Love,
Nicki
What do horses do in the herd? If you were to watch a herd of horses in the wild or a pasture you would learn a lot from their behavior. You’ll see that they eat most of the day, sleep a bit, groom each other, challenge for position/status, and if they have enough of their primary needs i.e. food and water – they may play. It’s important to understand the dynamic of what is going on in the herd to be able to relate this to how you will use this behavior in your training program.
Contrary to what most people think, the leader in a herd of horses is usually a mare. The stallion’s job in the herd is to alert the herd to predators and protect the mares from other "marauding" stallions (a kind of self-serving job). This lead mare decides when the herd eats, where they eat, and who will eat. She will use body language to control the other horses – she will make them yield to her, even from a great distance away. She will also discipline any horses that get out of line. The other horses in the herd respect the lead mare and look to her for support, even the stallions. You want to emulate the lead mare’s behavior. Once you have the respect of your horse you will have the foundation for training. This is what the groundwork will build upon – respect, support, and trust.
If you read Alois Podhasky’s book "Complete Training of the Horse and Rider" on dressage or Tom Dorrance’s "True Unity", you will see the common thread from two diverse thoughts on training. Horse training has to be set up correctly for both the horse and rider. If you go into the training mode thinking that your going to thump on the horse or force him into a posture or movement, you may get them to do it, but not reliably.
There is no "best" way to approach Natural Horsemanship training. You have to find what works best for you."
Today I received phone calls about 3 horses needing homes, and got one email for a horse needing a home. Tomorrow a mare is coming in, and two more horses next weekend will be arriving. The state of the union for horses around here still seems to be dire need. I will continue to help but I cannot do it alone.
I need your help.
They need your help.
Help the horses of San Diego County get in loving caring homes for life...
please?
You won't regret it.
Goodnight. Love,
Nicki
Here is a link to the 10News story that ran Friday on Marco and Polo being reunited with their previous owner Jessica!
http://www.10news.com/video/20610408/index.html
The US Treasury Department is emailing again about another horse.
Loving owners? Where are you? You are needed.
For the horses.
This weekend Taffy worked well under saddle, and many other horses did great with the volunteers. The new mare is happy to be with Smokey in a pen where she can move around freely. And the two camp horses are BIG! Sonny is moving around better and Valor had her first ride here today.
Right now FalconRidge is working on camp horse reform and will be looking into putting agreements in place in the future that will ensure YMCA, Girl Scout and other camp horses do not go to slaughter or some other sort of other demise at the end of the camp season. Gunsmoke and Jimmy call for reform!
A blind mare needing a new home has been placed...Yay for the person who decided that adopting a blind horse is just the cats pajamas! She is brilliant!
Duncan, the starved arab from Potrero will be going home with his mom Michele who found him a wonderful private boarding facility. Duncan had reached the point in life where he needed to be switched to equine senior feed as his main diet, with hay as a supplement due to his missing molars. He has been gaining weight here and looking fantastic. We are so happy for Duncan and as his owner Michele has found out...hes a very very special horse who likes to communicate silently.
I received a very endearing email from Tara who let me know she had found her voice...and got horses into her life despite the insults from the spouse. Way to go Tara.
Following your passion for horses and rescuing them out of kindness is a noble thing. And poo poo anyone who says anything negative about it! Those people live in fear...you do not. You are brave, not fearful...and you are living in love. You rock!
There is a Chincoteague pony who was saved from going to slaughter from the Fallon, NV feedlot who will be coming later this week. He is 5 yrs old and supposedly broke.
I am betting he is related to Misty...
Love and honor to you and all the unwanted horses,
Nicki
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Ask not what your horse can do for you...ask what you can do for your horse. - Nicki
Tomorrow is a new day. Amber, Pow Wow, Rainbow and Cimarron are waiting for their new families to come find them...wherever they are out there.
Love and Light,
Nicki
