Part 1 – Choosing the Right Teacher
I am often asked what I do for a living. That seems like an easy question with a simple answer. But, alas, nothing worth doing is every really simple or easy. Explaining the multi-faceted way that I help horses and riders reach their short and long term goals seems to take too long and is too complex to hold most people’s interest for long.
So I simply say that I run a TAG program for horses and riders. Normally TAG is associated with “Talented And Gifted” – in my case I changed the acronym slightly to mean “Teachable Attainable Goals”. My clients jokingly added to this, saying I teach the “not so talented and not so gifted horses and riders”.
Before meeting the horse and rider in person I usually talk with them over the phone to find out how my program can meet or exceed their needs and enable them help their horse be the best it can be. I ask many questions. The first questions boil down to a brief history of both horse and rider. The next questions delve into the desired relationship and overall suitability to the task in mind.
- Is this how you want to connect and work with your horse?
- What type of relationship do you currently have? Is this what you want?
- Does your horse have a voice in the relationship?
- Do your goals match your horse’s ability to fulfill the desired result?
I encourage my future clients to ask me questions, check my references, talk to past and present clients, audit a training session, lesson or clinic that I am teaching. If they are not asking enough questions I give them some basic guidance to encourage them. The basic questions I want them to have the answers to are:
- Are the horses in training well cared for, healthy, happy, relaxed and confident?
- Is the training progressive?
- Do the horses improve in their understanding of what is being asked of them?
- Does their ability to perform the task improve?
- Are the riders and horses enjoying the lesson/clinic? Are they having fun?
- Are the horses sound?
- What is the longevity of the horses? How old is the oldest horse in the program?
- Is the trainer communicating effectively to both horse and rider?
- What is the experience and qualifications of the trainer?
- Are the rider goals being met?
After we have met in person and decided to go forward I begin to ask more in depth questions. Questions relating to riding/training goals. Yeah, everyone asks that. Right? But, I break it down. What are the 1 month goals, 3 month goals, 6 month goals, yearlong goals. Do you currently have a plan in place to help you achieve success at each step? How will you know when you have been successful? We all measure success differently so my definition of success might be very different than your definition. How do you define success? How will you know when you are successful? How will your horse know when he is successful?
Next, I need to know some particulars in their lives such as fitness, condition, physical limitations. How fit they expect their horse to be in order to be able to reach the goals easily, without stress, strain and/or physical or mental exhaustion. Is the rider willing to come 1-2 times per week to participate in the training sessions? How fit is the rider? Are they at least as fit as their horse? Do they each receive regular bodywork? Any past injuries, falls, accidents with either horse or rider?
Tack fit, shoeing, veterinary care, nutrition and general horse care are also areas that are covered.
Then the “nitty-gritty” comes into play. How willingly will they participate? Are they planning to take the time to learn the basics of what I am teaching their horse so that they can recreate this at home or in another setting gently and easily without stress to either horse or human? Is there a time frame they have in mind for achieving success?
Do they want to show? Do they want to attend clinics?
Once we have mutually decided that we are a good match, and the paperwork is done, then the real fun begins. I get to design a unique program for that horse and rider to help them attain their goals. I often say that “the slow way is the fast way” in training. I advocate the “1% improvement plan”. Which means that in each session if I get at least 1% improvement then in 100 sessions or less we will have met or exceeded our goals. This is usually much faster, but you get the idea.
Part 2 – Starting The Process
After determining the long term goals of the rider, suitability of the horse to help attain desired goals, I design a unique program to target and achieve the goals.
When starting young horses, the foundation is the most important part of the educational process. I love using TTouch™ methods to teach this to both horse and human. Everyone leads their horse, often many times per day. So it seems logical to start the training process there, with basic groundwork. I usually spend the first few weeks of training just doing the TTouchs and groundwork.
What can the horse learn from leading? What can the human learn? For me, each leading position has a multitude of uses and lessons built into it. I try and point out, briefly, why I use the particular leading position (at that time) and what the short and long term benefit can be.
Elegant Elephant leading position starts by teaching the horse how to have better balance and self-control while being led, this eventually leads to lightness and self-carriage in riding. For the rider this means self –responsibility, safe handling practices and chunking down the process for themselves and their horse. The handler begins learning how to allow the horse the time to process the desired request, how to walk in better balance and how to start separating the aids necessary to complete the action. Another large part of Elegant Elephant is learning to wait. To think and then act. This applies to both horse and handler.
Dingo leading position teaches the concept of how to move forward from the behind, how to wait for the anticipated signal and then how to stop and start with better balance longitudinally.
Homing Pigeon helps with overall balance while building confidence away from the handler. Homing Pigeon also assists in learning acceptance to a second person. It is the safe handling “go-to” for horses who need extra guidance to be safely led or handled.
The Cha-Cha (dance) teaches them single and diagonal foot placement, this happens while learning to keep the back up and the core engaged. It also teaches the horses to wait for the signal. Learning to back up with their heads in a natural position, helps in additional ways such as trailer loading/unloading as one example.
Observing the horse while he navigates the Labyrinth gives you instant insight to their inherent stiffness and natural crookedness. This can enable you teach them ways to learn to carry themselves straighter and in better balance before ever setting foot in the saddle.
The leading exercises combined with the bodywork of the TTouchs helps the horse learn simpler and easier and often more efficient ways of moving in balance before ever carrying the weight of a rider. Two other benefits I see, is learning how to think and then act, and movement with balance and symmetry. The Playground of Higher Learning helps the horse learn to be responsible for its own foot placement, exposure and navigation through obstacles that are not usually encountered in daily life.
Many of our modern day horses are never exposed to uneven, hilly, natural or even “bad” terrain, so they simply do not have good proprioception built in….you have to teach it. This is where the obstacle course helps you help your horse! Again, you teach the concept of hoof eye coordination from the ground before ever mounting your horse.
With the TTouch ground work exercises you have the ability to break it down into many steps. Such as going out “naked”, with only the halter, lead and wand. Next you could add a body bandage, after that a surcingle and body bandage combo, then possibly a saddle and/or other tack.
Of course I could go on and on with the multi-faceted uses of TTouch methods, but you get the idea. The really cool part is that all of the ground work and in hand work directly transfers to the under saddle lessons. Thus making the whole process more easily understood and accepted by the horse. You are really just changing a couple of components of an exercise they already know and understand with the addition of the rider being led during the initial backing. With TTouch you are truly only limited by your own imagination. So give yourself permission to be creative. Have some fun.