LS Ranch Naturally

01/09/2026

Folks, over the years my mentor and good friend Pat Parelli has visited with me about teaching folks advanced moves while they are still in our Levels Program.
The reason I bring this up is to let you know that Jody & I won't be teaching what most folks expect in a "Cow Clinic". What we share , and will be sharing , this weekend is horsemanship at your present level; but we'll let the cows judge how we're doing. Can we place our horse at the right place and at the right time to cause the cow to move in the general direction we wish. How can we improve our horsemanship to cause the cow who is just a bystander to want to move somewhere else.
It's all great fun. Jody & I get to share with you many of the things that Pat Parelli has shared with us over the years. Come on out and enjoy yourself.

01/07/2026

Folks, this weekend Jan 10 & 11 we're hosting a Workshop here at LS Ranch with a focus on introducing your horse and maybe even yourself to cattle.
It's a no-stress, relax and enjoy weekend.

Contact Jody at (303) 503-2911 or [email protected]

Looking forward to seeing you here

01/05/2026

Hi folks, I just came across this article of mine from Eclectic Horseman on the subject of pressure and release simplified to mean more to the horse. I thought I’d share it for folks that may have not yet seen it, I live by this and use it daily on all of my horses and my mule.

These days we can find many well qualified and experienced clinicians and trainers showing really wonderful techniques and patterns, and getting great results with their horses and their student’s horses. Every chance I can I go out and ride with people who ride much better and get more from their horse than I am capable. I have got to ride with many of the original Natural Horsemen from the 1980s, Pat Parelli, Joe Wolter as well as the performance folks like Russell Dilday and the late Doug Williamson. While soaking up all that I can from these extraordinary individuals, I began to notice a commonality in them and for that matter, everyone else I saw that was succeeding with their horsemanship.
They all use three simple moves with their horses regardless of their riding style or the jobs worked with their horses.
1 They know how to reward the horse with a release, usually by relaxing, rubbing or stroking.
2 They know how to apply steady pressure with a lead line, legs, or rein.
3 They know how and when to apply rhythmic pressure to support the steady pressure.
Here is a pattern that serves me well which I had to learn. It did not come natural.
I first get my horse’s attention by merely moving softly. I may bring my life up a bit, I may lift my hand, I can do most anything that brings a little life to my body. Sometimes merely breathing in is all my horse needs to know something is up.
When I get an acknowledgement from my horse like an ear tipped toward me or his head elevates a little, anything that signifies that he is aware that I wish for a transition. I then apply steady pressure with the lead line, the rein, or my leg. Whatever I feel should be meaningful to my horse to suggest the transition I’m looking for. (2) above
All of us by now know to release the pressure when the horse attempts or even thinks about responding as in (1) above.
Here is the hard part. If we don’t get the transition that we asked for, most of us feel like pressing or worse yet pulling the pressure firmer, and most of us have experienced the horse then pushing or leaning against us even more. What I’ve found helps the horse before that contest starts is to then apply rhythmic pressure. (3) above; then when my horse responds to the initial request, relax the steady pressure, and reward (1).
The rhythmic pressure should not be forceful, just a bit annoying. I don’t want my horse moving from the rhythmic pressure. I want him responding to the steady pressure and perhaps being a bit bothered by the rhythmic. I’ll gently continue this scenario until he responds without the rhythmic pressure.
One of Pat Parelli’s mentors, Ronnie Willis, used to tell me over and over, “Dave, some times all they need is a little more information.” Every time I feel like more pressure on the rein, or squeezing harder with my leg, or leaning on the lead line, I hear his voice and I add a bit of information with some gentle rhythmic pressure.
With a little luck other than bad, in a short time your horse will begin to detect your wishes and respond to your thoughts. Now you’re cookin’
The following video is just short clips from the full length video in our library at www.LSRanchNaturally.com Select video library, click on Jody’s picture and then select Riding Collection. For a while it will be in the main post as the newest video added. The full video has many more patterns and examples of these three transitions.
Take care and see you down the trail. Dave

12/29/2025

Hi folks, the beginning of 2026 Jody and Dave at LS Ranch will be offering to our friends out there 2-day Workshops at their ranch. Unlike clinics, Workshops are for action, no lengthy discussions just help and advice on getting better. The dates and subjects of each workshop are on our Calendar at www.LSRanchNaturally.com, as well as listed below.

You are welcome to ride both days or just one. The cost is $200.00 per day.

We also offer RWDJ (Ride with Dave & Jody) for you and your horse any days that fit your schedule at $200.00 per day, and you may add these days to your Workshop for a longer stay.
Lease horses are available at $25.00 per day for Workshops or RWDJ.

Jody will be your contact at (303) 503-2911 or [email protected]
We are looking forward to riding with you and having fun.

LS Ranch Workshop Series 2026

Jan 10-11
Intro to Cows – Build Confidence for you and your horse. Plus riding out and about

Jan 24-25
Cow Working – Controlling and Moving your Cow with Calm confidence
We’ll gather the cattle and either play with them out on the ranch or drive them into our “cow-pens” and play in there. We are not cutting or roping, just using our horsemanship to get a response from the cow. They won’t lie to us and we get the truth about our horsemanship and knowledge of skills that are working well or need to be improved. If weather is bad, we can get some time in with the flag in our covered pen.

Feb 6-7 (Fri-Sat)
Trail and Ranch Riding In (arena) and Confidence Riding Out – Build your horse’s reliability, willingness and try!
We’ll work our patterns in the arena to gain the confidence to ride outside

Feb 21-22
Custom Workshop – Yours to make special requests and personalize!
This Workshop will be yours. We’ll help you with any horsemanship issues that you would like to improve. There will be individual help then you’ll have time to play with it. We’ll check on progress, and add tips

Mar 7-8
Precision Riding Focus – Finesse without stress
In the arena we’ll spend quality time getting it slow and right with lots of reward keeping the stress of the precision to a minimum eventually eliminating the stress entirely.

Mar 28-29
Trail and Terrain Riding – Ride out and stay confident and balanced (may have some cow work)
We’ll check out your foundation skills, play with obstacles online; then head out over the ranch looking for varying terrain and rocks and logs and water to negotiate. We’ll set up various scenarios to provide you with issues that fit your current abilities enabling you to improve them.

Apr 25-26
Customize Your Workshop – This is all about your requested focus!

May 16-17
Cowboy Dressage – Focus on the sport of Cowboy Dressage, the details that count!
We’ll help you with managing your horse with the precision necessary to impress the judges while you accurately negotiate the necessary patterns. We’ll give you examples of what to look for and guidance with how to achieve the skills necessary to accomplish them.

We'll have some fun and progress at the same time.

See you here, Dave & Jody

12/24/2025

Say folks, Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year. We just posted on our Video Library a short example of a simple way to help our horses and us remain comfortable going over logs at any gait. It’s not uncommon on the trail to encounter a fallen branch or even a whole tree laying across your path. It also often happens that there’s no good way around. “Now what ? ?”

If, at home, you periodically ask your horse to just hop over items, any item, laying out on the ground, you’ll find that encountering the real deal on the trail is not so frightening. Yes, we all need to start with just poles and with just walking; but in time you’ll be able to help your horse and yourself by bumping it up to a trot over the poles; then back to a walk over a small log or a cavetti in the arena. Then on up to a trot over that. You can take it to any limit that you feel safe with. The idea is to be able to navigate an actual obstacle without having to leave the trail and go cross-country to get around. And you’ll find quite a bit of pride in your horse, your horsemanship, and you can feel the confidence in your horse,

It doesn’t hurt to experiment with it. We do here at LS Ranch daily. You’ll find this and many additional horsemanship samples on our video library at www.LSRanchNaturally.com. Just click on the library link.

Another small reminder, we welcome apprentices, working students, and daily lessons here at the ranch. All of the things that you see on the videos are regularly played with here. Sometimes just a boost at the right time will set us off on a horsemanship journey that you may have only dreamed about. Contact Jody Grimm at [email protected] for all the details.

See you down the trail, Dave

12/18/2025

Well folks, 2025 is winding down and Jody & I are looking ahead to 2026. This year we had many outside clinics, lots of lessons here at the ranch, and we started and helped with the development of several fine horses for our customers. We are advancing horses through their development stages and we’ll be helping customers with problem horses. If you find yourself looking for help with your personal horse, we’re here for you.

As we work our way through our clinic schedule for 2026 we find that we have several days open and available for outside clinics. We both love going outside to the many wonderful places that we’ve been invited to, and look forward to continue doing so. If you would like to host a clinic in your area or are interested in what the requirements are for doing so, please give Jody a call at (303) 503-2911 or drop her an email inquiry at [email protected].

You can get additional information about me, Dave Ellis or about Jody Grimm from our website at www.LSRanchNaturally.com.

It has been a fine year for us helping people and horses in a natural way and meeting and visiting with you folks at these venues. We look forward to continuing on in 2026.

Take care and Jody & I will see you down the trail.

Dave….

11/14/2025

Hi folks, Jody and I were musing the other day about the number of two-year old horses that have come in the end of last year and through this year. Some of them were not very tame and others were ready to learn how to get along in the equine /people world. The colts that were very unruly were handed to me to help them from the back of another horse, especially ones that wanted to pull away at the drop of a hat. After they figured that pulling and leaning was not where the comfort was, Jody Grimm would step in and begin their serious work on the ground. They all came along nicely. Most have moved on to a dressage trainer. The good work that Jody put in with them helps the trainer with his specialty, and we’ve heard some nice things about where the horses were when they went to the trainer.

This video clip is of Jody Grimm working/playing with a two-year old PRE. It’s just a series of short clips that I pulled from three actual videos in our library. It was difficult for me to pull pieces and parts because every time I felt I should stop, Jody was saying something good. But I managed. If you’d like to see the full videos, and there are three, you can go to www.LSRanchNaturally.com , click on the video library; then select the Ground Skills Collections. There you’ll find Jody playing with Bravo pts 1, 2, & 3. That horse has moved on; but you’ll get a glance of the values of a solid foundation on any horse.

Enjoy and Jody & I will see you down the road.

09/14/2025

Hey folks, I was commenting to Jody Grimm the other evening about various issues I have with client’s horses and sometimes with my own. Jody asked me how much warm up on the ground was I doing and was I warming up before I saddled or after. If after, how did the saddling go? That got me to thinking about various types of ground work that we do with our horses. I do some ground work with each horse; but over time, I’ve found myself playing on line after I saddle. There are various reasons for this. Connection between my horses and I, location of the working arenas on the ranch, location of my tack room in relation to the arenas. There’s really no reason to not do some work on line at my tackroom as I have a Parelli round pen right there. I just get anxious to get on with riding forgetting that the initial connection with my horses begin as soon as I enter the pen they’re in and carries on from there.

These days nearly every clinician who uses some form of Natural Horsemanship is emphatic about ground work with their horses and about the things we should be able to do from the ground. Pat Parelli has been teaching this for over 45 years.
So then I got to thinking about how I present myself to my horses while on line. It’s so easy to slip into “this is how we do it”, and then just keep on using our tools the same. While paying attention the next time I did some ground work, I noticed that I do address my horses a bit differently depending on the quality I’m looking for with the transition. If I expect my ground work to transfer to the saddle, then my presentation on the ground should resemble my presentation while riding. In particular, this discussion is about approaching our horse in one manner for Freestyle work and differently for Refined.

In a nut shell, I have found that my little finger sends the best message to my horse for Refined work and my palm sends a quiet signal for Freestyle. My fingers are closed for Refined work, and I mean for selecting which foot to move and to where will it go. My fingers are open and my palm is leading for Freestyle, meaning my horse can operate softly and I’m not particular which foot moves first or exactly where it lands.

Out in the real world, these distinctions hardly matter. But to us who are constantly looking to improve our relationship and continue to improve the quality of our transitions, it matters. Folks who do ground work to satisfy themselves that their horse is safe to ride, this probably has no bearing. If you’re working with a problem horse or a green horse, it may not matter either. But for my nice horses and my mule I’m seeking a livelong partnership, and it sure enough matters to them and to me.

This short video clip is a small part of a discussion I had with some students last year. These students were not beginners learning how to control their horse on-line. They were savvy folks looking for constant improvement. As I watched them work with their personal horses throughout the clinic, I could see the differences in them and in their horses.
The entire video is on our Video Library in the Discussions Collections accessed through www.LSRanchNaturally.com.
I would be interested in how many of you have considered this simple exercise.
Take Care, see you down the trail.

09/02/2025

Say folks just a reminder that Jody & I will be back in Lone Jack MO. in October. The focus of the clinic will be lightness in the rider and the horse along with quality of responses.

For information and Registration contact
Nancy Piper at (816) 215-7842
[email protected]

Email from Dave Ellis & Jody Grimm near Kansas City MO. October 8 thru 11, 2025 Sitter Downs Arena Lone Jack, MO. Using our Natural Horsemanship skills to achieve Lightness These 4 days will be great

08/28/2025

Folks, last weekend I traveled to Las Vegas to watch the National Stock Horse Association finals. The event focused on Cow Work; but included Reining patterns. While watching, actually observing, I was in awe at the flying lead changes that were flying out everywhere. I closely watch to see whether the riders moved the hindquarters over or scooted the shoulder a bit or seemingly did nothing and every horse that I watched (there were about 150 of them) changed leads at “X”.

I remember a discussion with the late, great Jack Brainard about this and about setting them up for it first. Jack explained to me that my pattern of set up with a Counter Bend then change was a good idea at the beginning. We have a short clip of this pattern on our video library at www.LSranchNaturally.com click on Video Library. Jack went on to say that I will need to move from this setup to a clean cue for the change as the change in competition has to happen at “X” or right when you ask.

I’m not a big fan of “do what I tell you” just because I asked for it. I prefer to present my horse a reason for the transition, any transition. Usually the transition will be to help me get somewhere. Rather than taking orders, my horses can detect where we need to be, and understand that doing so is more comfortable.

The video that we just loaded shows my nice Atwood Ranch Horse moving to the place in her education that Jack Brainard schooled me on. We are riding out on the ranch on a track that I had disced up many years ago. This 1 mile track ridden at a lope in this case has many right and left turns. If you watch the video, you’ll see me shifting my weight, my legs, and my reins then asking for the lead change. Not setting it up and waiting as I did earlier in her development; but asking for the change now. This mare is relatively new to this. We’ve ridden this path in this manner a few times; but she is still green to it and you can see her struggle here and there; then catch on and get it right on. When this was Filmed(?) over a year ago, she was dropping to a trot on changes to the right. She did not have this issue when we were setting it up and waiting, only when I began trying to be more specific. She’s over that now.

You can also see me periodically loose my balance and inadvertently give her a request for the change. She gives it try and we carry on. These days my balance at 82 is not quite what it was at 35, and it probably wasn’t all that good back then. In any event watching the video you can hear me explaining when I’m looking for the lead change along with what I felt through the process. I’m riding in the Californio “Two Rein” with the primary feel on the bosalito. I did not want to get in this mare’s way with the bridle reins while she’s learning.

Below is a short clip of various segments of the actual video which is now available on www.LSRanchNaturally.com. Click on the Video Library. Let us know what you think. Take Care and we’ll see you down the trail

08/22/2025

Hey folks in Arizona. You're in luck. Jody Grimm is coming to North Scottsdale in November. She'll emphasizing Connection, Refinement, and Softness. Nobodu can do it better. click below for details

Email from Jody Grimm in North Scottsdale AZ November 1st thru 3rd 2025 This clinic will focus on Connection Refinement Softness Jody is a 4 Star Parelli Professional, horse Development Specialist

08/10/2025

So folks, here’s an update on the nice black horse learning about steady pressure yields. He’s had 3 sessions since we videoed. Today was just wonderful. Not only were his lateral yields good while playing with him, they were great when I asked him to scoot over while saddling and he stepped right over with minimum pressure from my fingers. He’s a bright boy that hasn’t yet been advised of comfort and release for the slightest try. He does what he’s been trained to and struggles with searching for the relief.

He's great fun, he’s a good sport, and I’m having a fine time playing with him. Maybe his owner will take a 2 month vacation. (ha).
Here’s 3 snap shots while playing with him today.