Yanven Kelpies

15/07/2026

This is Tails. By Yanven Target out of Anna Hughes’ good bitch, Meg. This is not as spectacular as backing a long way into a shearing shed or down a long drenching race but sometimes it takes more understanding and training to move flighty ewes through improvised yards whilst keeping the sheep, the handler and the dog safe. Tails is just an apprentice but did a good job looking after his old handler today.

01/07/2026

Here’s another horse story that I believe relates equally to working dog training.

The Best Laid Plans

When I trained horses for a living, I rode between eight and fifteen horses every day.

Each horse was at a different stage of training and each horse reacted differently on any particular day.

Half the time I couldn’t even remember where I was up to with them.

It didn’t matter because each horse soon let me know what I needed to work on that day.

Perhaps a young horse was trotting around with me and the saddle and going well.

I’d expect to canter him for the first time next lesson. However, when I rode the horse next day, he didn’t go as well and this showed me that he wasn’t ready to be cantered after all.

So my canter plan had to wait.

I’d spend more time trotting around and see how things went.

There was always tomorrow.

Sometimes my plans changed for the better.

Another horse mightn’t have been going as well and I’d expect problems when I rode him next lesson.

Horses like this often surprised me and went much better the following day.

Whether I’m catching a foal for the first time or riding an educated horse that I’ve had for years,

I don’t set out to reach a certain goal in any lesson.

I don’t plan the lesson.

Every interaction with every horse is different and every lesson is different.

Though I have specific goals every time I work with a horse, I don’t care if they happen today, tomorrow or next week.

The horse will always let me know what the day’s lesson should be.

You may start a lesson thinking that you want to work on canter circles.

Your horse however, may start the lesson thinking that he wants to run and play.

This means that your canter circle plan has to go on the back burner.

You mustn’t punish your horse for being fresh and feeling frisky.

And don’t expect any horse to concentrate when he feels this way.

You simply have to give your horse some exercise to overcome his excess energy.

Though you planned to improve your canter circles, you might have to spend the lesson trotting and cantering your horse to overcome his exuberance.

Improving canter circles can easily wait for another day.

Always be careful when you teach something new.

It’s very easy to overdo your training.

Perhaps you’ve been working day after day on half-pass or some particular movement.

If your horse isn’t responding as you wish, don’t keep pushing on.

Don’t think you need to do more half-pass.

The best thing to do is to forget about half-pass for a while.

Work on something else and let your horse relax.

Just because you plan to ride a perfect half-pass doesn’t mean that you should work on it day after day.

Your plans must always be guided by the way your horse reacts.

Remember, he doesn’t know what your plans are and he doesn’t automatically know what you want him to do.

Your horse may not understand as much as you think he does.

It’s always up to you to read your horse, teach him carefully and adjust your plans every time you work with him.

Always remember – Aim for perfection but be happy with improvement.

27/05/2026

08/04/2026

I believe the same goes for working dogs.

THE BASICS ARE NOT ACTUALLY BASIC.
A lot of people get this wrong right out of the gate.
They hear “the basics” and think beginner stuff. Entry level. The simple things you do before you move on to the real training.
That’s not what the basics are.
The basics are the real training.
I was at a clinic not long ago, and a rider came up to me during the lunch break. Nice person. Been riding a long time. She said, “I feel like I’ve outgrown the basics. I need something more advanced.”
Her horse was standing there behind her, crowding her space, checked out, not with her at all.
I didn’t point that out.
I just asked her to show me her lateral flexion.
It wasn’t really there.
The horse brought his nose around, but his feet stayed stuck and his mind was somewhere else. That’s not lateral flexion. That’s a head movement.
And that’s the problem.
A lot of people think they’ve got the basics because they can get a shape, a motion, or a maneuver.
But the basics were never about making the body do something.
They’re about getting the horse soft in his mind, clear in his feet, and responsive to the lightest suggestion.
You do not outgrow that.
You just keep finding a deeper level of it.
Every advanced maneuver, every refined cue, every soft, handy, broke horse you’ve ever admired came from the same place: solid fundamentals.
Lateral flexion. Moving the hindquarters. Moving the shoulders. Soft feet. Responsiveness. Attention. Feel.
That’s not beginner material.
That’s the whole deal.
I’ve been around some of the best horsemen in the world, and what separates them is not that they left the basics behind.
It’s that they went so deep into them that most people can’t even see what they’re doing.
The signal gets smaller.
The response gets better.
Everything gets quieter.
That’s what refinement is.
Not more tricks.
Not more steps.
Not more advanced exercises.
Just better basics.
So when your horse has a hole—and I don’t care whether it’s spooking, buddy sourness, trailer loading, bucking, brace, dullness, or anything else—I’d bet good money the answer is hiding somewhere in a basic piece that got skipped, rushed, or never really got solid.
Not because the basics are simple.
Because they matter that much.
So here’s what I’d do this week.
Go back to something foundational.
Slow it down.
Don’t run through it like a checklist.
Stay there longer than feels necessary.
Get it to where your horse is not just doing it, but understanding it. Where he’s sure. Where the feet are right. Where the mind is with you. Where the response is honest.
Then build from there.
It might feel like you’re going backwards.
You’re not.
That’s usually the exact spot where things start getting good.
The little things are the big things.
And the farther you go with horses, the more true that gets.

02/04/2026

Maisie (and her 2 brothers) are developing nicely.

15/03/2026

Maisie’s third training run on sheep. I’m very relieved that she’s shown real improvement today.

13/03/2026

This is Merv’s second training run after his dry training. Some clown didn’t charge the mic but I think it’s good to see how they improve so quickly when they know what is required.

13/03/2026

Merv’s first training run on sheep after his dry work training.

11/03/2026

We will run a dog training school 11 & 12 and/ or 18/19th April if there is enough interest.
Message Yanven Kelpies page or call
0448572000 with any enquiries.

05/03/2026

Tom’s apprenticeship is progressing nicely.