Philosophy

Training horses is like religion....

you have to BELIEVE.

-Jack Le Goff

My goal with working any horse is to leave them better off than when I started. Sometimes this is painstakingly slow baby steps but every step, every calm relaxed ride is worth it. 

When working with young horses I strive to give them a solid foundation, built on relaxation and confidence. A relaxed horse is a horse ready to learn, to understand new concepts. My goal is to not force the horse into a compressed outline for the sake of it being "in fashion". I am interested in allowing the horse the time to build and develop the muscle to correctly carry themselves along with a rider. This involves time, something most people do not want to hear. 

Americans want instant dressage the same

way they want instant coffee.

-Jack Le Goff

It is my belief that self carriage comes not from pulling on the horse's mouth, but from correct, relaxed training that builds muscles and doesn't damage the horse physically or mentally. I also work to find the cause of blockages whether it be tack related, rider related (none of us are perfect, myself included foremost) or physical such as an old injury or needing to be addressed by a chiropractor or bodyworker. 

I also believe in hacking out for fitness and cross training. Good nutrition, proper hoofcare and a good living environment are also important to me. 

Take time,time and more time, with the ones who are not brimming with confidence.

NEVER get caught up in thinking you SHOULD be doing such and such an age.

Look every day at what is in front of your eyes, and think like a TRAINER, not

like some stupid, over eager COMPETITOR......

....And what did Le Goff say, Denny?

He said: "Boldness comes from confidence. Confidence comes from success.

So it's the job of the trainer to create lots of situations that guarantee success."....

.....But it took several YEARS, not months. Never any force, never any beating,

just lots of little stuff, month after month, no time schedule except what 

Rosie "said" in terms of her responses.

"Think like a trainer. Think like a trainer. Think like a trainer." Keep saying this.

If you think like a grubby little competitor, the chances are good 

that you will screw up lots of horses in your career.

If you simply lack the patience and the temperament to be content for as long as it takes

to simply putter about with young or green horses while they learn what's what, then 

you should leave the training to real horse people, and go buy some 

broke horse who can tolerate your needs.

Maybe you will grow up some day, and maybe you won't, 

but spare the green horses your tantrums and hunger for gratification.

-Denny Emerson from Developing Your Horse's Confidence

This is what I believe in, this is how I ride, how I work with horses. I am always on the quest of knowledge. I do not wish to cheat myself or the horses I work with by taking short cuts, using unnecessary force with my hands because I have not taken the time to learn how to effectively use my seat and legs. No I want to learn to do it, and do it correctly. What keeps me going is the people who tell me "I can tell when you have worked B, she is much calmer when I turn her out the next morning." or "I can tell when you have been riding her, she is much more consistent."
Yes there are holes in my education that I am working towards filling. I do not show, I haven't had the opportunity to have a high level horse and ride it for long enough to show upper levels and do well. Instead I am working towards making a horse, or two. This takes time, it does not happen overnight. 

I have made many mistakes, in the preparation of literally thousands of horses.
 So happy I am aware of these shortcomings, because otherwise, I would never 
have come to move forward. Be still, I have got a lot to learn and I'll be learning 
until the day I die, not only when mounting, but studying, thinking deeply and watching.

-Nuno de Oliveira;

This is the path the horses have shown me, what listening to them and allowing their voices to reach my thoughts has taught me. It is a path I have committed myself to. Blame Journey, for she has challenged me more than any other horse I have met to become a better rider. No matter your thoughts about her, remember before you utter an unkind word towards her, that if it wasn't for her I would not be the rider, trainer, horsewoman I am today. 

Thus anyone who uses too much hand influence and contracts the horse's 

neck, seriously restricts both hindquarters and back. 

- Anja Beran from 

                                                                Classical Schooling with the Horse in Mind

When I was working Diesel for the dressage show, I was stumped as to why he would not stretch down, he was stiff and wouldn't use himself. I struggled with this, trying to figure out what I was doing wrong. It was suggested to pick up the contact. When I did so all Diesel did was tense his neck and set his head. He used his front end to carry himself. Yes I did slow his tempo down (it helps when someone reminds you!), but what I was feeling I didn't like. He was not really lifting his back, which I have seen him do. Instead of was fighting me. 

I ended up putting a Back on Track pad on him for the show, it helped a lot, he was able to use his back a bit more. Yet I was never able to achieve a stretch like I knew he was capable of. 

Afterwards, I went to riding him bareback. On our second ride I got on him, and when I picked up the reins he offered a stretch. As I was riding him, I noticed how soft he was through his back, that it was not dropped, but supporting me. His gait was smooth, he was stretching down and yes I was able to take up more contact. The difference was, he was finally able to use himself, to stretch through his topline into my hand, instead of my hand holding his head in. He was able to lift his inside shoulder and weight his outside shoulder. He was able to bend through his body and when all the pieces fit, it felt like magic. It is something that cannot be forced, the feeling of a horse moving softly and correctly. 

It was not as if taking up contact wasn't the solution to the problem, it wasn't the right solution at that time, a saddle that didn't block him was the solution. 

On a side note I tried a saddle that fit on him and to put it lightly, he can really lift his back if the occasion suits him. 

Let us repeat once again: anyone who works correctly on the horse's 

hindquarters and back will get correct carriage of the 

neck and head as a natural consequence!

- Anja Beran from
                                                                      Classical Schooling with the Horse in Mind