I work a lot of horses on the lunge, which has been my primary endeavor this week, and it also happened to be a rare situation in which I was glove-less. I have been using riding gloves EVERY TIME I work with a horse for the past 6 years, no exceptions, until this week. I managed to lose one glove, threw the other away only to find its missing match a few days later when it was too late. No time to make a run to the tack store in the meantime and horses in need of being worked.

Handling the lunge rope and the reins without gloves felt, well, awful. It simply did not run freely through my hands at will as they had when I wore gloves. My fingers seemed to almost stick incomprehensibly to the reins or the lunge line at the most inappropriate times, truly compromising the signals I was attempting to make. The fumbled and fought against one another in an effort to the correct the sticky fingers problem to no avail.

Then, I wandered humbly down to Wal-Mart in a moment of quick desperation. Still no time to make a lengthy drive to the tack store and unwilling to wait for them to arrive in the mail, I did the unthinkable – I bought a pair of softball gloves in lieu of the real McCoy. Do they work? You bet. Are they as nice, no way. But the $12 price tag will make up for the over-sized wrist adjustment. They don’t have to look pretty, just get the job done. (And they certainly beat out the cost of my last pair at a whopping $70 + shipping.)

Ideally I will admit, a pair of golfer’s gloves. They are far less bulky around the wrist and tend to have a very buttery soft leather that lends itself to tactile sensations. The softball gloves are still thin enough to feel through, just that awkward velcro strap at the wrist will likely bug me for the better part of another two weeks. Still, my Super Wal-Mart only had left-handed golfer’s gloves in stock.

Magically, my hands returned to their former self. My horses were eternally grateful as well as they immediately responded with consistency and lightness once again. They were no longer being jabbed in the face with my sticky fingers.

Gloves, in my opinion and experience, are a vital piece of equipment despite their diminutive size. They allow your hands to freely manage the reins or lunge line or lead rope while providing extra grip if and/or when needed. Mentally for the rider I believe they also inspire a confidence that can be lacking without them. You no longer need to worry about whether you will ever be put in a position to receive rope burn, or if you’ll be able to grip the rope/rein as it slides through your hands. You exert less effort and in return your hands can work more delicately and promote further lightness in the horse.

There are promotional videos explaining the benefits and application of EndoTapping, but I thought perhaps I would give some input from the position of a Massage Therapist on how EndoTapping affects the horse and why it is effective.

In Massage Therapy there are many different modalities, or techniques, that can be used for various reasons to solicit relaxation from a muscle. Not all of them are equally as effective on each person’s body depending on the type of resistance that is going on in the particular muscle but one very common and popular modality is called tapotement, or tapping which is where the link to EndoTapping comes in.

Normally tapotement is associated with a sort of tapping on the chest or back with cupped hands – over the lungs – effective for loosening buildup in the lungs and relieving the symptoms of asthma. Tapotement can really refer to any kind of tapping however, and is very popular and effective because through it’s repetitiveness it can help overcome mental tensing of the body. This tapping also doesn’t risk overworking the muscles like many other techniques do, which can result in actual damage.

So, in a nutshell, EndoTapping is giving your horse a sort of massage treatment and utilizing it in a way to enhance your training sessions. I agree that it is absolutely ingenious and a marvelous tool. I will however ad a caveat… in that it is my opinion that the tapping shown in many of the videos is far too fast. It is a relaxation technique and therefore should have a tempo that is more relaxed and less “stimulated.”

Unfamiliar with the exact set-up of EndoTapping? Check it out at the Equus Academy website and you can also search for it on YouTube for demonstrations.

One of the most difficult things for a rider to learn is how to use their hands properly. Wait, no. Let me restate that. THE most difficult thing for a rider to learn is how to use their hands properly. Why you may ask.. because the hands are connected to the wrist bone, the wrist bone is connected to the arm bone… and so on right down to your ten little piggies and the hair on your chinny chin chin.

Joking aside though, good hands require a rider to have a balanced seat, which requires the rider to be in the proper position for their individual center of gravity, which requires the proper muscle suppleness and flexibility which is not innate in us human beings. Good hands also require the proper education, something that the vast majority of riders never get and are unlikely to encounter in their average riding lessons. Why? Because their instructors never received it and so can’t pass it on.

Essentially all of these requirements make it nearly impossible for a rider to gain good hands without going through and learning a properly balanced seat so that their hands, seat and legs can work independently from one another.

Now, let’s go back to the original question about bitless bridles, or bridle-less riding. The usual reason behind using either of these ‘tools’, or ‘methods’ if you will, is to circumvent some sort of problem that the horse is having with a bit in it’s mouth. The horse tosses it’s head, has a hard mouth, can’t relax, over-salivates or is anxiously gnawing at the bit, runs through the bridle, etc. Let us also keep in mind that the horse’s mouth is one of the most sensitive areas on his body without losing sight of just how sensitive his skin is alone to a single fly’s presence… ahem.

Essentially it boils down to this – the rider is replacing his lack of skill with a piece of equipment designed to relieve him of ever having to go through the process of developing a seat and thus independent aids and eventually having educated hands that no longer cause all of these “bit issues”. It is for this reason I don’t recommend these tools but instead continue to champion the learning process that first develops a rider’s balance WITHOUT allowing them access to the reins and only after they’ve acquired a seat and independent legs are the reins introduced with education. Never haphazardly as seems to be common – to throw a beginner rider on a horse and leave them wander about the ring not knowing the first thing about how to communicate with the horse and without any balance to then abuse the horse’s mouth and blame the horse’s resistances on the bridle…

I love visuals, so thought I would put some commentary on my observations from some video I just browsed. I have some history on the horse but will wait to share it until after you’ve watched the video to keep from pre-suppositions if possible.

In The Bitless Bridle -

[youtube DgolyvVjO5k]

I watched this video first so am posting in the order that I viewed them. The background information was highlighting that the horse was moving in free extension, self carriage, even collection. I will admit that he is different in certain superficial ways from the video showing him ridden in a bit but I would never say that his actions are that of true extension in the gaits, self carriage or collection. He is not relaxed, is not stepping underneath of himself, is not round in the back, etc. Instead he is a horse who is moving swiftly forward, braced in the neck, tense in the gaits and who is at the same time also doing a commendable job at (imo) trying to do as his rider is requesting.

The problem is that he cannot be in self-carriage, it is not possible with both his level of tension and the rider’s lack of balance. She is not falling off the horse but she is behind his movement and falling downwards at every sitting stride and having to work too hard to push herself out of the saddle in the rising portion. His walk is completely lateralized as is the canter, i.e. both legs on the same side are moving in unison rather than separated into the 4-beat tempo that should be the walk and the three beat canter tempo. His neck is raised but not from the base, rather more inverted and that is shown by the thickness of the underside of the neck.

What bit of extension the rider may be feeling is simply the horse moving more swiftly, or there are a few small moments (if not in this video there is a second one also showing him in the bitless bridle) where he is getting closer to stepping under himself. His hind hooves are not stepping into the front hoof prints and therefore his hind legs are by definition trailing.

Compared to the video of him in a bit he is more confident appearing in his forward movement and less confused about whether he should be going forward or slowing down, which is very common if the rider uses their hands too much in conflict when riding in a bit that they will improve in this way in the bitless bridle.

In a Kimberwicke -

[youtube PH3_84dqvwg]

This video I watched immediately after my observations on the bitless bridle video, I was curious to see how changed he would go in a bit. Again, the rider is behind the movement of her horse and as a result her rein aids are in conflict with the forward movement she is asking out of him – she is using the reins to aid in balance which she has to because her seat is not developed, her legs are neither suppled into position nor independent and therefore her hands will be affected by whatever happens with the seat and legs. The horse responds through confusion – her legs say go forward, her seat cannot follow the movement because it has to work harder than necessary, and her hands say slow down or stop. He in turn reacts out of frustration and confusion.

I don’t want you thinking I am picking on this rider, simply my observations and nothing personal. I could pick out a million other videos and point to the same issues, she is not alone and I have been in her place myself. I have ridden the horses with terrible bit problems, head tossers, balkers, horses that were sucked back and behind the bit, that would bobble between running forward and running backward in confusion. I have ridden with poor balance, heavy hands and the thought that my horses were collected or balanced when they were anything but.

I’d really love to throw up a quick video but alas do not at the moment have free access to a horse so this post will have to suffice for now. Be wary however the trap that is easy to fall into believing that a bit of tack can solve all of your troubles. The bit has a specific purpose and that purpose is to allow for some of the most refined communication available with your hands. The horse’s nose cannot compare in sensitivity to the horse’s mouth – which is the good and the bad. It is why a bitless bridle allows for more refined appearing riding when there is no tact in the rider’s hands or balance in his body and why that same rider can develop a horse with the most horrendous evasions when riding with a bit.

My first dressage instructor used to bring up with a sort of endearing tone and mystical hope in her voice this idea she had heard about – something to the effect of master equestrians riding their horses with a single thread of silk to connect their hand to the bit their touch so refined, subtle and effective. Later I came to experience the power of riding with that refined of communication with the hand – where less is louder to the horse than more. Where a mere 5 grams (the weight of a nickel!) is all that is needed to convey your wishes to the horse and have them be understood. But… that kind of tact is not available when your hands are connected to  your feet which are connected to a body that is out of sync with the horse’s movement, space and time.

Food for thought…

What did we get into riding for to begin with? Was it for the glory of winning a blue ribbon against all odds and the endless commitment of tireless riding lessons and agonizing chafing? Believe it or not, I am not against showing horses, although perhaps it might come across that way at times in my blog. What I am opposed to is winning for the sake of winning. Remember, those blue ribbons only cost a few dollars… how much is the happiness of yourself and your horse worth? Can it be bought with some shiny satin?

As I’m sitting in the saddle with my horse, remembering that saying, “Less Is More,” all I can do is take a deep breath, put a smile back on my face, and locate relaxation that resounds throughout my being. I find that taking this mindset, remembering these words, puts me back in a place where it takes only the conscious acknowledgement of my thoughts to convey to the horse my desires, and he willingly proceeds to give them to me.

A stop is no longer created through an action, but is pronounced by a gentle sigh on my account that seems to filter it’s way down to my horse who completes the thought, stops his feet, and expresses the exhale of breath through his nostrils. A canter departure no longer requires pressure from my legs, but simply a shift in thought and soon my horse is carrying me on wings and the wind is lapping through my hair.

Magical? Mystical? Perhaps, but honest as well. When we do too much we get bogged down in thoughts and often find ourselves in that mode of insanity – doing the same thing over and over again and hoping for different results. The horse becomes frustrated, anxious, perhaps he checks out mentally. I think Natural Horsemanship has often tried to make their methods to be somewhere along the lines of ‘less is more’ but it has to be more than just the physical understanding, but also the mental.

Why is it that a horse can greet one person calmly and inquisitively, and another person they are terrified of, without either making a single action? It is because we interact on a plane that is outside of merely the physical realm. We exchange energy, and that energy can be created, divided, converged, directed… beginning with thought.

So go out, have some fun, and keep it simple! Less Is More…

“Horses As A Whole – Ramblings”

…The horse world is not the only field where we dissect and divide into specialties, sub-specialties and a myriad of categories. Our entire modern civilization functions in just the same way. We look at our bodies as being suitable for this separation – if our shoulder hurts we do not link a connection to our feet with the pain.

For this reason, I propose a whole horse approach. I can believe that when the horse is healthy on the whole, that there is no reason he would resist, be inattentive, lethargic, anxious, aggressive, fearful, etc. These are the symptoms of a larger picture, which is often ignored or misunderstood. Too many “impossibilities” are proposed when it comes to the horse as a whole. When the horse has low energy, he is labeled as being lazy, dull, or disinterested. The question then becomes, “why?” What is it that is causing the low energy state?

Can the horse have similar tail bone injury issues as humans? What about their hyoid[1|2] bone(they do not have one)? If the nervous system is upset, the whole of the horse would feel it. Where then will the compensations show? How their diet is involved, for an animal made to eat grasses, but is fed grains? Gluten intolerance? What about chemical additives in grains, and even hay or pasture?

The horse’s craniosacral [1] rhythm? Connection between fixed organs, their inability for free visceral[1] pulse, and certain types of colic? More people are becoming aware of liver and kidney overload with feed. Mesentary[1] work? Physical imbalances in the horse? Poor muscle tone, poor posture? The violent force of rectal palpation, and it’s connection with difficult breeding, births, or behavior changes in mares? Behavior changes in mare in connection with the birth process? Sacrum alignment? What about the bone plates of the horse’s skull, do they also have a Sphenoid bone[1]? Fox cerebri? Cranial alignment, postural assessment? Changes in hooves caused by postural imbalances or compensations?

What are the top no-no’s when it comes to working with horses?

• No pulling – on the reins, on the halter, etc… leading into…
• No denting. The horse must be respected, we cannot change them by taking or giving, only by influencing them by our presence and actions. Note.. I don’t say “interactions” – let’s stay on the outside.
• Stronger does not mean faster. Strong legs do not mean go, they mean stop. Strong aids do not inspire the horse to intelligent responses, only reactions.
• Better out than in (I like that), if the horse is to react to something, always encourage an external response. Internal ‘stuffing’ causes disease – mental, emotional, physical.
• Never contain, compression creates pressure, that can be released either slowly like a pressure cooker, or suddenly – explosive.
• Resistance is a warning sign – moving past resistance damages. This is on all levels, physically the body breaks, mentally the mind breaks, emotionally the heart breaks.

• Pulling – what does pulling inspire? Give what we get, if we pull we get pulling in response. If we give, we are given to in response.
• Denting – if we dent we damage. Do we want to ride and train damaged horses?
• Strength – as above, give lightness, get lightness. We can never be as strong as the horse, so why try?
• Externalizing/Internalizing – when energy is compressed, it becomes pressurized and either explodes outwards or damages the container holding it together. If the horse’s body is used to contain this energy, the energy will either carry the body in an explosive manner, or damage the external structures holding it together.
• Resistance – falls along with the category of Denting. Resistance warns us that we are on the edge of denting. When we don’t explore with intelligent touch, our nerves never have a chance to warn us that we have met resistance until we’ve already moved into or past it. Careful, light exploration sensitizes our nerves, building our ability to recognize when we’ve met resistance and back off before denting the horse.

General : Force –

Force, a relative term, is so overused in today’s training of the horse. They are pushed, pulled, whipped, cranked, yanked, yelled at, kicked and in general, overstimulated.

According to Ardnt’s Nueurological Law ( Rudolph Arndt, German Psychiatrist, 1835-1900), “Weak stimuli excites physiological activity, moderately strong ones favor it, strong ones retard it, and very strong ones arrest it.” So, from weak to very strong, as the stimulation is increased, the physiological response decreases with the intensity applied. This is why strong force causes a horse to shut down, rather than exciting them into intelligent actions.

In weak riding, I am referring to the ability to use the mind & energy of the rider, over their strength. It is about connecting and communicating with the horse without reliance upon strength. That is weak riding. I brought up the topic of using only 5 grams of pressure in a previous post, and how it correlates with a person’s intention, and I want to build on that. To have an intention, the ability to feel and see the action you are hoping to create or inspire in a sort of psuedo-action type visualization. To feel the energy in your fingertips, but unable to see any movement stemming from them. The ability to sense a half-pass without seeing any chance in position, pressure or posture. That is intent, it is the ‘mind’s eye’ so to speak.

To be a weak rider gives the horse every opening at performing to his full potential. There are no interferences, no blocks, no force or energy working against, always working with. In particular I have been practicing this method also with my niece, when she doesn’t want to lay down for her nap or get ready for bed at night. I simply go through the motions without force – no force in my actions, in my words, in the tone of my voice. It is all calm, it is waiting, and still it has energy and movement. What I find is that in her resistance, she begins to attempt to help me. She resists, and when she is not resisted against, she then starts to help with whatever it is. Perhaps I am trying to get her changed for bed, she will help put her pajama top on. Or brushing her teeth, she will sit herself down so I can help her with her teeth better. Small things, but they break a cycle of resistance and temper tantrum. The same goes for the horse, he becomes engaged. We have caught his mind. The mind that we use when we are weak, we then attract the mind of the horse to.

The reality is that only when we have strength do we rely upon it. When we lack strength we must find other options, other answers to solve the problem. What if we all rode as though we were too weak to lift a bale of hay, to pick up our horse’s hoof, to hoist the saddle upon his back? Would we also temper our strength with our hands, legs and artificial aids? They would find an action that relies upon the energy and movement over the direct or indirect force.

 [youtube 1alHYYxuP8]

I wanted to post this video, because somewhere near the middle it shows the very obvious use of force to try and control/contain the horse. It fails miserably. So I pose this question, if presented with a situation like this and you did not have the option to use force, what would you change? How would you work to stay safe while handling this horse that doesn’t rely on strength to be successful?

To bring oneself to peace, quiet, waiting, feeling. To bring the horse to stillness, only to the initiate movement again. Easier said than done. The mind tries to pipe up and give it’s input, the logic attempts to discern every movement into information worth analysis, the body weighs heavier and heaviest, and the ego wants to simply employ force to get the desired response. Somewhere underneath all of those voices, there is a small one, a voice of silence, of solitude and peace. It is small, inaudible, but it is still present. It peeks out when all of the other voices have been quieted, silenced, that is when it takes the opportunity to say, “…” Nothing. That is the still point. That is the principle necessary before we re-institute movement.

And that movement, is pure intention. It is the thought, the feeling only through our mind. It causes such small changes in our energy that we fail to perceive them in most cases. We miss them for the larger movements that overpower them. The intention is more powerful, more capable, but it requires time, patience, quiet, still. It requires dedication of the mind, of the intent. We can only be so strong with force, with muscle, with bone. But with energy, we can exceed the strength of 100 men, we can exceed it through the influential power it holds. We can, but we often fail to believe that we can, instead we settle for the minute measure of potential strength that physical force conjures up.

So come back to stillness. Find that still point where the silence resides, where that small voice of nothingness exists, and then begin your intent. Begin the flow of energy, let it build gradually, let it build as it is meant to. Let it find it’s potential power by feeding it with calm intent.

After a recent Craniosacral session, and the conversation surrounding that of 5 grams, it has been ever present on my mind. I cannot say with certainty that I have ridden with only 5 grams of pressure, but I know that I have aspired unconsciously towards it, reaching within sights. But perhaps like the scale test, found myself unable to regulate the consistency, my body jumping to heights of too much or too little with speed and inaccuracy, taking turns with the effect of weight too much or too little consistent.

Anyone want to take a challenge with me? To ride with only 5 grams? Bring yourself to feel pressure, and move away slowly, release that pressure, focusing on the beat of the heart or the lungs, or the dura. Focus until you feel it, until you’ve been able to release enough that the flow fills that vacuum. Let’s challenge one another. :)

On the contrary, lightness is not relative to the application, rather it is relative because just at the moment when we believe we have reached the ultimate in lightness a new opportunity awakens to provide us the chance to seek more lightness. We always have the chance for greater refinement of the aids, of our actions, of our expectations.

Lightness comes in part with the advent of relaxation. Lightness relies on movement, constant movement. Lightness is the result of the mental, emotional and physical aspects between horse and rider reaching harmony. It is these moments that lightness shows up as pure joy, because it is effortless, thoughtless. It is simple energy capable of being directed at will. That is the beauty of lightness.

Lightness is not lack of touch, it is not an emptiness in the hand or a rushing away from the leg. Lightness is the unique lack of resistance and force. It is the presence of a perfect dance partner. One that understands and interprets the music with the same timing and precision that you do. That is lightness.

Lightness naturally inspires collection. It inspires beautiful transitions. Lightness relies on the energy it creates. Lightness relies on the posture it creates. Lightness relies on the simplicity it creates. It is a circle, neverending. That which lightness creates it also consumes, it lives off of. When lightness begins disappearing it is only regained by re-establishing the very things it relies upon and creates. Logical and illogical, that is the meaning of lightness.

Lightness creates more energy. It does this through inspiration. It enables greater muscle usage without tension or resistance. Lightness encourages mental participation and clarity. Lightness is the epitome of personal awareness, relaxation, curiosity, patience and balance.

Pressure:

noun.

1. The amount of force applied over a given area divided by the size of this area. (physics)
2. Mental strain caused by one’s own or others’ expectations on one’s own performance.

verb.

1. To encourage or exert force or influence.

Coupled with pressure, and vital to understanding its use and effects, is resistance. Resistance is the element of horse riding that is difficult to find in absence. Present in competition, backyard riding, trail riding, even the pursuit of riding as an art form, resistance is an element that some may consider a necessary evil. So prevalent is it, that trainers of all disciplines alike utilize some form of eliminating, or breaking the horse’s resistance, in search of their submission.

Resist:

1. verb.

1. To attempt to counter the actions or effects of someone or something.
2. To withstand such actions.
3. To oppose.

2. noun.

1. A protective covering.

Resistance:

1. The act of resisting, or the capacity to resist.
2. A force that tends to oppose motion.

Without pressure, the horse would have nothing to resist against. In reverse as well, can pressure exist as pressure – that is force, influence or encouragement – without some form of resistance? Pressure would simply become action, movement.

When we implement pressure, often we go beyond the resistance, into what is referred to as ‘denting’. When we dent the horse, we cause change in its shape, form, movement, energy, essence using pressure. This may not seem so terrible from the outside looking in, but if we look closer at the images so prevalent in current times of horses with tight nosebands, heads pulled in and held behind the vertical, straps for tying heads up or down, twitches, hobbles for training purposes, the list goes on and on, it becomes more apparent just how pressure and denting are being overused and misunderstood.

Horses are dented every day, and that is evidenced by the consistent presence of resistance, misunderstanding, fear, lack of trust, and evasions that riders and trainers experience with horses. Horse books and videos are full of problem solving techniques, each one custom built for the specific problem. There are numerous, freshly trademarked training methods and techniques each year that claim to do just what the previous methods before have failed to do, complete with new gadgets to influence more force with less effort.

These are all band-aids, to hide the fact that too much pressure was used in the first place, causing a cut that now ‘needs’ a band-aid. We forget to investigate the cause and get caught up in quick fix solutions for the symptoms. When the pot boils over you don’t put a cover on it, you turn the heat off and take it off the stove.

Pressure is a large component in most training methods, what they revolve around. The theory is that if enough pressure is applied in the correct area, it will motivate the horse to perform the requested action. This can cause very mechanical thinking in the horse, because he is not trained to be an intelligent contributor to the relationship, rather an instinctual creature. The majority of riding and training methods work off the idea that only with the use of pressure is an action obtained from the horse. Pulling on the reins to stop or squeezing the legs to go being prime examples; action equals reaction.

While using pressure as the key training tool works with some horses, there are many who fall in the cracks, leaving owners, riders and trainers frustrated, angry, fearful, sad, injured or killed. Pressure training with stallions turns into dangerous business, creates ‘hormonal’ and ‘opinionated’ mares, and geldings that fall into all sorts of impressions. Some horses may develop a seemingly lazy or “I don’t care” attitude, and others become hyper-sensitive, spooking, frightened and overly dramatic. Even those who go through the motions will likely show their resistance in the quality of the relationship.

Pressure as a training tool is not limited by disciplinary lines, sport, breed or gender. It is the key element in round-penning techniques, lunging, leading and riding. We unknowingly employ pressure because we are never taught what pressure is, how it influences the horse, and how to use it responsibly. Those who are termed ‘naturally gifted’ riders, often have an unconscious understanding of pressure, while the rest of us wander through the dark not realizing that we are in fact the pressure that has recently caused our horse to explode last week.

When the horse resists our initial pressure, we dent him even further by increasing the pressure – force or influence – possibly even causing physical pain. We do not stop and observe we are denting the horse to which he is resisting, instead we behave as though the horse is resisting therefore we must dent him to prevent further resistance.

Pressure in itself is not evil, it is used as a motivator, to encourage the horse to change himself and perform as we would like. When pressure crosses the line from motivator to force is what denting refers to. To balance the thin line between too little pressure and too much is the art involved in motivating the horse without denting or being completely action-less. For most of us, to know where the middle line is, we must explore both extremes of pressure – too much and too little – before we can recognize the balance, the motivation without force.

Pressure is not linear; it cannot be measured in a scientific manner when it comes to its influence on the horse and human relationship. How the horse interprets our pressure is based on many factors, and likewise our interpretation of pressure we apply. These include their individual character, previous relationships with humans and the current one they have with you or I. This interpretation is in constant flux, because other smaller factors bear heavily on the horse’s perception.

Being a prey animal, the horse is more or less tolerant of pressure based on the weather, season, herd status, physical condition, health, terrain, etc. There are few horse owners who haven’t become acutely aware that their horse is on eagle watch during a cold windy day, than when the temperature is mild and wind calm. This is why measuring an amount of pressure to work on every horse at every moment for a predictable result cannot be successful.

Pressure is not always physical, that is, involving touch. Most pressure begins well before any contact takes place, however most of it goes unrecognized. If you’ve ever noticed how some people make horses leery well before they are within touching distance, and others couldn’t make a horse walk away if they had an air horn, you’ve witnessed the non-physical affect of too much or too little pressure. We all give off a level of energy that directly relates to pressure from the horses perspective.

The way we stand, look, move and otherwise interact are all being read by the horse. He is fully aware of your every move, are you? The ultimate observer, even the horse you may think has checked out or dozed off, has their attention on you. It is their nature to observe, in the wild their very life depends on it.

Much of the observational skills we had as children have been trained out of us, coupled with our childhood curiosity. Being aware of the pressure we are applying to the horse involves the use of both observation and curiosity. We must be able to observe the horse’s responses to accurately judge our pressure, and have the curiosity to pursue the effort involved.

Summary – When we fail to dent the horse with pressure, the results are quite exciting. We develop a horse which trusts us not only because we are consistent, but because we also have respect for them physically, emotionally and intellectually. The horse has a level of confidence in trying to do what it is we ask, they are not afraid of the consequences of being wrong because being wrong doesn’t give reason to be dented. In short, we find a horse which is engaged, intelligent, and committed to a relationship with humans.