Kristen&Aslan2_MeganKrusePhotography-63.

Kristen Vanderpool Equine

The 5 secrets to leadership (Jonathan Field)

I liked these, so I thought I would share them from Jonathan Field's DVDs. The 5 secrets to leadership are: 1. Purpose/Focus You need to have a goal in mind, a direction 2. Clarity Being clear, black and white. If you are uncertain, the horse will perceive this. Having a purpose helps, since you know what you want and it will make it easier to break it down so you are clear. 3. Fairness Being free of bias and being objective. Don't be personally attached to a specific ou

Lateral Work

For a month we've been working on go and steer - this is usually pretty good, he just doesn't go straight. It's like riding a drunk horse, especially if I do yield of the shoulders or hindquarters. He then really wiggles when he walks, and tries to offer those behaviors or walk like a tourist, gawking and following wherever his head turns. I'm not quite sure what to do on this one, I've always had horses that more or less, walked straight. Laterals: I've been asking him f

Side passing and some regression at the mounting block

Leg Yielding: Now that Aslan is getting better at the ground cue to go sideways, I decided that it was time to try under saddle. When I mounted and asked, he actually understood and offered a step or two sideways. This really excited me, so jackpot! I even saw him dropping his head and going soft naturally. Beautiful! He was pretty good on the nearside cue, which is weird because on the ground, that is his bad side. For his offside cue, he goes "duh" and tires to offer the

Saddle work

Now that I've been able to work in the saddle with him, things are progressing nicely. I've had to work harder on "steering" as well as "go". It seems difficult to work on both, because he gets very focused on the steering and slows down. Or if I ask him to go, he meanders all over the place. I'm still not sure if there is an order to teach this stuff in. Clinton Anderson says to teach speed before path while Jonathan teaches path before speed. So which is best? No idea

I remember when go was a challenge. The new challenge is "go straight".

Problem: I have been having difficulty with going on a straight line. When I tell Aslan to go, he walks for 5 feet and then decides to become a tourist. If I correct, he might "over correct", slow down or do his wiggle walking (The drunk walk! LOL). I have been using a cluck and a small crop to remind him to walk forward. He is getting better, but the progress is pretty slow. I was reading on-line and this is a common problem with many horses, but especially with green

I remember when go was a challenge. The new challenge is "go straight".

All things are getting better

Now that I've been working with Aslan on lunging, he is doing pretty well. Not only does he go around without pulling, he is able to turn around and walk forward with me rarely using the whip except to direct him a bit. He will even trot now without the whip. He is definitely the lazy type, so I used the three step method to get him to go on just an ask. He gets very nervous when you put too much pressure on him. First I point, then I cluck, then I use the whip. He got

All things are getting better

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The stages of Positive Reinforcement

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