Ackerly Equestrian Services

How about helicopter proof? Our team did rotorcraft training this weekend, desensitizing these horses to helicopters to allow them to work successfully in the field. Duke is a 4 yr old QH who is member of the PBSO Mounted Unit who is here at Tailwind Trails in training with us at Ackerly Equestrian Services. The other two horses are Busby and Annie, who are the first two members of the newly formed Peace River K9 Search and Rescue Association Inc. East Coast Equine Equine Scenting Team. Busby is a 3 yr old Friesian ridden by XTA Mounted Patrol Academy founder April Milner and Annie is a 5 yr old Friesian Sport Horse ridden by her daughter, Tess. Have a horse who needs to be truly bombproof, please give us a call. Interested in joining our Equine Scenting Team? Go to www.TailwindTrails.com for all the information and to sign up for our clinic on April 5/6/7.

Meet “Fish” a 3 y/o OTTB helping clean up the round pen today. Not even the tallest branches were safe….

-DON’T SKIP STEPS- A-lot of the problem horse we see are smart horses that had a step in the foundation skipped and the horse either Learned to exploit this skipped step Or Has a gap that leads to reactive fearful behavior Both of which can lead to a dangerous horse or a hurt rider. This sounds like a “no duhh” point to raise. As no one intentionally skips steps when working or starting horses but if it happens it will usually go unnoticed until it becomes a problem. The easy going or quick learning horses are often the ones who fall victim to skipped steps. Either by fault of their cooperative demeanor or quick learning they breeze through steps quickly without spending the time necessary to solidify the desired behavior. Some horses will benefit from sticking to the script and doing the extra reps even if you feel they picked it up quickly. A first ride or at a dead gallop is not the time to wish you had spent a little extra time on the simple exercises. Video: unrelated to caption. First time with a leg over and asking her to start breaking her feet loose. Great windy day for this😂

Great day last week working with the PBSO & COP posse. Full day and ending with some desensitizing to loud stimulus. Everyone ended nice and mellow!

Invisible reins?!?!

CADAVER TRAINING Horses are now being used with great success in search and rescue situations. While dogs are the main resource for this work, professionals are starting to find situations in which horses have an upper hand. Many of which involve larger areas and rougher terrains such as a palmetto thicket. As well as some advantages that height have to offer. We had the pleasure of spending this past weekend learning about this skill with the Peace River K9 Search and Rescue Assc. And their team of horses! Here we have a riders point of view for the initial imprinting process for the cadaver scent. Three tubes are placed in front of the horse, one of which is scented. As the horse investigates the scent it is rewarded upon acknowledgement of the desired scent tube. As this process continues and the horse starts to connect the smell with reward we can increase distance and visual cues guiding the horse. XTA Mounted Patrol Academy

-TRAILER LOADING- Getting on the trailer isn’t your issue. Getting off is. Similar to your neighbors cat getting stuck in a tree. Getting up is the easy part. Getting down is hard. Teaching your horse to unload is often more important than teaching them to get on. One foot on. One foot off. Two on. Two off. Etc. until climbing down is just as easy as climbing up. This will fix the anxious feeling your horse is trying to avoid by not loading.

Confidence on the horse’s end, Clear communication on ours > Everything Else ⬇️ It is easy to over simplify this relationship. The word confidence doesn't just mean confidence in the obstacle. Confidence is something gained on several fronts. -Confidence in the obstacle -Confidence in your leadership -Confidence in what the proper response to your cue is The list goes on. It is your job to find, break down, and fill in gaps on each of these fronts.

Day two working the whip from saddle. I’d say he is doing well. A video like this doesn't mean a horse is immune to spooking or will never feel anxiety again. It is just a demonstration of what a horse may be capable of with calm confident direction. This video may not happen if we start the interaction with being nervous or unsure about what we would be asking him to do. He would in turn be less confident. Still not perfectly mellow but better than many would be for day two with this under saddle. The results starts with us.

I’d rather spend twice as long on the ground getting a horse to relax and think before getting under tack. This is Crusoe’s first time under tack with loud stimulus like this and it went about as smooth as I could have hoped. If we end an exercise like this with an underwhelmed sigh as heard, it means our preparation gave us the result we were looking for.😂

Happy to see JR. on to the next leg of his journey. Blessed to play a part in his growth and excited for his upcoming adventures in Ny! Happy trails buddy!

Lead ropes optional…

Mustang Neck Rope

Bridal less! With all of the recent mustang pick ups it would be fitting for a video on ours! Working bridal less with the neck rope on our trail course. Soft and supple horses start on the ground. If anyone needs help with a BLM horse give us a call!

Trouble mounting?

Mounting your horse shouldn’t be an argument. If we start the ride with a fight how can we expect the rest of it to go smoothly. -Quincy has been here a few weeks and started his stay as a pretty spooky horse. The snorting at every thing that moves type. A few weeks of confidence building has worked wonders on him. TRAINING POINTS: When teaching a nervous/anxious horse like Quincy, the last thing we want to do is discipline a try. Even if it is not the correct answer we need to handle that crucial moment properly or we will lose the super sensitive horses. The try comes before the correct response. These arena lights rock! Tailwind Trails

Nothing better than seeing our help getting put to work! Great job Meadowlark Farm and Stable

First time shooting with Diego. A few weeks ago this wouldn’t have gone as smoothly. Basics make the bigger tasks easier. Now to a Treasure Coast Top Guns practice!

SANTANA - 15.2 - 10 yo

SANTANA Gelding 15.2 H 10 yo This sweet guy is looking for a care lease. He was brought to us by one of our awesome local vets Karie for a tune up and to help find him a good home! Super sure footed horse with a motor who would make an awesome mount for any trail riding/ obstacle challenges/ leisure rides. Laid back but will pick up if you ask. Easy keeper. Ties. Stands. Cross ties. Home will need vet and farrier references. Contact Karie Vander Werf for details!

Confidence and Trust on the ground equals Confidence and Trust under saddle. Waylon is a very aware horse and can be sensitive to outside stimuli but his first interaction with the sea-saw went as smoothly as I could have hoped for! Excited for the next few months with this guy.

Awesome practice today! This guy is coming along nicely! Thank you to all who came out! Treasure Coast Top Guns Tailwind Trails