FWW --my thoughts on horse training --

[Foxglove]

This may be something that everyone knows except me, but today Bob graduated from his training program.

My goal was simple: I wanted Bob to canter 90 m without going faster or slower, hand’s free, with me shooting arrows off his back. I tried myself to teach Bob how to do that for 3 months with no success. If anything, we both became frustrated.

Trainer #1 [Dressage background] had us come weekly for a month. Bob did improve. He became a wiz at ground manners and lunge line games. He improved his loading (now completely self-loads), and his unloading (waits until asked.) BUT the canter was a maybe. And then he bucked when asked to canter. The trainer (after a month) said, “I think Bob may not be the horse for you.”

Trainer#2 [Savannah White, highly successful reining rider and trainer] watched us ride then asked me to leave Bob with her for 7 days, then come myself for 7 days (consecutive) and learn to ride him under her direction. The game changed. As it turned out, Bob [who is 9 years old] HAD some pretty good training at some point --but no one had asked him to remember it for a long, long time. After the first two weeks, I took Bob home. Savannah had me come for weekly lessons and expected me to ride Bob in between lessons using the skills she showed me DAILY --yes, even if it rained, or was blasting hot --daily ride asking Bob to do the skills she knew he could do. Rides were 30-40 min --but daily w/t/c asking for correct lead and expecting a rhythmic canter on a LOOSE rein. (Halt and restart when that didn’t happen.) Completely stop for the day [walk] when Bob DID canter on a loose rein on the correct lead both ways.

It took 6 weeks --today Bob graduated! After we cantered hand’s free shooting two dozen arrows at targets for 40 min (of course we stopped now and then to give Bob a rest) Savannah said, “Come back if you have another problem, otherwise, enjoy your mounted archery!”

I learned what everyone else on the BB probably knew a long time ago --horses learn when the rider has a clear goal, a clear plan to get there, and A LOT of TIME to work with the horse daily.

It certainly helps to have a true expert only a short drive away to keep both horse and rider on track. FYI I do not have an indoor --all my practice was done outside in my field.

My favorite pix of Bob

[2DogsFarm]

Yay!
For Bob passing the Entrance Exam to Mounted Archery
And for being beautifully roany
But…

Maybe I’ve just had Dumb Luck, but correcting an issue or adding a new thing by *DAILY RIDING (Driving) * has not & never will be my solution.
Even retired, I just don’t.
When I showed Hunters, TB got 3-4 weekly rides leading up to shows. Minimal warmup at shows & we still placed well. Multiple Champion & Reserve ribbons.
EOY Reserve AA his first season.
Many years later, my WB had a canter depart that was scary - think: Shot From A Gun
Likely from his past as a GP Jumper.
If I instinctively held him, he’d get very light in front. Never a rear, but at 17’3, unacceptable.
Fixed with bi-weekly lessons, only me in the irons, Dressage trainer on the ground.
I’d ride between lessons, but never daily.
IIRC, took several months & it felt like I just thought Canter & got a lovely, soft depart.
My VSE came back to me as a greenbroke to drive 3yo after 6mos at Amish Bootcamp.
Went in August, supposed to come home in 90 days, but early Winter weather had trainer asking to leave him longer.
Doubtful he was driven there over hard Winter (no indoor).
No daily refreshers for him either & now at 10, I can reliably harness & drive after weeks when all he’s done is be turned out with my other two.
YMMV

[Foxglove]

Maybe Bob is a slow learner–or his rider is!

[Scribbler]

There is training (getting through to horse what you want him to do) but also remodeling body muscles and automatic reactions. Lots of times horses are rushy because they don’t have the strength to keep themselves balanced. Similarly a very naturally balanced horse can learn lateral work as soon as they figure out the cue while a less talented horse will take a long time to be able to actually do the thing nicely

[Eclectic_Horseman]

Go Bob! Go you! There’s a lot to be said for wet saddle pads.

[MunchingonHay]

Go Bob Go!
Not too fast,
And not too slow.

Round and round
'Round you two go
Hit the bulls eye,
now you know!

YEA BOB!!! And yea Foxglove for seeing that Bob had it in him.

ps. I will not quite my day job to become a poet.

[Foxglove]

@MunchingonHay Love your poetry!

[RMJacobs]

The day I tried Crackers out, he hadn’t been harnessed in a year. This was in an indoor, and he was perfect. He was always fine in a confined area, and his issues on the road weren’t any worse when he’d been sitting around a while. We had one winter with many feet of snow in a series of storms, and the road was either deep in snow or covered in ice for months. When we finally had enough melting, I harnessed Crackers and took him out, and got the usual shenanigans, but nothing more.

Salt, on the other hand, was always well behaved in harness. I could take him out when we only had a narrow strip of road to follow, and he never strayed off into the ice and always did what I asked. He did, however, always need urging to pick up the pace, being quite a lazy pony. He liked the days that we had to carefully pick our way, as I didn’t ask him for any speed on those days.

Rebecca

[Paint_Party]

Hooray for Bob!

(Love his photo, by the way).

[colorfan]

Yay for you! I am encouraged by a success story. Thank you for posting.

[Foxglove]

Another thought: I replied to @2DogsFarm that perhaps Bob was slow to learn, compared to her horses who were easily trained without daily work. Rethinking that, it may not be that Bob is slow, but rather that I set a very high standard --not my fault, my last two horses were impeccably trained ropers/cutting/sorting horses. Once you ride one, well, you come to expect that kind of response.

When I bought Bob in Nov., he did walk, trot, and canter. Pretty good ground manners, and loaded perfectly into a giant stock trailer (saw it on the video).

Once home, I wanted the w/t/c to be more “thoughts” than cues (like my other two horses). I “think” canter, and the horse departs --you get the idea.

Bob was more of a “if you really want to canter, I will, but you have to kick me really hard 5-6 times.” In other words, he seemed sluggish and lazy --not a bad thing, I love a quiet horse --but I only have 15 meters to go from Whoa to Canter in mounted archery . . .

As of yesterday, Bob w/t/c on a thought --I barely “kiss” his side with my leg and he rocks into a lovely soft canter on the next step. To stop, I slightly tighten my core (tuck my butt). THIS is what I was going for –

Each horse person has a standard they set for the horse. Some accept chasing the horse around with a mounting block as the horse dances away each time . . .I do not. I expect Bob to go to the mounting block and stand still --so I can get on or off. Some accept a horse that must be constantly held back --(I am often criticized at the hunt club for riding with a “sloppy” rein --but since mine don’t really need contact, I do ride with a looped rein even jumping). It’s a choice. The trainer (Savannah White --can’t say enough good things about her) --did tell me that what bothers me, is ok with most people --to me, whoa means all four feet stay still until horse is asked to me. Some folks don’t mind a bit of fidget or jigging, --I do.

Anyway, my 42 days of work with Bob resulted in the rider he needs (me) and the horse I want --oh, and yeah, I did have to change some of my ways --I tend to ride leaning forward (many fox hunters do this), look down when I ask for a lead, and “baby sit” my horse by constantly tugging the reins . . .gently, but a bad habit. Guess Savannah was able to teach this old dog a few new tricks!

[Texarkana]

Happy for you and Bob!

And this is so true:

I learned what everyone else on the BB probably knew a long time ago --horses learn when the rider has a clear goal, a clear plan to get there, and A LOT of TIME to work with the horse daily.

[2DogsFarm]

I’m not ready to agree my Standards for Equine Behavior are low.

I expect a horse to stand, immobile, until I am in the saddle or, for Driving: in the cart.
For the former that means both feet in the irons, reins in hand, seated balanced.
For the latter this is most important as I almost never have a Header to hold my mini until I’m seated in the cart.
The only safeguard I use is having him facing a solid object or fencing he can’t walk (bolt) into.
So his first step is always Back.
Giving me just enough time so I’m in control at the lines.
In motion - riding or driving - I expect the same obedience, with minimal effort on my part.
My take is I’ve been fortunate with all 6* horses I’ve owned that my communication with them & training done meshed with their temperaments so occasional worked & daily wasn’t needed.

*I know, a minimal number for most here, but Im not counting the 15 years of school horses, or the 1 shareboarded for 2yrs until I bought my first horse at age 39.
Lessons were weekly for most of that time & I can count on one hand the times trainers rode my horses.

[SuzieQNutter]

‘It is better to ride a horse 5 minutes a day than it is to ride 35 minutes on a Sunday.’