Ivy Starnes - Ivy's Glide Gait

29/08/2025

26/08/2025

I want to add that there is nothing wrong with waiting longer to put rides on a horse, especially if there is still good training going on. I've waited until Firefly is 6 years old to put longer, faster rides, but she has had training through her whole life.

25/08/2025

Starting from Neutral: Why Calm Default Matters in R+ Training

One of the most overlooked yet powerful foundations in positive reinforcement training is the idea of a calm default (sometimes called default neutral, patient position, default behaviour, settle, or calm default stationing). No matter the name, the principle is the same. Before asking for complex behaviours, it is essential that our horses know how to return to a neutral, relaxed baseline.

When we start from calm:

✨ Learning is faster and clearer:

High or chronic stress impairs problem solving and memory, while a balanced level of arousal supports learning. A neutral state leaves room for real learning to occur.

✨ We avoid false positives and superstitious learning:

A horse who is fidgeting, mugging, or offering behaviours at random is not truly engaged with clarity. They are guessing under pressure, sometimes repeating behaviours that accidentally worked once. A calm default helps us reinforce precision, not confusion.

✨ It builds safety:

That clarity also feeds into safety for both horse and human. A horse who can pause, settle, and wait without anxiety is less likely to escalate when things get challenging.

✨ It protects the reinforcement history:

When rewards are consistently linked to frantic energy or pushiness, we risk creating a training loop that feels chaotic rather than cooperative. Calm default helps keep reinforcement linked to relaxation and trust.

✨ Bonus:

Calm default can also be shaped into an opt out behaviour. This means the horse has a safe way to receive reinforcement if they do not know what to do or if they cannot do what is asked.

What we actually reinforce are the observable postures of calm such as stillness, head forward, and soft muscles. These postures often correlate with a calmer internal state. While we cannot directly reinforce emotions, we can consistently reinforce the behaviours that express them. Over time, this builds both the posture of calm and the feeling of safety that goes with it.

Think of calm default as your foundation stone.

Neutral is not about shutting down energy or enthusiasm. It is about teaching that calm is always safe, always reinforcing, and always the place we return to. From that baseline, anything becomes possible.

24/08/2025

🔬 𝗦𝗧𝗨𝗗𝗜𝗘𝗦 𝗦𝗔𝗬: 𝗨𝗞 𝗘𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝗦𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗠𝗶𝘀𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗛𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗲 𝗕𝗲𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗼𝘂𝗿

A growing body of research shows that 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗨𝗞 𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗮 𝗹𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗳 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻 —despite decades of progress in equine science and behavior studies.
Yet, terms like “naughty,” “stubborn,” and “defiant” are still commonly used to describe horses showing 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝗻𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗼𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗲𝘀.

Let’s unpack why that’s a problem. 👇

🧠𝗛𝗢𝗥𝗦𝗘 𝗕𝗥𝗔𝗜𝗡𝗦 ≠ 𝗛𝗨𝗠𝗔𝗡 𝗕𝗥𝗔𝗜𝗡𝗦
Horses have 𝘀𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗲𝘀 compared to humans. This part of the brain is responsible for 𝗲𝘅𝗲𝗰𝘂𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗼𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗿𝗲𝗴𝘂𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝗻 𝗵𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘀. Horses simply 𝙙𝙤 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙥𝙤𝙨𝙨𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙖𝙢𝙚 𝙘𝙖𝙥𝙖𝙘𝙞𝙩𝙮 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙙𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙗𝙚𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙤𝙧 “𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙖𝙡” 𝙗𝙚𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙞𝙤𝙪𝙧.

Instead, equine cognition is built on:

•𝗔𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 (classical and operant conditioning)
•𝗠𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗿𝘆-𝗯𝗮𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗼𝘂𝗿 (especially negative reinforcement and avoidance learning, as well as positive reinforcement)
•𝗜𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗲𝘀 (primarily fight, flight, or freeze)

💥 What many riders perceive as “naughty” behaviour is often:

•A 𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙥𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙚 from unclear or conflicting signals
•A 𝙛𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙥𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙚 triggered by fear or insecurity
•A 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 to pressure, pain, or discomfort
•A 𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙤𝙛 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙧 𝙝𝙖𝙗𝙞𝙩𝙪𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙤𝙧 𝙙𝙚𝙨𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙯𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣
•𝙋𝙖𝙞𝙣-𝙧𝙚𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙗𝙚𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙞𝙤𝙪𝙧 or remembered pain often missed or misinterpreted

📚 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘄𝘀 that labeling horses with anthropomorphic terms (like “naughty” or “cheeky”) leads to training methods that are less effective and more likely to cause distress or learned helplessness.

✅ A more ethical, evidence-based approach requires:

•Understanding the horse as a 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗹
•Recognizing their limited ability to process 𝗮𝗯𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲𝘀
•Using 𝗰𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿, 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁, 𝗹𝗼𝘄-𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝗻𝘃𝗶𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀
•Applying 𝘀𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲-𝗯𝗮𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘀, not tradition or punishment

💬 It’s time we stop blaming the horse and start questioning the human interpretation. Science offers us the tools - 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘃𝗲?

Study link in the comments 🤓
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Scootboot
Equine Products UK
Arena Saddles
Equine Light Therapy LTD

23/08/2025

I'm super excited to share this podcast I was on! We talked a lot about the myths of gaited horses, about the one thing I would change to improve the gaited community, and what my 3 magic wishes are.

In this episode, host Tamara Lee Barrett sits down with Ivy Starnes of Ivy's Glide Gait, a gaited horse trainer from Fort Worth, Texas. Ivy shares her journe...

22/08/2025

The Body Doesn’t Lie

I’m a little (a lot) increasingly worried and frustrated about the postures I am seeing horses worked in. I saw a post yesterday of a horse being worked in side reins comparing day one of using them to day two; day one — bracing; day two — horse sucking behind the side reins, opening mouth, compressing the wither (and everything else) to avoid pressure.

The day before that, one professional rider riding a 4 year old hyperflexed with draw reins in one clip and a tight martingale in another.

The day before that, a client told me that another therapist had told them to just shut their horses mouth with a flash to stop contact evasions… when in fact this horse is experiencing significant discomfort.

Today, a video saying if your horse leans on the contact to just give them a sharp upward motion of the rein to get them to sit back… because there surely isn’t a physical or rider issue why they do that!?

IF you DON’T think what you are doing is wrong, LOOK and FEEL your horse.

If you’re ignoring their signals in every other way, their body won’t lie. If you’re doing everything right, they’ll look right.

If you’re constantly battling with the same issues, if your physio keeps noticing a tight poll/lacking muscle/stiffness, if you can see your horses ligament clicking and flicking over the top of their neck every time you change bend, please please widen the gaze and realise — this is not right, this is not normal for their body, what is going wrong?

There is no shame in breaking away from a trainer you’ve used for years; or changing from a saddle you once loved to a new one; or giving your horse a little while off whilst you sort your body out and make sure you’re not hindering them. This is the part of the “sport” (I hate that word in this context) that has been so massively overlooked of late.

Even if you’re a professional rider only riding a horse for 30 mins a week, we are our horses GUARDIANS on this planet. Every interaction means we should care for every part of them whole heartedly. If something isn’t right, they will try and tell us however they can — big or small.

Speech and panic over… resume your day 🙃

21/08/2025

Your horse wants to get it right.
Your horse does what works and what's easy. What works isn't always what we want and what's easy isn't always good for the horse.
Figure out what actually motivates your horse (food, rest). Figure out how to get your horse to try something different and then acknowledge it. Don't ignore the try.
Learn how to get your horse to move differently. Do not let them move in ways that are bad for them. A horse moving incorrectly is building muscle that is bad for them.
If you want to get gait, don't allow your horse to keep moving incorrectly and heavily reinforce the good or the different!
Learn more at one of my interactive gaited clinics.
-New Hampshire, Aug 22-24
-Cleveland, Ohio, Sept 5-7
-St. Paul, Minnesota, Sept 19-21
-Denver, Colorado (possible), Oct 3-5
-Boise, Idaho, Oct 10-12
-Sonoita, AZ, Nov 14-16
Comment for more info.

21/08/2025

As you train your gaited horse, how are you helping them understand what gait you want?
Firefly has had fewer than 30 rides in her whole life. Only about 12 rides this year. Most of her rides are less than 20 minutes long.
Firefly naturally gaits and trots and paces, so she isn't the most naturally gaited horse out there. This year, I focused on using clicker training to mark and reinforce gait whether under saddle or on the ground. Short sessions with clear bridge signals ("click") and reinforcement has helped Firefly understand which movement I want. She can easily do many different movements and I believe that training the gait has a HUGE mental component. The horse has to understand what you want. As you train your gaited horse, how are you helping them understand what gait you want???
Learn more at one of my interactive gaited clinics.
-New Hampshire, Aug 22-24
-Cleveland, Ohio, Sept 5-7
-St. Paul, Minnesota, Sept 19-21
-Denver, Colorado (possible), Oct 3-5
-Boise, Idaho, Oct 10-12
-Sonoita, AZ, Nov 14-16
Comment for more info.

21/08/2025

I have seen this work with training. Making sure you have something that is reinforceable and easy to allow the horse to pick the harder thing when ready has been helpful for horses who have a lot of fear.

20/08/2025

Contrafreeloading: Showing Us Training Isn’t Just About the Food

Contrafreeloading describes when an animal chooses to work for food, even though the same food is freely available. At first glance, it looks irrational. Why spend effort when you don’t have to? But the science tells us something fascinating: it’s not just the food that reinforces.

💡 The brain’s reward system:

When a horse engages in a task like pulling hay through a net, touching a target, or stepping onto a mat, their brain doesn’t only release dopamine when the food appears. Dopamine also fires during the seeking and problem-solving phase. The challenge itself creates anticipation and reward.

🔍 Information as reinforcement:

Research across species suggests that animals contrafreeload partly because working provides information about their environment. That learning process is intrinsically rewarding. For a horse, figuring out how to get the hay from the net or how to make the human click and treat can be satisfying in its own right.

🧩 Agency and control:

Control is a fundamental need. Choosing to do the harder thing gives the horse a sense of agency, a feeling of “I can influence this outcome.” That predictability and control reduces stress and activates reward pathways that are separate from the food itself.

🌱 Why this matters in training:

It turns out it is not all about the food. Food is not the only reinforcer in the equation. Behaviours taught this way develop a deeply rooted reinforcement history because the horse is not only reinforced by the food but also by the process of figuring it out and engaging in the task. This makes those y strong, reliable, and rewarding to repeat. It also explains why horses often stay motivated even when an opt out or alternative is available. Training in this way becomes enrichment in itself, fulfilling core behavioural needs.

✨ Cool applications:

This is where concepts like start buttons and consent-based training become so powerful. Horses can choose to begin the interaction and still stay motivated to participate, even though they could walk away and still get fed. The reinforcement is not only in the food but in the active choice, the puzzle, and the sense of control.

✨ Takeaway:

Contrafreeloading tells us horses don’t only want the food. They want the experience of earning it, of solving the puzzle, of controlling the outcome. That is why good training feels good to them, not only because of what they get, but because of what they do.

20/08/2025

I don't think I've done anything with the tarp with Firefly since she was a little foal, but... she has been blanketed during cold or cold wet weather and you can see she is totally unconcerned with the tarp!
To help prepare your young horse for saddling and all the things that we ask horses to do, consider putting blankets on in the winter or during wet weather.