Gaining Control and respect on the ground

GAINING CONTROL AND RESPECT OF YOUR HORSE ON THE GROUND

Clinton Anderson from Downunder Horsemanship understands horses more than most people. He explains to us that while horses are stunning creatures, they can be very dangerous, but this is not a trait that occurs by nature. Instead, horses just don’t seem to realize how big, strong, and fast they really are. Their athleticism is their secret weapon, which is why it’s crucial to gain your horse’s respect and understand what you need to do to control them. Not only does this help keep you safe, it helps your horse enjoy their time with you and builds a better, stronger partnership. On today’s episode, Clinton works on his ranch in Texas with a group of students to teach them the fundamentals of how to gain the respect and control of their horses. Each of the students will be working with their horse and receiving personalized attention to fix what they need help with.

The first thing Clinton explains to us is the fact that getting horses to behave is simple—it’s not difficult to train them. Instead, it’s training a person that’s the real trick! You just need to make sure that you’re consistent with training. Clinton tells us that consistency is your greatest ally, while inconsistency is your greatest enemy.

The first training sessions are very important with Clinton and his students. He teaches them how to catch their horse and have them watch you with both eyes. This is the first step in getting control and if you don’t master it, you’ll increase your chances of getting hurt.

The horse that Clinton is currently working with is a five-year-old Quarter Horse that he’s had for about three months. When he first got him, the horse was a bit slower and it was hard to get him to move—he had a lot of holes in his training. Clinton described him as disrespectful and pushy, a horse that really likes to get his own way. However, rather than giving up, Clinton tells us that the horse is just a bit rusty and all he needs is a tune up in his training to get back in shape.

During the past three months, Clinton has filled the holes in his horse’s training using the Clinton Anderson method. Before anything, Clinton tells his students, you need to make sure the horse gives you both of his eyes. This is an indication that he’s ready for training and you have his attention. Today, the horse has shown a complete attitude adjustment and now follows commands with enthusiasm.

Throughout the course of this episode, we see Clinton working with a number of students using his black-and-white training method. They all seem to be enjoying themselves while simultaneously stepping up to the plate and learning how to be effective leaders for their horses. Their horses are very responsive to this behavior and the Clinton Anderson training method.

During this episode, Clinton has done a great job about personalizing the attention for everybody that needs it, without making anyone feel like they can’t do it. His students say he’s a very positive mentor and truly cares about helping everyone. Clinton’s teaching style is very hands-on and he doesn’t mind pushing his students—he knows exactly when to push and when to tell them they’re doing a good job.

One of his students even says, “For the first time since I’ve owned the horse, I actually felt comfortable about him coming to a stop… and I’ve had the horse for eight years!”

You can tell that he has an excellent way of explaining his process and that’s what impresses his students the most. His method is truly easy to understand, you just have to concentrate to get the steps just right so the horse responds when you want them to.

Clinton’s job and core purpose in life is to inspire the dreams of horsemen everywhere on understanding how to gain a horse’s respect. Hope you enjoyed this episode! Remember to come back often as we’ll be updating the TV section on the Downunder Horsemanship site withinstructional horse training videos each month.