Posts Tagged ‘natural horsemanship
Gathering of the Clickers
Katie Bartlett and her horse Rosie
So on Sunday I went to my first group get-together of some local clicker trainers. I brought Minnow along as well so we could show the group what we were doing and have some fun with him. The first hour or so Katie Bartlett (owner of the farm we were at) showed us some of her horses and what she had worked on with them. Most of her horses did fun tricks, but she had also done a lot of ground work with them. Her one mare actually cantered collected on the bit while Katie walked next to her – it was pretty impressive.
Katie's horse Willy learning Spanish Walk
I then brought Minnow out and went through his little repitoire of tricks. I got some helpful suggestions from a lot of people. One suggestion was about Minnow’s trick involving rolling out the blanket. He’s really good about rolling it out all the way, but when it gets to the last little part he tends to leave it folded over. So Katie suggested I work backwards (which I had never thought about before), start with the hardest part of the trick (unroll the blanket and leave the last bit folded) – ask him to unroll that part and then when he has that mastered move onto unolling the whole thing instead of just the end piece. It was a neat concept I had never thought about before.
The other thing I learned was about cues. It was suggested that you don’t add a cue to your trick (or exercise) until your horse has given you that final product you want. So if for example I am trying to teach Minnow how to bow…as I go through the stages I would not be saying “BOW” at all (which is what I want my final cue to be) I would only add the verbal cue BOW when he successfully placed his knee on the ground like I wanted. If had said bow all along then Minnow may end up giving me different versions of the bow that he had done while he was learning it instead of that final polished bow that I wanted. I had never thought about it this way, and I admit I think when I taught Minnow to bow all along I continued to say it. Anyway now I know and I can put this to use with everything I do from now on.
Katie and her miniature horse, Buster
The final tidbit I took away was that it may be beneficial for me to teach Minnow a cue to do “nothing”. Katie told me about another trainer that taught her horse the “grownups are talking” cue (taken from Alexandra Kurland’s training methods). Where the horse learned when she folded her arms that it was to stand there quietly and still. This is a great cue for performance work because if I need a minute to gather my props I could give Minnow the cue so that he knows to stand still and not “perform” on his own while I get ready. Minnow has a tendency of offering tricks when I don’t ask for them because he gets over excited.
Later I brought out my big tuff ball so that Katie’s horses could play with it. I found it really interesting that they were willing to go up and touch it, but all of her horses opted to push it with their noses. In contrast, when I first introduced the ball to my ponies their first reaction was to kick it with their front feet. I’m not sure why, but it was neat to see the different reaction her horses had to it.
Overall it was a fun day and I hope that I can attend another monthly meeting in the hopes to learn more.
Photos courtesy of Katie Bartlett
Clicks for Tricks
My video for the day is of Minnow and I goofing around at the farm last weekend. I was teaching him to kick the ball while standing on his pedestal. This video reminded me of how difficult Minnow was when he first came to live with me. If I had brought out the ball 6 years ago Minnow would have had his typical reaction – which was to pretend it didn’t exist and he couldn’t see it – mostly he would turn his head all the way around so that he didn’t have to look at it. This was extremely frustrating because if I wanted to show him something (games equipment, a scary rock, etc) I couldn’t even get him to acknowledge its existence. That is until I began clicker training him – then suddenly everything was of interest to him. He wanted to touch everything! In the hopes that it would get him a treat.
Now I love showing him new things because I’m always amazed at how he decides to react to it. Sometimes he bites it, sometimes he licks it, sometimes he kicks it, and so on. In the case of the ball (as you can see) he decided that kicking it is the most fun.
Tomorrow I am taking Minnow to my first meeting with a local clicker training horse group. I’m very excited to meet everyone – as I’m sure Minnow will be too. Minnow loves to travel, especially if he gets to do tricks when he gets there. It should be fun, and I look forward to posting how it went on Tuesday!
-KD
www.ponypaintings.com
Good Boy Blitz
The character that is Blitz
The majority of my posts always involve my two Chincoteagues, Boomerang and Minnow, because they are the two that I actually own. But my farm is also home to one more Chincoteague that I consider one of my own, Chesapeake Lightning or Blitz. I actually used to own Blitz, until I sold him to my mom recently. I bought Blitz last May in the hopes that he would be my next mounted games pony after I retired Minnow. I tried Blitz in Maryland one rainy day and he seemed like he might fit the job. He seemed to have some speed, was unaffected by the equipment and was defintely a food oriented pony…perfect for trick training. Not to mention his stunning good looks won me over instantly. I bought him right then and there – well I guess actually I agreed to take him on trial for a few days back home before it was official. During my trial period with him I began to notice that he didn’t seem as speedy. He became a lot more sluggish and slow to move off my leg and I began to have doubts that he’d be the speedy mounted games pony I desired. I contemplated sending him back (even though I had already fallen in love) but my mom convinced me to keep him – thinking the speed would come later. 
After several months of working with him it was evident that he just wasn’t cut out to be speed demon games pony – although I was successful in getting him more forward than he was. I decided it was best to sell Blitz, and I was in luck because my mom wanted to keep him for herself. Blitz is still in training to be a games pony, but at a speed better suitable for him and my mom. So in the end things have worked out – Blitz gets to stay with us and his Chincoteague brothers, and I still get to work with him.
I took a short video the other day of the tricks Blitz has learned so far. Unfortunately there isn’t many – mainly because once I bought Boomerang I didn’t have as much time to spend working with Blitz. But luckily Blitz is a very fast learner, he almost has a dog like personality – I’ve never met a horse quite like him for sure. I think he’d crawl in my lap if he could. He has a quirky attitude that commands everyone’s attention – I think thats why he was so easy to call in love with. I definitely have plans to keep training Blitz to perform, and I have been grooming my mom to teach him new skills as well.
-KD
www.ponypaintings.com
Boomerang the Wonder Pony
Boomer 2009
I had a busy weekend with the boys, full of trick training, riding, working on the farm and polocrosse. Rather than to go through everything in one day – I think I’ll split it up over the next few days, it will give you something to look forward to! So be sure to check back each day.
So today I’m going to talk about Boomerang (Chesapeake Boomerang to be exact). He’s the newly turned 6 year old that I have been training since the end of last summer. I took a short video from over the weekend of the progress he’s made with his back up. Now I can get him to back up using voice commands and weight shifting – the hope is that in the future he will respond to my voice and a slight weight shift rather than the exaggerated movement you will see in this video.
Everyday I become more and more pleased with the progress Boomer is making. I was thinking back to when I first brought him home at the end of August. I had arranged to have his owners bring him to the Chincoteague Pony Centre from their home in North Carolina. I drove down there with my trailer to try him out to see if I would like him. I spent several hours testing him out, trying to make sure he had speed and was ok with the games equipment. As he passed all of my tests I offered to purchase him under the condition that he passed my vet when I got him back home. We all agreed and I was excited to get my new pony, and Blitz’s half brother home. Back home I had the vet come out to look Boomer over. Everything went well until it was time to flex test his joints (holding each leg tight against the body for several minutes than asking the horse to jog off when released). Boomer jogged off lame on his left front. I was heartbroken – according to my vet, she would never purchase a pony that didn’t pass the flex test.
I went home that day thinking I would have to send him back – what games pony would hold up that didn’t pass the flex test – afterall look what happened to Minnow at 15 as he was diagnoised with ringbone (he however was never flex tested). I told Boomer’s owners what happened and they agreed to arange a date where we could meet up again to return him. A few days passed and I couldn’t stop thinking about Boomer – I just couldn’t give up on him. I decided to have him xrayed and I started reading up on the flex test. Many vets seemed to agree that the flex test did not determine a future of lameness in a horse – afterall if you were asked to hold a leg up tightly and then run- would you be able to keep from limping slightly? (I tried it and I can’t). So when the xrays came back clean I decided to give Boomer a few weeks to rest and then I would flex him again with the vet. As the weeks passed I was fighting becoming attached to Boomer, I tried not to love him like I love Minnow and Blitz. I was trying to save myself the heartache if I ended up having to send him back. I think Boomer noticed this as I seemed distant from him.
But when it came time to flex him, Boomer trotted off perfectly sound. Despite my vet’s doubts in him I decided to keep him anyway (we will just have to wait and see if he ever develops lameness issues). I was thrilled to have Boomer, but I think its taken me a long time to build a connection with him. For a while he was “just the pony I rode” instead of “Boomer the pony who I have a special relationship with”. It was also extremely hard to replace Minnow with another riding mount. Minnow and I have a relationship that I have never had with another horse – we can read eachother like no one else – I also believe I will never have a connection like we share with any other pony. Minnow and I were destined to find eachother.
That being said its hard to give that same love and respect to Boomer when deep down I have felt as if I’m replacing Minnow. But with each day Boomer and I take one step closer to understanding eachother and creating our own unique connection.
I took Boomer to a Polocrosse scrimmage yesterday so that I could referee on him. As I warmed him up – performing his sliding stops, his spins and back up – I looked around at all the other horses. Boomer, at 6 and very inexperienced, was more controlled and responsive than any of the seasoned polocrosse/competition horses there (not to mention I performed these tasks bitless). He clearly shined above them all and yet he had never set foot on a polocrosse field or even witnessed a game. He rode up and down the field with me taking hits to the face with the ball, chasing the ball when it went into the tall grass, and standing clamly so that I could throw the ball in.
After yesterday I can honestly say that we took a huge leap forward in our respect and understanding for eachother. I don’t think Boomer will ever be able to replace Minnow, but I think in the years to come we will become an unstoppable pair. And I can say now, that Boomer and I were meant to find eachother as well.
-KD
www.ponypaintings.com
Its a Trick Day!
So since I strained by shoulders and neck I can’t really ride – big bummer! So yesterday I decided to get out my trick stuff and work with the boys. Boomer was first up and I started working on “fetch” with him. Didn’t take him long to figure out what I wanted – he just needs more practice to get his response faster.
Next I worked with Minnow and his tuff ball. I am still in awe when I see him with it because when I think back to 3 years ago Minnow would have NEVER let me near him with that ball. Now I have it balancing on his back and I can even throw it at him without any negative reactions from him. (btw sorry for the crude filming – I need to figure out a new system to film myself).
As I worked with both Boomer and Minnow, Blitz was close by observing. Blitz has a lot of fear issues (especially with the ball right now). And I really think it has to do with trust as well. He doesn’t trust my mom (his sole rider right now) and me (his trick trainer) to keep him safe. Up until this point in his life I don’t think he’s built a relationship with any one human. Yes I think he knows humans will take care of him, and they are a source of food, and we’re not scary. But I don’t think he’s ever had that one person where he knows “hey thats my person there” and they take care of me and keep me safe and I like spending time with them. Minnow was the same way when he came to live with me. By that point (after coming from a neglectful situation) he had begun to learn that humans were ok – but he had still yet to build that trusting bond with someone. 6 years later and now Minnow and I can read eachother like a book. Minnow sees me coming and he lights up, he’s ready to learn, and he wants any and everything to do with me – its such a great feeling. Boomer I think has had that relationship with someone before, and he’s been quicker to warm up to me. I don’t think he’s quite there like Minnow is, but he’s much further along than Blitz. Blitz will get there someday – but its just going to take him a little longer. He did make a little progress yesterday as he went up and touched the ball – but as soon as the wind would blow it into his leg he’d take a giant leap back. It was interesting to see that he was ok with touching it when it was his decision to do so, but as soon as the ball (or wind) took control and decided to touch him – he was definitely not ok with it. He’s for sure going to be a pony that needs to be allowed to make decisions on his own time, instead of being rushed into something by his handler/rider. Its going to be tough for my mom, because she tends to want results “right away” (don’t we all), but I’ve been slowly teaching her how to take a step back and wait.
My mom and I have very different personalities when it comes to working with the horses. I’m very quiet, slow and methodical when it comes to teaching a horse. I would wait all day if I had to just to get my horse to take one step forward. My mom on the other hand is having a hard time breaking her “show them whos boss” methods she learned as a youth. And the energy she gives off is hurry up and do the task I have things to do I can’t wait all day for you to take a step. I’m trying to help her get rid of this energy – and she’s improving – but its hard to break old habits. My next task will be converting my little sister too….who only knows one speed and its fast all the time and she has absolutely no patience what so ever. She’s definitely going to be a challenge! Maybe I should get into the people training business not the horse training business haha.
-KD
www.ponypaintings.com
