DefinitelyDressage.com

kande50

I taught a lot of tricks when I first started clicker training because I didn't know much about how it worked, or what I wanted to teach, but knew that I wanted to learn how to do it. I did most of it with my mule, who is now 25 and has been clicker trained for 21 years, so he's pretty goofy now. By...

kande50

[Are you talking about this thing: https://www.smartpakequine.com/pt/haas-frank-brush-19739 If so, I bought it and it immediately ripped the underside of my soft mattes pad. Those things are like razor blades. Maybe it's this one? https://www.ridingwarehouse.com/Haas_Essentials_Express_Hair_Removal...

kande50

If it was me I'd clicker train him to keep his foot on a stand while I wrapped it, because my experience has been that when their hoof is on a stand and they can't cooperate any longer they just put it down rather than kicking out. Course the treats for keeping the hoof on the stand probably help wi...

kande50

Well it is not cooling down here in middle Georgia at all. In fact we are breaking high temp records unfortunately. I just cannot face this heat at this time so have whimped many days. Also dealing with the build project (very frustrating) among other familial obligations. Horses are working very l...

kande50

Questions are good. I think if we all just go on the assumption that everyone is just geeking out on talking about what they love and clarifying, we're in pretty good shape. I refuse to assume anyone is being rude or snarky unless they tell me so. It takes some practice, but I try not to react to w...

kande50

Why did you hire a trainer who you don't believe is doing things 'properly' in your opinion? If you believe you know better than your trainer, enough to back-talk them in your lessons, write condescendingly on a public forum, and even look for advice that coincides with your own beliefs from an AA ...

kande50

While *I* wouldn’t consider the root problem behavioral when it’s clearly a side effect of her anxiety, if we’re using Chisamba’s definition, it is ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I think behaviorists might characterize behavior that comes out of anxiety as emotionally motivated behavior (rather than operant behavior). ...

kande50

The first few times of me being tone-deaf and asking for something she can't handle while anxious are fine. But she gets increasingly short if I don't clue in, eventually lashing out. I've been riding her for 18+ years, and it's happened less than 3 times under saddle, but she does kick and the roo...

kande50

Agree that if going up through the levels is the primary goal then one does need to commit to pushing themselves and the horse hard enough to progress fast enough to get to the top (or as far up the levels as possible) before the horse is too old to do that kind of work, anymore. But, that doesn't h...

kande50

So that is where the pain aspect comes in. Some horses will work while having pain and some won't. How many hobbling horses have we seen still go when asked. But pain doesn't have to mean the horse has a serious issue. Just tight muscles, blockages, etc. so as not to repeat myself. I suspect that m...

kande50

I will see if my bum lets me ride today. My husband actually took a picture of my butt cheek with the purple/black crazy hematoma to remind me to not wear socks on the steps. I have to admit it is impressive >;-> I've seen some impressive bruises on butt cheeks, although I haven't contributed to th...

kande50

There is kicking at the whip and/or leg and there is reluctance to go a certain direction or not to go at all. They can be two different things. I have seen many times horses kick at whip or leg. I have also personally had one young horse give me some significant trouble going in the more unbalance...

kande50

Still no rain since beginning of August and non forecasted through the end of this month. This is a serious situation imo. This time I got lucky and am getting a load of hay from a NY dealer that I have previously purchased from. I had to pay $15/bale (50 pounds) for this stuff. It's local 2nd cut ...

kande50

piedmontfields wrote: I can't imagine suddenly having an extended trot in the arena because she is shod all around!

Me either, but have been told that the reason dressage horses who aren't ridden out of the sandbox "need" shoes is for added traction.

kande50

My vet also warned me not to accidentally dose myself with it. She said to put it between the gums and the tongue, but maybe under the tongue might make it harder for them to swallow it?

kande50

Someone bought the place across the road from us and started a doggie daycare. We didn't oppose it because we had no reason to. Over the years they've expanded to way over the agreed upon number of dogs on their permit, which hasn't been a problem because they're cooperative, responsible neighbors. ...

kande50

I'm trying to add pictures through attachments below and it keeps saying "file too large." You have to resize them in a photo editing program (less than 200KB, if I'm remembering correctly). I checked the faq's and couldn't find that info, but maybe you'll have better luck? I think I also...

kande50

That said, I never understood the argument that hind shoes help with slipping. Can someone explain? I think that shoes can help with traction on some surfaces, are neutral on some, and can cause more slipping on others. If it's possible to keep the surface the same, such as in an arena, it should b...

kande50

Baristone shot his client. There is no justification for shooting someone. Except self defense, for one. To be clear, I'm not saying it was self defense because I wasn't there so don't know, but there are quite a few circumstances in which someone can get shot and there is at least some degree of j...

kande50

I'm not important enough for anyone to take an interest in ruining my reputation, so the risk for me is anonymous internet people potentially being mean. Maybe I'm naive because I haven't experienced it, but the internet is so flooded with content that I think the risk of someone latching onto my p...

kande50

I don't understand the change in her behavior. She was done in a different section of the barn than usual, so maybe that contributed to her anxiety. I know she's not in any pain, and was fine for her hind feet trim. Would it be too difficult to take her back to the part of the barn where she was co...

kande50

Kande, which complete feed to you use? Does the manure get soft without long stem forage? I'm feeding her Nutrena Triumph, and her manure is normal. In fact, I'm surprised at how much manure she makes because I don't think she gets much out of the forage and is only getting 10 lbs of pellets a day ...

kande50

Kande, a few years ago we spent 7k on fertilizer, seeding, and weed control. A professional farmer did it. There was no improvement whatsoever. Money down the drain. Right now, my fields look lovely from a distance. When you get up close, there is this 'stuff' growing that isn't grass. It's probabl...

kande50

I find keeping my pasture mowed helps to control the weeds. I cut the bermuda before irrigation but do not bag it. The seed heads end up germinating and make the grass thicker. Otherwise with our harsh climate we would be overrun with weeds. I find my horses will not eat the grass when it is very t...

kande50

Yes, but my understanding is the shorter grass is sweeter and more nutritious. If I didn't mow my pasture, it would be high but not with great grass. Mowing keeps the weeds down. Mowing does help keep the weeds from taking over, but I think it also prevents the grasses from going to seed so they co...

kande50

I think plenty of people would highly criticize an owner that put a horse down if there was the even the slimmest chance of recovery, even if that recovery meant pasture ornament forever. There are always plenty of opinions available. Some are horrified when someone else doesn't put their horse thr...

kande50

These scores blow my mind. Imagine coming in dead last in a class of 15 with a 76%. What are they going to do when the scores reach 100? I suppose they will have to add an 11 on to the numbers. They've already gone to half points, so eventually will likely just give all 9's and the rankings will be...

kande50

Maybe it's my old age or maybe I'm just seeing the light. I like to think we've gotten older and wiser, although it may be that everyone just projects their own issues onto their horses? So if we love to ride we like to believe our horses love it, too. Or if we're tired and sore maybe it makes us m...

kande50

Currently I’m 0 for 4 in the farrier department. I have left voice mails, texts, and FB messages. Texts and messages have been seen. If worse comes to worse, I can give Miss A. Ace and have the school horse farrier do her, but I hate the thought of putting her through that. Is it possible that your...

kande50

Yes, although the easy keepers still act like they think they're starving because the pickings are not plentiful. I no longer worry about them overgrazing the sacrifice areas though, and that makes it a lot easier for them to find something to put in their stomachs between meals without getting too ...

kande50

My neighbor's minis are drooling like mad, and have been for several weeks now. They're dieting though, so are eating the white clover in their very small pasture.

kande50

Please don't regret sharing! Everyone sees something different depending on their experiences, and I personally think that it's good for people to see the realities of training and learning. It's not always easy or pretty. Keep slogging on, it'll come! There's also that pesky perception thing that ...

kande50

What I really like about feeding treats under saddle is that I'm forced to stop and wait while my horse chews, and that makes me slow down and think about what exactly it is I want to reward. Most of the lessons I've been forced to learn from clicker training have had little to do with the kinds of ...

kande50

I just use whatever grain I have, but will sometimes buy a bag of the larger size hay stretcher pellets in the winter because they're easier to feed. I generally feed more than one if I'm trying to reinforce behaviors that take some effort, but try to stick to just one if we're working on easier beh...

kande50

Excellent points both exvet and chisamba! Good take home to work on for sure. Don't you feel most dressage riders tend to be type A people? Where we are always wanting that bit more? When we should not or as exvet says wait? Raise hand high here!! Intellectually, I think most of us know that we nee...

kande50

I truly feel the lights are on now. All I have to do is remember and make this new thing a habit. I've defintely made a breakthrough. I look forward to tomorrow's lesson to see what the trainer thinks. I think that when we've been riding forever the lightbulb moments tend to be subtle, and often nb...

kande50

Once I got off that warmup circle and the sitting trot work started, I did ok. By then, my reins and gloves were soaked and reins kept slipping. I have a real hard time in rising trot. I hate it. Good for you to even take lessons, because no matter how uncomfortable they are I think they probably d...

kande50

Sorry to read this, Deanna. It just sucks when things are going well and then all of a sudden the crap hits.

kande50

Got on the horse - instant forward trot. Ditto with lungeing after a couple of "oh yes you will!" moments. Gotta give the gal credit though - SHE was the one who acknowledged to her relative, "this horse has my number." She's making good progress now and after a couple of weeks,...

kande50

I use "reactive" to describe anxiety/fear reactions more than reactions to the aids. A reactive horse is one who comes around the corner and sees something and does a 180 and takes off. Ideally, such a horse would also be sensitive, so when the rider redirects him he would respond to the a...

kande50

[quote="blob"] A bosal will ALWAYS teach the horse to stay behind its pressure.

Those who use bosals tend to teach the horse to stay "weight of reins" light on them, but horses can be just as easily be allowed/taught to take a contact with the bosal.

kande50

3) ride on loose reins, and hope that the horse decides to get better more or less on its own (hint: it probably won't happen). I agree with 1 and 2, but think that horses can learn how to balance pretty well on their own, on a loose rein, just from being ridden. In fact, I did it with my mule just...

kande50

I think you need to learn the proper way to longe in SR and then see if you might change your mind. I learned the "proper" way to lunge in side reins decades ago, but then started paying more attention to what I think horses need rather than what I was told they need. And of course, what ...

kande50

Also riding with a looser rein doesn't mean you can't touch them. But it's just not having that constant pressure. You make your rein aid and when it's answered, you stop making that pressure. I don't normally ride with a loopy rein, but I try to have them so if I squeeze my fingers that the mouth ...

kande50

musical comedy wrote: The best in the country don't show it, so why I expect myself to be able to do it.

I think if that kind of riding was rewarded in comps it wouldn't be long before all the best riders would be riding with droopy reins.

kande50

I wouldn’t expect any dressage rider to go around for a whole test with droopy reins, either. I wouldn’t even want to imagine an extended trot with droopy reins. That's how Racinet rode, which was very similar to how western bridle horses are ridden. He, and his students could demonstrate extended ...

kande50

Remember a connected horse isn't the same as collected. Collected is more a physical thing- ie the horse has a % of weight behind, or not. A horse can be connected on the bit and not collected ie training level I think it's perfectly possible for a connected horse to go from uncollected to collecte...

kande50

Believe me, I'm not just saying this when I say I want out. It just not that easy to do....selling the farm. That's the big problem. The horses can always be boarded, but finding a buyer sometimes takes a long time, and in the meantime the farm has to be maintained in a saleable condition. Unless i...

kande50

And here we are in New England getting (IMO) the best weather we've had in years. Course I can never tell if that's just my perception because I'm so happy it's not hot, or it really has been a great spring and summer so far? That, and I just got a new round baler for my birthday and I'm looking for...

kande50

This is a 2007 data though: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3865852/ Thanks for the link. I read through the summaries and they were interesting, and now I know where it is so I can come back to it. I'm also planning to discuss it further with my doctor, but wanted to get some idea of ...

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