Soliz Horsemanship

07/11/2023

Just a couple sweet horses learning new things to brighten your day! Spent a few hours with these two boys teaching them the ropes of driving.

As you can see, one has progressed much farther than the other. It’s a good reminder that we all learn at a different pace and we all excel at different things.

Always take the horse for what’s in front of you. Don’t fit them into a box they don’t fit in. And always remember to take your time. Don’t take shortcuts.

Again for the people in the back. Take your time, not shortcuts!

Edited to add: horse is not hitched. Just holding cart up to get him used to the feeling.

03/11/2022

Meet “Chicken.” Chicken has been with us for a month and he sure does live up to his name.

He spent his childhood training hard for high level competition and he was a winner!

After 6 months laid up at the vet, he came back a different horse. He came back extremely touchy and dead set convinced the whole world was out to get him.

After a month of work, we have come to discover a truly incredible horse underneath the rust. He is an absolute dream to ride and responds to the smallest movement.

Chicken will be with us a little longer while we take care of a few more holes in his education. But then he will be looking for his forever home.

We’ll definitely miss this handsome guy.

06/07/2022

21/06/2022

20/06/2022

After seeing multiple videos posted by various breeders bragging about their 2 ½ year olds/recently turned 3 year olds and sharing videos of them cantering around in the arena, I have decided to once again circulate the below article.

First of all, breeders *should* have the knowledge to understand a horse’s fragile and slow maturing musculoskeletal system. Breeders should not condone their own horses let along anyone’s horses being cantered around under saddle at an incredibly young age. Period. This sets a terrible example and is quite honestly animal abuse. Just because a horse does not object does not mean it is right. And quite frankly, most of the videos posted show animals that are already in pain or developing pain…

As breeders, we should strive to produce healthy and sound animals. We should promote horsemanship that produces long term soundness. No, starting a horse later does not guarantee soundness. But it certainly helps.

I am a firm believer in scientifically backed approaches to horsemanship. You can’t argue with science that has been proven time and time again. Let’s dispel some stupid rumors:

1. There is no such thing as a (skeletally) slow maturing horse or one that is fast maturing. No horse is skeletally mature before the age of 6. And that is on the low estimate for age.

2. Growth plates are not just in the knee. Every bone behind the skull has a growth plate. Not every single one needs to be converted to bone before starting. There is a schedule of when bone fuses…this is the information needed to know when to start a horse. Not their outward appearance. It is a known fact that during growth, proprioceptive awareness can regress, greatly increasing the risk of injury.

3. Starting a horse is not the same thing as riding a horse. Starting a horse does not mean cantering it 3-4 days a week in an arena.

4. Injecting a horse that is in pain does not mean you fixed a problem. You masked it.

5. You can build correct muscle and teach a horse how to move their body from the ground. This creates a solid foundation to work from once your horse is ready to actually be backed. Teach a horse to use its body correctly before backing and you’ll save yourself a lot of vet bills down the line.

Hocks are “late” for maturity. The growth plates on the tibial and fibular tarsals do not fuse until a horse is 3-3 ½. Ever wonder why so many horses seem to have hocks issues?? Horses need to learn to carry themselves and their own weight well before adding a rider.

The growth plates that are LAST to close are at the base of the neck. This area is where we ask a horse to raise the base of their neck and come round. If under too much stress, the growth plates can fracture or be permanently damaged.

There are DOZENS of activities you can do with a young horse to build healthy muscular development. None of them involve a saddle or your weight on their back. Teaching a horse to carry themselves correctly BEFORE adding a rider is essential and cannot be done in a week. A 2 ½ year old horse is a baby. Mentally and physically. We see far too many injured performance horses at VERY young ages - broken down and/or sour from work. It’s wrong. Period. They need slow and steady work and need time to recover from even the slightest of injuries.

PLEASE, if you are considering when you should start your horse and what that work load should look like, please read the below. There are some wonderful things you can do with your young developing horse. Please don’t rush a year out of greed.

http://www.equinestudies.org/ranger_2008/ranger_piece_2008_pdf1.pdf

20/06/2022

Dr. Goodwin will be presenting Range Management Considerations During Drought via Zoom tomorrow. See the flyer below for more information and registration. 👇👇👇

18/06/2022

“This isn’t about making the horse learn. It’s about allowing him to learn. He maybe has to go through some troubled times in order to learn. They’re going to make mistakes while they learn. If you get too critical about mistakes, then they stop trying to work at figuring it out. Don’t worry if he doesn’t get it right at first. He just doesn’t know.” -Ray Hunt-

I may be at the young age of 31, but due to a lifetime of chronic issues, I simply can’t spend the hours in the saddle that I used to. This has forced me to sit on the sidelines coaching as some younger and abler helpers do the riding.

We recently started working with a 4 yo roan gelding with a 30 day start working a feedlot. Although rather slow, he is a good minded horse with a good attitude. He has all the typical signs of a horse that was started quick and put straight to work. While he follows the bridle, he doesn’t yet truly understand it. While he will move out when asked, it’s not long before he dies out as he doesn’t yet truly understand impulsion.

One of my helpers has been doing quite a bit of riding on ole roany and every ride she comes back to me with “he’s so frustrating to ride. He fights everything I ask.” As I watch her ride, I see that she has a goal and a direction in mind while the horse is simply trying to understand how to be safe and comfortable in what he is doing.

Then I hear myself saying the words that have been said to me more times than I can count “He’s just a baby. Meet him where he’s at.”

When we fail to meet the horse where he’s at and we hold him to higher standards than he is currently capable of achieving, we cause frustration and we cause him to quit trying. Try expecting a toddler with a fistful of crayons to draw the Mona Lisa. Is the toddler the dumb one for not being capable of accomplishing such a work of art? Or are you the dumb one for expecting it?

Often, we approach a horse that is at a toddler level as if it were at the level of da Vinci and then we blame the horse when he fails to meet our expectations. We all need the reminder now and then to stop and put aside where we WISH our horse was at and to look at where out horse is TRULY at in their education.

But we can’t stop there or we’d be selling our horses short. Turn those unreasonable expectations into future goals. And then break it down into baby steps and help your horse achieve those goals. Allow him to learn, “don’t get too critical about mistakes” and “don’t worry if he doesn’t get it right at first. He just doesn’t know.”

You are your horse are both capable of great things. Just meet him where he’s at today and be forgiving to your horse AND to yourself. We are all learning every day. Never stop learning!

17/06/2022

We’ll have more openings starting July 1. We do training, tuneups and consignment sales.

We can’t wait to work with you to help you achieve the best horse experience you can!

17/06/2022

Shoutout to the helpers who make what we do possible! They bring grit, courage, hard work and a whole lotta laughs every day.

11/06/2022

“Pepper” (formerly named Murphy) here was recently purchased for a client. One of the wishlist items was for the horse to be gun broke. We’ve been working hard at it and I’m pretty happy with the progress so far.

06/05/2022

Meet Murphy. Purchased from Elite Horse Auction in Navasota for a client. We couldn’t be happier. 4 year old with 30 days on him and he exceeds all expectations.

He will be in training for the next couple months to gain experience and confidence and learn to handle gun fire.

06/05/2022

A client has asked me to gun break a couple horses for him. Today is day one and I have to say I’m pretty impressed with both these ponies.

19/04/2022

My favorite way to put miles on those ponies. Supporting local and getting some ice cold sweet tea!

My favorite customers! I love it when their adults can ride them over for lunch! Yes, we have a hitching post thanks to Don't forget tonight is buy one beverage and get one half off from 5-8. These guys might be back later for a beer!

10/04/2022

Oreo (Now named Pharoh) will be leaving today headed to California to work security for Coachella and Stagecoach music festivals.

Wish him luck!

We love helping horses find their perfect homes and their perfect jobs!

09/04/2022

Y’all remember Oreo? Well he found the perfect home and the perfect job! He can be found on patrol keeping the Woodlands safe! If you see him around the Woodlands Mall tell him hi for me!

30/03/2022

It’s getting to be perfect swimming weather! Oreo wanted to go for a dunk in the pond.

27/03/2022

Lazy Sunday afternoons are made for lovin’ on the ponies.

20/03/2022

Excerpt from Tom Dorrance’s students visits about Tom.

“I remember Tom reminding me that if something isn’t working out for you like you would like, don’t worry about it because you are liable ti be trying too hard and trying to force it to happen, and it just doesn’t work that way. I remember him saying, ‘you need to be the horse’s master, but him not the slave, but rather your willing partner.’ You need to learn to wait for things to happen.

Sometimes your horse will know what you want and be trying to coordinate himself for it. Tom gave the example of someone telling you to hit a nail with a hammer in your left hand. You l know what the person wants, you try, but you need some time to coordinate yourself. Someone can put the pressure on you to get good at it, but then you have that standing in the way of what you are trying to accomplish.”

Folks, be patient!!! Nine times out of ten your horse wants to please. They want to do what you asked. They just need some time. Speed and accuracy in fulfilling what you have asked doesn’t happen overnight.

15/03/2022

This guy would love to call your pasture his new home. He’s a gem! Message us for more info!

11/03/2022

Getting some work done and visiting one of our favorite local small businesses.

11/03/2022

Need a good all around horse? Oreo is your guy. He’ll pack you down the trail with no drama. He’ll work your cows. He is calm and brave. If you ask him for speed he’s got it! But he doesn’t get hot. He would be appropriate for all levels of riding experience.

26/09/2021

Hey Everyone!

I had to take a hiatus from riding ponies for a little while to recover from a couple back surgeries. We all know how hard our horses can be on our bodies over time.

But I am back and strong as ever and I'm ready to help you with those projects and problems again!

If you have a horse that needs a tune-up, or you have a problem horse that needs some help, hit me up and Ill get you on my schedule!