Thursday, May 30, 2019

The Minnesota Horse Expo: Day Two



On the second day of the MN Horse expo, Nathan O'Connor from the University of Wisconsin River Falls and three of his students from the Colts in Training class demonstrated a few exercises to use on young horses once they've learned the basic aids.

I would love to take the Colts class, but it is a big commitment.  I'm not sure if it will fit into my remaining time at school. While watching the demonstration, I discovered he was teaching the same exercises I had been learning in O'Connor's Advanced Horsemanship class. 

Many things O'Connor said I had already heard throughout the semester, but one thing stuck with me: Don't punish the horse for doing the right thing.

He was describing an exercise used to teach young horses to stop. He emphasized that you shouldn't make the horse back up if it stopped well, only if it wasn't responding or took extra steps. I know I need to improve my rewards with Avalon.


After O'Connor, I watched another presentation by Warwick Schiller. It was nearly identical to the first presentation, using the same principles of energy and focus. Schiller pointed out that horses are lazy by nature, they will always seek out rest and comfort. Think about how we train horses. We use pressure and work to make the wrong thing hard; rest and relaxation to make the right thing easy. He explained that when we walk into an arena or up to a mounting block, the horse knows that they are going to have to work. We train our horses to want to return to the barn. We train them to avoid the mounting block, become anxious in arenas, and want to return to the herd. 

Another interesting point Schiller made was that people get too nervous about a horse that rears during groundwork. A rearing horse is just a horse that is standing still on two legs. Most of the time (as long as both you and the horse are working at a safe distance), rearing presents no danger to a person. Often, according to Schiller, horses are taught to rear when asked to back up. It goes something like this:

Person wants horse to back up, puts pressure on horse.
Horse is lazy or searches for right answer but finds the wrong answer.
Person increases pressure.
Horse rears to escape pressure they don't understand or don't want to accept.
Person panics and releases pressure.
Horse learns that rearing is an escape/right answer. 
Person deems horse dangerous. 

Now this obviously does not mean all horses who rear have been taught to rear. Horses rear naturally in the wild or at play. The important takeaway is not to release pressure when a horse rears. I have been guilty of this with Avalon.

Schiller says not to increase pressure either, which was a new concept for me. He says to match your pressure with the horse's response. If your horse does the wrong thing, but with the right amount of energy, don't increase pressure, just hold it. If your horse does the wrong thing half-heartedly, or even the right thing without really trying, then increase pressure. And of course release as soon as you see the desired response. 

Schiller also explained how to get a horse to release anxiety when you're in the saddle. He pointed out that "you can hold back a little worry, but not much" with direct rein pressure. The best thing is to allow the horse to walk forward on a small circle, keeping a bend in their body. As soon as the horse relaxes, allow them to rest. If the horse tries to stop before it truly relaxes and bends, keep it moving. Schiller quoted Buck Brannaman's saying, "they stop to hold the brace." He emphasized that it's important to practice putting a bend in the horse at a walk. When the horse relaxes at the walk, let it rest and then move on to the trot, likewise with the canter. He made a point of saying that you should practice this exercise before entering a show or spooky place. "Don't wait until there is a problem to find a solution."

Some highlights from my notebook:
  • Work where the horse wants to be (i.e. gate) everywhere else, leave the horse alone
  • Don't go to bed angry (Don't let frustration toward your horse build up inside of you)
  • "Don't wait for a problem to find a solution"
  • In order to bend, a horse has to relax
  • Watch the inside fore, if it is pivoting, the horse isn't relaxing
  • It helps to circle an object (tree, barrel) to keep a tight, round circle
  • Reward the slightest try



I watched two drill teams perform at the expo this year. My blurry pictures don't do them justice. It was fascinating. 

There were also some beautiful horses in the breed parades. I didn't get very good pictures sadly. There was one grey Arabian stud that was a champion of something. It might have been dressage, I don't remember. I do remember that he and his rider proudly demonstrated flying lead changes up and down the entire arena during the breed demos. I was impressed. I have barely learned flying lead changes and they are so difficult!


To finish the day, I watched yet another Warwick Schiller demo. This time, he focused on the energy  human beings bring into the equation. The horse he used was a client's horse that he had turned into an "I'm fine" horse in his clinics before he changed his method of training. He created a shut down horse by ignoring its anxiety and not acknowledging it. He showed the audience a horse can look away without looking at anything. This is the horse saying it doesn't want to mentally connect. It isn't distracted by a horse or spooky object, it is avoiding any communication with the handler. 

Again he mentioned passive leadership. I believe he said he found the concept from someone named Mark, so I googled it. It looks like Mark Rashid has a few resources if passive leadership interests you. Basically, it is the idea that you can be the leader and still give the horse autonomy and choices. Instead of trying to force the horse to listen, Schiller asked it to mentally connect. If the horse said no, that was okay, he would just ask again. 

The concept of energy seems to be something Warwick Schiller just discovered. I've been familiar with it for a while, but I'm always glad to see someone promoting it. He said he is learning to be intentional about everything he wants the horse to do and visualize it before he gives a cue. Before anything else, you raise your energy, because in Schiller's words, "Energy is the first ask."

Saturday, May 25, 2019

An Appeal to the Equestrian Community

Watching one of Warwick Schiller's training videos today ( A Naughty Warmblood Dressage Horse), I was inspired to speak out about something. The training video itself is fascinating and informational. However, when I scrolled through the comments I found a deluge of negativity. Not negativity aimed at Schiller and his training methods, but an entire crowd of people throwing metaphoric tomatoes at the rider. I won't name names or show the screenshot I originally took, because my point is not to shame or call anyone out. Multiple people commented that the rider was cruel or abusive. They said the horse's behavior was caused by her short contact.

When the video begins the horse is crow hopping and rearing and bucking. Overlaid text informs us that this horse behaves the same during every ride. Later, when Warwick begins to retrain the horse, it initial displays problem behavior - even though Warwick is riding it. No doubt the rider was contributing to the issue, but her defensive riding was most likely a fear response.  Many people wouldn't even have the courage to ride a horse that bucked every day. I would like to point out that dressage horses are ridden on short contact, that is how the sport works. Also, this poor woman came to Schiller to learn what she was doing wrong. The rider may have inadvertently taught her horse to misbehave, or the horse could have already developed this issue before she got it. We, as the audience don't know, and it shouldn't matter.

The amount of negativity in the comments struck me to the core. I am appealing to all of us as a community, lets support each other! There is no need to tear down a fellow rider who is trying her hardest to do the right thing.

Wednesday, May 22, 2019

The Minnesota Horse Expo: Day One

I've been attending the Minnesota Horse Expo since I was a little girl. Almost every year, I would skip school (with parental permission of course), my mom would take the day off work, and we would go to the expo. 

Stacy Westfall was at the expo the first year I attended. I stood in line to get her autograph and a picture. Ironically, I had no clue who she was. It wasn't until years later I watched her bridleless reining freestyle on Roxy. If you haven't seen that freestyle you absolutely must. Stop reading and go look it up now. I believe it was that freestyle that sparked my dream to perform or compete without tack. Someday.

The year I bought Gambler the Parellis were at the expo. I was ecstatic because Parelli introduced me to horse training years before I had a horse to try it on. The timing was perfect; I needed a refresher. Watching the demonstrations gave me the boost of confidence I needed to believe I could actually train horses. I bought my Parelli 12' lead rope at the expo that year, on sale for $15! For anyone who is wondering, the 12' lead is listed on the website at $46.60. No matter what you think about Pat Parelli and his Natural Horsemanship, I would recommend his equipment. His halters and ropes are the highest quality I have found. 

Parelli halter and the same lead rope I bought so many years ago.
This year, I was thrilled to discover that Warwick Schiller, a trainer I have been following on Youtube, would be at the expo. His short video clips are full of information and refreshing training philosophies. He had a clinic the day before the expo which I would have loved to audit, but sadly couldn't since I had college classes that day. 


I don't have fascinating photos to share for two reasons. First, I was using my phone and the arena was dimly lit. Second, Schiller didn't do shocking, impressive things for me to photograph. He spent most of the time just standing, talking to the audience about why he wasn't doing anything. 


If you check out his YouTube channel here (I recommend that you do) you can hear his training in his own words. The basic idea is recently Schiller made a discovery. He found that horses go through the motions of obedience, while being mentally disconnected, because their trainers don't acknowledge the horses's mental state. When horses spook, trainers usually tell them to move their feet and move on. The horse learns to say "I'm fine" instead of being honest with its body language. This creates a horse who seems "fine" and suddenly exhibits naughty or even dangerous behavior out of nowhere. 


Schiller pointed out that none of the horses that were brought to him in the arena were in the right mindset to be trained. If he tried to teach them while they were overwhelmed by the lights, noise, and environment, they might go through the motions, but they would not be mentally connected.

Like I said earlier, Schiller recently made this change in his training methods. He is new to this concept; still in the exploration stage of his journey. This was apparent as he struggled to explain the concepts in a way his audience could understand. His presentations have room for improvement, but I would keep an eye on this clinician. His open mind, love of horses, and humility will serve him well as he continues to learn and explore. He is exactly the kind of influence I want to surround myself with. 


Some highlights/useful tips I picked up from Warwick Schiller:
  • The importance of timing when you release pressure. If you release when a horse spooks/rears you are training it to repeat that behavior.
  • When a horse is clingy on the ground, it will be insecure when you are in the saddle. 
  • When a horse crowds you with their shoulder while looking away at spooky things, it is treating you like its mom.
  • Make sure the horse is in the right mental state for fixing things.
  • Slow down and be boring. 
  • Wait for the horse to enter the parasympathetic nervous system. When a horse is in the sympathetic nervous system (fight or flight) its mouth is clamped shut and it can't open it. The flow of saliva to the stomach is also stopped, which can cause ulcers.
  • When a horse is blinking and it's nostrils and muzzle are twitching, it is switching to the parasympathetic nervous system.
  • If a horse is freaking out and running around you, don't try to hold it close. Let it move freely and when it hits the end of the lead, disengage the hindquarters. This asks the horse to mentally connect to you. 
  • If it is too dangerous to let a horse run around you, sit on the fence and use it to create a half-circle. 
  • Fence also works to discourage a clingy horse from being too close. 
  • A horse can face you without giving you its attention - know the difference. 
  • Passive leadership: The idea that you can be a leader and still give the horse autonomy to make decisions. 
  • Just hold your space and listen.
  • Don't tell a story about a horse's behavior
  • Anxiety is real to the horse - even if what they are anxious about isn't a real threat.
There is a lot there to unpack. I'll bring a lot of it up again when I write about how I use it with Avalon, but you should check out Warwick Schiller himself. My favorite thing about Schiller's teaching is that it applies to everyday life as much as horse training. I need to apply the principles of slowing down, breathing, and being an active listener to every area of my life.


I also watched a demonstration by Julie Goodnight. I didn't find the presentation interesting, but I picked up pointers about equitation. My equitation is horrible, so pointers are a must. 
  • The farther forward your hands are, the clearer your aids.
  • It is good to round your lower back but bad to hunch your entire back.
  • Don't lean!
  • When you look down you bring your horse heavier on the forehand. 
At one point, she dismounted the horse she was riding to demonstrate something and the horse shook its reins off. Something inside of me dies when I see a horse with its reins on the ground. My anxiety grew when the horse clearly didn't know how to ground tie and kept trying to walk off. I breathed a huge sigh of relief when she mounted again.


There is a sizeable 4-H tack sale at the expo where I found some treasures, but I'll make a separate haul post another day. 

Sunday, May 19, 2019

Play Day


I love using spooky objects to play with horses. While these objects would frighten most horses if encountered unexpectedly, introducing them in a controlled, relaxed environment is fun for horse and trainer. 


I used to be strict about saying "play with my horse" versus "work with my horse" and during this session I remembered why. Work doesn't always have a negative connotation for me, but sometimes it is good to have a reminder that horses aren't a job. Ava and I benefit more from relaxed, playful interaction that forced expectations. 


I played with her attention by rustling each object until she looked at me. I then release pressure by moving the object away. When she became distracted, I made noise with the spooky thing until she stopped and gave me her attention again.


She quickly realized the noisy objects were harmless, although she did't like the tarp over her head. I don't blame her, it takes a lot of trust to relax when you can't see anything. We'll reach that milestone another day.


Avalon has an unfortunate habit of crowding me with her shoulder, so we spent some time on our forequarter yields. 

We ended the session with a lesson in patience.
In this session, and all of my time with Ava lately, I got to try out some new techniques I learned at the MN Horse Expo. There is a post about that coming soon!