There are several conditions under which to work with horses
A horse is a large animal;
500 kilos like it is nothing. Unintentionally, in a fright movement, 500
kilos remain half a ton when placed on your foot
or worse.
A horse is simply too large and too strong to treat without due respect. Fear
is a bad and errant guide but you should nevertheless strive to do things inherently
safe. Inherently safe means that when it goes wrong the consequences are...
of no consequence.
Like reaching for the girth when saddling up; do this facing the tail-end with
the arm on the side of the horse. If the horse now moves or lifts a foreleg
it just pushes away you or your arm and never gets within reach of your chest
or face.
Even when paying attention and using your head unforeseen things can and thus will happen. Statistically horse riding is a high risk sport. Even if in your country safety clothing is not obligatory by law, wearing it still is a good idea.
Horses are not dangerous, just BIG living creatures with their own sense of survival.
There is more..
Horses are body-language readers by profession and will see from a distance
how you are and feel today.
When tired, worked off, in pain or just a bit under your water, all are valid
reasons not to do serious work with your horse.
To be able to 'speak' body language, - sit independently, - move synchronously
with the horse one needs to be fit, supple and able. What is the sense in gymnastisizing
your horse and oppose its supple movements with a rigidly stiff body in the
saddle?!.
Being tired out after 1½ on a 2 hour ride out means you are not fit
enough for such a ride; see above.
If you are not one of the lucky few and are not athletic or physically able
by nature, it will all cost more effort but they all still are conditionals.
To be able to communicate using the finest of signals you obviously need to
either have or develop the needed fine motorial skills.
Another typical example is
getting on and -off. For mé it is perfectly
logical to check and try the brakes of my bike before I plunge down a hill
with it.
Likewise riding a horse: if I cannot get off safely and quickly anywhere, anytime,
without assistance and from BOTH SIDES I am not going to take the risk to ride.
Getting safely etc. on from both sides comes second. Deciding to use a rise
in an effort to minimise stressing the back of the horse is something else
altogether: I should be able to get on by myself anywhere anytime.
A bit of bad luck in the design and several too adventurous adventures have
left me with an iffy framework and I needed a lot of exercises and the help
of a physiotherapist before I could pass myself.
Mentally it is more of the same. You have got no right to come near you horse
when stressed or angry.
Fear and horse riding are not compatible and neither are fits of temperament.
'Zzzénnnnn; is what you need. The terminology 'inner peace' makes me
a bit restless but it ís true.
For me personally the contents of the Ritter site 'Zen and Horseriding' was
all but essential. If you have this balance and inner peace by nature you have
quite an advantage.
A basic 'skill' is empathy. If you are not an empathetic person you will need to develop this. Without empathy the communication just doesn't work.
'Fitness' of body and mind go hand in hand and are conditions.
The aids that I use are basic and simple.
I always use my lead stick; an extended index finger. Not to hit or prod but
to point out what I mean and 'touch the skin'.
It makes it very simple to give pointers, touch my horse anywhere and open
or close the imaginary door.
I have made this myself from discarded golf clubs that where still straight.
Nicely balanced, 90 cm. long, lightweight (120 grams) and perfectly stiff.
Working from the ground, which I almost exclusively do walking and running
through the campo, I don't use more than a close fitting rope halter or soft
leather halter and a 3-4 meter long lead rope. Also the lead stick of course.
I do not like the weight of a clip or snap so just loop the lead rope to the
headstall.
For some of the horses a loose non sliding (tightening) loop around the neck
is a positive alternative to a halter.
It is also a good intermediate step to advance to a neck ring.
|
|
Photos: Left, the neck ring and right, a selfmade bitless bridle
Under the saddle again the lead stick and in the other hand the reins of a
bitless bridle, the neck ring or nothing.
We have bitless bridles in several different variants from home-made to pro
bio thane; they all work but personally I prefer good quality leather.
The neck ring you can make yourself from sisal rope or buy the excellent TTeam
product. I have wound the sisal rope with handle tape for tennis rackets.
Everything I share and show on this site is the result of a lot of time. A
whole LOT of time. Not hundreds but thousands of hours of quality time. That
time is essential.
If you do not have this time; better choose a good book about horses to read
than have a go yourself. In your own interest and that of the horse.
The most important tool is quality time.
Last; progress one step
at a time.Not only just óne
new element per block, but also no progressing until it is fixed and then you
give the horse
a rest. If you want to progress too fast you will find yourself in a reversed
'Johannes-procession': one step forwards, two steps backwards...
