Your thoughts...

Sonia · Well Schooled

Your thoughts...

knitty · Yearling

I think its very important to reward breakthrough moments like you have described. Your job is to be a leader for you and your horse. By acknowledging when he has done things correctly you are being a good leader and this gives him confidence. It also lets your guy leave the session feeling good about spending time with you and being ridden.

Barbara F · Grand Prix

Um...no, we don't have to work our horses until they're sweaty.

Oh boy, I think I might have opened my mouth to her and told her that we must have different goals because my goal isn't to see how much I can make my horse sweat.

When I ride, if my horse tries his best and gives me what I am asking for, we're done. If it happens after 15 minutes, we're still done.

What about the saying: "Our willing servant, yet no slave".

Geesh. I feel sorry for that person's poor horse. How ignorant.

kschmittendorf · Well Schooled

I agree on the "quit while you are ahead" theory. Sweat is not an indicator of a good ride or lesson. It may well show nervousness, fear or frustration. You were right to stop and end on a good note. Just think how you felt when you had accomplished something good. Did you want to do it over and over until you were exhausted? Not me! Go with what you feel is right for your horse, not what others think.

Jackie Cochran · Advanced

I have often stopped a ride early because the horse did something wonderful. It got with one horse that I had to be sure to introduce something near the end of the ride instead at the beginning, but that was one smart horse!

If you keep on working after that wonderful moment then the horse won't know how wonderful he is for figuring it out. That will make a horse sour quickly, why try if there is no definite reward saying YES, THAT'S IT!!!?

MagsNMe · Advanced

Absolutely right to stop when they got it, ESPECIALLY if it's something that they've been having trouble with!

I'll give you an alternative example too. My mare BLEW in the middle of a lesson, and I corrected her promptly and well, we finished the exercise. And then my trainer said we're going to stop right here, I want her to think on that, how it did NOT work. Same coin, other side. There's a difference between hacking and training. Apparently your fellow rider doesn't see the distinction?

justice · Grand Prix

Far more important, imo, to deal with the mind and make the point, teach the lesson. The 1k body is operated by a two pound brain: stroke the brain, be done before it fries. Sometimes there is sweat, sometimes not. Go by the behavior : )

Repeat an element or an aspect of one enough times that the horse KNOWS what the cue is, what he is being praised for, then relax and be done with WORK for a while.

-- Edited by justice on Thursday 27th of January 2011 05:42:09 PM

Geoffrey Pannell · Well Schooled

I agree, it's a bit ignorant of this other person to say this, clearly does'nt have an understanding of how to work young horses (or any horses for that matter). The other thing not mentioned by others here is the fact that at 5 the horse is developing the muscles to carry itself and it is very easy to set up resistance to useing these muscles if they are put under stress for long periods.
Cheers Geoffrey

Ap · Yearling

Off the subject, but Jackie C, I love your bay. What a pretty head. All the horses posted here are so pretty. But a bay just steals my heart.

Nikki Salo · Grand Prix

Sonia, I think you did right by your horse! Don't feel out of place or ashamed that you thought your horse did something fantastic for you and you rewarded him for doing that. Some people just can't see outside the box

Barbara F · Grand Prix

What happened with that nosey person, Sonia? Did she ever hassle you after that?

sedonasilver · Advanced

Always end on a good note :) Happy horse = happy rider

Sonia · Well Schooled

You know, I actually haven't seen her too much lately. Our times visiting the barn are usually opposite and the time I rode with her was a very different time for me to be out there. I never said anything to her because it would upset her, but she continues to ride her horse for an hour + 6 days a week. No wonder the horse is sour.

Anyway, thank you all for the responses, I'm glad to know that I wasn't alone in this. I was 99% sure I was right but now that I see all the feedback I know I was 110% right and Balian and I are coming along great!

Emiry · Advanced

Well, in my last lesson my form was SO off. It was just one of those days...I kept releasing to early after my jump, and I ended up pulling back on my ponies mouth once...so after that he worked his hardest to refuse the jump. My instructor worked with us over the cross-rail until I could get him to go over it once. Once we got over it once she told me to give him a pat and that we will stop there for jumping so both me and him would end on a good note. (My release ended up being decent on the last jump)

So your not the only one who ends stuff on a good note =)

Marlene · Advanced

There's a general principal in training (I happen to have more experience with dogs and kids) that you reward any small progress, and quit on a note of success if at all possible. I would even say that at 20 minutes (on the first successful lesson) you may have been pushing it, but since you ended on success, that's good too. You will require fewer total hours of training if you follow this approach. You are not just training their mind but also new muscles, so overdoing it will just come back at you tomorrow. The key is how you feel, if your horse does right, and you feel good, let him bask in that glow, and that's all he needs to get the point. Anything more is not only redundant, but counter productive. Even with physical conditioning, I watch how my horse behaves from day to day (most of our riding is physically demanding up and down rocky trails). If he is full force on a day, or the next, or the third, but then seems to be a little tired the next day, we take a day off, or just a lighter day of work. If I do that, he comes back stronger the following day.