Ground Work & Handling

horse training, horse journal, canadian horse, horse canada, horse sport, western horse, english horse, horsemanship

Although food rewards can definitely reinforce a riding lesson, in my experience the drawbacks of using food rewards far exceed the benefits. While it is important to reward horses to affirm every correct response, I feel there are other more valuable ways of doing so.

jonathan field, natural horsemanship, boxing horses, equine footwork, horse shoulders, horse footwork, natural horsemanship footwork

In Part 1 of this series (Footwork to Free Up the Shoulders) I wrote about remembering what it is like to be a student, and shared some of my personal trials from joining a boxing club this past winter when I stepped into a completely unknown field. These lessons illustrate that horses benefit when their riders are more patient, just as students benefit when coaches are patient.

jonathan field, natural horsemanship, boxing horses, equine footwork, horse shoulders, horse footwork, natural horsemanship footwork

Footwork to free up the shoulders - During the past few months I’ve been teaching and developing my young horses and my program. Each year I take time to gain new skills and insights, mainly because I’m an avid student and always benefit as a clinician if I take time to become a student myself. I believe that leaders and mentors of others must never lose sight of what it feels like to be a student.

hores body condition scores horse, Reconditioning Horse, spring horse riding, get a horse fit, horse feed change, equine fitness, horse exercise, overworked horse

As we welcome the transition from winter to spring, we are eager to get back in the saddle and start riding regularly again. Canadian winters are not sympathetic to outdoor riding, and without access to indoor facilities many horse owners have not been able to ride or exercise their horses as much as they would like during the winter months. Bringing horses back into work after their winter vacation must be done gradually by starting at a lower level and increasing the duration and intensity of workouts. At the same time, the horse’s feed should be adjusted to address his present body condition (too thin or too fat) as well as nutrient requirements for the increased workload.

horse at fence

A common problem that many horse owners have is dealing with a horse that doesn’t want to be caught. This is particularly frustrating when the horse will allow itself to be caught some days, but not others, or will come for the barn manager but not for his owner. The reason a horse does or doesn’t want to be caught is basically about the relationship between the owner and the horse.

A Willing Trot in Showmanship

By Lindsay Grice - When your horse resists coming forward you will inspire him to do so by dialing up the level of discomfort and immediately releasing the pressure when he trots. Your timing is the key.

Pat Parelli, natural horsemanship, training foals, working with foals, foal-human interaction at birth, foal imprinting

Although many owners don’t realize it, a horse’s future mental and emotional health can be impacted by the experiences he has during his first few hours of life. Pat Parelli strongly believes that positive contact with a human immediately after birth sets a newborn foal up for a lifetime of partnership and training success.

Pre-Saddle Training for the Young Horse

By Lindsay Grice - There are quite a few things that horse owners can do at home to assist the training process. Saddling and riding is one more step in the horse’s education (which largely consists of yielding to pressure and counteracting his “fright-flight” instinct).

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