The Rewards of Just Horsing Around

Mark and Sherri have been coming out for lessons and shared their experience with me this morning via e-mail. I wanted to share their comments to reassure anyone else out there who has had a fearful experience with horses. It is possible to overcome your fear and enjoy a safe, productive experience with horses.

Thanks again to you and the boys, for sharing such a wonderful experience with us. After having a very negative introduction years ago (being thrown and then having the horse fall on top of me), I had been very nervous around horses while still admiring and loving them from a distance. My intent for these lessons was to simply become more comfortable with horses, and hopefully to progress to the point of experiencing a Join Up. To have that dream come true today, both for me and my husband, was truly magical -- small pun intended since our first Join Ups were both with Magic!

Your training methods have been great, with a clear, consistent approach and a variety of horses that have allowed me to progress from initially being unable to even convince Jack to move, to working through my fear and building up my confidence, to now working in the round pen with Magic. There is obviously still a lot to learn, both about the horses and our role as humans, but this has been an incredible beginning.

I've included a few pics that Mark took with my iPhone. In case it doesn't show, I have to tell you that I LOOOOVE Magic! :-)

Thanks for taking Mark and I through this journey.

Regards,
Sherri

You are so welcome Sherri and Mark. It has been my absolute pleasure to share your love for horses and see your confidence restored.

p.s. Magic clearly loves you right back!

Clinton Anderson's Walkabout Tour

Today we are in beautiful Redmond, OR at the Eagle's Crest Resort. The sole reason for our trip was to attend Clinton Anderson's Walkbout Tour. Clinton Anderson is a world famous horseman and clincian. For two days, Clinton demonstrated his training methods on some very difficult horses. Gord and I have been fans of Clinton's, having watched him on RFDTV, so we were not surprised with the fantastic results Clinton achieved with the demo horses. What we didn't expect was the incredible humour with which he delivered his message.

Clinton reiterated my thinking that most new horse enthusiasts are in their early 50s. They now have the time and money to pursue their love of horses. These folks want to learn how to manage horses safely and effectively. Clinton's message dispelled a common belief that if you didn't grow up with horses or start early in life, it isn't possible to become a good horseman. One of the best statements I receive from students, after our lessons, is that they now believe that horse ownership is possible later in life.

We met some terrific folks (Leslie & Gary and Flat Stanley, and Victoria & Jim) in the stands, and were delighted to be invited to join them out for dinner. Horse people really are some of the nicest folks; and loving horses is a tremendous common denominator for meeting and connecting. Hopefully, there will be a chance to get together with them for a ride sometime in the future. Turns out Jim is also a talented song writer and was so inspired by Clinton Anderson that he wrote a song about his experience. Check out "Our Favourite U Tube Videos" in the right hand column of the blog site - Move Your Feet. We have invited these folks to come up for the Stampede and would love the opportunity to share Calgary at it's finest.

Leslie is a farrier and barefoot enthusiast and graciously shared some tips to help me with my own barefoot trimming.

Now we are even more motivated to get home and play with "Boys".

See you when we get back to Calgary.

Tovie and Gord

Extreme Cowboy Race

This weekend I had the ultimate privilege of participating in the Extreme Cowboy Race, clinic and demonstration. The event was hosted by the Stampede Board and was held during the Acreage & Lifestyle show. The clinic was led by world reknown and respected horseman and clinician, Craig Cameron; an incredible teacher that hails from Texas. Click on "Extreme Cowboy Race" (above) to learn more about Craig's amazing career and the Extreme Race.

I took Outback Jack and we were both so completely out of our league and comfort zone that I actually considered withdrawing from the clinic so as not to embarass myself and more importantly, put undue stress on Jack. I am so glad I didn't withdraw because we received amazing support and encouragement, not only from Craig Cameron, but from other participants. Because of that support, Jack and I are a far more confident team. It was truly only of the best horse experiences because of the people I rode with. They could have easily written me off and judged that I had no business being there but instead they were cheering and offering advice that helped us improve.

Our friends, Dave and Lisa, came down and took video coverage of our runs so if you are interested, check out the YouTube clip, located in the right hand column of the blog site under "Our Favourite U Tube Videos".

The participants ranged from professional trainers who ride full time; and riders who grew up riding and showing, to backyard keeners like me that muddle along with videos and magazines and juggle our riding schedule between jobs and family.

As good as Jack is, I believe that Jack's biggest problem has always been me and I really felt that more this weekend than ever. When I become unravelled, so does he. When I can stay calm and present in the moment, so does he.

Both we and our horses can achieve greater accomplishment through gentle persuasion and patient guidance. As intimidating as it can be, surround yourself with excellence and wisdom; but more importantly, be receptive to learning what others are willing to share.

Happy Spring!
Tovie and Outback Jack

2010 is off to a great start...

Hello all,
To our blog followers, I apologize for neglecting to post for awhile. I appreciate your interest and am grateful you have expressed your disappointment because it tells me you enjoy reading the blog. I promise to work harder at posting regular updates.

As you know, 2009 was a bit of a downer with the loss of so many wonderful four legged companions, but I am happy to report the "Boys" are fluffy and happy. We managed to get in quite a bit of riding over the holidays which was a nice change over last winter.

2010 is already off to a great start and we'll be "Horsing Around" more than ever. Lori Kovach, from the Calgary Board of Education, recently visited to review our program and check out the facility. Lori advised us today, they will be adding our program to their Continuing Education roster. While we didn't get the details sorted out in time to be published in their brochure, the course information will be posted on their web-site under Chinook Learning Services, so keep an eye out for that.

Our first course will run four Thursday's in May (excluding the Thursday before the long weekend). We will still be offering the private one-on-one sessions but for you social folks who enjoy learning in a group environment, this will be a great option.

Happy 2010!
Tovie, Gord, and the "Boys"

Continuous Learning

Many horse people will tell you that half the fun of being with horses is the opportunity for continuous learning. Every new situation and every new horse increases your knowledge base and improves your skill set. The more challenging the horses' temperment, the more that horse can teach you. When someone becomes stuck on a particular training method or tool, it can inhibit their growth. A particular tool or training method may work well for the horse you have today, but may not be as effective for the horse you have tomorrow.

My favourite analogy is the public school system. The system works well for the majority of students, and they do well; but what happens to more challenging students who don't excel, for whatever reason. In days gone by, these students were often labeled incorrigible, rebellious, lazy, or stupid. Thankfully, there are exceptional teachers who have explored unconventional teaching methods and tools to help those challenging students excel.

In the horse world, challenging horses are labeled because they can't be trained using conventional training methods and tools. All too often, these horses end up as neglected pasture ornaments or worse - shipped for slaughter.

Many of you may know the story of Nugget, our beautiful black horse that other trainers had labeled, "dangerous and unpredictable". During the three years since Nugget came to me, the only time I have ever encountered problems with Nugget is at clinics, when traditional trainers used methods that caused him to become angry and resistant.

Over the years I have participated in many clinics, taken lessons, studied countless hours of video, read anything I could get my hands on, and most importantly - practiced. Some of the folks who have directly or indirectly influenced my learning are; Linda Tellington-Jones' sister Robyn Hood, Alexandra Kurland, Ray Hunt, Clay Webster, Deb Ladaroute, Clinton Anderson, Jonathan Field, Lane Moore, and Nettie Barr. Some of these folks use more traditional methods and tools, while others have explored and shared, unconventional training methods and tools; all this learning has served the horses I interact with very well.

My wish is for you to remain open and have fun learning from horses!
Tovie

Peppy's Epitaph

Yesterday we said good-bye to Peppy San Poco (aka Peppy). We made the sad decision to put him down after a visit over the summer from Grant MacKinnon, the equine dentist. Grant advised that Peppy had simply run out of teeth, making it difficult to process his food efficiently. Despite supplemental daily feedings of senior's ration, it was nearly impossible to keep weight on Peppy. We decided that putting him through another cold winter would be selfish.

Gord bought Peppy as a 4 year old back in 1984 and rode him for 20 years. They rode many miles of mountain trails, many cattle drives, and paticipated several times in the Calgary Stampede Parade. In 1989, Peppy and Gord were awarded a trophy, for the Best Looking Horse in the entire parade. With his glorious copper coat and undeniable presence, Peppy was definitely a looker.

Peppy has always been the BOSS of our herd. I'm not sure if that was his choice, but for the other horses, he was the unequivical leader. Rarely did we witness Peppy do more than lay an ear back to another horse. He led the herd with dignity and fairness. He would permit the more submissive horses to share a meal with him and the other dominant horses wouldn't even try.

Dessa Hockly has written a terrific book entitled, "Is Your Horse A Rock Star". (<-- Click link to Dessa's web-site - it really is a fun read). After observing hundreds of horses, Dessa identified 8 different personality types and groups them together to help you identify your horses' personality type. She then goes on to describe each personality type by assigning them appropriate names (i.e. The Rock Star, The Sceptic, The Steady Eddy, etc). This is similar to what has been done by Briggs and Myers for people. Dessa then recommends handling and training methods that work best for that particular personality type. Appropriately, Peppy's personality is identified as "The Boss". Peppy was extremely Dominant, extremely Energetic, extremely Aloof, and extremely Afraid - DEAA and Dessa describes him perfectly in her book. She wrote, "The Boss takes life and his job seriously. Come along for the ride if you like. There will be times when you will do most of the work and they will be there to take more of the glory, even act like they did it all by themselves". For students of our program "Just Horsing Around", Peppy was the complete opposite of the type of horse a beginner should start with. This made him an excellent example of how "The Boss" reacts to life. Interestingly, after students had handled all the horses, I would ask them which horse they would like to purchase and many would say Peppy. Not only was he beautiful, his ground manners were impeccible and he was extremely sensitive and responsive, making him a joy to handle. You could think a change of direction and Peppy would comply whereas duller type horses say, "make me". But - Peppy also had a dark side. For years, Peppy's Aloofness made him difficult to catch and we would have to corner him in a coral away from the other horses. His Fearfulness would make him spooky, causing him to spin and bolt for home if I wasn't paying attention, his Dominance could lead to power strugges under saddle, and his Energy was often difficult to contain. Several years ago Kevin Pole suggested we ask him to gallop until he wanted to stop and then push him a little harder. After 45 minutes, Peppy showed no signs of slowing down and we were both drenched in sweat. All Kevin could say is, "he's got a big motor". Peppy's complicated personality could make him a challenging horse but he and Gord just seemed to work. Gord hunted with him, rode parades with him, and used him to gather cows. There seemed nothing Peppy wouldn't do for Gord. Peppy was very sensitive to cues, and such a beautifully smooth ride, that he always made Gord look good. Needless to say, Peppy was no beginner's horse but he was a wonderful leader of our herd and Gord had 23 good years with him.



Farewell Peppy.


No doubt, the "Boys" will miss having you as "The Boss".

Happy Ending

You may remember my blog in August, when students Linda and Tim bought their first horse and Daktoa tragically died just a few hours after they purchased her. The vet speculated that she may have had a heart defect. Even though she was a young horse, the stress of moving her was too much for her. Needless to say, Linda and Tim were devastated and never wanted to experience that pain again. They felt horse ownership was simply not meant to be for them.

However, once their grief began to subside, Linda found herself searching for horses on-line again and fell in love with a lovely paint mare. They have named her Miakoda - a Native American name that means “Power of the Moon”, short form of Koda means “friend”. She has the most beautiful blue eyes and white eyelashes and the sweetest personality. They brought her here to get a good start with her and we have had a lot of fun playing with her. Miakoda now thinks she is just one of the "boys".

Linda is finally starting to worry less about losing her and is really starting to enjoy her. I think Linda and Tim are going to have many years with Miakoda and we wish them all the best on their journey of horsemanship.

Big hug to Linda, Tim, and Miakoda.
Tovie, Gord, and the "Boys"