I don’t think CA is a great horsetrainer either, I mostly watch both to see how other people do it and because certain concepts are good, not exactly the way he does things. I agree bitranchy, his halters/other items are WAY overpriced and half the things you could make/buy yourself! :lol: As a couple of you have said about rescues not actually being ‘rescues’, I didn’t even think about that. Watching the mare he used she really wasn’t anything special, just crazy underweight when the rescue got her. Ya’ll have some really good stuff on this matter! I forgot when I posted this how heated things like Clinton Anderson can get in the horse world.
I know you were being sarcastic.
A non-sarcastic answer is that anyone who buys a “Training the Rescue Horse” video likely needs to be told not to treat them differently than any other horse to begin with. The people who are going to buy “Training the Rescue Horse” would pass by “Training the Horse” because it doesn’t address their “special” situation, doesn’t matter what trainer’s name is on the front.
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One way to learn timing is to watch many different trainers. As with most things in life, we can only hope folks will watch with critical thinking in place and make informed decision about what works and what doesn’t
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This. I have met quite a few people who go out and “rescue” a horse who would probably pass on a “Training the Horse” video as they are going in with the assumption that since their horse is a RESCUE, the normal rules do not apply.
I agree with the sentiment, if not Anderson’s specific methods in many cases, and wish it would expand to OTTBs (no, you should not take a horse who’s been a working racehorse and treat him like he’s a wild mustang who’s never known the touch of human hands and has only two settings, walk and dead run.)
I really think it depends on what type of situation the horse was rescued from. If it was just neglect, they can usually be treated like any other horse. But if they have emotional baggage from abuse, they should be treated more delicately. I just do whatever it takes to let the horses know they are safe with me.
I might differ slightly from the majority of you by saying that bad behaviors stemming from fear or anger should be treated differently from your average pampered horse’s bad behaviors. I would recommend watching Monty Roberts videos rather than Clinton Anderson. I can tell you from experience that a Clinton Anderson trained horse will ditch you and run if he ever feels threatened, (especially in jumping sports, there’s a reason the man rides in reining) while horses trained on non violent, trust based systems rather than brute force will stick with you when threatened-because you are their safe place.
Yes, Clinton Anderson, I am a tree hugging idiot! And proud of it!
Yes, CA is a terrible horseman but a genius marketer.
Ask yourself: why do people say “I rescued this horse” it’s entire life after they acquire it? The word “rescue” is loaded for the human. It makes us feel good. It’s a point of personal pride. Be honest, many feel a bit superior - even if we won’t admit it - to someone who bought their horse. It’s an ego-stroke, plain and simple. CA is a master at capitalizing on people’s egos and emotional neediness, so he makes videos with that sort of title.
But in this realm, he’s right, although I think it has less to do with “rescue horses getting a pass” than it has to do with “the horse’s past is of absolutely no value to him in his current situation”. When I take on a horse for training, I don’t ask about its past. Owners will often try and fill me in the details, tell me all sorts of stories, etc. When you cut through the BS, the “stories” are often just excuses for why something hasn’t gotten done or why the horse is how he is. I don’t care about the owner’s excuses, so while I listen, I know exactly what I’m listening to and don’t use too much of it in how I approach the animal. The horse tells you everything you need to know. THAT’S why one should not treat a “rescue” any differently than they would approach any other purchased or otherwise-acquired horse. Their past only gives people excuses to lean on. The horse only cares about what you do now to help him feel better about things.
Summed up: you treat the horse the way he shows you he needs to be treated, not based on any preconceived notion you have because of his history.
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This.
Perfect example; my last horse Melly would rear. We could not figure out why, the situation varied that lead to it, and there seemed to be no common thread amongst the situations. He also didn’t seem reactive or ‘jumpy’ or a horse I otherwise felt I needed to ‘watch’… he was a nice mellow guy, which kinda made the rearing thing harder in a way cause you always had to remind yourself to be aware, even when he was being a sweet old codger…
My BO expected horses to lower and put their own heads in their halters, in part cause she is super short [as am I] but also she had limited mobility in her shoulder. Melly was not yet there on doing that [putting his own head in the halter] BUT he also was not hard to halter. At 16.2 he could have been a jerk if he wanted to… he was not. There was no head going Giraffe high to be a jerk at all. Ever.
But one day she got a wild hair about him not doing what he had not yet been fully trained to do [head in halter] and when she DID get it on, she started shanking on that halter… driving his head up in the rafters and making him back way up into the corner of the stall…
Yeah that’s a great way to teach any horse to rear, but just about the worst idea with one who already does, and a horse you want to use as a lesson horse to boot…
My point being Yes, treat all horses as individuals, regardless of what you think their backgrounds are [cause honestly you can never know can you, unless you’ve had them yourself since birth]… treat them fairly, and consistently and be a good enough trainer that you always reexamine if you are asking for something they can do, and that they know you are asking them to do.
I am new to horses, and my mantra for the past year has been “ask, ask, tell”. So much so that I have been unconsciously extending it to my human interactions! I thought that was a pretty basic principle of horse handling. It doesn’t have to be 2 asks, but escalating the ask so you are consistent in your response and don’t overreact but also don’t become a pushover. I’ve seen his commercials on RideTV, and it seemed to infomercial-y for me to trust him. This method seems downright dangerous! Do that with the wrong horse and you might get a violent overreaction in return.
I was once asked if my horse was a “rescue”. He’s a bit overweight but otherwise he shines like a new penny, his feet are good, and he’s well mannered and as quiet as you can reasonably expect any horse to be, in other words not one single indicator that he had ever needed rescuing. All I could say was uhhh, no. I still have no idea where the idea he had been rescued came from. Maybe because so many do wear that term like a badge? I don’t know.
The #1 mistake people make with “rescue” horses is that they treat them “like a rescue.”
Treat them like horses. Period.
The older I get, I realize that it truly is a rare skill to be able to handle horses consistently, regardless of gender, breed, or background. Too many people, consciously or unconsciously, do things differently when they hear a horse is a “rescue” or a “stallion” or a “race horse” or a “baby,” etc. The only thing you need to change is your situational awareness… but that is a hard thing for many people to do without also changing their actual handling techniques or demeanor.
FWIW, I’m also not a CA fan. He kicks up way too much dust for my liking. I don’t find his methods “natural” at all.
