
08/19/2023
Well this is pretty darn interesting when you look at how the body compensated!
Using compassion to work with horses and their people to create healthier movement and longevity.
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Well this is pretty darn interesting when you look at how the body compensated!
Such a beautifully written post reminding us to appreciate everything ❤
Many riders don't enjoy the process of training or learning to ride dressage. Many problems come from riders demanding performance instead of appreciating effort. Learn how to enjoy learning and doing dressage by believing that it shouldn't work!
Cranial Sacral work has been a game changer for Gustavo.....look at that face! He has been able to release so much tension in his back end. If you're new here, he had a twisted sacrum, most likely for years, and it took me several chiropractic vets, and following my gut, to find someone that could adjust it. Unfortunately, this was during his growing years, and I think will always be a weak area for him. He did start having back end problems too after gelding, so a gelding scar is always in the back of my mind.
Emmy with Appaloosa Masoosa has been able to make big changes in him. She will be teaching a class here along side myself at the end of the month. There's still room to join! I will link the event in the comments!
The key to proper movement is a ton of work at the walk, and I mean a ton! But it has to be done mindfully, otherwise you're just practicing walking out of balance, which will lead to compounded imbalance in trot and canter. The horse must be educated to build a proper foundation of using both hind legs equally, and find proper spinal rotation. Otherwise, they will "cheat" and go back into their old limb dominance habits. It's like if you're right handed and I say that I want you to write the alphabet with your left hand, but if I'm not looking, you'll likely take a break and go back to using your dominant right hand.
Learn more in my online library for less than the cost of 2 lessons!
www.shadetreestables.com/classes
Equine enrichment
Gustavo enjoying a nice scratch on the push broom head mounted on the post 😁❤️🐎
Wow, we had a fantastic workshop with my friend and colleague, Karin, German Miles yesterday! It was a " Karin Miles - Neuro Rider " clinic addressing how our brains control our movement, and how we can improve, not only as riders, but in daily life. It was 10 full hours of brain and nervous system theory, cross coordinator exercises, and individual assessment and tailored exercises to go forward with. I have always struggled with posture, and in 2 minutes, I've gained better posture awareness that has continued today. Huge thanks to Karin for taking the time to travel here from AL, to all those who helped make it possible, brought goodies, and who filled the clinic in order to allow me to continue to bring fantastic clinicians to our area ♥️
Rocking the German Miles Karin Miles - Neuro Rider clinic!
Just back from another fantastic 2 day clinic. I didn't take any pictures during lessons, but we focused on spinal alignment, and clean gaits with new students, and then with the ones that have done lessons on past trips, we worked on refining rider position, and striving to use only seat and indirect rein cues, along with polishing some of the laterals for the purpose of creating better movement in the trot and canter. Here is a picture of me playing with the "big toddler" between teaching steps of haunches in, and then some cute babies and happy horses in turn out ❤️
I love playing with 🔥🔥🔥
Apparently I have a type 🤨🤪🔥🐎
Gustavo picture by Preis Photography
Crucero picture is an screenshot
Lack of dust suppression by Advanced Arena
I'm sure many of you heard about the 93 weanlings that were dumped at a kill pen recently. Luckily they all found homes. Sadly, there were a lot of aged horses that are still waiting. One was "a 20 year old mare, not even halter broke, probably doesn't have a lot of friends". Those are the ones I worry about. And here's the thing.... we can't save them all. In my opinion the only way we can get ahead of the people wanting to make the last couple dollars off a horse, is to educate the buyers, and vote with our dollars. Just saying "stop horse slaughter" doesn't solve any of the problems. There are always going to be crummy people, but if we educate more of the population maybe we can make a dent. How do we do this?
🔹When buying young horses do your research. If possible, go see where these horses are coming from. Ask for references, check with other professionals in the area. Pass on horses foals whose parents you wouldn't buy because of lameness or neglect.
🔹Ask where their aged mares go when they are no longer producing.
🔹Ask to see pictures of the mare's feet to see if they are keeping up on their hoof care. I have seen the puppy mills of the horse world, and they are just as bad as the dog world.
🔹Educate, educate, educate. When looking for an older horse, learn about hoof care, saddle fit, signs of pain. A well trained, well maintained horse will hold it's value no matter it's age, but one that has kissing spines from poor saddle fit, founder from poor feeding/housing practices, behavioral issues from abusive training will be an "unwanted" horse, adding to the slaughter pipeline.
🔹Last but not least, if you have one of these "unwanted horses", do it a favor and put it down humanely at home. Don't send it down the road to someone who will "love it more", or "because it's too hard for you to make the decision". I see way too many horses suffering with loving owners that mean well. I can totally relate to how hard this is. I have had to make the quality of life decision on 4 of my senior horses in the last 4 years. Combined, I had those horses a total of 81 years, but I loved THEM more than I loved the idea of having them with me and suffering from things that I wasn't going to be able to cure. My vet says "there are worse things than dead" and I couldn't agree more.
Event lines
Event lines aren't just caused by diet! The chestnut horse is my horse Crucero. His event lines were caused by his pneumonia hospitalization (6 days at U of I) and had about 8 months of growth when this picture was taken.
The dark horse belongs to a client whose horse had a catastrophic eye injury that led to his eye being surgically removed and two hospital stays. This is about 5-6 months of growth.
This is just one example of how stress affects the body!
I think the "Exploring the Equine Skeleton" class was a success! This was the first time teaching it in the new arena, with the added stations, and without Magic as my model 😢, but Brego did a fantastic job as our model, and he's hired going forward!
This class brought in so many new people with such diverse backgrounds and deep interest in learning all we can about the horse in order to do better by them. Turns out there are other people who like weirdos like me that want to play with geeky puzzles 🤣
My working student Cleo is retiring....actually she's leaving for college to become a vet! We've had a long run. I did my best to expose her to as much of the equine profession as possible. Dentists, body work, cranial sacral, farriery, wound care, classical riding, a lesson with my trainer when she was here from Germany, riding in test saddles, and letting her play with baby dragons. I hope it serves her well in her new endeavors!
She promised to come back and be my vet ;) Hurry up Cleo, the industry needs you!!!
He's not even started under saddle, but already modeling the Valencia from HIDALGO Sattel 😍.
I was thinking this was the color combo I wanted to go with for him, but now I'm not so sure 🤔
What do you think? Do you like the colors?
This saddle is in the US and available through Hug Your Horse : Hidalgo Leather Tree Consultant
I'm busy tomorrow so I set up today for Saturday's class. There's still time to join us! This will be hands on learning!
https://fb.me/e/3cjrgGvh4
I test rode the Valencia Light from HIDALGO Sattel. The Valencia model was my first taste of the Hidalgo saddles, and my original one is very old. I love this new one just as much as my old broken in one. It gives you a close feel, and classical position. This one is available right now from Hug Your Horse : Hidalgo Leather Tree Consultant .
You may remember how I caused a bit of a ruckus exhuming my horse this spring 🤷♀️
Well Pugsy spent most of his time with me teaching people about horses and how to ride. Now is his chance to keep teaching on an even deeper level. Some of his bones, along with several other horses, and a couple soft tissue preserved legs, will be on display and available for hands on learning in the class this weekend. You'll have a chance to see what things like kissing spines, fused hocks, OCD lesions, navicular, osteoarthritis and more actually look like. This class is super helpful to give you a better understanding and communication with your other equine professionals such as vets, farriers, trainers, bodyworkers, saddle fitters, dentists, etc. You can reserve your spot with payment by messaging me. More information on the event can be found in the link below.
https://fb.me/e/3cjrgGvh4
I have been amazed lately at how much Gustavo is maturing (finally 😉 ). This lift brought a new door into the arena to replace the one the electrician destroyed 🙄, and Gustavo was trying to walk over to see what he was doing! The universe gives us what we need, not necessarily what we want (we must always remember this). This horse has taught me patience, perserverance, and humbleness to a degree I can't even explain! From time off, through correct classical work to resolve soundness issues, melanoma surgery in a joint capsule, to ulcers, and the airs above the ground 🤣🐎🔥🔥🔥
I've debated on whether or not to post this, because I try to stay away from negativity, but I feel like I need to share my experience with Advanced Arena . I looked for options to give feedback on their website, Facebook, and Google, but there are no options to do that, and now I understand why.
I put brand new footing in my indoor arena, and many of you know how much I dislike dust. I had angular sand from an outside quarry trucked in because the local quarries didn't have sand that met the grade specs for premium footing. I contacted Advanced Arena about their product Swamp Fox, and they calculated how much product I would need based on the size of my arena and depth of footing. My footing was laser graded to 1/4 inch of exactness, so I was able to give Nicole, at Advanced Arena, the exact amount of sand that would need dust suppressant coverage. I was told 2 barrels would be enough for my first application, and I would need a 3rd applied in 6-8 months. Because shipping is nearly $500, I went ahead and bought both my first and second application, being told this was enough for my first year. I asked what kind of equipment I needed to have to move the barrels off the truck and she said they will put them exactly where I wanted, as they didn't want the customer to have to handle them at all (I wanted one at each end, and the third barrel outside the door for later application and she said this was no problem). The delivery guy only had a pallet jack and was very nice, but of course, could not move 3 barrels on a pallet through sand, or to the outside of the arena. Luckily we have a big enough tractor with forks that can handle a 1,200lb load.
I applied my first 2 barrels as directed, and still had to water the arena for our first cliinic. I told Nicole this, and she suggested I go ahead and apply my 3rd barrel now (instead of in 6-8 months). I did that and STILL have dust. She told me some arenas need more. This is brand new sand! This is not powdery, brokend down footing! She wanted me to buy more and I asked if she would at least comp my shipping since I have used my first and second application and still am not even where I should be to start with. She did offer $100 off if I order before September. When I told her how unhappy and disappointed I am with the product, she did not reply. I've spent $3,500 and it's not like I can return the product.
If you've read this far, maybe you can do me a favor, and comment below on whether you think this is sufficient dust control, or if you think this is good customer service, or if you would be happy with this outcome if this were your $3,500. I have 8 more events coming up between now and the first week in November, so I now need to find another company to fix the mess Advanced Arena has left me with.
Thanks for reading and listening to my little rant. I just feel like when companies don't allow reviews, there needs to be somewhere to leave feedback and for them to be accountable. A little customer service would have gone a long way.
You know that elusive head set that everyone is after????
Pssst, it has nothing to do with the head and neck of the horse, so stop putting stuff on it and pulling ;)
www.shadetreestables.com/classes
My goal as a "trainer" is to educate owners. This thereby creates horses that are healthier, more comfortable, and happier. This then makes their owners become happier because they are dealing with less resistance and undesired behaviors. All of which makes my job, and that of other equine professionals, much easier!
www.shadetreestables.com/classes
Texas horse laughs at your Illinois excessive heat advisory at 4:00 in the afternoon when it's 100 degrees out 🤣🐴🔥☀️🤦♀️
I once heard my trainer, Carolin Moldenhauer, say to someone, "We have to be the trainer that THIS horse needs in THIS particular moment.", and I thought it was brilliant.
Would you treat a timid 3 year old girl the same way you would treat a rowdy 9 year old boy? Or the same way you'd treat a young adult or a senior citizen? Then why would you think you should treat/approach each horse the same way, and they should respond willingly just because "that's the way YOU do it?"
A good trainer, and by trainer, I mean anyone who works with a horse, will work smarter rather than harder, and without ego.
Carolin will be here again (from Germany), Sept 23&24. Audit spots still available, I will link the event in the comments.
You can also learn more about my training concepts in my online video library at www.shadetreestables.com/classes
I'll be catching up on messages next week. For now, a little family time ♥️
Playing with half steps again. We could use more sit and and for the hind legs to be a bit quicker, and of course I'm always looking for more length in his neck, but he was soft as butter! You can see my left hand with open fingers and the line just laying across it. Then at the end of our session I let him loose to roll and run around a bit and he was back with me right away 😍
There was sooooo much demand for this painting class, and so much fun had last night, that I have decided to offer private group sessions! This would be for 8, up to 10 friends that would want to send in a picture (horse, dog, cat, etc.) to have me draw it up on a canvas and provide the materials to paint it. You are welcome to bring your own food and drinks. I have a couple Friday evenings left this year, and Sunday afternoons. Let me know if your group would be interested!
Just a few pictures from the many lessons this week at the central Illinois clinic. I don't pick a theme, but it always seems like a common thread arises. This time the focus was on creating willing forward energy with a relaxed mental state, and incorporating the lateral movements to create more quality in self carriage and to give more lightness to the shoulders in order to become more maneuverable.
Most weekends of 2023 are now full, but I do still have availability during the week, the very end of 2023, and 2024. Or you can join the online video library at www.shadetreestables.com/classes for less than the cost of 2 lessons!
I think the first sip and paint was a success!
Because this was in such high demand and went so well, I will offer private painting parties for groups of 8, up to 10 friends. Message me to set one up!
North bound for two days of teaching!
Attention members of my online library!!! A new video was just released in the "Liberty" section. The new video is "Identifying Displacecment Behaviors". It's there at no additional cost, and more videos will continue to roll in.
If you're not a member, and want to get in before the price goes up, you can join by going to www.shadetreestables.com/classes
All sorts of exciting events coming up here at Shade Tree Stables!
7/15 Sip and Paint Equestrian Style! FULL! filled, can be added to the waitlist.
8/5 Exploring the Equine Skeleton (the bones class) spots still available!
8/12 Karin Miles - Neuro Rider (this event is full, you can be the first on the waitlist)
8/26 Equine Craniosacral, and The Energetic Component (double feature) Still spots available!
9/9 Equine Kinesiology Taping and Training Your Eye for Proper Movement (double feature) Still spots available!
9/23 PIB Workshop with Carolin Moldenhauer Participant spots are filled, you can be added to the waitlist, auditor spots still available!
10/7 Understanding Saddle Fit and How To Be A Nice Load To Carry (double feature) Still spots available!
10/14 Collaboration Class with Schaeffer Bodyworks, LLC about bodywork and my class "Bending and Collection" Event details coming soon.
11/4 Ida Hammer will be teaching her "Exploring the Equine Hoof" along with adding in some of the "Hoof Wear Patterns" class. Mark your calendar, when this event opens up, spots will be first come first serve based on payment, and you don't want to miss out!
On the events that already have event pages made, you can click it for more information and reach out to me to secure your spot with payment. I think the more information we can put out there, the better things will be for us and our horses. That is why I'm teaming up with other professionals to make my new barn a learning facility. Thank you for all your support!
Edit: There have been several people reach out that are not local, and I hear you, so I'm hoping to have some full day events coming up in 2024!
When I travel, I'm a celebrity, but at home I'm just me 🤣
If it’s too easy to attain, it’s too hard to value.
It’s a crazy phenomenon that I know I have in common with my instructor and clinician peers-
If an instructor flies from across the country, people will drive six hours to learn. They’ll get a house sitter, they’ll miss work, they’ll wake up at the butt crack of Dawn and hang on every word. They’ll pay for a hotel and a clinic fee and be happy to do it
But that same instructors phone is filled with texts from local students canceling because it’s too hot, too cold, they forgot they had a dinner, they have a bone in their leg…right around the corner is simply too easy to take for granted.
The hundred mile rule is a thing: if you’re from a hundred miles away or more, you’re instantly more exciting.
Crucero is checking out our guest accommodations. I'm now offering custom "intensives" where you can bring up to 3 horses for tailor made sessions. Trailer hook up is available right next to the horses so both you and your horses can learn in comfort.
I took the baby for a little exploring today. He was a big brave boy, interested in going new places, but still slightly concerned at the same time. Look at his eyes and how the top lid makes a point like the top of a triangle. This is an important signal that we often miss. In order to learn new things, we all have to step out of the comfort zone because there is no growth in the comfort zone. The problem only occurs when we don't notice this small bit of stress and then keep pushing for more....For example if I had him also carrying a saddle (which is still new), or had asked for trot or gone too far from home, I could have pushed him over threshold. Getting a feel for where this tipping point is with each horse is the fine art of training. But don't get me wrong, I've tripped over that threshold plenty of times honing my skills 🤣
Guess who's 3 today????? Guess who's also not in futurities, or being ridden (hint: same guy). Yes there are studies that show bone adapts to the forces put upon it, but you know what...those studies are done on the cannon bone, and your horse has a whole lot of other bones and tissues. Horses live 30+ years, no need to be in a hurry and burn them up by age 5. If you're using joint injections by age 4, 5, 6, you're flat out doing it wrong 🎤⬇️
If you're interested in learning more about creating a confident and healthy horse, please consider supporting my small business and looking into my online library.
https://www.shadetreestables.com/classes
Twenty years ago I "acquired" a foundered horse. Her owners weren't taking care of her, so she came home with me and never left. Today I let her go. After fighting a bone infection for the last year, her quality of life turned dramatically yesterday. She spent today on a cocktail of drugs to keep her comfortable, and grazed in the yard all afternoon (something she was never allowed to do). Magic was the smartest, calmest horse I've ever had the pleasure to work with. She toted my then non riding boyfriend around the farm, I was on her when he later proposed, she carried me safely through my pregnancy and trucked my toddler around ba****ck. She taught so many riders in those 20 years and I couldn't have asked for a better girl, she was a once in a lifetime horse. I can't believe how much I'm going to miss her. She has taught me so much, and I made many mistakes along the way, but when I warn you about your horse's weight, or I see changes in your horse's feet, please listen. You can't unfounder them. I didn't founder her, but I lived with the repercussions of foundered feet. If she can leave a legacy, let it be that. Learn about diet and listen those that know. For the last year we fought a hard battle that deep down I knew I probably wouldn't win. While I'm not ready today, I will be having a deeper look at her feet, because if we couldn't win, we will at least learn. Rest easy my sweet girl. Give the boys my love ❤🐎
We often think that because horses are so big, that we need to be loud or heavy with our cues. Here is a short video where I invite Crucero to curl around me and yield his shoulders away. The initial cue is my intention and opening my Right shoulder. I then point the whip toward the shoulder, and as soon as he "thinks" in the right direction, I lower it momentarily and then go back to support it again with pointing my finger since he loses his balance a bit towards the inside of the circle again.
Freeburg, IL
62243
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Your horse is a master of energetic communication, are you?! Our horses are keenly aware of energetic shifts and small changes in posture. Unfortunately, us humans are a bit obtuse in this form of communication and many times our horses stop trying to communicate with us 😳 This leads to a lot more pushing and pulling. The good news is, there's always hope! Learning to be more conscious of energy and posture is the first step. By being aware of your energy and body language, it makes you become more clear, and in turn makes your horse more confident and responsive. This creates a better dialog between horse and rider, and who doesn't want more of that! In this video you can see that by shifting my body and projecting my energy toward Gustavo, he backs without any physical pressure. Reach out if you'd like more information on how I can help you achieve this with your horse. #shadetreestables #horsetraining #virtualcoaching
Playing around with the mattress at liberty! A while back I showed him the mattress, and then because of rain it was put away. It has not been back out until today, but Crucero was not phased by it, and willing walked over it at liberty ❤ I then asked him to halt with me, and then back out of my space before having a treat. This is a really important point to make when using treats in your training. The horse should not be coming into your space for them. I also want to keep his training very short and playful at this point because this will play into how he views training for the rest of his life. Training to create a willing partner, that does things because he wants to, is so much more fun than a horse that does things because it's better than the consequence of not doing it. #horsetraining #liberty #babyhorses #andalusian #shadetreestables
Here's what people were saying about the recent clinic. Such a great time, and wonderful people ♥️ I'll put together a more detailed post soon
Edit: Below I posted video of what my horse was doing about 2 weeks ago. There were many good guesses, and some I hadn't really thought of. Here's how the day went. I had been in the barn all day. At 3 I threw him more hay, which he was nickering for, and started eating. I went in for an hour, and when I came back at 4, this is what he was doing. My vet was there in 40 minutes and treated him for colic. All night he seemed happy. Eating, drinking, passing manure, but then about 24 hours later he started with the pawing again, but less intensely. My vet and I both thought that maybe he was ulcery, so we started him on ulcer meds. In between time, he was eating, playing with Gustavo, passing manure, but then he would have these pawing spells. After a couple days of ulcer meds with no improvement, we started getting more concerned and talked about hauling him to the University. He then presented with a fever that night, so I was instructed to give him Banamine and Excede, and haul him in the morning. At U of I, they did a full work up. Abdominal ultrasound was clear as was palpation. CBC was clear. Lung ultrasound showed "comet tails" and free fluid. The diagnosis was Pleuropneumonia. Bacterial culture and cytology was also clear..... Very weird since it's been 5 months since he was hauled here and no horses are coming or going. In the 5 months I've had this horse, I have NEVER heard him cough, have breathing issues, or nasal discharge. I shared this video because never in a million years would I have thought this was a respiratory thing! He's home and seems to be improving and is expected to make a full recovery. Ok, as promised, here's what was going on with Crucero. I share this to help educate, as I am always still learning as well. This video is almost two weeks old and was taken while waiting for the vet. Tell me your thoughts, and I will later comment on and update the post.
Have you tried groundwork and realized that the tool handling is harder than you thought? It really can feel a bit complicated at first! I made this video to support the work I do with my online students, but thought it would be helpful to many of you at home. I show a couple times of how to change the tools while the horse is standing still, and then again while the horse is moving. This change of tools is done when you want to change direction, but not stop the horse. Just a reminder that I do offer virtual coaching and have a whole file of videos that I use to help explain exercises or concepts to students all over the country. Reach out to me if you need some help! Gustavo's tack is from HIDALGO Sattel #workinhand #virtualcoaching #virtualstudents #shadetreestables
Peaceful mornings never get old. I'm truly blessed to live this life ♥️ #horses #shadetreestables #quietmornings
Did you know I offer virtual coaching? Have you been curious, but don't know what to expect? Here's a little clip of someone else's lesson that gives you a glimpse of how it works 😁 Feel free to comment below or message me if you'd like to know more.
Continuing to play with liberty with Crucero. If you start these exercises in spaces that are familiar to the horse (I started this with Crucero in his paddock), and it goes well, you can push the borders in a couple different ways. 1. You can add speed (increase to a trot). 2. You can add more difficult maneuvers (Shoulder in, haunches in, more distance between, etc.). 3. You can move to areas that have more distraction, in this case grass and a bigger area. Have you tried liberty work with your horse? What struggles have you experienced? Here you can see that I softly redirect Crucero's head and neck back in line with his body. He is a 2 year old stud colt, so playing the nippy bitey game and putting things in his mouth is great fun 🤣 #horsetraining #libertyhorsemanship #andalusianstudcolt
Your horse should know how to back for several reasons! 🔵The primary one being that if he doesn't back up, chances are that you are! I have made several posts about this, that to create lightness, the horse should move easily around us. 🔵Another reason for backing the horse is that it helps to shift the horse's center of mass back and not hang in the shoulders. Hanging in the shoulders makes them heavy to our requests and often more emotional in their responses. Having a horse that understand how to back gives us an avenue to re-explain our half halt if the horse doesn't respond to pressure on the head (whether through a bit, cavesson, halter, etc.) 🔵While I try to leave human emotions like "disrespect" out of my training vocabulary, I don't have a better word for it. It's not that horses are "trying to get one over on us" (they physiologically lack the ability to do this) but a horse that constantly crowds your personal space causing you to move, just isn't pleasant ground manners. 🔵Having a horse that backs easily (in my case, from a clicking sound I make that is used specifically and only for backing, inflating my personal "bubble" and, and waving my fingers) is helpful in so many other situations like getting them through gates when other horses are also wanting through. In these video clips you can see that I ask my horses to back by waving my fingers. I'm also inflating my personal space by creating an energetic feel like two magnets of the same pole repelling each other, and making my "back up" sound. At one point I have to step forward to toward Crucero and re-explain my primary aids by then touching him on the shoulder to make my request clear. #horsetraining #groundmanners #andalusians #shadetreestables
Last year I took the 1 on 1 owner's massage course with Schaeffer Bodyworks and it was a great investment! It's so nice to work with and feel my horses in a different way. Often we get our horses and ask something of them. This is a nice way to make deposits in the relationship bank account, and keep them healthy and happy ♥️ #schaefferbodyworks #lifewithhorses #whatdoyoudoinyourxeroshoes
Colt preparation (1.5 weeks)! I put up a 5' tall secondary fence line with a hot wire on a shared fence line as a buffer just in case 😉 I know a tiny chestnut mare who is quite the temptress and has relentless persuasion skills. Her name may or may not rhyme with "dance" 🤣🐎😘 #horses #lifewithhorses #springisintheair #studcolt #andalusianstudcolt #farmlife #farmfit #countrylife #mindyourtestosterone
More play with liberty. This time half pass! I have found that less is more with Gustavo for sure, and keeping liberty work to less than five minutes keeps me from getting greedy and keeps him motivated. Liberty definitely shows me how he feels about things since he has the option of leaving, which he often does, when I'm unclear, too demanding, or when I set personal space boundaries and he feels insulted (anthropomorphism), for better lack of explaining it. Have you tried liberty with your horse? What did it teach you?
When you're working with your horse and you find them a bit physically or mentally pushing into your space, you know it is a sign that you haven't been clear with your horse that you value your personal space. When your horse continually moves into your space it is inconvenient, and potentially dangerous. This is noticeable when you're standing with your horse and trying to have a conversation with someone. It is a result of you not owning your space in all your interactions with your horse. Therefore, it is our job to be consistent with this. In a human world we are continously interacting with people and hopefully being polite. An example is when you are at the store and you notice that someone is wanting to grab a bag of flour behind you, so you move out of their way. But, we often don't notice that we are continually moving out of our horse's way. Then, when we are paying attention to our horse and they keep moving into our space, and suddenly we don't move out of their way (because we ourselves are suddenly aware of our own movement and yielding in this particular moment), this becomes unclear and inconsistent to the horse. I often talk about owning your space and politely moving the horse around you for daily tasks. Here is an example of that with putting my stirrups down. I could have done a better job here myself because there is a moment when I don't move my feet, but I slightly yield my upper body to my horse's head and neck. These are the tiny details we need to be conscious of when interacting with our horses. I could have done better by having him back one more step before coming around. Hopefully, this brings some awareness to you that you can incorporate into your everyday innteractions with your horse for more fun, and clarity for both you❤
This was my anniversary present! Who knows what it is? It's a hyoid apparatus! This articulates in the skull and hangs down and embeds in the tongue! Many muscles are attached to it which leads to every muscle in the horse's body indirectly attaching to the hyoid! The hyoid is a gyroscope for the horse, giving it proprioception, or basically telling it where it's head is, and how to balance him/herself. We directly influence the hyoid with bits, nose bands and gadgets. This is a delicate structure and should be handled with care! Doesn't this give you a better appreciation of how intricately the equine body is made?
Hello everyone! Chasidy Flacks Perry was the lucky recipient of the free video consultation. I will still honor any videos sent in by Sunday with a discount. I took a couple clips of our video (I wasn't able to put in any transitions, so it may be a bit unclear when one subject stops and another starts, I apologize). I know video lessons seem a bit daunting, but it's an amazing way to work with a trainer long distance, or when you're at a "closed" barn. I work with my trainer in Germany every month! I thought I'd share the clips here so you can see a bit of the process, and I think I shared some information that would be helpful to others. Let me know your thoughts!
Horses can't tell us verbally what is bothering them, which often makes it difficult to figure it out. Many times behavioral issues aren't a training problem. Here is one example of a potential quick fix for a horse that may be acting sour when you tack. You can have the best fitting saddle in the world, but if you plop it on them and have a pad bunched up uncomfortably it doesn't matter how much you spent on it. This saddle is the Malaga by Hidalgo Leather Tree Saddles : Tiffani Radake, Consultant, as is the contoured girth I threw on the ground 🤣
Gustavo struggles with coordination in his left hind and that causes him to have to work harder to take the Right lead. Today when riding we didn't have as good of a canter to the right, and after watching the video I noticed I missed a few opportunities to reward because I was greedy and stuck on the high point of last week's canter (don't fall into that hole, sometimes today's high point isn't going to be as high as last time). So I finished the ride by asking for a few canter departures from the ground. By just asking few a few jumps into canter, this should help to strengthen him for when he he has to do it while carrying me. It's easy to assume that they should be able to do this, but many horses struggle to balance themselves while also carrying the rider, and it becomes even more noticeable at canter. Gustavo's saddle is from HIDALGO Sattel And you can get one from Hidalgo Leather Tree Saddles : Tiffani Radake, Consultant
I'm practicing the skills I learned in my owner one on one class with Schaeffer Bodyworks I have two horses that love their massages from April, but the other two, Chance and Gustavo, are figity and enjoy their massages much more when they come from me. Here you can see Chance releasing big yawns. It's such a rewarding feeling to do something with the horses that is beneficial for them and that they enjoy! I highly recommend looking into this for yourself! @schaeffer bodyworks offers the course online as well, or you can dip your toes by just purchasing the mini courses (she has some really good deals coming up this week). #ShadeTreeStables #schaefferbodyworks #equinebodywork #equinemassage #ownerscourses #laview #shetlandpony
Gustavo has been working really hard the last month (per doctor's orders, more on that later), so he was ready for a day off. I used my newly acquired skills that I learned in my owners one on one massage class taught by April with Schaeffer Bodyworks Gustavo enjoys it and benefits from it so much more when it's me instead of a stranger. Plus it's a nice non work activity with my horse that makes a deposit in the relationship bank account. April offers an online course as well so check her out! #ShadeTreeStables #lifewithgustavo #equinemassage #equinebodywork #schaefferbodyworks #laview #dayoff
This is one of my favorite exercises! Places a marker in the center of the ring that you can focus on, and work on spiraling in and out. Try to keep the marker centered. Horses tend to fall in on one side of a circle and drift out on the other side. This exercise can be done at all gaits. The key is shoulder balance. Make sure the horse is not falling in on the inside shoulder, especially when spiraling in, but also that the horse is not drifting out through the outside shoulder when spiraling out! Be careful not to overbend the neck of the horse. Let me know how you like it!
Part 4, and final part of the series with Hidalgo Leather Tree Saddles : Tiffani Radake, Consultant. Here we compare the forward (anteriorly) tilted pelvis, the neutral pelvis, and the backward (posteriorly) tilted pelvis. Thank you to Tiffani Martin Radake for making the images and Jeff Preis Photography for putting the video together for me, because I have no tech skills 😜
@jeff.preis redistributed the sand, pulling it away from the fence and adding to the pile. It was the first thing the horses went to! It's important for them to have a variety of surfaces. I'd love to add more surfaces and enrichment ideas. The wheels are always turning! #turnthemout #turnout #allweatherturnout #allweatherpaddocks #tracksystems #ShadeTreeStables #ottb #shetlandpony #morganhorse #olivertractor
Silver Creek Kennels and Hunt Club
Red Ray Mine RoadThe Riding Center Stables of Freeburg, IL
Red Ray Mine RoadPatrick Ferland: Dog Training, LLC
Kirkwood 63122