tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-49162229853789029032024-03-18T20:38:37.083-07:00Mr. Rottens NeighborhoodYour online horse training resource.JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.comBlogger60125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-47878983203304011652012-12-27T08:08:00.002-08:002012-12-27T08:13:12.499-08:00DAMN! It's dark in here. Time to open the windows and let in some light!JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-54210682997687049042010-09-24T07:54:00.000-07:002010-09-24T09:15:43.218-07:00What made them think it was a good idea....<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfFpR212cZoHudshhHI1gIR1g9DJNOMFRvd6bpoTCyzvZI9C1ZpXD6WEzNS8QRUULxkxS2KNkB0GDORiKesGCjORecduHJZwvt2zo3tcETtkbAvtFb0ntpjfH3spgQsDH2RQUxbfLetHY/s1600/cave_painting_horse.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 205px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfFpR212cZoHudshhHI1gIR1g9DJNOMFRvd6bpoTCyzvZI9C1ZpXD6WEzNS8QRUULxkxS2KNkB0GDORiKesGCjORecduHJZwvt2zo3tcETtkbAvtFb0ntpjfH3spgQsDH2RQUxbfLetHY/s320/cave_painting_horse.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5520507685584857234" /></a><br /><br />I always ask clients a question and it is usually the same question.And of course that question leads to a myriad of other questions and usually there is no real clear answers.<br /><br />Who was the first man/woman to ever throw a leg over a horse? <br /><br />And why?<br /><br />What made them think that this was a good idea?<br /><br />Why didn't the ride a elk instead?<br /><br />Could you imagine hearing the ring announcer say "Lope your Elk please"?<br /><br />I always picture two stone age cavemen sitting on a hill daring each other...<br /><br />'Dude. go for it'<br /><br />'No you go for it, I dare you'<br /><br />'You go for it, I double dog dare you' <br /><br />It's funny that there is no real definitive answer as to when horses were first domesticated , thought there are pictures of them appearing in cave art from 30,000 years ago.And they were clearly wild animals, mostly hunted for meat. But the first known use of horses as transportation was for chariots 2000 years BC and there is increasing evidense that horses were domesticated 4000 to 3500 BCE in the Eurasion Steppes. So certainly someone had to be the first to climb on a horses back.<br /><br />Was he/she liquored up and did they do it on a bet?<br /><br />I can only imagine theirs spouse out there saying "Go ahead and get on, but if you get hurt don't come crying to me".<br /><br />What I really wonder about though, is what has become of the horses that we domesticated. Those that used the horses as transportation and as a, for lack of better words 'tool' to get work done really did care for them. They revered the horse in all his/her glory. They treated their horses as my father treats his car.<br /><br />They knew that if they did not take care of the horse that they would not be able to go anywhere or get their jobs done.<br /><br />And there are times that I think that the first people that got domesticated the horses truly did them a great injustice. Look what we have done to the horses that we so love. <br /><br />Did they use things such as Chain Gag bits or Kimberwicks?<br /><br />Maybe.<br /><br />But one would think that if they used a harsher bit when the horses were first domesticated that it was out of ignorance and not to get the horses to set his head. As they learned to work with the horse,certainly they figured that you can soften and supple a horse with the use of a lighter bit. However,I tend to think that when man first started to domesticate horses, he used a halter when he started to ride rather than a bit. But I could be wrong, that has happened in the past.<br /><br />I imagine that as they started to work with the horse that perhaps they looked at the mechanics of the movement of the horses.And as they learned how the horse moved they used that knowledge to make themselves better horsemen. The trainers of today were not the first to discover that of the horse drives from behind, then it makes the work is easier.( On a personal note, I have a profound fascination of the mechanics of horses movement,and it has been a tremendous help throughout my career. Watching the movement of every horse indivually.)<br /><br />What has changed form the days of old, is the invention of money, the Horse Show and the show mom/ show dad!<br /><br />Next Friday we discuss who was the lucky bastard that first nailed a shoe to a horse foot and what he was on when he did it........ Poor Bastard!<br /><br />By the way everyone, there are only 91 shopping days left until Christmas!JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com36tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-12723395502709005112010-09-17T09:23:00.000-07:002010-09-17T10:28:39.229-07:00Lopin Lazy EightsRecently as you all know by reading CNJ's blog The Well Groomed Horse, we took little Kit Kat who thinks he's big Kit Kat to a local show. For what it was an for the fact that he had not been to a show in some time I felt he did well. And I was proud of how CNJ handled him.<br /><br />That being said, this particular post is not really about the show, though I will be referring to something I saw that really made me realize what is wrong with the horse industry. <br /><br />As we were waiting for CNJ to go into her class, I was was watching a local Arab trainer who we will call Ralph( as much as I want to out the bastard, I feel that it is best that I do not). While he was schooling his western horse, and I wish I had a video of it, the worthless idiot never stopped jerking on the poor horse. He was riding the horse in a set of Romel reins and could not keep his hand still. Personally, I was ready to call 911 because I thought Ralph was having a seizure.HE would jerk the reins up always bumping that curb bit,then he would jerk his hands to the sides. All the while he was berating a client in the warm up ring because she warm up ring. Perhaps SFTS can come on here or other Arab showman can comeon here and explain to us the constant jerking and bumping as I would love to know what that is all about. I have shown many a horse in romel reins and never did that.<br /><br />Here is my point.<br /><br />How many of you have gone to a schooling show to use it as just that?<br /><br />To school your horse.<br /><br />How many of you have gone to a show knowing that your horse is not really ready, yet you just want to get him/her exposed to the outside world?<br /><br />We do it all of the time.<br /><br />We know that if we are taking a horse to show, and they are not ready and they place, sometimes it is a gift. And we graciously accept that gift.<br /><br />After reading some of the comments on CNJ's blog, I have something that I want to say about how we handle the shows and have handled them for many years. And this is how we do it with the youngsters and mares and stallions alike.<br /><br />Now it should be obvious that the shows are different from being at home. Though we want our horses to act as they do at home while they are at the show, we prefer not to get after them too much. Especially the stallions as we know that when we take a stallion to a show on Wednesday,their brains wont arrive until Friday.<br /><br />We also know that when we take a horse to a show and they are not ready, then they are not ready. All the jerking on them and getting after them will not make them ready, in fact, that will only exacerbate any problems that you ma have. <br /><br />If you take your horse into the warm up, get on him and he is not picking up the lead and you keep getting after him about it, he will not pick it up. But if you just stop the horse and wait a few minutes, then try again, the horse will more than likely pick up the lead. How do I know this?<br /><br />I do it all of the time. Slow and easy.<br /><br />If you want the horse to act the same at the show as he does at home, then you need to give him the chance to make a few adjustments on his own. Allow him to settle as there are a lot of distractions.<br /><br />My favorite thing to do is to take a horse into the warm up and lunge him before I get on him, so he can work out his inner demons on his own.I do not bit them up,I just want them to relax. Then when I get on him, I like to do the same things that we do at home,some softening exercises at the walk and jog. Then I like to lope lazy eights on a loose rein, slow figure eights, sometimes I do flying changes, sometimes I do simple changes. If the horse starts to cut into the circle or speed up, then I will stop wait a few seconds and start all over. This way I am changing the horses habits, and allowing him to be corrected without a lot of fuss. Letting him work with his head down, and relaxed. <br /><br /><br />The simple truth is, that I will not be able to effectively take horse that is not trained or ready for the show, and get him fully trained for the show the week of.It just wont happen! <br /><br />So why did I bring Ralph into this?<br /><br />Because the horse from what I understand is a seasoned show horse, and yet Ralph is still having to "Yank,crank spur and spank" this poor horse into the ring. A seasoned horse should have been relaxed and ready to do his job,without all of the help from the trainer. It's funny, I felt that the trainer was just trying to show off at the horses expense. <br /><br />If you want your horse to be relaxed and do his job at a show, then let him enjoy it so you can too!<br /><br />Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love to win, but I want my horse to enjoy his job. We will have bad days at the shows, but if I allow my horses to learn to relax at the shows, then my job is a whole lot easier and their minds are clear as they enter the ring to do their jobs.JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com45tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-22826601423453563112010-08-06T08:55:00.000-07:002010-08-06T10:11:59.684-07:00Howie 2004-2010<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlI99Fws3u166YUaDkLf0k_JGo9g4iz9T8WrkaP7-oL6btaYKEazcKq9I8whifE4UR9IXnz9b_Pk8kkaQAd4egSV9w-7P8MBWIjwyG-S3QJB08Sd44LB9NPgnJDGgWL54vMK2cci2w15c/s1600/IMG_0309%5B1%5D.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlI99Fws3u166YUaDkLf0k_JGo9g4iz9T8WrkaP7-oL6btaYKEazcKq9I8whifE4UR9IXnz9b_Pk8kkaQAd4egSV9w-7P8MBWIjwyG-S3QJB08Sd44LB9NPgnJDGgWL54vMK2cci2w15c/s320/IMG_0309%5B1%5D.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5502339262489212082" /></a><br />CNJ here. It is with a heavy heart that I type this. Howie slipped away quietly in the back yard yesterday morning. We have no idea what happened or why, he was just gone. He was a young dog, only about 6 or 7 years old. He too was another rescue, but came to join the pack in an odd way at a time, I wasn't so sure was exactly the right one, but when do rescues ever come at a good time or happen as planned?<br /><br />Mid December of 2004, JR had just lost his dog Sassie of 15 years. Those two had been everywhere, done everything- together. She went with him on every trip when he was hauling. From here to Washington, several trips to Wisconsin, back to Virginia, she was with us when we went up to Sweetgrass, Montana to pick up a horse from Canada...<br /><br />Losing her was a tough blow to take. Only a couple days later one of our friends called to ask if we wanted another dog? Yeah, it was kinda sudden. But a couple she knew had found a Husky wandering the streets of their neighborhood and taken him in. They had run ads in the paper, put fliers up all over the place, took him to the vet to have him checked out and scanned for a chip, took him to the pound to see if they had any "Missing Dog" notices, posted on Pet Finder -----> Nothing. Nobody was looking for him. As much as I dislike people like that, I'm glad in this case. Otherwise we never would have gotten to have such a wonderful dog. <br /><br />This couple would have kept him if they didn't already have 6 dogs of their own and a few of their in-laws dogs as well. So I went to look at him one night after work. Rough guesses- he was around a year old. His paws were HUGE and he was gorgeous! His nails had been done, he had the sweetest temperament and no real manners to speak of. How could I possibly say no? More importantly- How could JR?<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUmJIiNdI6WO9O1UdbM8e6epnW-NNBfF4tbDx1O8f_2OqVD5TPSqv4y96iYDCqqZW6g0NfipZ6WFyrwVg_1p41M9bE0yLbTPwM5ILMQLUVF1CDoQtIG_IwCE1N9vjddGRyP7irdlKfgXQ/s1600/IMG_0307%5B2%5D.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUmJIiNdI6WO9O1UdbM8e6epnW-NNBfF4tbDx1O8f_2OqVD5TPSqv4y96iYDCqqZW6g0NfipZ6WFyrwVg_1p41M9bE0yLbTPwM5ILMQLUVF1CDoQtIG_IwCE1N9vjddGRyP7irdlKfgXQ/s320/IMG_0307%5B2%5D.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5502339830078194178" /></a><br />Turns out the couple that found him lived on the corner of the next street over and three or four houses down from my sister. We were all supposed to get together at her place for Christmas morning, opening presents and breakfast. So arrangements were made to pick him up Christmas morning around 9am. <br /><br />JR and I had agreed not to get each other anything. We have this agreement every year, and every year one of us breaks it. Since the giant, goofy puppy was mainly black, I told JR he was getting a lump of coal, about an 80 lb lump, for Christmas. He is Mr. Rotten and he was very likely deserving of such so he didn't really question it much.<br /><br />Christmas morning we went to my sisters place. Just before 9am I told JR I had to go get his present. I drove around the corner to pick up the puppy who was sporting a giant, sparkly, gold bow around his neck. He jumped in the truck for the short drive back and at one point was in my lap. It's amazing we didn't hit anything on the way! Since the truck is a diesel, we were announced as soon as we pulled in the driveway. <br /><br />JR came out the front door to get his giant lump of 'coal'... He kept shaking his head at me and hugging the dog. Figures. *grins* About the only question he kept asking me is "What did you do now?" <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLZb2meRHOA2cFJM29WTaKz3eu44TYsWCJd_0OesNe-LIz7fmYN8Dh6soEED_lh2m1HwN2EC0jS6V3da35LUZzYsPPly3iz5kS4yfLeC5YsgQxSUDSKCzfPKZypIP3bQTsf6SIQ4qebHQ/s1600/IMG_0290%5B1%5D.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLZb2meRHOA2cFJM29WTaKz3eu44TYsWCJd_0OesNe-LIz7fmYN8Dh6soEED_lh2m1HwN2EC0jS6V3da35LUZzYsPPly3iz5kS4yfLeC5YsgQxSUDSKCzfPKZypIP3bQTsf6SIQ4qebHQ/s320/IMG_0290%5B1%5D.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5502340692384638946" /></a><br />We tried a few different names before settling on "Howie". Dutch, for Dutch Harbor, Alaska. Dalton- Dalton, Colorado. We already had a Timber and his brother Kodiak. We decided on Howie, because it just seemed to fit. He was just a goofy dog that way and needed a goofy name. He liked to howl too. Howie Wowie fit as well.<br /><br />Remember the part about him having no manners? Well JR let him in the house one night and he came up to the coffee table. First the front paws were on the table. "Howie Off. Then all four paws were on the table. Howie, OFF. Then his front paws were in my lap on the couch. Howie OFF! Then all four paws were in my lap. HOWIE, OFF! Dammit, you big doof. And there he sat. Pinning me on the couch and licking my face. How can you be mad at a dog like that? <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYz5li2V9kBsR-Wan2yBERZdNMKABTGHuzvuM7y9X1Az1pVHIgKJByFtT0FeiHnKScGcAJaUXW45dXFcxEk_T_YXFBCZA6kr95Ma3ggqbhECFYGcdmXnQsDkWwnkKHQV75eFMZdPKnmYE/s1600/IMG_0307%5B1%5D.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYz5li2V9kBsR-Wan2yBERZdNMKABTGHuzvuM7y9X1Az1pVHIgKJByFtT0FeiHnKScGcAJaUXW45dXFcxEk_T_YXFBCZA6kr95Ma3ggqbhECFYGcdmXnQsDkWwnkKHQV75eFMZdPKnmYE/s320/IMG_0307%5B1%5D.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5502332394447745714" /></a><br />A few strange things happened yesterday morning. JR's watch, the one that needs no winding, has a 48 hour back up if you don't wear it and all that good stuff... It stopped. It was an hour off when he figured it out.<br /><br />When JR dropped off the girls, my brother & SIL have cd's and bells hanging in their tree over the driveway to keep the birds out and from crapping all over the drive and the cars. No breezes to be felt, yet as he was getting the girls out of the car, the bells directly above him started ringing like crazy. None of the rest of them in the tree made a sound.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7-Dv0WN-gfQul2p3Q3921WXzFHdsytDk7OYMjtQxTLOBdJmOC_HNE8Ml5tYINOFtnDrUqg3NOhwGgYf777H0pZoH92_9zyF915mVuO9QaZueJOUjWSWemJCwxmh5AU0qD-EmLNwZXw4E/s1600/IMG_0301%5B1%5D.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7-Dv0WN-gfQul2p3Q3921WXzFHdsytDk7OYMjtQxTLOBdJmOC_HNE8Ml5tYINOFtnDrUqg3NOhwGgYf777H0pZoH92_9zyF915mVuO9QaZueJOUjWSWemJCwxmh5AU0qD-EmLNwZXw4E/s320/IMG_0301%5B1%5D.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5502327692099737234" /></a><br />Whatcha got there? I wanna see.<br /><br />Howie will be missed. <br />He already is.JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-82860812153079328142010-05-09T06:48:00.000-07:002010-05-09T07:05:34.052-07:00Happy Mothers Day!!!!!!!!!!!This will be a short post. <br /><br />My mother was a school teacher. She taught elementary education. <br /><br />She is honest to a fault, and put up with my crap when I was a teenager. ( that wasn't to difficult as I was a perfect angel). No matter what I did she was always behind me whether or not I made the right decisions or not. Mom always worked hard and made the sacrifices so that we always had what we needed. And she taught me more about being a parent than I realized before our twins were born. <br /><br />In other words, I have a great mom! <br /><br />I see those same qualities in CNJ when it comes to the twins, and our teenage daughter. She is a great mom, honest and hard working. <br /><br />So to CNJ and my mom, from me and the three, we all love you both and are blessed to have you in our lives!<br /><br />And to all you Mothers out there,( and I mean the real mothers and not the other type of mothers)....,.Happy Mothers Day!JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-85250500794962520522010-04-30T16:03:00.000-07:002010-04-30T17:13:52.149-07:00Fluid in motion, sound in mind.I have been thinking about this post for a long time. I know, I know, thinking and doing are two completely different things. But the reason that I have been thinking about this post for so long is that I really did not want it to sound like the same old drivel that I seem to sometimes say.<br /><br />The reason that I finally decided to write this today, was, there was a woman that was riding by our place on her horse and she was having a few issues with her gelding. I was in the front pasture fixing some fence, and made a comment about her horses lack of cooperation. Not a Rotten comment, more like a factual comment. <br /><br />You could visibly see how this horse was leaning on the bit and trying to pull the woman out of the saddle. She did ask me what I would do and yes, I did tell her. So I gave her a little lesson on what I would do.<br /><br />Like I always say, we worked on softening the horses shoulders, getting the rider to lighten her contact on the horses mouth and start using more leg. When the horse did not respond to her leg,I told her to turn her toe towards the center of the ring and use the widest part of her lower leg. After a few gentle tugs on the reins, and learning to use her legs, the results were almost instantaneous.<br /><br />So why is this called Fluid in motion, sound in mind you may ask?<br /><br />Many years ago in 1974, I had just turned 11 and I wanted to learn to start horses under saddle. There was a old man, actually at that time he was not that old, that grew up on a ranch and had been starting horses since he was very young. The old guy knew what he was doing on a horse. I had to beg him to teach me and to let me start a few. For the most part I followed him around all day and asked a lot of questions hoping that he would finally give in. And he did that summer. He put me on a young paint horse and let me start him, and as he saw that I had some talent, he started to put me on a few more.<br /><br />The thing is, I would always watch him work a horse, I was amazed at how fluid the horses were in their movement. When Arnold asked for the lope, the horses just rolled into the transition, they never had to lift their heads up to move into it. His downward transitions were the same,it was as if the horse fell out of the lope and back into the trot. <br /><br />The horses minds were also sound. It was like they knew that they would never be forced into anything that they did not want to be forced into. When the horses decided it was ready to learn something new, that is when Arnold taught him something new.<br /><br />I asked Arnold how he did it, and he said he painted a picture in his mind of what he wanted the horse to do and how he wanted the horse to look and worked to, for lack of better words, paint that picture on the canvas.<br /><br />It was pure art! There simply is no other way to describe it.<br /><br />I knew then, that I wanted to be a horse trainer.<br /><br />I when I am working a horse, I always like to close my eyes and picture what I want that horse to look like when I am working them. I like to picture the horse having a fluid motion, on all fronts, be it in transitions, spinning, working a cow or going over jumps. Then as I work the horse I start to make small adjustments until I can feel that we are making progress towards in my mind, what would be the ideal training session for both myself and the horse.<br /><br />Since I learned that from Arnold, I have always taught my students to close their eyes for a moment and take pause and picture the ideal work session for them and their horse. A sort of meditation when they first get on their horse.<br /><br />Today, when I gave our neighbor some help, I told her to close her eyes and picture how she wants her horse to work and then work towards that goal. She did and she told me that it allowed her to relax more and let go and focus more on the positive and less on the negative. <br /><br />She also told me to write a book, so I referred her to the blog!<br /><br />So, tonight, in a somewhat party atmosphere, I raise a pint to Arnold, wherever you may be, I am forever in your debt for teaching me the one thing that has always been with me throughout my 30+ year professional career in the horse business.JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-33056409719212141662010-03-26T09:47:00.001-07:002010-03-26T12:11:30.164-07:00The Natural Horsemanship DebateThere is a great divide amongst horse people that rivals the Healtcare Debate in the US. And that is the debate of whether or not Natuaral Horsemanship is better than the common sense horsemanship that is taught by Non-Natural Horsemanship trainers. Does the common sense horsemanship work better?<br /><br />In this trainers opinion yes it does. At least, common sense trainers do not sell you a bunch of products that will supposedly make your horse listen to you. Take for instance the 'Carrot Stick'. Truth be known, the carrot stick is nothing more than a long bat. Not a whip, a bat, there is a difference!<br /><br />Yet people buy the Carrot Stick by the dozens and the they wave it at their horses like an orange magic wanded Harry Potter and expect the problems to magically go away.<br /><br />Here is the link to a video of Linda Parelli that you need to watch if you have not seen it already. I want you to watch before you read on and form your opinion of what is happening, then make your comments from there.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.ebaumsworld.com/video/watch/80925308">Linda Parelli in action</a><br /><br />About 10 years ago, I took a horse in training for a woman that was having a hard time with her horse throwing his head up and backing up when she tried to catch him. Then, when she was finally able to catch the horse, and tack him up, he would throw his head when she tried to bridle him. So I went to her place to watch what she was doing.<br /><br />At that time I was unfamiliar with Parelli and his methods and the woman who owned the horse told me the she has been using the methods that she saw him use at a clinic. I of course, being the forthright honest individual that I am told her that the methods that she had learned were not working obviously.<br /><br />I watched her catch the horse and sure enough he threw his head and backed up and soon as she approcahed him with the halter. When she finally managed to wrangle her four legged friend and get a halter on him. He started to try to walk all over her,so she started to waggle the lead rope at him to get him to back off of her. When she waggled the lead rope at him, the horse would back up. But me being the astute observationalist, noticed that the snap would rattle every time she would waggle the lead rope at her fine steed.<br /><br />I told the woman, that the problem is not the horse, but the methods that she employed to train the horse. Every time she approached the horse, the lead rope would rattle and the horse would back up as he was conditioned to do. The head throwing was as a result of the lead rope being waved at the horse. Her bridle, had snaps on the end of the reins and they would rattle,so her horse would throw is head and back when she tried to bridle her horse.<br /><br />The fix, well that was simple as well, she took the snaps off of her reins, and attached the lead to the halter without using a snap. It took a few sessions, but the horse finally quit his vices. I went out there once and charged her a one hour evaluation fee, figured out the problem, and she was able to fix it on her own. I ended up starting a few horses for her later on and she never went to a Parelli clinic again.<br /><br />Am I that good? I suppose you would have to ask my clients.<br /><br />I watched that video, and I have to say, that set the natural horsemanship back to the stone age. Linda Parelli is terrorizing that horse for no reason what so ever. It really is not that difficult to get a horse to respond to you without all of the fanfare. Would I have gotten after that horse?<br /><br />Absolutely, but I would have only gotten after him once and that would be the end of it. The horse was obviously reacting to Linda Parelli and her jerking him into oblivion more that anything else. So in reality, it was Linda's fault that the horse was reacting the way that he was. The horse is trying to figure out what she wants, and that is quite a feat, as Linda does not know what she wants from this horse. If she had let the horse stand for a minute then start all over she would have had better results.<br /><br />I have had a lot of horses come into the barn that have been Parellized, and they all act the same way. They have no idea of what you want from them. Once they figure it out, it is pretty easy from there.<br /><br />I know, but JR, you have not seen the whole video and what was really going on. I saw enough to know who the problem was there. It started when the horses owner was being told to " wiggle, wiggle thump" and continued to go down hill from there.<br /><br />Linda terrorized this horse and got nowhere with him because it was apparent that she had no clue as to what to do.<br /><br />Just because a clinician shows up in chaps and is wearing spurs, that does not make them a horseman. I had clients that would wear breeches at a show so people would think they knew what they were doing. There again, it is not your outfit that makes you a horseman.<br /><br />My personal opinion, is that the majority of these people are frauds. They tell you what you want to hear and promise to fix every bad vice that your horse has permanently. When the truth of the matter is, these old vices will resurface no matter who the trainer is. It is the trainers job to teach the owners how to deal with the problem when it arises in the future and not charge the owner an arm and a leg for cheap products that can sometimes make the problems worse.JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com57tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-74028920559743765852010-03-01T16:15:00.000-08:002010-03-01T17:08:48.428-08:00The Realities of the Arabian Halter Horse IndustryI do realize that this topic has already been over done, but I do feel the strong need to discuss it. <br /><br />As I have said in the past, I started in the Quarter Horses as a kid and for me it was showmanship, reining, cutting and western pleasure. As I graduated High School in 1981, I wanted to pursue my dream of becoming a horse trainer. The guy I was starting colts for in Tucson introduced me to the Arabian horse and told me that he could get me a job at Al Marah Arabians in Tucson. I had been to a couple of Arabian Horse shows and was amazed at all of the glitter and glamour and the horses.So I got my job ans worked in the Arabian horse industry for about 10 years, always working with Quarter on the side. Over the years my view of the Arabian horse illusion changed as I saw the ugly side.<br /><br />Enough about me!<br /><br />I remember back in the 80's I was schooling a few Halter horses for an Arab trainer that I was working for. When the horse would not 'show' to his satisfaction he told me to take the whip and sting the horses shins. I refused and soon lost my position as halter guru in that barn. I had asked one of the halter trainers why they always put the whip across the horses shins, and she told me that is so there is no welts when the horse goes into the ring. I will always remember seeing the grooms put alcohol on the horses welts to try to get the welts to go down before they go into the ring. That was the last Arab barn I ever worked in.<br /><br />The cold hard realities of the Arabian Halter horses, is that there is whip abuse that does go on and eventually the horses will let loose. It is hard to feel for the people that perpetuate the abuse, though I hate to see anyone, horse or man, get hurt because of their own stupidity.<br /><br />A year before that, I was attacked by an Arabian stallion that had been abused as a colt so that he would show better as a halter horse. A few years prior to that same horse attacking me, he bit the owner in the face in the show ring as the owner was standing him up in front of the judge.<br /><br />So lets move forward about 25 years and nothing has changed. Apparently a trainer was attacked in the show ring and the horse won that one. <br /><br />When are these idiots going to learn that you can not keep whipping a horse into submission. They will go off and it is only a matter of time before they do. <br /><br />I have been handling stallions for the better part of my life and with the exception of a few incidents with other peoples stallions, I never had a problem. Our stallions are gentlemen and they are expected to act that way at all times. But we never have to whip them nor do we ever lead them with chains on. Whips and chains are over used and abused as well as the horses that they are used on.<br /><br />Has the Arabian Horse Industry now taken another negative hit. Yes they have, and that is largely due to the continued methods that they use to train the horses. <br /><br />The same goes for the way that they train their performance horses. They over use spurs, bats, and continually bump the horses faces to get them to set their heads. I watched an Arab trainer on the RFD channel talking about the horses that he was training and it was all about the horses headset. Never about asking the horses to move laterally and there was never any mention of softening his young horses.<br /><br />At the Snobsdale show this year, I was watching the reiners warm up, and there again it was all about the horses head. They never left the horses faces alone. Drove me nuts! <br /><br />It is unfortunate that this is spilling over into all of the breed shows.<br /><br />I do know that nothing will ever change unless we force change or unless we get these people to use a common sense approach to training, but we have to remember that to them it is all about the glamour, the glitter, a trophy and a ribbon. And it is not just the trainers, the owners share the responsibility as well.<br /><br />I do know how hard it can be to rehab a horse that has had his mind blown by bad training methods as I had earned a living doing it. I also know that those horses can and will hurt you. And just because we call them domesticated livestock, that does not mean that their survival instinct will not kick in.JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com41tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-68711546852833953292010-02-26T11:41:00.000-08:002010-02-26T13:11:53.963-08:00The Rotten Scottsdale Arabian Show EditionIf someone here that was new to the horse world were to ask me how I would describe the Scottsdale Arabian Horse Show, I would have to say that it is totally fake. Full of some of the most shallow people that have ever walked the face of the earth. <br /><br />Yes I have to admit that I did show the Arabs for several years because I was drawn to the glamour and the glitter. That is natural I suppose, I like shiny things and I always thought that the Arabs were shiny. Our 16 year old daughter calls the attraction to shinny things, ADDOLS, Attention Deficit Disorder "Oh Look, Shiny". And while the horses are really shiny and wreak of show sheen, the people that show them really do lack the same luster as that of their mounts!<br /><br />I as usual am really disappointed in the amount of over bridled horses as well as all of the jerking and spurring that goes on. About 90% of the horses that are being ridden at the show are behind the vertical, and if that is not bad enough the trainers are all using bats to drive them forward. I hate to be the one to break it to them, but the horses can only go so far forward when their chins are tucked to their chests.<br /><br />There is one particular trainer that could not get his western horse to pick up the lope and I pointed out to him that his horse was too far behind the vertical and that made the horse too heavy on the forehand. I even videoed it on my iPhone (love that thing) and showed him what his problem was. Needless to say he did not even thank me for the advice. Perhaps he will pay the bill when I send it to him. But I won't hold my breath.<br /><br />One other thing that struck me as odd, was how many Scottsdale Top Ten Jackets were being worn by the people that were there. It seems as though everyone had a jacket. Am I to assume that is the prerequisite for showing at Scottsdale, that you have a top ten jacket. I can only imagine the participants at the show greeting & introducing themselves to each other. 'Hi my name is Bob and I have a horse that is a Scottsdale top ten, that sure is a lovely jacket you are wearing'. <br /><br />I wonder, do they have a secret handshake?<br /><br />But it was soon pointed out to me that you can buy a Top Ten jacket in the vendor tents.<br /><br />Perhaps it is true, that I am becoming far too cynical as I grow older. I really have seen the changes to the Arabian horse industry that are not good. But the cold hard reality of the horse industry is that the changes have occurred in all breeds. The trainers are younger and have more have access to more and more gimmicks that come on the market.<br /><br />I was asked by a reader today if I am going to continue this blog. At first I pointed out to her that I am not sure if I am helping anyone or even reaching anyone. She assured me that I am.<br /><br />This blog was started with the intention of helping people reach their horse training goals and will continue on in that function. All of your input is a big help and appreciated.<br /><br />So I will continue, though probably not a post a day. Maybe we can start with one topic a week.<br /><br />But want to ask you all a question..... what changes have you seen in the horse show and horse industries that turn you off?<br /><br />And what positive changes have you seen?<br /><br />JRJohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-15750756728920548942010-01-26T12:05:00.000-08:002010-01-26T12:58:13.670-08:00What happens then?We have all seen the atrocities in the show ring lately. The blocked tails, over bridled horses, four beating, spur stops, reiners scotching in their rundowns, head sets, non-collection, soreness, defeated looks, the single footed walk and the list goes on. <br /><br />And on, and on, and on.<br /><br />We all know too well about all the Bad things happening to Good horses, to get them there. (Sounds like a great title to a tell all book, doesn't it?) The injecting, the whipping, starting them too soon, jerking on the reins, constant jabbing with spurs, gimmicky equipment to push the horses into a false frame, dumping the horse onto their leads and this list goes on just as long as the first one. Maybe this list is longer since there are usually three or four crappy ways to get each result listed above.<br /><br />But what would happen if the judging took a sudden curve and actually pinned the horses who show natural movement? The horses with balance and collection, free flowing strides, self carriage, willingness and get this, a perky "I LOVE MY JOB!" expression. <br /><br />Chances are, there may be fewer people in the ring showing their horses! This would likely be because of a huge WTH? moment in barns across the country. We know how to beat them down, but how do you bring them back up? And what is all this talk about collection and impulsion? A few more foreign terms to the crowd may be contact, lightness and forward. <br /><br />I can hear it now. "Forget suppleness we just got them rigid, abrasive and resistant! I just got my horse to give in and he completely gave up. Why and how do we undo all of that? And what does it feel like to ride them then?" <br /><br />Just like the way things are going now though, what is seen in the upper levels is mimicked all the way down the line. And this will be no different. People will come up with new ways of trying to do things, cheating their way through instead of learning how to train their horse. There will still be those rushing their way through and expecting immediate results. Instant gratification instead of waiting for the correct responses.<br /><br />It would be nice to see the change though. I may doubt it will happen, but at least one can always hope.JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-58525184942515354162010-01-15T12:52:00.000-08:002010-01-15T13:27:17.453-08:00I was just kidding!On the last post about softening, it was mentioned that my wife CnJ took my mare Johnie into the ring under hunter tack. They placed 2nd out of 9that day. I told her not to get anymore hairbrained ideas.<br /><br />Fast forward a few years...<br /><br />We took a client horse to another local show, just to give him something else to do. He was a reiner who was working towards being a cutter. Nice horse, great owners and we all thought, "Why not?" He placed 3rd of 12 entries and also 4th of 15. He placed behind 'finished' horses whose riders were dressed to the hilt for the schooling show. <br /><br />So now's your chance to spill it. <br /><br />What did you do? <br /><br />Where did you go?<br /><br />When did you take a horse to an event, enter them in something they weren't bred for, built for, trained to do or whatever- entered as a joke and placed? <br /><br />Or maybe you didn't place at all but had a great time anyways. We know that happens too. As long as everyone had fun, who does it hurt?JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-85505911160814471292010-01-11T22:13:00.000-08:002010-01-11T23:29:34.773-08:00Softness, suppleness and giving<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNwfzctspkmziYFRjgaA1tNh1zyfkyi7jzgs-cd4TP0Y3vqj7s0_9tk6zme4n0SUcwkOk-bpggMZqzBt07kTg_0MwCRc4-kTfj3kVvIeN3HISX0i-7ed9gh9Y450qTWLo7f3HCqQz5Jkw/s1600-h/DSCF3658.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNwfzctspkmziYFRjgaA1tNh1zyfkyi7jzgs-cd4TP0Y3vqj7s0_9tk6zme4n0SUcwkOk-bpggMZqzBt07kTg_0MwCRc4-kTfj3kVvIeN3HISX0i-7ed9gh9Y450qTWLo7f3HCqQz5Jkw/s320/DSCF3658.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425737358310214594" /></a><br />Starting with the bit, I like to use a simple offset snaffle with copper inlays on a sweet iron mouth. This combination of metals helps promote salivation and wetness in the mouth. I don't use snaps to attach my reins and the bit hobble goes 'under' the reins where it will not interfere with rein pressure.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpNvlTdCqkmQhnUosXZo8WdDqyq_JeZtwxx5MeQaHHTDADfjgE9kPkCHku8jnOuuDe5wIVoh5svMayeJ5t5qjxbAqtrY7H20W055eyPSeIvtmdasjri0UV5V1Qv2r5ujGnO1tvuGJuiFM/s1600-h/DSCF3650.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpNvlTdCqkmQhnUosXZo8WdDqyq_JeZtwxx5MeQaHHTDADfjgE9kPkCHku8jnOuuDe5wIVoh5svMayeJ5t5qjxbAqtrY7H20W055eyPSeIvtmdasjri0UV5V1Qv2r5ujGnO1tvuGJuiFM/s320/DSCF3650.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425739196118680850" /></a><br />The bit should be adjusted to where it rests comfortably in the horses mouth. Not too high producing a number of wrinkles, not too low where it bangs into the incisors or the horse spits it out. A wrinkle is just right, just snug enough. Also the buckles should all line up.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH8jxctROHOsPb2QUD1MKaEX0wINunxJwsGaQoO1axoHPo7b2yZip3JIpDbMKgaXcSilxIYtvym6BcB-s79PUlQ5q7k7fsqf1HDPVGyMWYPez7bi50L0GZMulZYnBHUHnReXZe4MlYKXU/s1600-h/DSCF3582.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH8jxctROHOsPb2QUD1MKaEX0wINunxJwsGaQoO1axoHPo7b2yZip3JIpDbMKgaXcSilxIYtvym6BcB-s79PUlQ5q7k7fsqf1HDPVGyMWYPez7bi50L0GZMulZYnBHUHnReXZe4MlYKXU/s320/DSCF3582.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425740383828290226" /></a><br />The beginning of every ride at our place starts with softening work. From the first few rides to warming up the seasoned horse, after a few minutes on the lunge line we get on and soften the horse at a walk. Changing directions, asking for bending. Gentle tugs on the reins and release to let the horse finish the turn on their own. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk44D10dln4MZdn0uMWr5bln8TcYS4-7k231NOBDDfW14FQpmpak0AhqxHB47klVLAjLeYi336WvVikLgdF316x6jQ_XxideBfnTBdqTAajwwYan4K0aDIw4cRrrIZvtmmdu5-E41Wq0Y/s1600-h/DSCF3586.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk44D10dln4MZdn0uMWr5bln8TcYS4-7k231NOBDDfW14FQpmpak0AhqxHB47klVLAjLeYi336WvVikLgdF316x6jQ_XxideBfnTBdqTAajwwYan4K0aDIw4cRrrIZvtmmdu5-E41Wq0Y/s320/DSCF3586.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425741799909184866" /></a><br />Stop, wait, take a step back and walk off, go forward, turn left, bigger circles, smaller circles- changing it up a bit as we go along. Circles to the left with the nose tipped out, tipped in, all at a walk on a semi loose rein. Contact comes in a gentle tug on the rein. If the horse doesn't respond, tug a little bit harder. Tug and release, tug and release. If there's nothing to pull against the horse can't pull on you.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGFO0zGNtIpsG1FYXnttE4afPFGxxCBmYRozjZ3wis5UPiKblh1HmAzJ9gfYeaQlHrsw_rnpM2IHeXavidLL_jgRuacYL9Frxf1eC2tYU8r5M78ulQomiyQ7u0JMrWpOhZLaZVL4AxfkY/s1600-h/DSCF3623.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGFO0zGNtIpsG1FYXnttE4afPFGxxCBmYRozjZ3wis5UPiKblh1HmAzJ9gfYeaQlHrsw_rnpM2IHeXavidLL_jgRuacYL9Frxf1eC2tYU8r5M78ulQomiyQ7u0JMrWpOhZLaZVL4AxfkY/s320/DSCF3623.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425745576534407650" /></a><br />When asking for the bend in the neck and their shoulders to move, bring your hand back to your hip. Light tug and release letting your horse find their 'sweet spot'. If the horses head comes up a bit and they resist, stop and ask again. Give them a chance to figure out what you're asking them to do. They aren't going to learn it all in one day. They learn it faster when they figure it out with less interference from the rider.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYgnKXinhXmeTfi57irAMdxG-faPcS1d5iXmDX_Z0QSjaodMcNGlDVf264YQaHgF0-qWdRjfuQsY1NE8HXc-eERNacK3ugZreMhxRQdGLeExl10Y9cDYzuqjzUPw2AzLp5Ct0xaOzwUoQ/s1600-h/Soft+Johnie.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 269px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYgnKXinhXmeTfi57irAMdxG-faPcS1d5iXmDX_Z0QSjaodMcNGlDVf264YQaHgF0-qWdRjfuQsY1NE8HXc-eERNacK3ugZreMhxRQdGLeExl10Y9cDYzuqjzUPw2AzLp5Ct0xaOzwUoQ/s320/Soft+Johnie.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425751135878027922" /></a><br />Sit up straight, moving their shoulders and hips with your legs. If needed, turn your toe out and use your calf to push them over. Ask them to reach under themselves and stretch a little. Crossing over a little more with each step as they become more flexible. The horses poll should remain for the most part, level with their withers. A little above, a little below, no big deal either way. Relax, keep breathing and enjoy the ride.<br /><br />If it feels like the horse is beginning to lean on your leg, your using too much. Bump, release, bump, release... get a step or two and be happy with that. Praise them for doing what you asked, then ask for it again. as they figure out just what you want and begin to soften, you will start to feel how you get a bit more each time. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKR6SXpfxGkuzCgec5f2VxlMVtzsmBenoPMqGVxbHwilQDn-SxTsKC2HPm-JJpnL3ToVS4sJEDpt2q4H6NUn6frBMLwH9J5LRwbb6cxV3qheX7rUaBDqZ23u8aJg2LUoPqY5wfeR5aCH0/s1600-h/DSCF3646.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKR6SXpfxGkuzCgec5f2VxlMVtzsmBenoPMqGVxbHwilQDn-SxTsKC2HPm-JJpnL3ToVS4sJEDpt2q4H6NUn6frBMLwH9J5LRwbb6cxV3qheX7rUaBDqZ23u8aJg2LUoPqY5wfeR5aCH0/s320/DSCF3646.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425748566162151154" /></a><br />This message has been Johnie tested <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBleh2NIVXkpsgdCfcIRtucxN-H3CFJl9n4SOYG4SXGCvt1HIaQtiBUtQdgo9DA5V9kwSn9mAjonRbeHm5pce5n0usEwHilbk61Wzw2ZKG8YmAyqgUWZmgvguUBAgBJQKZJMHkMEO0fz8/s1600-h/Kimba+approved.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 194px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBleh2NIVXkpsgdCfcIRtucxN-H3CFJl9n4SOYG4SXGCvt1HIaQtiBUtQdgo9DA5V9kwSn9mAjonRbeHm5pce5n0usEwHilbk61Wzw2ZKG8YmAyqgUWZmgvguUBAgBJQKZJMHkMEO0fz8/s320/Kimba+approved.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425750074295428482" /></a><br />and Kimba approved.JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-32037139957027411562010-01-05T08:35:00.000-08:002010-01-05T10:23:57.464-08:00Rollbacks for RosesAs the title implies this thread is going to discuss rollbacks per request of Rosesr4evr. I will actually be discussing it over a few threads so it can be easier to understand. This weekend when my assistant trainer/photographer is home we will do some instructional photos and put a link to the gallery in the sidebar. I do realize that I am a little slow on getting threads out, but I hope to change that.<br /><br />So here we go.<br /><br />I am sure there are a lot of you that in your past have seen the reiners at a horse show do a pattern. The patterns may always be different depending on the judge as to which pattern he wants to use, but the elements are the same. The patterns always include rundowns, sliding stops, spins, figure 8s, lead changes, backing and rollbacks. Not necessarily in that order.<br /><br />How well that horse preforms these individual feats really depends on one fundamental thing, and that is balance. He hind end has to be engaged and the shoulders have to be light and soft.<br /><br />Knowing that we have to have a horse that is soft and supple, that is where I like to start. One thing that I feel is very important, is that when I am softening a horses face, shoulders both vertically and laterally, I never like to pull on them at all. I never pull them into a stop, rather I use my seat. When I ask the horse to give me his face, I just gently tug on him and ask for little bits at a time. If I ask the horse to turn into a circle I gently tug on him and lightly bump him with my calf just to get him started and then I like to let him finish on his own. The more that I pull on him, the more likely he will become rubber necked. By using little gentle tugs you accomplish a lot more in a very short time.<br /><br />It is my personal preference not to bit horses up using side reins, nor do I long line my horses very often. Though there are instances in which I have long lined them if I felt the need to.<br /><br />As to how this all applies to my method for teaching my horses to do roll backs, It is really quite simple. <br /><br />Once I have my horse stopping on his hind end and standing quietly, and they have become nice and soft in the face and shoulders, I will start to work them on the rail and use the fence to teach them how to rock back onto their hind end and do a rollback. I like my horses to wrap themselves around my leg if they need to.<br /><br />First I start on the rail at a strong trot, I do a few laps and let my horse start to rate some at the trot. When I feel that he is ready, I will ask for the stop by sitting down and rolling back on my pockets. As I sit down I exhale and say whoa softly. Remember, my horses is comfortable and relaxed and working so I do not want to startle him by yelling whoa at him. I also want to make sure that I do not lean back in the stop because leaning back will cause him to stop on the front end. I always stay perpendicular to the ground so the horse is able to move freely underneath me.<br /><br />Now that the horse is stopped on the rail, I ask him to stand for a minute as I do not want him to anticipate the turn. While he his standing next to the rail I will ask him to to tip his nose towards the rail, by giving him a little tug, then I apply a little outside leg (the leg closest to the rail) so that when I ask him to turn towards the rail, he can not drop his shoulder. I will now ask him to turn towards the rail by tugging on the outside rein releasing my outside leg, and bumping with the inside leg (the leg that is closest to the center of the ring) until he starts to turn towards the rail and go the other way. Once he starts the turn I let him finish it on his own. I will do this a few times going both directions and then I go on to something else for a while. Before I finish for the day, however, I will ask for a few more turns on and towards the rail. Sometimes, I will ask him to stand after each turn, sometimes I will ask him to move off immediately. Remember, we do not want the horse to anticipate what is going to happen next.<br /><br />At this point, I do not apply any neck rein, just direct rein. I want the horse to learn to stay upright and not drop his shoulders in the turns. I also want him to learn to rock back on his hind end so he is able to push off and go the other direction.<br /><br />What is also important to remember, is that I want my shoulders to stay square with my horses shoulders. If I turn my shoulders in the direction that we are turning, that will cause me to inadvertently move my leg back causing to horse to turn on the forehand.JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-70182577746749580802009-12-31T13:15:00.000-08:002009-12-31T13:40:20.629-08:00Well.....its New Years The Friday night blog PartyThe Friday night blog party on Thursday night, the year is already messed up!<br /><br />I always ask myself why do we have to get a New Year every 12 months, what the hell was wrong with the old one?<br /><br />Then it hits me, this is our chance to start all over and unscrew what we screwed up, unfix what we fixed, you get the idea and create more shit for us to do in the New Year.<br /><br />I guess that is what you call job security!<br /><br />We have a lot job security around here, there is fence to fix, a new arena to build and get the lights up in the barn. But most importantly we have the horses that we have to get ready for the show year and start shopping for next Christmas. There are after all, only 359 shopping days left, better hit the malls now.<br /><br />We have made a lot of new friends from this blog and others and I hope that we will continue that trend.<br /><br />I would also like thank everyone who has joined us on the website- <a href="http://crescentmooncuttinghorses.com/">Crescent Moon Cutting Horses</a> in the Training Chronicles. Please be sure to sign the guest book. (I know, shameless self promotion, but it is my blog )<br /><br />Anyway, what are your plans for the New Year, horsey and non horsey?JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com29tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-29931487570592998122009-12-18T09:25:00.000-08:002009-12-18T16:17:58.226-08:00Bah Humbug! or Should I say Bah Horsebug?Yes it is that time of year again!<br /><br />Time for us to deal with all those family issues that seem to come up this time of year. You know the ones......Uncle Bill got tanked on egg<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">nog</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">french</span> kissed Santa's elf at the mall and then <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">hurled</span> in Santa's work shop and Grandma got run over by a reindeer etc.<br /><br />By the time it is all over, I think we all need a drink.<br /><br />Came upon us so fast.<br /><br />This past year has flown by!<br /><br />So what are your plans for this year?<br /><br />We are going to ad a training blog to the Crescent Moon Cutting Horse <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">website</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">chronicle</span> the training of our youngsters as well as our oldsters and hope that you all will join us there. We are going to start raising Angus cattle and we are working on a few other little ventures as well.<br /><br />We also plan to start showing more this year.<br /><br />For the first time since <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">CNJ</span> and I met, we are not giving each other anything that has to do with horses. Actually, for the first time we are giving each other something. Nothing much!<br /><br />But there is no way that <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">CNJ's</span> gift last year could ever be topped. Yes I am referring to those beautiful little girls. It is amazing how babies not only change your lives, but they change your very soul.<br /><br />And I want to take a moment to thank you all for reading a little O<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">l</span>' Rotten blog and sharing your experiences and <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">knowledge</span> with us. And for those of you that read but do not always post, please let us know that you are here and where you are from. We would love <span style="color:#000000;">to</span> hear from you.<br /><br />I know that it is still a little early ( actually June would be early), but I want to wish you all Happy Holidays.JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com24tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-87201095894538417072009-12-13T17:27:00.000-08:002009-12-13T17:51:59.064-08:00The Sunday/Friday night blog party.........<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCAR7cTbYVNSD79mO7fPxzkrlD8ruX0mcwnkFUPll0sF8wwgBk6sbqNcZjb3kcZkmm9ylZsG466ok9XFJQYFogOQHDJIaQMFSMw8WpZZ2aHogoo_XSIPGVsmhhKC69mjNElQzYEahr4L0/s1600-h/june+7+practice+022.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5414901749997735538" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCAR7cTbYVNSD79mO7fPxzkrlD8ruX0mcwnkFUPll0sF8wwgBk6sbqNcZjb3kcZkmm9ylZsG466ok9XFJQYFogOQHDJIaQMFSMw8WpZZ2aHogoo_XSIPGVsmhhKC69mjNElQzYEahr4L0/s320/june+7+practice+022.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div>You all know my story, I have been in the business professionally for over 30 years and have had a pretty good career. By the way, the horse in the picture above is my beloved mare Johnie at cutting practice. Sometimes I am not so sure she takes her job seriously, so because of that I made it look like a cartoon!</div><br /><div></div><div>I have been showing horses the majority of my life from cutters to jumpers, and almost every discipline in between. And I have finally settled back into the cutters because they are my true passion.</div><br /><div>I have shown horses all the way from the Cow Palace in the bay area to Atlanta.</div><br /><div></div><div>Won some, lost some, made a lot of good friends along the way and have a lot of really good memories.</div><br /><div>Though I have a lot of the memories winning classes and doing well at the shows, the best and the most fun memories are of the shows that I did not do so well. Those were the shows where I learned the most and had the most fun. </div><br /><div></div><div>You always hear people say that they are having the most fun when they are winning, but to be honest with you, I do not know how that can be. It always seemed that when we were having a bad show, we totally cut loose and the pressure was off.<br /></div><div>One year at the Astro Dome in Houston, nothing was going right. We forgot to pack a lot of our tack, and it seemed that no one including me nor my clients were into the show at all. We had enough tack to get by on and made it through the show mixing and matching bridles. Somehow I managed to win the junior western pleasure class, but we laughed the whole time. And yes we partied our asses off and none of the other horses placed above 4th. We just took nothing at that show seriously.</div><br /><div></div>So what are your fondest memories of the shows where you may not have done well, but managed to laugh it off, have a great time and keep your sense of humor intact?<br /><div></div>JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-9310993127993636092009-12-11T09:44:00.000-08:002009-12-11T10:57:55.883-08:00They call me 'Plum Puddin'...the story of the wannabe!Oh yes, to the wannabe horse trainer that lurks out there, this post is for you!<br /><br />They come and they go, those wannabe horse trainers. They live under the rocks and old dead logs, and wait for their next victim. They talk a good game, but there is something there that you know is not right. Many of them have embedded themselves well into the Natural Horsemanship industry, selling their training appliances to people that seem to fall for the crap!<br /><br />You have to ask yourself, how much would you pay for common sense?<br /><br />Do you need an orange whip to train your horse, or do you sometimes need to apply a little tough love?<br /><br />I have recently had the pleasure of meeting one of these wonderful people. His claim to fame? "I can turn you and your horse into one. I can help your horse with your problems............But first, I need to talk to your horse and find out what he is thinking."<br /><br />Oh for <a href="mailto:#%&@%@*!^*@($">#%&@%@*!^*@($</a> Sake!<br /><br />Get a grip!<br /><br />In a career that has <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">spanned</span> 3 decades, I have seen so many of this type out there. They have strange mystical names that make you think that they know something about you and your horse, that no other trainer will ever be able to tell. They wear hats the size of their egos and 99% of them wear chaps and spurs. They market products of their own design and tell you that you have to buy them if you want to become a trainer like them. (In case you are wondering, a carrot stick is a vegetable, not an orange whip with a bat on the end of it.)<br /><br />So am I going to just tear into the naturals?<br /><br />Hell no!<br /><br />For those people that call themselves trainers out there, just so you know, you really need to have some <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">knowledge</span> of the horses that you are training. One trainer that I have heard of, <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">actually</span> weighs his horses. Most of us can look at a horse and we are able to give a solid estimate of the weight of the animal. This guy has to be a mental midget, or actually he may be brilliant if he has convinced the owner that he should be allowed to stay at the facility where he currently works out of.<br /><br />Horse shows are a great place to get a glimpse of some of these Wannabe Wonders!<br /><br />Yes, I call it like a I see it, even at the horse shows. I have made lots of friends that way!<br /><br />I am amazed that there are so many trainers out there. Hell, everyone is a trainer and they all know everything. These horse show trainers are easy to spot because they all wear spurs and carry crops in their back pockets.<br /><br />There again, like I have stated many times, there is such an overuse of training aids out there, that I am <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">surprised</span> that the horses do not tip over from the shear weight of the devices that they are forced to wear.<br /><br />When I was a kid and I worked with the trainer that taught me how to start colts the right way, there was no whispering done, he just simply took his time and read the horse. He told me that the best trainers have the ability to 'read' their horses so they can predict how to best proceed. He uses nothing more than a snaffle bit in the horses mouth. I learned that the best way to start a horse is to let them do the work and you need to learn to just be the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">passenger</span> and have a little faith in the horse that you are starting. I was never allowed to wear spurs and chaps just got in the way, especially in the heat of the desert. We asked the horse to soften for us and allowed them to make <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">decisions</span> and mistakes before we corrected them.<br /><br />We have a saying here in Rotten Land, that goes like this........<br /><br />When you go to a trainers barn, be it a natural trainer or an old school trainer, what happens in the barn may impress you, but what happens behind the barn may depress you!<br /><br />This is not to imply that all trainers are out there beating their horses, we certainly do not, but keep in mind, when fixing some of the horses problems, it's not always pretty.JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com41tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-21003621615697405892009-12-06T15:11:00.000-08:002009-12-06T16:06:02.650-08:00Why do horses react the way that they do when they spook?Recently, I had an old client tell me that her horse has what she calls a <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">violent</span> reaction when he spooks. When I asked her what she meant, she said that her horse likes to take the bit and run and then he starts to buck. She then asked me what my advice would be to fix the problem.<br /><br />While I hardly consider that to be a violent reaction, I do consider it a problem.<br /><br />So I will address the spooking problem first.<br /><br />To address the problem of spooking horses, we must first address the cause of what is making the horse spook. Most of the time, the answer to that question is rather a simple one, the horse was startled by something. For the most part, horses are very similar to us in the fact that when they are <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">surprised</span> they tend to be startled and jump. Not a big deal!<br /><br />I am sure that a lot of you have heard of teaching a horse to spook in place. Well to be honest with you, there really is not a lot to teaching a horse to do that. The best example that I can come up with, being a relatively new dad, is that when one of my daughters falls down or bumps their heads, they always look at me to see what my reaction is going to be. If I make a big deal out of it, then they are going to let loose and start crying, if I look at them and smile and laugh, they look at me and smile, get up and move on.<br /><br />The same goes for horses. How many times have you been sitting on your horse and something startled him, so he jumped? All you did was just sit there like nothing happened and all that happened was the horse only had that small little jump. It happens to me all of the time especially on the young horses. I just simply do not react to the situation so the horses reaction was minor. In in effect, I have just taught my horse to spook in place.<br /><br />So what happened to my old client and her new horse?<br /><br />I went to go watch her ride the horse. She would start out fine with him, but she was already <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">afraid</span> of him, and she would not let go of the horses face. The entire time that she was on him, she was hanging on his face, so the horse was already uncomfortable. (When a horse is uncomfortable,be it from a poorly fitting saddle or a rider <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">hanging</span> on them, the will look for any excuse to spook.) When the tractor went by the arena, the horse was startled and took off, because the rider clenched up. As soon as the rider clenched up, she became off balance, thus, causing the horse to buck.<br /><br />Truth was, the horse was not reacting to whatever startled him, he was reacting to the rider!<br /><br />At that point it became apparent, it was not the horses confidence that was the problem ,it was the riders confidence that was the problem for the horse.<br /><br />Now, it is true that some horses will react in a big way to something, and there really is nothing you can do about it but ride it out. At that point you need to be a confident rider, but most of those reactions do not last long.<br /><br />Just an <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">FYI </span>for you.........<br /><br />I have lived in the desert my entire life and I have never had a horse spook from a rattle snake. Quite the opposite, horses are curious animals, most of the time they want to investigate where the sound on the rattle is coming from and are bitten on the nose.JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-76450688021214051552009-11-30T09:48:00.000-08:002009-11-30T11:01:04.022-08:00Rolkur, it's not just for dressage anymore!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmoYXulPCgHfUCULjwnWmCdaQt9fYaq1wKDK9dRfIJariCmAIJWd7XZXsIgAkqGLov6FuS4sXIfHId9zP1Gx5kHRi7CuOtsfYCl-qkeQIy9DKTOHmQEQrCZLKHB6eQqPoIQerkYjI0Rtk/s1600/1020109.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5409960880522554978" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 290px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmoYXulPCgHfUCULjwnWmCdaQt9fYaq1wKDK9dRfIJariCmAIJWd7XZXsIgAkqGLov6FuS4sXIfHId9zP1Gx5kHRi7CuOtsfYCl-qkeQIy9DKTOHmQEQrCZLKHB6eQqPoIQerkYjI0Rtk/s320/1020109.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Today, I am going to address Rolkur. I had never heard of it until a few years ago, and I am not sure what the moron who developed the idea was thinking or if they even were. I do know that trainers and breeders alike want to make their mark on the equine world, but this is the wrong way to go about it. I also know that the practice of Rolkur has trickled over into other disciplines like western pleasure, hunter etc, and that is where I want to take this topic.</div><br /><div>Lets start with the practice of Rolkur in Dressage horses.<br /></div><div>When I look at the above picture, the one thing that stands out immediately to me, is the fact that the horses hind end is in a totally different county that the front end. The horse exhibits absolutely no freedom of movement in the front end thus there is no extension because all of the horses weight it is on the front end. It also looks to me like the horse has no where when they are looking for the release. These are the obvious things that affect the not so obvious things like mechanics of movement and the horses attitude. What you see above, is not Dressage, but rather it is an abomination!</div><br /><p>I always want my horses to have some where to go when they work, in other words, there has to be a release, be it in a dressage horse or a cow horse. I never want to hang on a horse in any way shape or form. To me, that shows that the rider in uncomfortable with what they are doing with the horse.</p><p>I have seen this practice in the western industry as well, primarily in the Arabian horse industry. At the Scottsdale Arabian show a few years ago, I saw several trainers riding with their horses trussed up like a Christmas turkey. The horses chins were being pulled to the horses chests and they were being forced forward, and when the trainers stopped their horses, they continued to bump their horses faces to keep their horses heads in that Gawd awful position. If the horse moved a step after he was bumped, they were bumped harder. And this was being done by the BNT's that were there. A lot of it was being caused by the over use and abuse of martingales, side reins and draw reins.</p><p>But, it was not just the western horses where I saw this, it was also in the hunter arenas as well.</p><p>The difference between a soft horse vs. Rolkur, is that with a soft horse, I can bring his chin to his chest when I need to, not because I have to or I am forcing the issue.</p><p>Now, lets talk about the horses attitude. This practice does have a lot of adverse effects on the horses attitude. Remember, you can only hang on a horse for so long before that horse decides that he has had enough. And when the horse has had enough and decides to react to what is going on, there may be no warning what so ever. The horse will do whatever it takes to make himself comfortable in what he is doing and there will be nothing you can do to stop it, and there is no telling what the horse reaction will be.</p><p>For those of you that believe in the practice of Rolkur, I recommend that you put a bit in your own mouth, have someone pull your chin to your chest while you try to move forward on your hands and knees. Not only will it be tough for you to move, but it will also be harder for you to breathe and your mouth will be incredibly sore.</p><p>You all know that I like my horses quiet and soft as I have mentioned that on many occasions, if a horses chin is being forced to his chest, you will get neither!</p><p>And just a note, I am not an Arabian horse trainer, and I do not want any Arab owners thinking that I am picking on them. But other than in the Dressage discipline, I have only seen this practice in the Arabian industry, so that is the example I am using.</p><p> </p>JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com59tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-63747159385354696582009-11-13T15:39:00.000-08:002009-11-13T16:23:30.571-08:00What to expect from your trainer...... Part 2So we have covered some of the basics of what you should expect from a trainer, now it is time to discuss what your trainer has to offer you and what you have to offer the trainer. And also what your trainer can expect from you.<br /><br />1) Make sure that you have a contract with your trainer that outlines what your goals are and what you see yourself being able to do with your horse. That should always be in writing. I have in the past trained a few horses without the benefit of a contract, and the owners were and I were not totally on the same page. You can always <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">amend</span> a contract as the horse progresses.<br /><br />2) All fees should be explained at the time that the contract is signed. The owner has the right to understand what all the fees are for and the trainer has the right to expect to be paid on time. Remember, when you are late the horse still gets fed and worked. I can not tell you how many times I have gone more than 2 months with out getting paid by an owner. Do not bargain with your trainer to try to get a better rate, we do not make enough money as it is!<br /><br />3)If your horse has a bad habit that he has picked up at home tell your trainer, it is nothing to be embarrassed about. Hell, our horses have bad habits, after all they are horses and it is to be expected. I hate when a client sends me a horse that has a habit such as bucking or rearing and when it happens here, they always say the same thing....."He never did that at home".<br /><br />4) Trainers are not miracle workers, that is to say, do not expect too much to soon. If you are shopping around for a trainer, do not let him/her give you time lines. In this business there are no guarantees. We simply can not guarantee how long your horse will be with us and we <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">simply can</span> not guarantee that your horse will win in the horse show ring. Never tell your trainer that he/she better win because his job depends on it. I had that happen at a show one time and I told the client that they better find a way to get the horse home from the show because I would not tolerate that kind of attitude. Needless to say the horse won all 2 of his classes and places 2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">nd</span> in the third class and won the championship<br /><br />5) Let your trainer chose the shows that he/she feels would be best for you and your horse should you chose that you want to show.<br /><br />6) If your trainer offers lessons as part of your contract, then take them, personally I prefer that a client take a pro-active part in the training of their horses. I want them to be involved, that way when we are at a show or the horse goes home, then the owner can continue to work the horse with some success.<br /><br />7) Communicate with your trainer if there is something that you do not like, we are not mind readers just like we are not miracle workers.<br /><br />8) Have realistic ideas of what your horse is capable of......let him show you what his talents are and take it from there. There is nothing that is worse than a horse that <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">develops</span> bad habits because he is miserable in his job.<br /><br />9) If you are looking to purchase a horse with the help of your trainer, then listen to what they have to say. Do not waste the trainers time by telling your him/her that you want one type of horse and then you go off in a completely different direction and purchase something else. We prefer that you let us help you so we can find a horse that fits you!<br /><br />Trainers are here to help you, so let them.JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com25tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-17503472869894718142009-11-05T14:20:00.000-08:002009-11-05T14:56:24.238-08:00What can and should you really expect from your trainer?I get a lot of inquiries regarding training, and many of the potential clients want to know how long it will take me to train a horse for them, be it for trail or the horse show ring. This will be a series that will be done in a few parts.<br /><br />When told that I am not sure how long it will take, then some of these clients look else where for a trainer that will tell them what they want to hear. While I realize that some of them want to budget for training, there are others that want me to be train a horse that is going to win for them in a designated amount of time that they seem to think is realistic.<br /><br />There are several factors that I take into consideration before I take a horse into the barn.<br /><br />1) The general conditioning of the horse when they arrive. I always tell a client that I can start to train the horse if he is conditioned properly before he shows up. I do understand that some owners do not have a facility that they can work out of so I always offer them a lower conditioning rate for the first month. Also I have to mention here that what I may <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">consider</span> proper conditioning, may not be what the owner considers to be proper. So before the horse is brought into the barn, I will provide the owner with a conditioning schedule, that is providing they have the facilities to work the horse.<br /><br />2) What kind of behavior does the horse exhibit when he arrives. I personally like to give them a week of light work so that they can start to settle into a general routine. There have been many horses that have come my way that took longer to settle in and exhibited some bad habits that had to be dealt with before we consider putting that horse to serious work.<br /><br />3) Is the horse a mare, stallion or gelding. We have a saying here, when a stallion comes into the barn on Thursday, his brain will arrive on Monday.(Sometimes his mind just gets lost in the mail!)<br /><br />4) Am I starting this horse under saddle, if so there <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">again</span> conditioning is important. If the horse is here to be started and is in good condition, then I will be on that horse at the end of the first week after he settles in. If the horse is not conditioned, them there will be a 30 day conditioning period.<br /><br />5) If the horse is here to be trained to go into the show ring, then a lot depends on the horses mentality when they get here. If they are not mature enough to <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">handle</span> the training required to go into the show ring, then we will take it a lot slower.<br /><br />I have always been a firm believer in moving at the horses pace and not the owners, and I make this very clear from the beginning. If the horse is not happy then no one is going to be happy.<br /><br />I have had owners in the past offer to pay me more to <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">achieve</span> their goals, but it is not really up to me how fast we proceed.JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-48479473337904130422009-10-29T08:05:00.000-07:002009-10-29T09:57:54.339-07:00On the question of balance...I was giving a lesson to a student the other day and we happened upon the topic of balance as it pertains to the horse rather than the rider. I must mention at this time that my student is a very balanced rider, yet her horse is lacking the balance that she needs to do well in the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">performance</span> aspect of her training.<br /><br />The question that she asked was simple enough, how do we get the horse to be more balanced?<br /><br />The student that I am <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">referring</span> to does show hunters and jumpers,( I know, JR, you are a cow horse trainer), but the basics are the same.<br /><br />The answer is really a two part answer.........<br /><br />1) Balance is <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">achieved</span> fairly early in training, and that training starts as soon as we start to ask the horse to turn on his hind end and turn on the forehand. <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Remember</span> when we ask the horse to turn on the hind end, or pivot, or ask the horse to turn on the fore hand, the horse is not balanced. We are only asking the horse to move one end of his body. Balance comes when we ask the horse to move laterally, such as side passing or two tracking. At that point in the horses training, both ends are moving <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">in sync</span>. That is when we end up with a <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">balanced</span> horse that can use his hind end and front end equally.<br /><br />It is important that we do not allow the horse to be heavy on the fore hand, which will occur if we spend to much time <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">turning</span> the horse on the fore hand. The same goes for the hind end, we do not want the horse to become too light in the front end, because we are turning the horse on the hind end too much. Remember.....balance!<br /><br />2) Balance is also visual as well as physical. While we do not want the horse to side pass or move laterally down the rail, we do want there to be some roundness in his movement. If we allow the horse to just move straight down the rail with out the use of our legs, especially our inside leg, then the horse will just start to become heavy on his front end and 'strung out' behind. However, when we apply light leg pressure with the inside leg and light contact with the inside rein the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">horse</span> will become rounded giving us a more balanced <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">appearance</span>.<br /><br />Another visual clue as to whether the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">horse </span>is <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">truly</span> balanced is, if one end of the horse is more developed than the other. If the front end of the horse is more developed that the hind end, then the horse is heavy on the fore hand etc.<br /><br />Like I always say, a head does not <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">necessarily</span> mean that the horse is balanced, and if you have a horse that is more balanced physically then you will not have a horse that jigs every where you go.<br /><br /><br /><br />On a separate note.......Phillies 1...Yankees none! The final score in yesterdays World Series game Phillies 6 Yankees 1. Yeah Phillies!JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-88057563217738393612009-10-23T12:02:00.000-07:002009-10-23T13:13:09.761-07:00In keeping with tradition...Since it is Friday and keeping with the old Friday blog, block party theme, and trying to keep things light and fun, how about we go with a topic that brings us each a bit of pride.<br /><br />Let's talk about those moments where it all comes together and the light goes on. You and your horse NAIL it. You have been working on something, lead changes, canter departs, transitions, picking up the correct diagonal as you start into a trot, stops, spins, jumps... whatever. You try again and again to get it right. Then one day it happens. It all just clicks. Everything falls into place and taadaa! It is perfect. You and your horse are one and nothing seems to take any effort for it to just <em>happen</em>.<br /><br /><br />Or you are looking for a horse. A horse you can show, breed, give lessons on or just provide a happy home for. The horse may be for a client, friend, spouse or relative. You search high and low for a specific breed, color, height, build, performance record, level of training... and then you spot one. A picture you may have normally otherwise passed up, but there it is. Sometimes a horse that matches NONE of your criteria, but it just jumps out at you and you just KNOW they are going to be in your barn.<br /><br />We have all been there. We have all had at least one moment like that.JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-55308240172815205252009-10-17T21:50:00.000-07:002009-10-17T21:54:21.861-07:00So it's true....Yep it's me....<br /><br />I am back if you dare to care! ;)<br /><br />And yes the forum will continue as usual, though I have had to take some much needed time off from blogging, clogging and logging as well as every other ogging that there is.<br /><br />Tonight however, I just have to ask only one question.......are there any Yankees fans out there?<br /><br />Sunday we can post a training blog....JohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4916222985378902903.post-61180945993297311202009-08-28T17:44:00.000-07:002009-08-28T17:46:25.893-07:00Mr Rottens Neighborhood is moving....We are moving the Hood to: <a href="http://jrs-neighborhood-horse-training-forum.socialgo.com/home.html">http://jrs-neighborhood-horse-training-forum.socialgo.com/home.html</a><br /><br />Please join us for training tips and other horse related topics.<br /><br />Thank You<br /><br />Johnie RottenJohnieRottenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09556383138019987399noreply@blogger.com0