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Message thread at CPP
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***THE HORSE SHELTER***
This is a role-play shelter and we are always looking for more volunteer help. This is a join up:
Some horses just won't quit avoiding you and asserting themselves. They don't trust you. You don't trust them. They are scared and so are you. How can you help create a bond without spending millions of dollars on fancy training stuff and spending years just trying to avoid getting bitten while putting on a saddle? Or maybe you just want to be closer with your horse/pony. Joining up may be able to help you calm your friend and make life easier, as well as making being together less painful and less frustrating.
Calm down. Going into it with a nervous or angry attitude is not going to get you anywhere. Take a few deep breaths and make sure the horse knows you're confident and relaxed. He'll almost always mimic you, so if you're jumping everywhere and shouting at him, he'll respond by running and acting aggressively. Remember that.
Show yourself and your horse that you are calm, confident body language (you should be erect, head up, shoulders back) and disposition first. The horse understands your good/bad attitude and tone and timber of your voice.
Bring your horse to an enclosed paddock or ring on a lunge line. When lunging, the lunge line simulates the reins as a directional tool as if you were riding.
Gently talk to the horse. He/she might be a little scared or confused. Lead him/her around the safe enclosed area you are working in for a few minutes, with some changes in direction to set yourself as "leader."
Go to the centre of the area you are working in. Unclip the line (don't use tied lines); step back from the horse; look the horse in the eye; adopt assertive body language squarely to the horse, and raise your hands if need be (represents "pawing the air").
Encourage the horse to stay at a respectful distance from you in this training. The process of moving them away represents you as lead mare. You are not trying to be actually mean like the stallion would be in a herd. The stallion expels challengers from the herd -- opposite of joining up.
After 5 or 6 circuits (if using a 50 foot diametre pen) change direction by blocking the horse using body language, but not actually getting in the way. After another 5 or 6 circuits change direction again, and start to coil the line and maybe drop eye contact down to the neck/shoulder.
Look for signs from the horse, such as making the circle smaller. The inside ear will be turned towards you. He/she may lick and chew, head lowering.
Continue to push the horse on, changing directions every five or six circuits. you will see the horse angle its head to you, which is a sign they are ready to negotiate their position according to what you want.
There are three signs you should be looking for when "joining up": 1) The inside ear being locked onto you. 2) The horse dropping its head. 3) Licking of the lips or chewing of the air. When the horse completes these three signs you can be sure you have won its respect. It now understands that you have told the horse: "I am not a predator. I am no threat to you."
When you see these signs, drop eye contact completely, soften your body language by bringing the hand nearest the horse across your stomach with fingers closed, step a little in front of the horse turn your back but be alert (watch out) and take a couple of steps away from the horse. This will cause him/her to come toward you slowly and 'join up'.
Reward the horse with a rub between the eyes or a nice stroke on the neck. This is how they naturally groom each other or assure a lower status horse. They do not approach the lead mare unless she is very relaxed and not exerting her authority.
Now stand next to the horse on the left hand, or near side, facing forwards. Walk off and circle around the horses nose to the right, he/she will follow when you have established that you are the leader. Complete a small circle and reward the horse. Do this in both directions.
This is from Wiki How and this method was derived from how a horse actually acts in the wild, in essence, when you do this, you are a horse, actually the lead mare. Monty Roberts is the man who found out about this.
I sort of did this with our neighbors pony the other day and it worked! It wasn't quite like this, but it was amazing when I did it. | 
Maid Mairain & Dawn Rising | | 2012-05-24 20:11:56 | | Isn't the join up method amazing? it tells more about it in the Heartland books (A novel series) and "The Man who listens to horses" By Monty Roberts.
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Maid Mairain & Dawn Rising | | 2012-05-24 20:13:59 | | | March: Faithful is saddle trained but it will be impossible to put a bridle on her. That is without drugging her and doing other things that we hate at this shelter and we will never do. |
Maid Mairain & Dawn Rising | | 2012-05-24 20:15:43 | | Hi Maid,
We know this type of training has been around for over 2000 years. Xenophon wrote about these horse training methods 400 years before Christ was born.
The term *horse whispering* dates to nineteenth century Europe when an Irish horseman, Daniel Sullivan, made a name for himself in England by rehabilitating horses that were intractable due to abuse or accidental trauma.
Monty Roberts was is one of the many *horse whisperers* who made a living through showmanship and holding events to showcase their gentling techniques.
However, before Monty Roberts, the first of these showman and founder of much of modern *natural* horsemanship comes from a buckaroo named Tom Dorrance. He was born in 1910 and was always just a little cowboy who was *lawyer for the horse.*
Tom and his brother Bill were a strong influence on Ray Hunt and Buck Branaman, who in turn influenced others like Monte Roberts, Pat Parelli, and many, many others.
Your description was quite good, by the way.
JC | 
Jane Crandal & JB | | 2012-05-24 23:55:44 | | | Thanks JC, and when you heal horses that have problems, it isn't quite horse whispering. It's more like listening to the horse. I's using a horses natural instincts and reactions and feelings to gain complete trust and understanding and through that, you begin to understand the horse and respect it more, and if you know and respect a horse, it's easier to help it. |
Maid Mairain & Dawn Rising | | 2012-05-25 14:56:09 | | (And Pat Parelli influenced me, hene the username ParelliChick, I'm a girl who raises chickens and does Parelli LOL)
Gemma: *Winces at the word 'bridle'* A little fact about me... I don't use bridles. I use hackamores (The kind that are like a rope halter). *Walks off to see what Faithful will do when she tries to ride her* Hey girl. *Puts her silk halter on and walks her out to the cross ties* I have to muck out our stall now. I'll be right back. *She walks to the tack room, Faithful whinnying in disagreement, and returns with a wheel barrow and pitch fork, Faithful dances to the side to get a good look at the thing that just entered her home* Its alright girl, I would much rather you be out 24/7, but I guess letting you out in the day time will be enough. *Leaves her wheel barrow (there are more, hers is hers, she bought it and brought it) in Faithful's stall* Lets groom you first. *Grooms her and puts the saddle pad with shoulder and wither pads (padding all around) on, sliding it back and Faithful stays calm, then she puts on the treeless western saddle with one girth (second girth is taken off) on and she does up the blue web girth, puts on bell boots and overreach boots, then attaches the Breast Plate, steps back to see the calm horse in all her glory* You look... Wonderful! Now, I trust you to stand still. *Goes back to the tack room to get a hackamore and reins + a 22' line and carrot stick (the carrot stick is a fiber glass stick with a soft, long and thin rope on the end, we use it like a horse would use it's head 1. body energy 2. gentle asking 3. gentle use of the carrot stick 4. Whack the ground or tap the back. 4 Would be when the horse would bite the horse.) comes back and puts the hackamore on over the pink silk, detaches the ribbon and attaches the reins and line, detaches the cross ties and walks Faithful over to the arena and plays Circling game (Pretty much the same as lunging, but different) a couple times, at the end, she checks the girths, then, she takes off the line and places it next to the mounting block, then she mounts and walks her around, she asks her to trot and Faithfully bolts, bucking, Gemma flying off and lands right next to the mounting block, she lays there, waiting for the sky to stop moving and feels something pulling her head, she looks up and Faithful is pulling her hair* Girl! *Laughs and gets up, then leans on Faithful for a second, then gets back on* You know your an idiot when you get on a horse when you can't see straight. Faithful. Lets ride. *She squeezes her legs and Faithful glides into a smooth canter, Gemma following the beat with her body, Faithful turns to the fences and gallops, leaping over the fence and hurdling toward the house, Gemma clinging on for dear life, she dumps Gemma by the door and trots down to the barn, she unclips everything and steps into her stall, Gemma sits up and has to lean on the fence to keep from falling over, then she limps into the car, her ankle twisted, she drives down to take care of Faithful* Wow girl, I like you! *Takes off the Hackamore and walks her by the silk halter to a small paddock, or tries*Forget it. *Hops on to the mares back, riding her bareback to the paddock, then takes off the halter, letting her go, then she closes the gate and limps to her car, then drives to Wal-Mart and gets a stranger to buy her an ankle brace, giving him the money to buy it, then she puts it on and drives back to THS* | 
ParelliChick & Lady of the Mist | | 2012-05-25 15:03:37 | | | March: She won't let you do that either. I know, because I tried it on her yesterday. i got kicked. Maybe just use leg aid to contrle her. |
Maid Mairain & Dawn Rising | | 2012-05-25 21:30:11 | | Gemma: She spooked. *Limps to the barn* I'm going to ride her again. *Puts just the hackamore on and rides her down to the arena, she respondes wonderfully at the walk, trot, canter and gallop, she even jumped a small ground pole on 2 inch mounds, then Gemma cools Faithful down, leans down and pats her* Its offical. I'm adopting Faithful as mine.
(I take it that she is a paint?) |
ParelliChick & Lady of the Mist | | 2012-05-26 13:41:48 | | | March: I tried the leg aids too and that went well. You have to be very firm with her though. Let me know if you have anymore trouble with her and I'll help you teach her out of it. (RM:Please don't turn this offer down. I really want to help with this, It would be fun! And anyways, the person training usually has a helper.) Remember. NEVER hit Faithful anywhere and once you can touch her face, never pat it. Stroke it softly. A pat is the same motion as a hit. |
Maid Mairain & Dawn Rising | | 2012-05-26 14:54:12 | | | Gemma: *Looks appalled that March thinks that she might hit Faithful* I wouldn't dream of hitting my Faithful. I'll think about your offer. *Smiles* |
ParelliChick & Lady of the Mist | | 2012-05-29 02:01:02 | |
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