Horsy News,
Views and Attitudes Vol. 1 Number 21 December 10-16, 2007
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Lilac Lane Cabin photo by Jeanne Betancourt __________________________________ Spring Clinic Planned
Valley View Stables in Milton, Vermont will host John Lyons certified
horse trainer Keith Hosman at a clinic on April 18 to 20, 2008.
Events will include a free demo Friday night at 7pm, a
2-day
riding clinic on Saturday and Sunday from 10 am to 4 pm. There will be a
Green/Bratty Horse Mini-Clinic Saturday evening, from 5 to 7 pm.
Mini-clinics and
private sessions are also available. Valley View
Stables
are located at 60 Bernier Road, Milton, VT
05468
. To ride, observe, or get more information, look at http://www.horsemanship101.com/MiltonVT/index.html Jane Crandal,
a local Wiggins horse trainer, plans to drive to the event and suggested
anyone who is interested in carpooling call her at 555-3714. |
Roosting
Problem Ten chickens were abandoned last month
on upper Mudge Road, according to Gertrude Quinn of Wiggins. The white roosters have taken up
residence in trees surrounding the Quinn's property. With this week's snow,
the birds are refusing to come down even to eat. "We had chickens at one
time," Gertrude said. "But these birds are pretty wild and won't
let us get close to them." Fred Jones of the St. Francis Animal
Shelter came out to look at the birds. His opinion was that someone had too
many chickens and put them out on the road near the Quinn's property. "When eggs hatch, about half of the
chicks are roosters," Jones said. "Hens are kept to lay eggs but
young roosters end up being chicken dinners. These birds won't survive the
winter unless we catch them, its too cold here for them to live
outside." Jones and the Quinns plan to net the
birds this week, luring them out of the tree with food. The roosters will be available for
adoption at the St. Francis Animal Shelter.
Abandoned roosters in Quinn's
maple tree during last week's snowstorm. |
Thought for the day -
-
A day without a pony is like an egg
without salt.
Page 2
Horsy News,
Views and Attitudes Vol. 1 Number 21 December 10-16, 2007
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LEARN TO SPEAK HORSE YOUR
QUESTIONS ANSWERED
Q. Yesterday I went out to the
barn and both our ponies (Acorn and Snow White) were sleeping at the same
time. They got up when we came out and we went for a ride. They weren't sick, so why did they
both lie down at once? Lulu H. Dear Lulu You didn't say, but I bet that when you
went for a ride that day you got wet from rain. When all the horses in a barn
lay down at once during the daytime, they are telling you that it is going to
rain. Even when itÕs a sunny day
and there are no clouds, a barn full of sleeping horses tells you about the
weather. I took the picture above at ten in the
morning of my two horses, it was sunny and warm when this picture was taken.
By three in the afternoon it was pouring rain. There is no way we can tell how they know, but they
do. Q. Thank you for the advice you
gave meÉ. ScoobyÉwill actually reach his head around and bite your legÉwhile
you are riding. I am not sure
what to do. Ponigirl Dear PoniGirl If a
horse is a 'biter' it thinks it is the boss. Read what Keith Hosman, a
well-known horse trainer says. "Biting is the
single-most dangerous vice your horse can have. It's more dangerous than
bucking, than rearing, kickingÉThe answer is that when your horse disrespects
you in any way, he's taken the first step toward his own little
revolution...the way to fix this requires getting the horse's respect. |
Once
you gain their respect, can they still bite? Yep. Unless you stay consistent
with your training, never allowing the horse to think for even one minute
that a 'coup is a good idea.' Be the boss, always, and the biting will take
care of itself. And never, ever give them an excuse or rationalize. It's
never okay for the horse to 'diss' you, not for any reason on any day.
To be proactive then we need something we can do to the horse
that creates a win-win situation, something that's impossible to screw up and
something that gains respect. That leaves out reciprocating with a smack(s).
Smack your horse and you could create a larger problem if you're timing is
off or if you mistake a harmless stance for an affront. That certainly won't
bring us much respect. Now, for some folks, smacking may work; it's just never
worked for me. I think that's because horse training is such an emotional
roller coaster as it is, that such "negative energy" just kind of
left me in a funk. John Lyons suggests an alternative that seems to work
well.
We will use the same method then to fix your horse whether it's
already biting or has signaled that it might try. É The next time he signals
his displeasure at anything, even for an instant, you will drop what you're
doing, take his nose between your hands and pet and pet and petÉYou'll pet
until he takes his head away – and you'll grab it back and do it some
more.
Then you'll start having fun with this. Push your horse a
little. Dare him/her to show aggravation – and the moment he does, pet
your fool head off. You've got to do this until the horse screams 'enough!'
and tries to pull away. More importantly, you have to have fun with it and
look for excuses to do it. That is what makes you "active." No
longer are you waiting for an attack. Being active puts you in the driver's
seat and gains you respect. É It takes timeÉYou'll find that when you don't
bring pain or anger into the picture that the horse isn't so quick to travel
to the dark side and that vices just sort of evaporate. This petting thing
works because you're being proactive, teaching the horse that sure, you can
bring your teeth close – but I'm going to pet the devil out of you.
What you'll start to notice is that they start keeping to themselves, sorta
hoping you don't notice them and start getting all weird again. Ever see a
1200 pound animal try to wish himself invisible?Ó
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