Was I in for a huge lesson.  I was so green and so dumb that I told the farmer who owned the land that his mare pony had an infection and needed to call a vet because she had all this discharge under her tail!!  Imagine the laugh he had after I left!  Well I kept my horse for a few years, but sold him after I had my daughter.  I had owned him a few months when I found out I was pregnant for the third time and decided he was too much to care for with an infant and two  boys that needed me more.   I wish I had someone who took the time to tell me how much there was to caring for a horse when I bought him and had outlined it for me.  I wouldn’t have changed my mind, but I would have had something in which to refer.  And I probably would have picked out a better horse.  There were so many books out there I could have thumbed through hundreds before I found the right one to go by. 

Here’s what I wish I had known.

1.  How to judge the temperament of a horse.  I loved all horses and if I could catch them I thought they would be fine. I didn’t know to look for signs of sourness, distress, submissiveness or what-have-you.  I didn’t know that ears flat back meant, beware, or that flared nostrils could mean the horse is ready to bolt, a swishing tail could mean, anger, not just swatting flys.  There is a lot of body language I know now, that I had no idea even existed then. 

2.  I would have given anything to have known a horse has a one track mind and if you keep it busy doing something it knows well your chances are greater at having a safe ride.  Especially if you horse hates to leave its buddy or the barn. 

3.  Knowing what type of grain, hay and wormer to give and when would have helped.  My poor horse had to survive on what grass he could find.  There was plenty of it, but he would probably have been healthier if he had been limited to his intake of rich pasture grass and wormed more often. 

4.  Realizing (not just knowing) horses are herd animals and feel safer in groups would have helped me understand my horses reluctance to be separated from his pasture buddy.  Looking back I am thankful he had a pasture buddy.

5.  Knowing the signs of colic and how to take a pulse, respiration and what is a normal temp would have been helpful.  All these things should be kept on record for future reference.

6.  Signs of lameness and what the common causes are, like laminitis and abscesses. 

7.  My most recent challenge was to have a horse choke.  Never had that happen before and didn’t know what had happened at first.  It’s nice to know that they can choke and still breath, but do need to see a vet immediately when this happens. 

I could go on and on, but I would end up writing a book and there are already enough books on the market about horses.  My best advice is, that if you love horses, but aren’t that familiar with them, then don’t be afraid to ask for help.  There is no need to go out and hire a trainer, but you can learn a lot through riding lessons, videos and there is always RFD TV.  There is lots and lots of practical advice on that program. 

But if you have a question and need a fairly quick answer just email me.  I’ll do what Ican to answer your questions and give my best advice.  You can find me on Facebook under Baymount Farm or Twitter.

I have several trail horses of my own.  Some of them are field trial horses, some are pleasure horses.  Most of them are familiar with the gates being opened while I am on their backs, but a few aren’t familiar with side passing over logs, turning on the forehand with their feet in a square, etc.  So, I set up a trail course in my ring.  It has most of the obstacles they need to practice on.  It always amazes me how quickly the horses pick up these new “tricks”.  Horses are so smart and willing, especially if you are having fun and letting them adjust at their pace to anything new you want them to learn.

Here is a tip:  when introducing a new obstacle, calmly walk your horse up to it first, if they seem apprehensive about it, let them stand and face it, smell it, paw at it (as long as they don’t tear it up – pawing allows them to see that it isn’t something that will jump up and attack them), then walk them around it until they are comfortable with it.  Look for signs of submission like, sighing, licking and chewing, dropping their head, looks of boredom and just standing there.  Once they are comfortable ask them to perform the task at hand, one step at a time.  Please don’t force your horse or you will find that training will quickly become frustrating for YOU and the horse will likely balk and become defensive every time you ask it to do something.  Remember your goal is to get your horse relaxed and willing.  You are the leader and must set the attitude from the beginning.   If you are relaxed they are likely to relax much more quickly.  Take your time, there is no rule that says your horse has to learn a new trick in one minute, one hour, one day or even one week.  If you feel you are going backwards or not making any progress, then stop, re-evaluate what you are asking and break it up into little steps.

For instance,  if you are asking your horse to turn on the forehand and he has no idea what you want, try these steps.

1.  Teach him to stand still first.

2.  Teach him to move one foot over at a time by tapping him on the side just behind the girth.  Ask for one movement, let him rest, ask for another movement, let him rest, repeat, repeat, repeat and soon he will be moving over until you ask him to stop.

3.  Next apply this to the bit.  I use a full check snaffle bit with a bit keeper to keep the bit from moving around so much in his mouth.  Pick up the rein and just take the slack out, when he moves over, let the rein pressure off immediately and pet him for being right.  Do this until he is moving over everytime you ask.

4.  Apply the two aids together.  Stand at his side, pick up the rein and tap him behind the girth as he moves his hindquarters over.  If he moves forward, stop, ask him to stand still, then apply the aids again.  Soon he will be moving his hindquarters over and then;

5.  Mount up, pick up your reins and ask him to stand, apply the reins by picking up one rein and taking the slack out, apply the leg aid behind the girth (you may have to use an active leg at first) and he should move his haunches over.  The idea is for him not to move forward.  He may get slightly confused at first and this is ok.  He will be thinking he is supposed to move forward since that is what he is usually asked to do.  Just gently stop him and apply the aids again.  Soon enough he will pick it up.

I have never come upon a horse that did not pick this up quickly and sufficiently when I took my time and made sure the horse understood what I was asking.  Rewarding for getting the right answer and practicing until he is 100% always works.

You can apply the same theory to whatever you are teaching and have fun doing it.  Make learning simple, rewarding and relaxing for you an your horse.  You will be amazed at how quickly you will be teaching new things and enjoying your ride much more.

Why use the round pen to teach these things?  Have you ever watched a herd of horses communicate with each other?  They use their ears, eyes, nostrils, facial expressions, tail switching, legs for kicking or threatening a kick, nose out for pushing, etc.  Obviously, we as humans can’t mimic some of these things, so what does this tell us?   Horses use lots and lots of body language to communicate and are very specific with some of their commands towards each other.  The ones we can mimic are our legs (arms for pointing), eyes ( for pushing), chest (moving towards a specific body part for pushing), voice and of course, the dreaded crop (as an extension of our arm only).  A word here about the crop.  Please, please don’t use it for punishment or in anger towards your horse.  Use it as an extension of your arm to reach specific body parts of your horse while your body is out of the way, or to tap specific body parts to teach a cue.  The only time I would ever crop a horse to hurt it is if I were being attacked and needed to protect myself.  Horses in a herd have the freedom to move away from each other to show submission and acceptance.  However, since we want our horses to stay with the lesson and not have to chase them around, the round pen allows your horse that freedom of movement to move away from us without going too far.   When they submit and accept, they will lick, chew, drop their head, move their ears forward to listen to us, start to look at us with both eyes and want to come into us and follow us around.  Some call this joining up.   That is what we are after when I talk about getting our horses to look at us for direction.    And we don’t have to kick them, bite them, beat them or chase them around until they are about to drop to get this attention.

The first thing I want to do to establish myself as the lead mare in my two “horse” herd in the round pen is to push the horse away.  Watch how horses push a new horse away from the herd when first introduced for days until they gradually let that horse into the herd.  I am doing a shortened version of that.  I push the horse away asking it to move whatever direction it wants to say, I am in control here.  Then I start telling the horse to change directions, inside turn or outside turn, it doesn’t matter, just as long as it turns when I say.  They choose the speed in which they go around the pen.  That is their freedom.  After telling the horse to turn then I get more specific about which way to turn.  Again, just stand in the middle of the ring quietly to let the horse know that it is doing it’s job and you are in control.  When asking it to move or turn, walk towards it’s rear or shoulder pointing the direction you want it to turn.  It will quickly pick up on your hand signals, because you are also pushing with your chest to move it away from you in a certain direction.  Horses don’t like to be pushed and are more than willing to do what you ask rather than be forced to perform.  Play with this, take your time and practice, practice, practice.  The more you repeat the lesson, the more firm it becomes in the horses mind and the better you get at training.

Watch for more on round penning in the future when I will go into more detail about specific requests such as; standing still (round tieing), walk, trot, canter on voice command, going over poles, etc.

I go out everyday and get on a horse unless it is pouring down rain. If it just sprinkles, I put on a rain coat and ride anyway. The horses don’t mind and actually they would rather have something to do than stand in the stall or the moisture all day.   How many people do you think let their horses stand all winter with very little exercise then expect them to be ready for riding in the summer months when we always want to take advantage of the long days of sunshine and warm weather?  About 80% of us I would guess.  Unless you have your horse in training it is doubtful they will be ready for those long trail rides in the summer.  And who wants to get on an out-of-shape horse that is lax in their training and struggle with getting them to do what they have been trained to do, but clearly balks at the aids because they have had it ‘good’ all winter just standing around?  Most of us want to get on and go, so…

Winter is absolutely the best time of year to pick up an extra month or two of training to keep your horse fit.  Reinforce those cues he has learned or teach him something new.  The more a horse learns in communication with a human the better the ride you will have.  Even high strung horses can be ridden confidently if they know what is expected of them.  The better trained a horse is, they more they learn to depend on the rider for cues and security, therefore, less likely to spook or run away.

Consider putting your horse in training over the winter months and be ready for the riding season that will be upon us quick enough.  Contact me for monthly and partial month fees on keeping your horse fit, training for trail riding and cues from the rider.  After training I always make sure the owner knows what the horse has been taught so they can continue the process and have a safer ride.

Ride safe,

Sherry Mills

In my learning experience with my daughter finding the perfect english saddle she talked about a narrow twist, medium tree, etc.  But even she couldn’t tell me exactly what to look for.  I went online and found a wonderful site that explains how the saddle should fit to YOU and your HORSE.  It is all about balance, comfort and performance.  Here is what I learned for me.  I need an english saddle sized 17 or 17.5.  Saddles sized 16 and under are generally for youth, size 18 is for larger adults.    I need a saddle that lets me balance on my seat bone, not my pubic crest.  The saddle should also have a 6″ – 7″ in distance between the stirrup bars and the deepest part of the seat.  The saddle should have a narrow twist, a wide twist is generally made for a man in that men’s and women’s femurs slope differently from their pelvic bones.   With the breed I ride, a saddle with a traditional panel will work well with my horses.   A gusset panel will fit a warmblood better in that their backs generally do not slope quite so much from the withers.   Now I don’t have enough room here to explain all this, so I  am suggesting a good site for this explanation.    http://www.showhorsepromotions.com/saddlefitting.htm

If this sparks your interest then here is a youtube video I found very, very informative in saddle fitting.  This video done by Dr. Robson fully explains how and where a saddle should fit on your horse and why.  She discuss briefly the pain associated with improper saddle fitting and how to recognize this and find the muscles and nerves under the saddle.    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40WzB00NhF8

Take the time to ensure you and your horse have a safer and more comfortable ride.  This also will significantly improve your horses performance.   Happy Trails!

One of the best times I have had all summer is while I am riding a young horse and watching it become a more experienced and confident mount for its owner. Small techniques such as moving off ones leg can make the horse so much more confident and fun to ride. Stopping when it feels the rider sit deep in the saddle rather than having the rider haul on its mouth for a whoa is calming for horse and rider.  Anything I can teach the horse builds confidence in it and then to be able to teach the owner what those cues are just cements the bond between the two.

I am always open to suggestions and continue taking lessons myself and educating myself with classes and research on how to be a better trainer.  There are lots and lots of trainers, information and advice and it is important to find the techniques that work best for oneself.  Incorporate what you learn from others into your own style and you will be the best equine owner you know.

Should you have questions or need help, please search out my website at www.baymountfarm.com and email me.

Please have a great experience with your equine friend and have a safe ride.   Sherry