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Training Tips

Training Tips
August 6, 2013

Backing Up – Don’t Drill On It

  When you first introduce the Fundamentals Backing Up exercises to your horse (Method 1: Tap the Air; Method 2: Wiggle, Wave, Walk and Whack; Method 3: Marching; and Method 4: Steady Pressure), spend just three to four minutes each training session working on each method. Backing up is not natural for horses (think about […]

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Training Tips
July 30, 2013

Training Tip: Beating The Spook On The Trail – Be A Leader For Your Horse

  When they’re on the trail, a lot of people put their horse on a big, loose rein and let their mind wander or gab with friends. They put their horse on what I call “autopilot” – he’s left on his own, which for a lot of horses means they go down the trail constantly […]

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Training Tips
July 23, 2013

Training Tip: Beating The Spook On The Trail – Warm Up With Groundwork

  Before hitting the trail, be sure your horse is in the right frame of mind, meaning he’s calm, using the thinking side of his brain and focused on you. Most of the time, horses spook because they’re fresh and using the reactive side of their brain. Don’t just pull your horse out of the […]

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Training Tips
July 16, 2013

Training Tip: Always End Training Sessions On A Good Note

  If you finish when the horse is frustrated or misbehaving, that’s what he’s going to remember the next day, and then getting him over his problem will take twice as long. If you find that you’re in a time crunch and your horse isn’t performing well at a particular exercise, stop what you’re doing […]

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Training Tips
July 9, 2013

Training Tip: Horse Personalities: Cold-Blooded Horses

  While the Method works on all types of horses, every horse will require you to vary your approach slightly. I break horses into two broad groups – hot-blooded horses and cold-blooded horses. Cold-blooded horses are generally docile, laid back and relaxed. This category is made up of most draft breeds and some bloodlines of […]

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Training Tips
July 2, 2013

Training Tip: Horse Personalities: Hot-Blooded Horses

  While the Method works on all types of horses, every horse will require you to vary your approach slightly. I break horses into two broad groups – hot-blooded horses and cold-blooded horses. Breeds like Arabians, Thoroughbreds and some bloodlines of Quarter Horses tend to be hot-blooded. These horses are generally very reactive, sensitive and […]

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Training Tips
June 25, 2013

Training Tip: Ride As Many Horses As You Can

  If you have a desire to be a great horseman, I encourage you to ride not only as many horses as you can, but a variety of horses. Otherwise, you run the risk of fooling yourself into thinking your horsemanship skills are well-rounded. No two horses have the same personality, move the same or […]

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Training Tips
June 18, 2013

Training Tip: Correcting A Faulty Spin

  For a horse to be textbook correct when spinning, he should plant his inside hind foot. Horses that tend to plant their outside hind foot do so because they’re sucking back too much. While it’s generally a good thing to have a horse thinking “get back,” in this case, you want to get forward […]

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Training Tips
June 11, 2013

Don’t Bore Your Horse To Death

  Once your horse understands an exercise, it’s important to move on. There’s nothing horses hate more than being forced to do the same exercise every single day. Humans are the same.

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Training Tips
May 14, 2013

Training Tip: Your Horse Testing Your Leadership Comes Naturally

  It’s very natural for horses to establish a pecking order. More often than not, the top horse in a herd is usually an old broodmare. How’d she get control of the group?

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