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Hello Mitzi,

I am a bit confused about how to start my new horse under saddle. Every time I pick up a magazine or go to a Equine Convention it seems that every trainer says something else. I see everything from groundwork and a gradual introduction to getting on the horse and riding him around in a couple of hours. I just wondered what your thoughts were.

Thanks. Linda R. Plattsburgh, NY

Linda,

Thank you for writing. I can understand your confusion. It is true that if you ask ten trainers a question you may get ten different answers, but generally if the trainer is working from an established method that has been time-tested, it should not be too different in theory.

One question for you is what kind of a horse do you want at the end of the training? Do you want a partner that trusts you, respects and listens to you, but maintains that "essence of horse" that makes us admire the species in the first place? Or do you want a horse whose spirit has been broken and is a subservient, depressed entity who has unquestioning obedience but is not a "horse" anymore?

You can probably guess from my description of the two horses which one I would rather have. There is not enough space for a detailed answer but I will give you some quidelines. First of all, does what the trainer is doing make sense to you and, more importantly, make sense to the horse? Horses are marvelously intuitive animals with an amazing memory which can work for you or against you.

I would say there are two main methods which are accessible to you. One would be GOOD "Natural Horsemanship". This would involve ground work which can be very positive or can be abusive. Round penning is an example. I use round penning to some degree occasionally, but it can be overdone so that the handler is looking for obedience from the horse because it has been deliberately frightened, chased until it is exhausted, and then submissively accepts the trainer. Good ground work and round penning should create an understanding between human and horse, so that the horse can relate to the handler. This carries on into the saddle work.

I believe that the training should be gradual, as it has been practiced for thousands of years. The violent round penning, working a horse all day, and then getting on him, in my opinion is more about the ego of the trainer than the welfare of the horse. This type of handling was necessary in the American West when literally there were hundreds and hundreds of horses that had to be worked with. When horses were used for the wars and for our calvary, these methods were used as there was just no time for gradual training. This is no longer true. We have the time.

If you want to relate it to you, if you were learning a sport, say basketball, would it be taught to you in a day of constant work, physical and metal, and then you were "thrown into the game" in one day? Of course not, but that is exactly what "one or two day" training does to the horse. Not only is this prey animal expected to understand and accept everything introduced to it, but then it is ridden a long time before it has developed the muscle and stamina to carry a rider. It is an abusive practice, geared for the person wanting a bit of a thrill, and the ego of dominating an animal larger than himself.

The tried and true method of taking many weeks or months to start a young horse is the best solution. You both learn to trust each other, and the horse truly understands and accepts his job. If I am told that a person successfully "broke" a horse in a day, I am not impressed, I am saddened. I have had too many horses brought to me months or years after this was done...all in need of retraining, or physically and mentally broken down.

There are many good books and many good trainers out there. Take your time on selecting what method to follow.

Q. I have 9 month old Morab. I just bought him. He is pretty good with all of the handling that I do with him except for eating. He is very aggressive about his food. When I put the grain in his stall, he puts his ears back and crowds me out of the way.

I have been unsure what to do so I just leave quickly. If I then go near him at all while he is eating, he lifts up his hind legs and looks really nasty. I am not sure what to do. Will he grow out of it? Should I just leave him alone and let him eat in peace?

Helen L. Scranton, Pa.

A. Hello Helen, and thank you for writing.

I do not think you can let this behavior continue, but if you are a bit nervous around your horse when he threatens you, please get a knowledgeable horse person to help you. Your horse is definitely being aggressive, and you do need to reestablish his respect for you, even if now it is just exhibited when he is eating. This problem is not all that uncommon. If the horse is just a bit grumpy when eating, often nothing has to be done. Indeed, you can just let them be for the brief period of time involved when they are eating their grain.

Your horse, however, is actively threatening you. This behavior could escalate. You just have to change the pattern that he has established. I have been successful by reacting immediately when the horse threatens me. When you go into his stall carry a lead rope with you. If you go into the stall to give him the grain and he threatens you, or if he is aggressive right after he is grained, immediately go boldly into his "space" and put the lead rope on him. With definite "energy" lead him out of the stall. Walk him around and find room to work on asking him to lead forward, back up, and disengage his haunches, making him move away from your body as you invade his space.

You will have an assertive energy level, but you must never lose your temper. Your response has to be matched exactly to his actions. You want him to respect you and listen to you, but not to be actively afraid. When he is listening to you, lead him back into the stall and hold the lead rope while he eats. As long as he does not threaten you again, just leave him alone. If he threatens you again, just repeat the procedure.

Be certain that you attach a lead rope before you correct your horse. If you yell or threaten your horse in his stall without having control of his head he could wheel and kick or charge you. Please let me know if you keep having any trouble. There are good training techniques to use with young horses such as Tellington-Jones T.E.A.M. methods or some Natural Horsemanship techniques. Just make sure that the methods make sense to your horse and are non-abusive.

Mitzi Summers

SummersDressage@aol.com

www.MitziSummers.com

Hello Mitzi,

I've been reading your articles in Horse Bits and truly enjoyed your help last fall with my horse when you came to Boonville.
Now I have another concern that I need your help in. I am working on my horse cantering and he just doesn't like to transition in to the canter. He generally lays his ears back and on occasion when I have tried a crop on him he bucks. I had him checked out by a chiropractor and have checked his saddle to make sure it fits him and everything seems fine there. When I watch him in the pasture he doesn't always canter and when he does he cares his head high. I have free lounged him without a line on him to watch what he needs to do to transition and it appears that he doesn't always get his hind under him. He has improved though and initially lays his ears back then canters relaxes and his ears will go forward. When I'm riding him I cue by "waking him up" with leg pressure and laying inside rein on his neck and using my outside leg against him. I try and do this on a corner.
Do you have any suggestions as to what I can do to make this a more pleasurable experience for him?
Thanks for your help

Hello Donna,
     It is good to hear from you. I am sorry that you are having this problem. You have certainly been conscientious in trying to figure out the problem from the horse's standpoint. Some people would just immediately blame the horse. All of the things you have tried to do to solve the dilemma have been right on track. I may need more information to come up with solutions. What did the chiropractor say? Are you certain about pressure points, etc. that the saddle is indeed blame free? When did the problem start? Was your horse off for the winter and this just came up, or did your horse gradually start to get worse and worse about cantering?

     If you have a good horse vet in the area, that may also be worth a call. In the meantime, I will give you some suggestions and see if they help. One way that may help your horse if it is just a balance issue is to double lunge him. You would take a regular lunge line and put it on him and then gradually accustom him to a soft lunge line from the outside ring of his halter, through the dee ring of a surcingle or your stirrup if it is raised to just above the girth, and then brought around his haunches to your other hand. You have to have a helper at first lead your horse, with you touching him with the line, both of you asking him to halt at intervals, and then you gradually come around to the same side of the horse as the leader is, and then you finally take both lines in your hands.

     I can write you a more detailed explanation of this process, or you can call me when I return form Europe , because this is a developed skill and you need to be careful so as not to injure you or your horse if he becomes frightened. The double lunging will enable you to have complete control of your horse's body in a very kind way. the soft rope around his haunches will encourage him to bring his haunches under him and become more balanced if that is his problem. It is important to take it easy, as horses have a real fear of losing their balance and falling because they are prey animals.

     It sounds a bit like it is in the transition that he has a problem. You do need to check your riding. For whatever reason, you may be interfering with his ability to get into the canter. Make sure that you are looking into the direction in which you want to go with your "center". Your inside leg should be at the girth with your outside leg behind the girth. Ideally, in correct equitation, your outside leg will signal which lead you want him to take, (since it is the horse's outside hind leg which starts the canter), and you inside leg which actually signals him to begin cantering. This way he is bent around and bent properly around your inside leg. Be sure that your hands support and then give as he goes into the canter. If your hand pulls on him at all, or you are behind or in front of the motion, you will again be making it difficult for him. Space prevents me from going into further details, but please let me know how it is going. You can also send me a DVD if you like and I can analyse it.

Good luck!

Mitzi

Dear Mitzi,

I have enjoyed reading the various articles and suggestions in HORSE BITS from you. I just had a general question about leg yields and side passing. One of my friends said I should start doing stuff like that with my horse.

Danny is a 8 year old Quarter Horse that I show pleasure both English and Western. I read a bit about both of them but got mixed up.

Thanks.
Rose L.
Syracuse

HI Rose,
Thank you for emailing me!

I will try to give you a brief overview of the two movements, and then if you need further clarification you can email me and I will be glad to give you more help. To go into the detail I would like to go into would take a long chapter in a book.

Even though they could both be considered lateral movements, they are quite different. Leg yielding is a forward AND sideways movement, while side passing is just lateral. In a leg yield, the forward impulsion is really just as important as the lateral crossing of the horse's legs.

It is important for you to be able to recognize the feeling you have as a rider when the hind leg of the horse that you want to move over leaves the ground and is going to step forward. When that hind leg is not grounded is when you want to ask it to step over. There is a half halt needed right before you ask the horse to step over, and then that follows with the release of the half halt. That is the horse's reward.

If you cannot recognize the movement of the horse's hind legs by feel, you need to have someone on the ground help you, or,better yet, enlist the aid of a knowledgeable instructor. This is especially important if you are not sure about how to use your body to half halt your horse. It is NOT done by just your hands. That would be quite incorrect.

The horse is positioned, that is, a bit softer on the side AWAY from his direction of movement. He is not bent, the body is really straight. If your horse really is confused, you can teach him the rudiments of this movement on the ground first, and also have a ground person use their hand where your leg would be to help the horse to understand to move over. You need to be certain that you are correctly asking him. If you are just starting to teach your horse, or have not done this before , never blame the horse if it is not working. Enlist the help of someone more experienced, and someone who understands that 95 per cent of the time if the horse is not doing what is expected of him, even something like refusing a fence, it is almost always human error, and intelligent retraining of the horse is necessary.If someone wants you to use corporal punishment on your horse, this is not a trainer....find someone else.

To think of a sidepass, think of the trail class maneuver you may have seen when the horse steps directly sideways over a rail on the ground. There is no forward movement, and the horse deeply crosses his legs so that he does not bump against the rail. I always teach this first with a Bitless Bridle or side pull, so if I need to hold the horse a bit to make him understand that he is not to go forward, I do not injure his mouth.

In a dressage or hunter horse, FORWARD IMPULSION is the most important consideration, so usually it is done as formally described. Some trainers will do a leg yield of sorts alongside a rail, but this lacks the forward movement.

I hope this somewhat brief description helps. Let me know.

Mitzi Summers
Summersdressage@aol.com
www.MitziSummers.com

Babe, Gray Quarter Horse Mare: (reprinted with permission from Horse bits)

Robin, the owner of Babe, had mentioned on the phone when she booked the lesson that she had problems with her horse when she wanted her to go to the right. Robin said that she would turn sharply and go the other way. It did not frighten her, but it was, of course, a bit frustrating. Babe also would not walk on the lunge line and would also turn on the lunge going to the right. She had had other trainers trying to help but so far nothing had been successful.

When I arrived at Robin's barn I watched her catch Babe in the pasture and groom her and get her ready for the lesson. The horse was quite calm and obviously a nice horse with a good temperament. She rode him with a snaffle bit that had a slot in the ring for the rein. I had her just take the rein out of the slot to encourage Babe to have a softer mouth and encourage her to accept the bit and chew. We also put polo wraps on Babe for lungeing to protect and support her legs in the event she resisted and might hit her legs.

I lunged Babe in her tack with a halter over the bridle. I do not believe in lungeing a horse from the bit. Many well-known horsemen, including Alois Podhajsky, in his book MY HORSES, MY TEACHERS, consider that having the lunge line attached to the bridle is detrimental to the horse for several reasons. I taught Robin the importance of using her voice in different tones so that the horse understood what was required of it, and also how important the body language of the trainer is. By learning to point the lunge whip at Babe's shoulder body and just say "Out" Robin was able to get Babe to understand that she must stay out on contact on the circle. In only a few minutes Babe understood she should stay out. To walk, Robin just needed to make certain from her body language and voice that Babe understood and the horse quickly was walking when asked.

When Robin started riding, I first made minor adjustments on her position. By allowing her lower leg to come underneath her a bit more, she was able to be more effective in her commands on her horse. Going to the right, the horse was able to evade her rider and turn because the first part of the resistance was for the horse to increase it's speed. This resulted in the horse losing it's balance to the right and also compromised Robin's balance and made it more difficult for her to correct her horse. So I gave Robin a crash course is the application of a half halt; that the half halt originates from the center of the rider's body and is not a result of pulling on the reins. Every time Babe tried to increase her speed and drop her shoulder, Robin was able o give her a half-halt, rebalance her, and then apply indirect inside rein and an opening outside rein and the horse could not turn. It was very effective and done absolutely without being harsh to the horse at all. I also worked with Robin on developing a following hand with her horse at the walk, and a quiet, stable contact at the trot. This proved quite successful and we ended the lesson on this positive point.

It is important to treat every horse/rider as an individual team, and to determine the best approach to any difficulty. There is no "cookie-cutter" approach to training.

I enjoy reading your Q&A column. Now I have a question.

I am new to the horse business ( we have had horses for many years) and relatively new in this area.
My husband and I purchased a stable with an indoor ring. We already have almost a "full house" of boarders.
I think the indoor ring has a lot to do with it....we moved here from a Southern state and we're a bit surprised about the weather.

Anyway, we have already had some arguments between boarders riding in the ring, and also my part-time instructor has been upset with some of the boarders interfering with her lessons.

Any ideas?
Sheri T., Oswego, NY

     HI Sheri!
     Welcome to beautiful (and it is) but somewhat snowy Upstate New York!

    Rules about riding in your indoor ring need to be established immediately, not only so people will more readily accept them, but their safety and your responsibility to keep everything as risk free as possible is a primary consideration.
     You did not mention the size of your ring, but this has to be considered when making your rules. If it is fairly large, you may permit boarders to ride with the lessons with certain exceptions IF your instructor is responsible and can abide with that. I will give you an example of some rules to establish:

1. Boarders may ride when a lesson is being taught with permission of the instructor.
2. Riders not in the lesson need to go in the same direction as the lesson as much as possible.
3. If approaching each other, riders need to pass left shoulder to left shoulder.
4. Cantering, jumping, or lungeing should be done only with special permission of other riders in the ring. You should at least be aware enough to announce to the other riders that you are going to canter now, in case their horse might react in a negative manner.
5. No one should enter the ring with or without a horse until permission is given by either the instructor, or if there are no lessons, the other people in the ring.( One of the barns I visit has a pleasant-sounding doorbell. You can easily hear it and it is much less irritating than someone yelling "DOOR!") .
6. Excessive clucking or whip snapping should be prohibited. It can make a nervous horse worse, and no horse person should be snapping a whip anyway.
7. In general, no one should pass between a horse and the rail. If there is much space, you should always announce your intention anyway, shouting "Rail!".
8. If a boarder is working with a green or untrained horse, they must not be allowed to work that horse with lessons in the ring, especially if the lessons is for beginners or intermediates.
9. No cell phones in the ring! This will be an unpopular rule. However, they take the attention away from the rider as much as if they were driving a car.
      It is in the ring where dangerous situations can occur, and also where you may witness horse abuse. You and you instructor need to make it clear that you have the final word. If you see a situation escalating you need to step in. It can be a child over mounted, or someone about to mount a horse and the horse is nervous or has excessive energy and clearly needs to be quietly and positively lunged.

Welcome again to the area!

Mitzi

Cribbing

I have a horse that cribs. I was a novice when I bought him and I was not even that sure what he was doing. Now he is ruining the top of his stall, and I also have people telling me it can be dangerous to his health. What can I do? Sarah G. Fonda, NY

Unfortunately, once horses start cribbing it is VERY difficult to get them to stop. Research has been done that suggests that horses do this to alleviate stress. The act of cribbing is said to release endorphins into the brain; this would result in a "feel good" response in the horse. That is why it is so difficult to cure.

Indeed, I have noticed people yelling at horses to try to "train" them not to crib. Usually as soon as the people leave, the horse cribs more as they have become more stressed. What you can do is try to lower the stress level in your horse. You did not give me details about his environment, but the more time he can spend out in a field, grazing normally, the better. Boredom, just standing for hours in a stall, is very unnatural to a horse. If he does not have a companion, try somehow to find company for him, even if it is a non-equine. Positive schooling is also helpful.

There are cribbing devices that you can purchase, and this may have to be what you do. They prevent the muscles of the neck expanding so that the horse cannot force air into his throat. You need to be very careful with them. I have heard of someone who turned their horse out with one and the horse started running and could not get enough air because of the restriction of the cribbing collar. There is even surgery that can be performed but I would imagine this would be your last option.

I remember that cribbing used to be legally classified as an unsoundness and if the seller hid the condition from the buyer it was a legitimate legal action. I could not find anyone that knew if this was still the case-it would be a good question for a horse dealer or lawyer. I do know many people who have horses that crib and manage them well and still have much enjoyment from them, but do know that it can affect their health.
Good luck!

Dear Mitzi,

I have heard a lot about you and your empathy with horses. Could you come to our farm and help us with a mustang mare we have had for three years? We have read quite a bit, attended a "Natural Horsemanship" clinic, and had people come to our farm, but nothing really seems to work and Holly is just a bit better than when we we got her. Some of the methods that have been recommended to us even seemed abusive. Thank you.

Anne H., Wilkes Barre, Pa.

CASE STUDY:

I agreed to visit the farm of this wonderful couple who had adopted a mustang mare. The mare had been separated from her young foal at a Mustang Adoption Center, and somewhere along the line had been beaten half to death with a two by four. Some friends of theirs rescued her from a killer pen, and Anne and her husband adopted her. This was three years ago.

Since then they have been devoted to this mare. She will finally allow them to be very still and will come up to them for grass or grain and occasionally allow a touch, but that so far has been the progress. I explained that, of course, every horse, be it a mustang or domesticated, is an individual. Anne had even been given the advice that they should treat it like a normal horse and expect it to act like a normal horse. This of course was nonsense. This horse had been severely traumatized. It is important to remember again that horses think of themselves as prey and we are predators. As this mare was severely beaten, she quite possibly thought that she was going to be killed. Any bond she could have had at that time with people was broken.

I went into the small enclosure that she was in and just observed her. The good and hopeful signs were that she was interested in me, looking at me with ears pricked. She looked lively and intelligent. Her spirit had not been destroyed. Instead of taking the typical round pen approach, moving the horse away from me, I felt that this just increased her distrust of people. I have never advocated using the round pen to move the animal around until it is exhausted and comes to the handler completely submissively. I have seen horses hurt and ruined with this method. Instead I had the mare "round pen" me! When she just thought of backing up from me I immediately moved quietly away from her. I did not give her a chance to move away from my space; I moved away from hers.

She started to follow me around, and was showing quite a bit of interest in this new "game". The owner was watching, and could see the change in the horse already. I then had Anne go into the enclosure while I observed. Anne moved softly toward the mare with her hand out as she had been previously instructed to do. Holly immediately seemed afraid and shied away from her. This confirmed my thoughts about how to proceed. I again went in with Holly and had Anne observe me once again. My body language was very submissive, I rounded my shoulders and made myself smaller to be less of a threat. The mare again started moving toward me with her ears up. This unusual pattern of working with her obviously made her curious and a bit bolder. At he end I was able to get her to take grass from me (a complete stranger) but again, she had to "earn" the grass. She had to get into my space to take it.

I again had Anne work with Holly the new way, and then I sensed that the horse had had enough for the day. This can be very tiring for a horse. This is another reason why the one or two day "training" sessions that have become popular are very stressful and non-productive for the good of the horse.

I have since received emails on Holly's progress. It has been less than a week and she is following them around and becoming less timid. I explained that Holly needed to feel that she had a bit of control over the situation.....that people (until she was rescued) had only hurt her and had had all of the control. The typical round penning, though done witht the utmost good will, had only resulted in confirming to the mare that again humans had all of the power.

Note:
Try to think of things from a horse's viewpoint. Think things through when you work with horses. Whether it is written, or observed on a horse television program, trust your instincts on whether it is right or wrong for your horse. Anne and her husband are very sensitive horse people, and realized that their horse needed another approach.

Mitzi can be reached at Summersdressage@aol.com. Her web site is www.mitzisummers.com

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