorous life? Maybe not for some.

Fulfilling life? For me, yes.

So, back to the original question, why Dressage Positively?

Why not dressage using negative reinforcement like so many do? Using whips and double bridles and bradoons and flashes and more leg and hundreds of drills?

Because Dressage Positively is just more simple.

I'm a big fan of simple.

Instead of teaching my horse what NOT to do, I can teach him what I'd like for him to do from the get go.

Isn't that what negative pressure is? Putting pressure on your horse with a bit, your leg, a whip, spur so he stops doing what you don't want him to do and he starts doing what you want him to do.

Why not take out all of that "don't do that" business and just teach him what to do straight away?

See what I'm saying - make it simple.

Then you have time to take your horse to ride at Smith Lake for a few hours.

You get to enjoy the summer day and take in the scenery.

You get to have quality time just BEING with your horse.

Listening to the birds and smelling the freshly cut hay fields.

mmmmmmm .... Dressage Positively.

31/10/2020

Hundreds of years ago, people dressed up as saints and went door to door, which is the origin of Halloween costumes and trick-or-treating.

But, we know that the true saints are our horses, so have a wonderful day with your horse today and every day!

~Laurel Watson
Dressage Positively

22/10/2020

[Thursday Thoughts]

Do you teach your horse "tricks"?

Why or why not?

20/10/2020

Small Movements, BIG Development!

Small movement every day: Take the ordinary movements and supercharge them with love, connection and reward. See how small changes can give your training big development.

Dressage Positively

19/10/2020

[Top 5 Reasons to Use a Target In Your Training]

5. Natural Stretch
4. Increase Engagement
3. Utilize abdominal muscles
2. Open throatlatch
1. NO TENSION

29/02/2020

This is what I've been up to ...

You can check me out weekly on podbean or on the Horse World Connect site -->
https://horseworldconnect.podbean.com/category/dressage-positively-laurel-watson/

Laurel Watson shares a story...a story of what Dressage Positively is and why it matters to you and your horse. You too will be drawn into this story of a girl and her horse. And you too will want to learn more about Dressage Positively...even if dressage ...

22/12/2019

08/12/2019

Everyone, welcome Kimber!

She's the newest member of the herd.

I'll be sharing her progress as she makes her way through my Dressage Positively program.

If you care to watch her progress jump on over to the Live Love Horses Facebook group.

28/08/2019