I am trying to expand my horizons with my lessons/training and trail riding.  So I held my first mother/dauther trail ride recently and had a very nice time.  Four of my more experienced students and I went on a 3 hour ride including lunch.  We rode around fields, up and down roads and anywhere we could go on horseback.   Best of all, it was one of those beautiful October days with the sun shining and the leaves turning.

Watch the video and enjoy.  All trail rides with Baymount Farm leave the barn at 9 am and return around 5 pm.   Lunch is included, cost for mother/daughter is $175,  cost for individuals is $125.  Experienced riders only; riders must take a riding test at the farm to qualify the day before the ride and sign a waiver for liability form.   Most rides are held at South Mountain, Latta Plantation, Blowing Rock or New River Trails.

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This is a 2 year old spotted saddle horse I have been training the last six weeks.  When she came to me she had only learned a few ground manners and lead very well, stood for grooming, hoof cleaning and a bath.  She was a little pushy and didn’t really know her place with the handler yet.  However, she is such a quick learner and so compliant, that it took her no time at all to settle in to a regular routine.  Now look at her.  This is the 5th time I have ridden her and only the 2nd time on a trail.

Notice her little buck.  That was too cute.  She was so eager to get going after we saddled up it was all she could do to stand still for mounting.  She took to the trails like a trooper.   We walked for about an hour around fields, down roads, by barking dogs, road signs of all kinds, over bridges and the like.  She never even flinched.   That is what good training and a calm horse is all about.  She is sheer joy to ride.

I have a few more weeks to get her gait improved and will be spending a lot of time in the arena with her.  However, I know she will take to it with a great attitude.  Training is one of my all time favorite things to do.   I am constantly learning something new with each horse that comes to me.  Even with all the knowlege and experience I have behind me from clinics, lesson and what-not, I am still taught something by the horses that come here for training.  So I say, bring it on.

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I spend lots of time just walking horses through trail obstacles and exposing them to things they could come up against while working.  But this year I am going to be more creative and put out Halloween costumes and displays to get them ready for the season trails.   Things we take for granted can be a big scary ‘horse-easting’ beast to our horses.  You can do this at home.  Here are a few tips.

1.    Make a stick scare crow.  It’s easy just using a broom and duct tape a small branch across it for the arms.  Put old clothes on it and stick it in the ground.  Put an old hat on the broom part of it and don’t worry about it having a face.  Then hand walk your horse by it.  If your horse doesn’t spook, great!

2.  Get out an old sheet and hang it from a tree.  A slight breeze is all you need for this scary, ghostly object.  Be sure to hand walk your horse by it just in case.

3.  Take large black trash bags and drape them across bushes.  For more fun, turn your large trash can over and cover it with the bag, then put a pumpkin on top of it so that it looks more like a living object to the horse.   Be safe and once again hand walk  your horse by it first.

4.  I strongly suggest that you put these in an enclosed arena first before sticking them in your yard.  This keeps you and your horse safer in case he spooks and takes off running.

Your goal is to teach your horse to trust you and depend on you for guidance regardless of what he comes in contact with on the trail.  Go slowly, use lots of affirmation for your horse (pats, scratching withers and a kind voice works wonders).

For more on safe training for the perfect trail horse  go to www.baymountacres.com or contact me at sherry@baymountacres.com   704-902-7345.

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I spent a lot of time riding him and refreshing his memory in the arena on being supple.  I used all the natural riding aids as in, legs, seat, hands and voice.  I also occasionally had to tickle him on the rump with the crop.  When I say tickle, I actually mean tickle, not hit, strike, beat or anything else.  Just the thought of the whip often times gets the horse motivated.  This particular horse was already well trained.   I found he became stuck occasionally when asked to move forward on the trail or going past his buddies.    This is where arena work comes in handy for the horse.

The main point I want to come to in this post is teaching the rider.   His owner had raised him and taught him herself.  But she was a little intimidated by  his attitude when he left his buddies or got stuck on the trail not wanting to go forward for her.  I worked with her for a few hours when she came to pick him up, teaching her to sit properly and use her natural aids.  Once she kept her legs on him, learned to bend her horse (which is a form of getting your horse supple) and learned to sit properly and securely, her whole riding experience changed for the better.  So techinically I helped her improve the way she rode which fixed the horse.

The moral here is to improve the way you ride to improve the performance of your horse.  The more you learn about riding, the more you convey that to your horse when you ride and before you know what is happening, the two of you are working together for a safe and happy ride.

For more on training the perfect trail horse check out our website at www.baymountacres.com or contact me at sherry@baymountacres.com   704-902-7345.

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Training for Scary Objects

You can have a “no worries” trail ride by teaching your horse to be calm around unknown objects.  Just how do you do this?  Here are a few good tips to help you have a safe and happy horse.

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Horse in Training at Baymount

This pretty little two year old horse is in training mode here at Baymount Farm in Statesville, North Carolina.  She came to us a few weeks ago as a very green horse.   She knew how to lead, stand and allow grooming and that was just about it.  BUT the owners had been so kind and consistent with her that she is a very trusting horse.  Nothing seems to spook this horse as she is learning her new trade in life.

 I combine ‘natural horsemanship’ along with classical training.  I like to take the best of both worlds and do what makes sense to me using a lesson plan for teaching the horse.  Therefore, I don’t miss any steps, make sure I think through what they need to learn in order while building on concepts and skills.  I don’t use harsh equipment, disciplines or force training.  I tend to think of these animals as children that I need to teach a sign language.  If I have to punish them or hurt them to get a reponse then I have lost the motivation for learning and just created a resentment that may show up as a problem somewhere down the road. 

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Learning the Obstacles

This is my quarter horse, Lakota. Not much to look at, but he is a very good trail horse. Not much in the arena, but then I rarely ride him in the arena. He is just a good dependable trail buddy. Goes through anything and over anything. Although, he is always hungry and does like to snatch a leaf now and again.

I have recently started building a trail obstacle course to teach the horses and my students more about trail riding. We have a lot of fun learning to walk the horses through the obstacles and then to ride them through. This is a great way to get over fears for both and to have fun with your horse.

Fall is a great time for riding with the days cooler and a lot fewer biting bugs. It is also a great time to have your horse in training as well as through the winter months when you won’t be riding quite as much. Here at Baymount Farm we train the horses from ages two years and up. We start them out in the round pen and continue through until they have plenty of saddle time to understand what is wanted of them for the basics of riding. More on our training at Baymount Acres Training.     We take our time in making sure the horse understands the lessons from the ground up before we get in the saddle. Then we build on each task or skill being sure to repeat as often as necessary until they have a good foundation before we move forward.  After we have established a routine for the horse that is safe, we invite the owner to take as many lessons as time allows for them to learn everything we have taught the horse.    This ensures safety, knowledge and an immediate fix to any problems that may arise when we are not there.  Training both the horse and the rider is high on our list of priorities when we are in the process of training the perfect trail horse. 

Contact me at sherry@baymountacres.com or  704-902-7345.

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I went to my first NATRC clinic to learn about some of the obstacles and what the judges were looking for as far as vet checks, etc.  I have to tell you that this has me entirely intriqued.  I cannot wait for my first NATRC trail ride where not only will my horse and I be judged on how well we do on the obstacles, but the vet will check my horse to see how well he does overall.  Now I am thinking that I need to use this to prepare me for endurance riding!

Here are some of the obstacles we were trained on:

                                                                         The trick to teaching this is to teach it on the ground FIRST before you saddle up your horse and ride.  There were tons more obstacles than I have here and we were each put into groups with an instructor to learn how to teach the horse to approach and accomodate the obstacles.  All in all it was a very good clinic.  Check out NATRC.org for more information on these trail rides, what to expect and where they are.    Baymount Farm is in the process of preparing some of these obstacles for training and will have a course open by mid summer for those interested in renting the facilities for training.   More information on this at www.baymountacres.com.

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Horses were made to slop through the mud in a natural foot.  So don’t be afraid your horse will slip and fall.  They don’t want to fall anymore than you do.  Just be aware of where you are going and your speed.   Also be aware of your balance on your horse.  Sit up tall, don’t lean side to side, forward or back, keep your heels down and your hands still.  All this will help your horse keep it’s balance and make a safer ride.

Teach your horse to go through mud.  Many horse don’t like to walk through sloppy parts of the trail.   They will avoid that area trying to go around it, which can cause trouble in so many ways.   Perhaps there are trees that you can rub up against, or hanging vines you and your horse can get caught in if your horse decides to avoid a mud pit. 

Make a practice area in your yard or pasture that you can fill with water and make really muddy.   Then take the time to teach your horse that it is ok to walk through this.  Walk by hand first then ride him/her through it at a walk moving slowly up to a trot and canter.   Please be sure your horse has had all the preliminary training of following all your cues on command and is a sound horse before you start.  You don’t want to force this issue or get hurt in the process.  After a few times passing through this mud pit you created, riding through one on the trail will be a piece of cake.

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This is part of what we do here at Baymount Farm.  Not only do we teach people to ride hunt seat, equitation, western or just to trail ride, we also train the horses for the trails in order to have save and fun all day rides.  I am lucky enough to have a wooded area in my back property for training.   We cross creeks, mount and dismount on stumps, go over gravel areas, learn to back uphill, walk over or jump small logs, accomodate hanging vines, trot over poles, open and close gates, walk calmly by scary objects, but much, much more.  We often have running and barking dogs, turkeys flying by when spooked, large equipment next door, or horses in nearby pastures wanting to play.   All these distractions just help in our training efforts to get a horse ready for the trail, so they can be ridden anywhere.    We also have a large pond for training them to go into a lake or cross a river.  The more exposure the quicker the horse becomes accustomed to different areas and the safer they are to ride. 

Take your horse out and have fun, but be safe.  Spring is here, they days are warmer and longer.  It’s the best time of year for training.

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