Unlike animals such as dogs and cats, where much of their behavior can be understood by the noises they make, horses communicate almost purely with body language. In this two part series we will first cover how the horse displays negative emotions through his body language. Continue reading Communicating With Horses Part 1
Do you dream that you could come from a full gallop to a walk by only using your seat? It is all very possible by practicing subtle cues in your training sessions. Here we will start from a walk and build up to stopping the horse from your seat at faster gaits. Continue reading Downward Transitions Part 1
Now that you can confidently stop your horse with your seat from the walk on a loose rein, it’s time to advance to stopping from the trot and canter. Continue reading Downward Transitions Part 2
Imagine a dressage rider sitting the trot so well that she appears to be apart of the horse, or a show jumper quietly transitioning his horse from a standstill into a collected canter. Both these riders have put a lot of time and effort into riding their horses correctly. They also have worked with trainers every day and that’s not always possible to do. Here I’ll give you some tips on how you can make big improvements in a small amount of time. Continue reading Connected Riding
Yielding the horse’s shoulders gives you greater control over your personal space, and the movement of the horse. Teaching this exercise will move the horse out of your space whenever he pushes into you with his shoulders. Also, you can position him anywhere you’d like during grooming or washing. Continue reading Yielding the Shoulders
Teaching the horse to yield his hindquarters when you ask is the foundation exercise of many ground work and riding lessons. This lesson teaches the horse to face you, bend his body, and cross his legs in response to pressure. By teaching him to yield on the ground first, it will be easier for the horse to understand once you start asking him under saddle. Continue reading Yielding The Hindquarters
The time has come to saddle your young horse for the first time. Through all the preparation you have been doing this lesson should go smoothly. Continue reading First Saddling
This lesson is extremely important as it prepares your horse for the movement and noise of the saddle when he is in motion. Lots of horses are fine with desensitizing when they are standing still, but get worried when you start to desensitize them while they are moving. In this lesson you will teach the horse to accept stimulus while in motion, which will prepare him for your movement in the saddle when being ridden. Continue reading Desensitizing While Lunging
Lots of riders have trouble keeping their lower leg in the correct place. They also have difficulties with posting, falling forward, or having the leg swing. Here I’ll give you some exercises to help secure your position in the saddle at each gait. Continue reading Improve Your Leg Position
The horse has five main body parts. They are the head and neck, the poll, the shoulders, the rib cage, and the hindquarters. It is essential that you have control over all five parts of the horse on the ground and under saddle. The basic groundwork lessons that I have described earlier will give you control of all the body parts on the ground. Here, we will talk more about moving all the parts while riding. Continue reading Moving The Five Body Parts