Ross' Soap Box

28 April '10

Flexing The Neck

I was asked today about flexing a horse's neck laterally with the reins. The idea being that the horse should stand still while the rider uses the reins to bend the horse's neck either to the left or the right. If the rider wanted the horse to move it's hindquarters they would apply inside leg. The person who asked has been having lessons from an instructor and knew that I didn't use this exercise in our training. They wanted to know why.

I should say that I don't have a problem with lateral flexion of the neck on an educated horse that knows how follow the rein really well. But it's the nature of our business that we don't see many horses in that position, so we have no need for the exercise.

But I don't recommend lateral flexion of the neck in young or green horses because in my experience it causes a break in communication between the reins and the feet. When a horse responds accurately to the reins, the feel of the reins sends a message to the brain of the horse which then sends a message to the feet to move in a very specific way. That's how a horse learns to get really good on the reins. But when you use the reins to ask for flexion and not allow the feet to move the line of communication between the brain and the feet is broken. The reins may influence the brain, but the brain is not talking to the feet. This makes the whole idea of responding to the reins far more complex for the horse. From the green horse's point of view he doesn't understand why sometimes when the rider uses the reins he is to yield his hindquarters and other times he is not. Complicating the meaning of the reins in this way can only make life more confusing for the horse.

In addition, in my experience it also encourages a horse to become "rubber necked." That is, when a rider asks a horse to turn and the horse has another idea he too easily can flex his neck, but keep his feet going straight because he has been taught that it is possible to disconnect the feet from the flexion.

But what I would like to know (perhaps some of you can answer this for me) is what is the purpose of flexing the neck without yielding the hindquarters? What is achieved by not having the feet yield that can't be achieve if the feet do yield? If anybody knows, please let me e-mail me.

Separation Anxiety Again

Hi Ross,

Thanks for the reply! I understand that Clyde lacks a lot of confidence in himself, but its quite confronting and disappointing that he lacks confidence in me.
I was thinking about what I do to cause this.... its very possible that i let him let him get away with too much....

At his old agistment we never rode out alone or really did much without one of his friends there. We even need to bring his friend out when he's being shod or he can be quite explosive with his behaviour. I did start to bring him out on the odd occasion alone for a brush and a bit of ground work.
Now that ive got him at my place, we do a lot alone. I pull him out of the paddock, brush, tack AND ride out, so all this combined must be daunting for him. I also only pull him out to ride as i don't feel the need to just spend time brushing him etc as i can walk out the front door and give him a cuddle.

So, here is a list of things i thought could improve things, tell me what you think:
1. pull him out, brush him and give him a bit of feed, then put him away
2. let him eat some hay while im brushing and tacking
3. walk beside him to my friends place, and do a little ground work on the way
4. let him graze in some yards away from his friends for an hour or so

I also noticed today that he really didn't want to come out of the paddock (stops every 2 steps and refuses to move) because the paddock he was coming from, therefore his friends, was further from where i tack up....

And today, we went on a ride with a friend, but on a NEW trail and it was crazy horse all over again! He wanted to lead, then he didn't, then he did, and did all the way home while jig jogging the whole way... So i tried circling him until he stopped and and then waited until he gave me some attention..we did this for a very long time and every time he stopped he had his ears and eyes on the way he wanted to go. After a couple more times he looked at me for a split second and i took the pressure off, he calmed for about 30 seconds, and then went back to the jig jogging. Is this a good thing to be doing?? And do you have any tips to get his attention for riding and leading??

In my last email, I forgot to mention that i went on the Riding of the Bounds in Berwick - not such a good idea... He was stressed the whole day (awesome to float though!), jig jogged for the whole 15km ride, and had to be right up the front..this was not fun day.

People keep telling me that all these different experiences are good for him, but sometimes im not sure.

I hope this makes sense!

Thanks in advance!

Claire.

I can't decide if you are incredibly brave or crazy to go on Riding of the Bounds. I did that one year with a really well trained horse and he was struggling. I can't imagine how you did it on a nervous Nellie like your gelding.

It sounds like you are on the right track. The things you are doing and your plan to do more things is an excellent start. But please remember that the value on any exercise is in the quality with which you perform it. There is no point pulling your horse out to brush him away from his mates if he is totally fixated on his mates and doesn't even know you are there brushing him. You must ensure he is at least trying to be with you and not back in the paddock.

Your experience on the trail ride is quite typical at first. You got his attention and calmness for 30 sec. Rejoice! Be happy and proud of yourself and your horse. It's probably 30 sec of focus and softness you wouldn't have got on another day. The more you ride out on the trail and work on this stuff the more success you will have and one day he will be the best trail horse you ever had. People will envy how lucky you were to have bought such a reliable trail horse. But if you only ride out once in awhile it is going to be a long time before your Clydie becomes solid in his trail work. It's like any other form of training - you need to repeat and reinforce the lessons over and over again. The more you practice the better it gets.

I don't think I have anything to add to what you already know. Keep up the excellent work and avoid putting your horse in the deep end of the pool too early like Riding of the Bounds. One day he will be ready for it, but not this week.

Pony Prince, Kids and Promoting Good Horsemanship

Hello Ross

I love Arabs, what smart little horses or have I just struck a good one. Decided today that I better start float training so that we are ready for out lesson next month. Parked the float in a safe confined area and brought Prince up to it. He seemed abit anxious when we came into the paddock as we had to go through a new area past four overactive mares who all ran over to see him up close. I worked with him abit to see how focused he was he seemed as focuses as he normally is (alert but abit stiff). I lead him over to the float he seemed like he was going to come straight on (which I couldn't believe) and then he did a u-bolt. That was ok nothing to vigorous so I asked him to soften by backing him up which he is not great at infact he bends abit and I have to keep going till he straightens up and just take a few steps and I let up. I asked him to yield and that is also like a plank of wood, so we did that for awhile. Once he was soft (not anywhere as soft as I would like) I asked him to come onto the float, he thought about it for abit but then wanted to run to his left like he always does to try to flee. I waved my rope on that side and he would move to the middle of the float. We did this about four times and then he decided that this was not fun. I asked him to come on and he did, a few steps at a time at first then he just walked straight on, no rush, I couldn't believe it. I patted him then asked him to back up, he came off slowly. I took him for a walk around the new paddock for a few minutes then came back to the float, thought we would have the same issue of running sideways but to my amazement he came on, no rush again. This time we stayed longer and then got out. I did this two more times then closed the float with him in it and let him stay there for a few minutes. Took him out and called it quits.

Went about the day doing what I needed to do and just as I put dinner on I thought I had some light so I felt like I needed to see if what happened this morning was not just pot luck ( after the saddle issue I didn't know what to expect). Went and got Prince and lead him back to the paddock with the float. Walked around abit and then went to lead him on the float, he came straight on. Well I just wanted to grab him and hug him but don’t think that would be a great idea he might have thought I was an absolute nut so I just rubbed his neck. I thought I would then be a little clever and ask him to back up halfway, come back on, back off all the way, float halfway, back off, then back on, then off and that was it. Didn't want him feeling like a trained money.

I am rapped with this little horse, can’t wait to bring him to the lesson so that you and Michele can help me work with him so that he is not as stiff as a board. He is so worried about the minor things like bringing his head around so that he can yield, his backing up is so rigid that his body becomes so compact I can barely recognize him. I tried to contact his breaker and have not had a reply yet so will let you know what the conversation was like after I have had it. It feels like the things that were asked of him there he is mortified about and is so uptight (going on a circle, he feels like he has to run like a mad man and like a plank. He wont even look at you in the centre) but things he hasn't experienced, backing up, being around flapping tarps, standing away from gates when they are being opened he takes these on like a dream. He seems like he is so eager to please it is unbelievable. The float thing today blew my mind, considering it took two and a half hours to get him on when I bought him.

Sorry about the long essay just had to let you know how chuffed I am with him and wanted to let you and Michele know how grateful I am that you have given me such a great insight on how nice it is to get along with a horse and have them give themselves to you instead of taking.

On another note Ross, when we were discussing lesson days and clinics and the fact that what you and Michele do not being the norm I drove home thinking about it. I believe that making something the norm means that you need to start with fresh minds. Most adults like to be stuck in their ways. They see the way their parents did it or people around them and believe that if it worked for them then it must be right. Most people believe that riding horses or being around them is a risk and that is what they need to deal with or simply get rid of them and buy a new one. And yes anything can happen but most things happen because a horse is not paying attention to the human around them and if they feel that they need to survive then your not their priority but if a horse is shown that the human around then is worth while and could potentially be of some comfort or benefit then maybe they would not run over the top of them or throw them off their back.

I watch Charlotte at the riding school and the rubbish that she is taught and I hate it but where do you take a child? I work my horse and she asks a million questions, she occasionally comes to lesson days and I think that she is just watching her surroundings and that it doesn't make sense but when we talk about it she really does take in a fair bit. Have you and Michele ever considered holding clinics for kids or teenagers? If these youngsters understanding the importance of what you teach and get to truly feel what a soft horse feels like, what a willing horse feels like they would never go back. This could do so much for the horses that go through pony clubs and comps and the beauty is that what one child learns another wants to get on board with. This then flows onto their kids and probably even some parents who would be interested in what their kids are doing. Just a thought :)

Kindest Regards,

Irena


Congratulations on your success with loading Prince into the float. A great job and I understand the excitement you must feel. It sounds like you handled it extremely well and offered him the support he needed. I'm very happy that you are very happy.

With regard to making in roads with our teaching into a bigger market, it is something we have given a lot of thought to over the years. I agree that young minds can be more open to ideas of horsemanship that is different from most. But the opposite is true too. Young riders are often more interested in pony clubs, competing and riding everywhere flat out than good horsemanship. I know this because I was like that at a young age. All I wanted to do was jump at every competition I could get to. I would ride any horse as long as I could jump it. It wasn't until I got that out of my system that I was ready to view horses as something other than existing for my jumping pleasure.

People have horses for all sorts of reasons. Some of those reasons are compatible with what we teach and some are not. However, I have come to believe that there are only 2 ways that what we teach could become widespread and popular in Australia. The first is a hugely expensive marketing program. Come up with a certification training program; demonstrations at events like Equitana that wow the crowd; a complete set of video training films and packaged deals on equipment; nationwide clinics and training camps; major sponsorship by large corporations like Volvo and Richard Branson; a Hollywood blockbuster movie in 3D about our lives with the leads played by Megan Fox and Robert Patterson.

The other alternative is for us or a student of ours to have major success in high level competition. We would need to be winning at FEI level in dressage or jumping or eventing. This is the only way we would attain widespread credibility among the competition fraternity.

Neither of these approaches sit well with Michele and I because of some fundamental practical and ethical problems.

It's nice to know that you and others have an interest in what we do and are keen for others to share that interest. But as long as Michele and I can make a living we are okay that most people will not share our views on horsemanship. I gave up trying to save all the horses long ago. Our clientele are largely wonderful people to work with and we appreciate their interest and loyalty very much. We don't take people like you for granted because we know that sometimes the pressure from friends to do what they do can seem unbearable. So Michele and I are very grateful for you and many other friends and clients who come to clinics, lessons, send their horse for training, write asking questions and hunger to learn more. We are very lucky that all of you guys make up the bulk of our business. Why would we want to be as big a Parelli or Clint Anderson and miss out on that?

Thanks for your reply Ross I have to admit I had a great giggle and infact shared it straight away with Trevor. I guess my thought came from the understanding of a ten year old who is very interested in learning about how her horse reacts to certain signals and what his behaviour may mean. I guess not all children are that way inclined but I wonder how it is presented to them. I don't by any means believe that there is a quick fix or a manual to it but there must be people and kids out there that are not just about comps. The children that come to the same riding school as charlotte are not from riding families and the majority of parents take the word of the instructor as to what needs to be done and they simply go with the flow. Originally charlottes first instructor two years ago made sure that each child partisipated in the cleaning,feeding, tacking and leading the horse which I noticed some parents found odd and they believed the kids should just come jump on the horse have a ride and hop off and go home. She would argue with them that even though this cut into some of their riding time it was important for the child to interact with the horse as much as possible and learn more than just riding. I sometimes think that if these same children were also taught handling skills etc as part of their lessons and progressed along by the time they were ready for their own horse things maybe would be different. Who knows, I guess I will just make sure that Charlotte knows the importants of having a horse that wants to be around her.

Irena

I think you are right. There are certainly kids who are interested in horsemanship and not just hooning around with their friends on horseback. We have had several of them. But the majority appear to be more interested in the thrill of jumping, competing and socializing with other kids with horses. There is nothing wrong with that - it's part of the being a kid.

I also agree that what many kids are interested in reflects their parents attitude. Parents who believe competing is the ultimate purpose of having a horse tend to have children who share those beliefs. Likewise, it is our experience that some of the younger clients we have had come to us because their parents are also interested in understanding what makes their horse tick. I am sure that with your interest in your horses, Charlotte has every chance of developing the same interest as long as you can still make it fun. I think kids lose interest when it stops being fun.

Thanks for your thoughts.

Just thought I would enlighten you and Michele about princes breaking. Had a call today from the breaker who indicates he sort of remembers prince. I asked him why he felted he needed more work and he said that he wanted two more weeks with him but couldn't tell me why. When I asked if he was broken to saddle he said ofcourse. I asked how many rides he had had and he said ten. I then asked him if he knew why prince would react like the way he did when I put a saddle on him and he said that he would need to asess him. This is not going to happen. Next query, if a horse is broken to saddle but hasn't really been riden for a year would he blow a fuse like he did over the saddle? Second question how would I approach the weather rug. Standard canvas with chest strap and leg straps no girth strap. Do you think i may get a similar reaction with bucking, rearing and big carry on. If so what to do or should I wait a few weeks and bring the jacket with me? He does not have a decent shelter in his paddock and gippsland is great for heavy rain. Do you think he'll be fine till then?
Thanks Irena

Many horses would buck pretty big if they haven't been saddled for a year. It's not unusual - especially if they only had a handful of rides in their life. Just because he bucked when you saddled him after such a long hiatus, it is not necessarily a reflection of the breaker or the job he did.

Secondly, Prince will be fine if you don't rug him. As long as he has feed and a few trees to get out of the wind he doesn't need a rug. Rugs were invented to make humans feel better, not horses. Horse's comfort temperature is around 5 deg C, so rugging your horse when it is warmer than 5 deg C is only over heating them. If Prince has not had a rug on before, he may panic when you first fit it. So leave it for now until we see you and we can look at the rug thing then.

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25 April '10

Today is Anzac Day. For our overseas readers, Anzac Day is an important commemorative day for remembering men and women from Australia and New Zealand who have served in past battlefields. It is also my dad's birthday. He died in 2003. Dad fought in Africa in WWII and was captured by the Germans in North Africa. He was taken to Italy and marched across Europe into Poland where he served 3 years as a POW working in a German controlled coal mine. He eventually escaped and was picked up in Czechoslovakia by Patton's army during the liberation. Like so many, dad never talked much about his experiences but mum would say that he came home a fractured man. But he eventually put his war experiences behind him and became the man for whom I feel proud and humble to be called his son. I miss him every day. Happy birthday dad. Tonight I will light a candle for him.

Yesterday we had a clinic day at Seville. Many thanks to Des Miller for organizing the day and to the many folk who showed up in very unpleasant weather. There will be another day on May 22 and if anybody is interested please contact Des (see the schedule page) about the details and bookings.

Separation Anxiety

Hi Ross,

I came to see my friend Sarah's lesson with Cotton a couple of weeks ago.

Now, my horse has serious separation anxiety.... I have always just though that he was being silly or trying to get out of work, but now its getting dangerous....
He is a big 16hh Clydie x (big for me, im height impaired!) who believes that he is going to die if he is away from his friends. He was like this when i first got him, and only improved slightly (standing still in the yard away from his friends) after about 2 1/2 years at his last agistment. I have now moved him to my own property and its started again. I can get him out of the paddock, thanks to some steve brady ground work i have instilled in him. But he doesn't stand still to be brushed and tacked and i have nearly been squished by him a few times. Then when i ride to my friends place which is 10mins away he jig jogs and will not calm down the whole way, and this is the same when coming home alone, except he ads in having his head turned in his friends direction and neighing. Another recent incident is when i went to ARC for the first time, my friend and i ad lessons at different times and i had left Clyde in his yard while I went to watch my friend. He was going nuts so i went back to see him and when i went in the yard he pushed past me and broke through his yard. He then ran around the ARC grounds screaming for his friend.
Id like to compete with him but im really unsure if i can safely when he acts like this...

So these are just a few examples of what hi is doing and, as i said above its getting dangerous now.

If you have any ideas of why and how to help with this, it would be much appreciated!

Thanks,

Claire.

Thanks for your question.

Separation anxiety is rooted in 2 major problems;
(1) a lack of confidence in himself
(2) a lack of confidence or trust in you.

They are different issues, but need to be addressed together. However, it is a lot easier to develop a horse's trust in you than for him to become self confident. For example, my horse Riley had terrible separation issues for awhile. Overtime he has become much better, but he still lacks some degree of self confidence. If I leave him alone in an environment that worries him he can get quite nervous. But if I am with him he is hardly worried at all. So his trust in me has become much more developed than his trust in himself.

I can't give you specific exercises to solve your problem because I don't know you or your horse well enough to offer specific suggestions with total confidence that they are the right thing for you. But I can give you some principles to think about and experiment to discover your own solutions.

Firstly, you need to have your horse's attention. At the moment he gives most of his focus to whatever it is that threatens his survival and what he thinks will save him. For example, at ARC when he pushed past you and went through the yard his attention was so strongly focused on being back with his friend that he was hardly aware that you or the gate to the yard were important. He was desperate to be with his friend and you were only an obstacle in the path to survival. That feeling needs to change. You need to become very important to him no matter what else is going on. It starts with the ground work. I don't know what exercises Steve has taught you, but the value of any exercise is only in the quality with which they are performed. The job of the exercise is to have your horse attentive and soft and feeling okay. No matter what fancy foot work you may be teaching your horse with the exercises, they have little value unless your horse is focused, soft and feeling good inside. So that's your first priority. Work with your horse and have him yielding to the exercises, but your priority should be more about his thoughts and feelings and less about what his feet are doing. So much of the time we worry about getting the feet to do something and forget about his mind. But the feet will take care of themselves if the mind is right.

This same principle is carried on in the ridden work too. For example, when you ride to your friends house and your horse is jogging along, pick up one rein and ask your horse to turn and bend in the direction of the rein. Keep turning until he looks in that direction (watch his eyes and feel the heaviness in the rein), slows his feet to a walk and steps his shoulder in that direction. Don't release the rein if he is looking away, still jogging or falling out of the turn with his shoulders. When he jogs he is thinking about being home or with his friend. If you try to get him to walk by using both reins to apply the brakes enough to get him to stop jogging for a moment you are getting in the middle of a very important idea that he needs to carry out. He may lean harder against your reins or he may even rear or bolt. But for sure he will jog most of the way because he won't change his thought about how important it is to get home or be with his friend. By using one rein to execute a turn and waiting until it is a soft, balanced turn you know you are getting a change of thought. If you release the rein before he slows to a walk and gives a soft turn you won't get a change of thought and you won't make him any more aware of you. It is the change in the way he feels and thinks that is important, not that he turns a circle. When you get a change, you release the rein and for awhile he will probably start jogging again in the next stride, but try to catch it early and bend him again. Release the moment you feel him soften and slow his feet. Then the next moment you feel him get more energy, bend again. Keep doing it over and over again. I have been on horses that I needed to bend several hundred times before they held a walk for a while. Sometimes it has only taken 5mins to get a change and one time it took nearly 2hrs of almost constant bend and release to get a more lasting change. But on every occasion it got better with each ride if I made sure to get a change of thought every time I picked up a rein to bend my horse. This is just one example and it may not even be appropriate for your horse, but the principle definitely applies.

The second part is to teach a horse to have self confidence. This comes with time and experience. It's like every time you take your horse away from a buddy or to a strange place you have to wean him all over again. Put the time in to move him to different paddocks, yards or tie up places and leave him for awhile. At first you might leave him for just a few minutes. But in time you build it to being able to leave him for hours. Move him to quiet places and busy places. Move him where he can see other horses and where he can't. If you clean paddocks, take him with you. He can go from paddock to paddock with you while you scoop up the manure and drag the wheel barrow to the poo pile. Don't let the other horses hassle him, but he can learn to just be with you no matter what paddock or horses are around. If he is a good enough horse you can teach him to pony other horses or drive other horses (or cows, sheep, alpacas etc) around a yard. All these things can help teach your horse to have confidence in both you and himself.

Nothing I have suggested needs to be taken as literal advice, but the principle of offering your horse different experiences and ensuring he is soft, focused and feeling okay in everything you do is the key to helping your horse forget that the other horses are more important than being with you or being okay within himself.

I hope that helps; and if any of it is unclear don't hesitate to ask for clarification.

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21 April '10

Between The Reins

Linda Bertani and some friends have put together a 2 page newslettter designed to provide information about Harry Whitney and his horsemanship. The first edition contains an interview with Harry and there is also an interview with Libby Lyman who has been a long time student of Harry's. It is hoped that there will be 3 or 4 issues per year and more people will contribute. Michele and I plan to contribute some articles over time and would like to see the newsletter grow to be a widely popular resource for people who are travelling the road to good horsemanship.

I have put the first edition of "Between The Reins" on a separate page. I was not able to add it as a PDF file, so I have converted the newsletter to a jpg file. You can access it either through the Horse Talk page (see menu at the top of the page) or click here. Click on the images to magnify them into a readable size.

A Try

I have often talked about the "try" in a horse. Building a try in a horse is something Michele and I take great care in trying to do. We believe a try is so easily destroyed when a horse is worked in a way that he learns all his efforts are futile. I see many horses who have been trained in a way that kills the try in a horse and so few where the try has been enhanced by training.

A few days ago I was exchanging ideas about a horse's try with a person on e-mail. They expressed the notion that a try is something that a horse is born with and that humans so readily destroy. I agreed with this. But as they continued this idea I realized that their notion of what a try is and my concept of a try was very different. It was their view that a try was when a horse tried to get along with the human. This is not my definition of a try at all. I don't believe a horse is born to try to get along with people or dogs or even other horses or that they have an obligation to try to get along with us.

For me, a try is when a horse searches for safety and comfort whether it is in getting a long with us or just the opposite. If a horse is searching for safety and comfort, then they are highly trainable. It is our job to provide that safety and comfort in the things we ask our horses to do. When they choose to do the thing we wanted they should find the safety and comfort that they are searching for. What destroys the try in a horse most often is that when they choose what we wanted there is no safety and comfort for them. A horse can quickly learn that there is no pot of gold in any options he chooses and can become resigned to his fate of feeling bad about working with people. He will learn to do what he is told, but the lack of safety and comfort on offer will diminish the amount of try he offers over time.

I think if you expect a horse to try to get along with you, a person is headed for great disappointment. They do what they are programmed by their genetics to do - and that is survive the best way they can. The one thing you can rely on a horse to do is to behave like a horse and to expect one to behave like they really care about our needs is living in hope, not reality. I was surprised to find my friend think that a good horse tried to get along with us rather than one that searched for safety and comfort. Having a horse that searches when pressure is applied is what is important in training a trainable horse. This is the opposite of a "shut down" horse. Those horses have given up the search and it usually comes about because people have not offered them safety and comfort when they have searched. Sadly this is quite a common phenomena.

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19 April '10

The lessons on the weekend were down by about 1/4, but the horses that came provided lots of interesting subjects to work with.

I have had a few inquiries regarding when we are will hold our next 5 day clinic. There are no plans for one until spring, but even then it may not be possible due to changing circumstances on the property that we use. Availability of space and access to the facilities has become more limited because the owners are in the process of establishing their own horse business on the property. However, we are on the lookout for an alternative venue that will allow us to plan 5 day clinics after winter.

A Curious Indicator of A Horse's Emotions

This is obviously a photo of a horse's nostrils. Clearly the left nostril and right nostril are different shapes and different in positions. This difference is not how the horse was born or even how they appear under normal circumstances. I wish I had a photo of they looked after the horse was worked, but I don't. If I did, you'd see the horse's nostrils were quite symmetrical despite how they appear in this photo taken before he was worked.

I have seen similar asymmetry in horse's nostrils many times before and it is almost always associated with stress in the horse. You rarely see this phenomena in horses in a relaxed state.

The point I want to make is that the horse shows anxiety in many subtle, but clear ways. I can think of only 2 people in all my years that have brought up the subject of the shape of their horse's nostrils or mouth. But many horses express their emotions through these kind of indicators and most of us don't see it or ignore it. Watch your horse closely and you may detect subtle differences that show up between when he is feeling okay and when he is anxious.

Leading A Friesian

Hi Ross & Michele,

Would just like to share this little story with you.

Yesterday, I had a saddle-fitter out to try some more saddles on Saruman. A lovely lady - (turns out you know her!)

Before getting on, I worked Saruman on the ground for a few minutes. I started off with some leading- with a couple of transitions of walk to trot and down again. Anyway, I had barely been at it 20 seconds, when she asked who started him. I told her Michele, and of course mentioned your name, to which she laughed and said " I thought so!"

I took it as a compliment that the quality of Saruman's leading was noticed - and a credit to you and Michele that people do
indeed recognize horses that train with you by the quality of leading alone. (I think you once said you can recognize a horse you start by the way it leads!)

Of course, I humbly take some of the credit - quality leading and not dragging my horse around by the head was something I worked hard on with Saruman before you met him - but Michele really refined this, and got the leading from good to even better!

Whenever I go to shows, I am always amazed at the amount of people holding their horses right under the chin and dragging on their head expecting them to run out, look good and perform well!

At the last show I went to, I was in a group of five for a led gelding class. Every other person led their horse as I described, resulting in poor control and a terrible workout. It was such a nice compliment when the judge lined us all up at the end and
made an example of Saruman, and said he was beautiful and was what the judges wanted to see (in terms of handling and leading) She then proceeded to give an impromptu lesson on leading all the while referring to the quality of our workout.
It was really nice to have our leading and handling recognized - as it it so often overlooked in showing, and yet so important!

I often get compliments on Saruman's good behaivour at shows, and people say, "he's so good - he just stands there!" To which of course I politely smile and say thanks, but the fact is he doesn't just stand there! I got him as a rude and unruly 11 month old colt, and the fact that he stands still for as long as asked on the end of six foot of lead is the result of consistent and clear training - not pot luck!

We still have a long way to go & much to strive for, but I am proud of my boy when we go out. If only we could become an eye catching and exemplory example under saddle too!

See you soon,
Miriam

Thanks you for the photo and especially the very kind words.

I am very glad you are getting out and about with Saruman and basking in the compliments people give you. I agree that Michele did a great job with your horse, but I think you need to accept a substantial portion of the credit. It has been quite a while since he was with us and the fact that he is still well behaved is due to your consistent good handling. It is a lot easier to allow a horse with a history of poor handling to revert to that once he goes home from a trainers, than it is to maintain and even improve on what the trainer has done. So well done.

I agree that it is extremely disappointing to continue to see horses being led badly. Something as funadmental as teaching a horse to lead well should not be overlooked as part of any horse person's basic education, yet how many people have leading lessons? I think people would be less tolerant of poor leading if they understanding how many other issues (both on the ground and under saddle) stem from it.

Thanks again.

Bits

Dear Ross,
Your thoughts on bits caught my interest because I have spent a lot of time and money trying various kinds for my Percheron x TB mare. She hated most types I tried including KK, Myler, sweet iron, JP, PeeWee. I finally found a Weymouth bit that she seems to like becasue she has stopped throwing her head and trying to get her tongue over it. I'm not trying to refute your advice because clearly your experience is much great than mine. But I thought you should know that not everybody has a horse where the type of bit used is not important as you stated in your blog.

warmest regards
Sally

Thanks for relating your experience Sally. I'm glad you finally found a bit that worked for you and it does seem like you tried a lot. You don't say much about why the other bits didn't work and why the Weymouth did. Perhaps your horse didn't like jointed bits because there was too much play with them. Who knows.

There is no doubt that some horses are fussy about what goes in their mouth. But it is my experience that the type of bit is less important to most horses (as long as the bit fits well) than their feelings about the reins. But well done for finding something that works for your horse.

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15 April '10

We have had a few cancellations for this weekends lessons, so if anybody is interested in booking a spot please let me know.

Gwenda and her horse Molly made it to the Soap Box on the 6th April (see below) and today Molly went home. Gwenda did a great job today and I can see they will become great mates given some time. It always takes a little time for horse and owner to become familiar with each other when the horse first comes home from training. There will be some good rides and some bad rides. But in time the bad rides become fewer and aren't nearly as bad as they use to be; and the good rides just get better and better.

Equine Influenza Petition

The Australia Horse Council is distributing a petition calling for a NO vote to voluntary vaccinations of horses for equine flu. The racing industry is asking the government to make vaccination available to anybody who wants it. This is to ensure that if a horse contracts the virus they will not be incapacitated and still be able to race. When EI hit eastern Australia a couple of years ago all horse activities were shut down due to a compulsory lockdown of movement of horses. The racing industry lost millions of dollars in revenue. To ensure that doesn't happen again the racing industry wants horses vaccinated against EI so they can continue to hold race meetings.

However, there are a few problems with vaccinating horses. The biggest is that a horse can still be a carrier of the virus and transmit it to other horses even though it has been vaccinated. And because of the vaccination, a horse will probably not exhibit symptoms of the virus. Therefore, if a horse is vaccinated against EI and does carry it and spread it to the greater horse population, the only way of identifying the source of the infection is to test every horse for EI. But if horses are not vaccinated you only have to test those that show flu like symptoms. Vaccination makes identifying carrier horses much more difficult. EI came to Australia in 2007 from a shuttle stallion from Japan that had been vaccinated. Nobody knew it was carrying EI because it showed no symptoms due to the vaccination.

In addition, the aspect that the racing industry has not addressed is the issue of banning movement of horses should an outbreak of EI occur. Action by the appropriate bodies in banning movement of horses and setting up different zones around the country based on the likelihood of the presence of EI resulted in the eradication of EI in Australia several months after the initial outbreak in 2007. If there was another outbreak in this country it would require another lockdown of all movement of horses to eradicate it once again. During the ban of transport of horses no race meetings could be held because trainers would not be able to get their horses to the track. So vaccinating race horses would not enable race meetings to continue like the racing bodies claim. They would still lose millions of dollars.

I hope every horse owner in the country will support the petition to not make vaccinations available. If this country goes ahead with vaccination we are almost certainly guaranteeing another outbreak of EI and making it almost impossible to eradicate.

Go to this web site to make your vote

www.SayNotoVoluntaryEIVaccination.com

The Brick Wall

Ross, your blog is one of my favorite places to visit! I am always happy to see a new entry by you and I check every morning to see if there is an update.

I feel extremely blessed that my introduction to a "better way" with horses was my meeting Harry Whitney. I understand the importance of the little things as a result of Harry's tutelage. I didn't initially understand it, but I do now and it is all those tiny particles of feel that help me realize how much information the horse is always offering us. When we miss them consistently that wall is built brick by brick, no? I can choose to ignore those offerings but it never benefits me and my horse. Instead I say, "well what have we here?" and "how can I be better for my horse?"

Thank you for taking the time to write on meaningful topics, for answering people's questions and for wanting things to be better for the horse! I hope I get to meet you and Michele some day.

Cheers,
Kathy

Thanks Kathy, I too hope we are able to meet one day. If we can manage to get away we hope we can do some clinics in the US next year and perhaps you can come along to ride or watch.

I believe that taking care of the little things is an evolving process that is never ending. Harry is one of the best at it, but I have seen him evolve over the years too. I have a lot of catching up to do, but there is no doubt that each year I see improvements in my horses because I see improvements in my own ability to take care of the little things. Recently, I hit a brick wall with Six and while Harry was here I had him have a look at Six and I together for a couple of sessions. It made a real difference. But there was no mind blowing cathartic moments where hidden secrets of the ancients were revealed. Harry was just able to see a couple of little things that I was letting slide. When he pointed them out it was so obvious that I felt stupid for being so blind. I think it is that way for most us once we have a good handle on the basics. After the basics are well established, it's the little things that become important and need to be addressed to avoid hitting the brick wall.

Thanks again for your kind words and I hope you'll keep reading and making a contribution.

Hi Ross

Just had to reply, not sure why I had to reply, maybe it will help me by writing about it!

What i am actually replying to, is you last blurb. As you know, groan, I have Jonah in work. We are at that stage in our work where i have come almost to that brick wall, except that I can tell there are alot of things to fix and alot that needs more work. I sadly lack the skill and my role models/mentors /teachers are too bloody far away! But I know I have to be more particular with what I am wanting when i ask.
Today i told myself i have to be more pedantic in what I require of him as it comes in handy when a dire emergency (Jonah's perception) occurs!

I can quite enjoy a ride down the road with him and he is fine with traffic exceptions being the huge plastic (covering of a pellet of stockfeed I guess) and the vigorously mobile machinery filling the feed wagon of the dairy down the road. (Both within about 50 feet of each other on those nasty windy days.!

I also recognise that he still has issues with many things including the transition NOT requiring a slashing kick in either the trot or canter. He is getting better but i think my brick wall thing is making progress slow.

So after that particular scenario above I took him down the back paddock but boy did he have issues there! there was shaking (like I was a big fly) and resisting the back up terribly I wondered about soundness issues. I definitely need a long work out session down there so he can come back with me still on him and him more settled.

Two windy days in a row, so i thought i would break it up with a ride down the road again, on a more pleasant day (noplastic and frenzied tractor). I made sure i got closer to what i wanted in the round yard with his transitions from trot to canter and trying to get his focus on me. I have trouble because I know he is not fully concentrating on me but i struggle to create that situation where he says, "oh, yes, amanda, how much and how far?" i got closer to that today but still along way off!

I have to go back to getting the transitions nice in the round yard and then taking that same scenarion out to the paddock because he knows there is big opens spaces and thinks he can just career off into la la land. I have to be more important out in the big scarey places! That is my brick wall but now you have pointed it out i might be able to scale a brick or two!

I very nearly booked him into Seville but i was a bit late. is full i see.

Might come for the drive but i cant bear to see you without Jonah!! Ha Ha! Meg is waitng in line, patiently!
well, i have said enough tonight. Have been going to ring you but i think, well, I will just see what he ges like tomorrw.

kind Regards

amanda

Thanks for the news and verbalizing your thoughts. I think if you are seeing progress that's enough for anybody. The speed of progress is not nearly as important as the direction of progress. There is no doubt that Jonah comes with a terrible lot of baggage and is a project for just about anybody, so while I might shake my head about why you have taken him on, I admire your determination and persistence. Keep chipping away and one day you'll realize he is a very different horse. But as I said in my last Soap Box the problem is often that we are not aware of the little things that we should be addressing in order to make a difference for our horses. This is the big challenge for most of us. It is as much about working on ourselves as it is working on our horses.

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12 April '10

The Brick Wall And The Little Things

I want to talk about the "brick wall" that people hit with their horses. By this I mean that most of us reach a point in our training and our relationship with our horse where progress stops and everything pretty much stays the same no matter how much time and effort we put in. This is not usually because we have reached the limit of our potential because I don't think that happens very often in life. I think progress is halted because we reached the limit of what we know and what we work on. Working with our horse in the way we do has limitations. It will only get us so far. For us to go beyond that point requires expanding our knowledge and forging into areas of horsemanship that are totally new.

From my point of view as somebody who tries to help horses and people, I see the "brick wall" as the limitation of our ability to see the little things in our horses. We have many clients who are very competent and have a lot to offer their horses. But their potential is limited by how much they are aware of the tiny little signs that their horse is not with them or feeling anxious or shutting down. Most let things like the moment of heaviness on the left rein slip past them with no thought or the ever so slight elevation of the horse's head during a walk to trot transition goes unnoticed or if it is observed they give it no importance. We've all seen horses have a pick of grass while their rider stopped for a second to talk to somebody or turn his head to poke at the person as they tried to lift the saddle onto the horse's back. These little things appear almost insignificant to us because they rarely cause us alarm at what might happen next. They are not like the feeling the horse gives a rider as they hump their back just before they buck or they get really light in their front end just before they rear. Those things have importance to us and we don't let them go unnoticed too many times. But we tend to ignore the way a horse walks off just after we mount. We don't notice the wobble in his first steps, the lack of effort in his walk, where he is looking, the delay he had when we ask for the first step. We don't put very much importance in those things until we start to ask him to go to work. But the horse doesn't discern between when we are training and when we are just riding - it's all the same to him.

This is a problem for everybody. Learning to become more aware and more particular with how my horse does everything is something I will struggle with all my days. I am better than I use to be, but not even close to being as good as my horses would like. But if I continue to work on the tiny little things that make no difference to most people, my horses will have every chance of getting closer to their true potential. I think this is a fundamental difference between horse people like Ray Hunt, Tom Dorrance, Harry Whitney and the rest of us. The little things are noticed and are important. They might get worked on now or they might just get filed away to be worked on at a later time because the horse is not ready for that degree of micro management. But they are not ignored.

When a person has good balance and feel, the only thing that gets in the way of being better are the little things. As we get better at dealing with the little things the "brick wall' comes tumbling down and on the other side are totally new experiences of what can be achieved with your horse.

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10 April '10

We got a few mm of rain over night and again today, but not enough to make a difference. But it's cold and windy which I guess is a sign of things to come this winter.

Michele and I went out for a ride today. Michele ride one of her breakers while I babysat her on Six. I am very happy with how Six is learning her job as a babysitter. She is really getting into listening to me, yet staying aware of the other horse. Michele needed to work on her horse a few times which meant we needed to move out of the way. Six didn't have to be asked more than a couple of times before she clued in on how much space to give them and where to put herself so she was out of the way. When I needed Six to speed up or slow down or stop and wait, she was right there without having to be asked with anything more than an adjustment to my seat. When I needed Six to crowd the other horse or to step aside it was like riding a cloud. It's a good feeling when your horse comes together with the things you've been trying to teach her. It helps that Six is a very sensitive horse and while that comes with it's own set of problems, it's great to have a horse that is always trying to tune in.

More Photos of Mr Willoughby

I'm sorry if these are boring, but I got a few shots of him while Michele was working and I thought they were pretty cute and show off his personality plus.

Confused About Bits

Hi Ross

I am a regular reader of your site, but this is my first time with a question. I have just bought a thoroughbred gelding that retired from racing just over six months ago. He is a beautiful boy with a very kind nature. I have been riding him in an eggbutt snaffle bit, but he chews and plays with it an most of the time. My riding instructor has recommended I buy a Myler bit for him and another friend has told me to buy a Pee Wee (I think) bit. Before I bought Danny I use to ride my old horse in a Tom Thumb and never had any trouble, so maybe I should go back to using that. I am so confused by which bit to choose. Everybody has different opinions and I don't know what I should buy. I hope you can help me.

Thanks
Pauline

Well Pauline choosing the correct bit seems to confuse most people. There are so many to choose from and as you say everybody has a different opinion. Yet most people don't even know the theory behind all the different designs. I bet if you ask most people the reason why a ring bit is different from an eggbutt or a D snaffle you'll get told the rings are different shape, but nobody will tell you why they are a different shape and what's their purpose. Ask somebody the purpose behind the difference in design between a tom thumb and an FM snaffle and you'll get blank looks. In fact a surprising number of people don't even know what a snaffle bit is.

I don't get very concerned about bits. I know lots of people get paranoid about the bit they should be using. In the old days in Europe there were specialist bit makers who custom made a bit to fit a particular horse. But there are very few custom bit makers anymore.

We use the same style of bit on every horse and it is very rare that we have a problem. I think in the last 5 years we have had only 1 horse that needed a different bit. I believe that as long as your snaffle fits your horse well, most of the problem is not related to the bit itself. There could be many other reasons why your horse plays with the bit. It could be a sign of physical discomfort. If he retired from racing it would not be surprising if he has back or joint issues that cause him pain. It could also be due to anxiety related to the poor training that he got as a race horse. Perhaps he is not clear how to response to the reins or the leg and this causes him anxiety which he then expresses as chomping on the bit. If you really want to find out if the bit is the problem or not try riding him with a bitless device like a side pull (click here for information about side pulls). If you ride with a side pull or even a web halter and find he still chomps or grinds his teeth or acts in a similar way to when he is being ridden with your eggbutt snaffle, then you can be confident the bit is not the problem.

But if you find he goes better then you do need to consider the bit as the cause of your problem. Perhaps it doesn't fit him. Make sure you use a thin bit - about 6mm (1/4)" is a good thickness for most horses. Make sure the length of the bit is long enough. When he carries it in the mouth the barrel of the bit should extend about 3mm on either side of the mouth. Make sure the bit has no nicks or sharp points on the barrel. I would normally recommend a jointed snaffle with a link in the middle to minimize the problem of pinching the tongue and pushing into the roof of the mouth.

If you want to learn more about bits and the way they work a good book to read is Tom Roberts "Horse Control and the Bit". Although this book is quite old now and there are many newer bits on the market that won't be discussed the principles outlined in the book still hold true.

I probably haven't been of much help sorting out your confusion, but in principle I think the type of bit you use is less important than that it fits well, the horse is sound and the training is solid.

This is not a very clear picture, but it shows the main points. I took it today from one of our bridles. This is the bit we use on all the horses. It's a simple ring snaffle with a link in the centre. The barrel is 6mm thick and the length is 125mm (5"). We use the rubber donut rings to prevent the lips being pinched by the rings of the bit and there is a chin strap on the bit to prevent the rings being pulled through the mouth if the horse gapes his mouth.

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8 April '10

We had a little rain, but hardly enough to keep the dust down. I've been doing lots of road work at the moment because all the horses I ma riding are at the stage where I can take them out and go for a hoon. today, I had a lesson with a lady whose horse I broke in last year. She only got about 10 rides on the horse before a some sort of skin sore caused the horse to be rested for awhile. The horse had not be ridden since then and she asked that I have a session with the horse to check him out before she put herself in the driver's seat. I was very happy to see that the horse had retained most of the good things he had been taught. He was a little heavier on the reins than I remembered and a little less forward than I remembered, but that is only a matter of a couple more rides to get him back to how he was. I had a 5 min ride in the round yard then took him out on the road and he did everything right. The owner then rode him and seem to enjoy his canter, although his trot was a bit jolting. I know they'll be fine.

Mr Willoughby

Remember I mentioned that we had a 4 week old foal arrive for some handling. Yesterday Michele gave the owner (Michelle) a lesson on some handling with her baby. His name is Mr Willoughby (why??) which kind of reminds me of an older gentleman in a smoking jacket sitting in his library sipping sherry and spouting quotes from Byron and Shakespeare and speaking French at odd times. And all the neighbours describe him as "not the marrying kind" - which is a euphemism for being gay.

Throwing a Rope Over the Back of a Worried Horse

Hello Ross

Not to sure if any has let you know I thought it was just a glitch last month but the story section hasn't changed this month either. I thought maybe I needed to refresh my page but I have done this and it is still the story from Feb?

I have been working with Prince for the last three weeks and am hoping to bring him to the next lesson day. He is such a smart little horse I am having heaps of fun. In saying that he is also a worried horse but I think it is more because he has never been asked to do certain things so he gets confused.

One thing I was wondering is I have been working on being able to fling the rope onto him while he stands, walks etc. on the left side he is not to bad on the right he runs around me with heaps of worry. When he got like this on the left side I would bump him gently at first and would then be abit more abrupt but he would stop and I would ask him to walk calmly again. one the rights side when he gets into a state bumping does nothing he may consider stopping for a second and then run madly again the only way I can stop him is to try to interrupt him by coming at him which is ok because he is not the size of Nicky but it is not desirable( the main reason I want him to stop is that he works up into such a frenzy that he starts to trip and I don't want him to hurt himself). I have tried to make funny noises, jump abruptly but he pauses for a split second then continues. Any suggestions?

Other then the rope fear his leading on the left is quite nice, his backing up is not to bad, his yielding is abit braced but getting much better and amazingly he doesn't run away from me like a wild brumby when I go to catch him in the paddock he actually either comes to me straight away or looks at me has a little jog down the side then comes back to me. He lets me halter him without looking away and has just all round been heaps of fun.

Will be playing with his floating so hopefully that is successful because really want to bring him to the lesson day.

Irena


The story is a new one that I wrote only 3 weeks ago and put on the web site 1 week ago. I'm not sure why you are still seeing the old story.

It sounds like you are doing lots of good work with your new pony, Prince.

There are things you can try with regard to throwing the rope over his back on the right side. You can start by doing less with the rope. Maybe begin by taking the rope and rubbing him all over on the right. Don't be too careful, but try not to scare him. Let him get a little worried and find out he won't die. If he moves around, discourage it a bit but also go with him - just don't make it too easy for him to leave the scene. Keep rubbing him. As he starts to mellow you can lift the rope and drop it on his back. Lift it above him and let go so it falls on his back. Maybe start from a short height and gradually increase the height as he feels better. Again, if he moves around, go with him, but discourage it a bit. When he is doing well, you can now take the rope and make a small swing as if it to throw it over his back. At first you might need to be slow and smooth, but soon you can be more casual in your throw. If it is too much for him to handle, go back to doing less where he is able to handle it. Then gradually build on that to where you can do more and be busier with the rope. With regard to swinging the rope, you could even start by swinging your arm over his back and petting him at the same time. Often it is not the rope that bothers a horse, but the sudden action of the swinging that causes the most problem - so play with that without a rope at first and see how it goes.

Make sure that when you throw the rope that you don't throw it down onto his back. Instead throw the rope upward so that gravity lets it fall onto his back with a plot and not a thwack.

I hope that gives you some ideas of things to try. Don't be afraid to experiment and if need be always go back to doing less.

numerous places on Shadow's butt where AJ has bitten off patches of hair. I know that Shadow doesn't move when AJ does this...because he is number one.

I decided to use Harry's ideas...about making sure that the inside of the horse is OK with every step of what I do with him. He got better but there were lots of backslides and starting over. Joe Wolter told me to think of what I felt like doing and do the opposite. Sheesh. I understand what he was saying but my thoughts of what to do are pretty much in tune with what should be done now. I got things better with AJ and then started doing lots of flexions after our grooming ritual...to the point where he would mellow out and feel super soft inside. I had been doing that for a number of weeks. (I never got that 3 times in a row deal though) The day of the accident was the best day ever...I should have backed up and shot for three of those saddlings and nothing else...or more even instead of pushing us both.

Last spring is when I had Rachel come over. She is working as an assistant to a fellow who studied under Tom Dorrance and Ray Hunt. Her persuasion is wonderful now. Her riding has always been beautiful but now she has an added dimension of understanding what it is that you and Harry teach. She assessed AJ and from what she saw...she said he was great. I would be able to work with him. She and her partner will be here this month for a clinic. She approached him in my same manner with more confidence since she has been helping Tom start colts and train them for reining competition in such a way that they do not loose their spirit and are not robots. She has that confidence of youth!

In one of your Walt and Amos stories you talk of how they could go into a roundpen and encourage a horse they did not know how to transition within and between gaits using only their breathing. I believe in that one instance the horse was on line.

Can I ask you if you are able to do that...and how on earth can you breath in so many rhythms to have a cue for each transition or speed within a gait? I find it difficult to understand how a person can do that. I do know how my horse (I have my special horse besides the one that bucks) responds to thought and breathing and picturing what I want when I am riding him. On the ground the connection is not so complete. He looks like me as if he is sure I have gone mad. At one point he came into me and began pawing with big animated paws telling me that for some reason out of his control...he had no idea what I wanted. I do not have that amount of refinement with either of my horses at this point. I am thinking that having that ability...would mean that I had evolved to a higher level of communication than I have reached at this point.

So...my question is does a person build up to that level of communication or is it innate? Is there something I am missing like maybe there aren't different breathing cues so much as there is one breathing that results in a upward transition and another in a downward transition and variations on that can either speed a gait or slow a gait or perhaps change the stride length within gaits?

I would love to read more about that level of communication with a horse. It most probably would go hand in hand with developing more confidence in me on AJ's part. I bought AJ when he wad 6 with the normal gaited horse problems of having been ridden in a curb with a concave back to force him to rack. He didn't know whether to go forward or stay still when I first got him and urged him forward on loose rein. It took a while for him to understand he could not find his own balance and stretch his neck down if he felt like it. His demeanor changed and he began to walk straight and calm and forward without a bit. I have never ridden him any other way....Rachel also did the same when she rode him. AJ is now 13 years old. My other horse is the same age and is a Missouri Foxtrotter who I have owned since he was 2.5.

I won't be allowing a horse to graze with me on his back in the future. I won't be so complacent when my horse feels or has been expressing feeling worry. I let my guard down that day and forgot the one rein only rule. He had a gentle sidepull on his head..no bit.

On line he is very supple and soft with ears even with his withers. Attached is a picture or Rachel riding him that day last spring.

Perhaps in your eyes...you will see that I am overly anxious??? I hope you don't mind me writing and sending these pics as a little follow up to my first post to you.

Thank you, Nancy

Thanks for the photos. They show very well the change that came over AJ as Rachel worked in a progressive manner with him. I think if Rachel, Joe Wolter and Lee Smith have all said he can be helped you have to accept that he is not beyond hope. But that maybe for people of their caliber. You still have to be able to step up to the mark for how AJ needs you to be in order to help him. I think that if Rachel can help you in regular basis it would be a huge advantage to you. There is no doubt that AJ is a horse that can teach you a lot.

I think Lee has an excellent way with her when working in a round pen. Her video on catching a foal with Lee riding her own horse is first class and an education to anyone who thinks they understand round pen work - especially if all they have seen is John Lyons or Monty Roberts styles. The thing about round pen work that most people miss the try in the horse. Most people see whether or not the horse is running, licking and chewing, lowering his head etc. But those things come pretty late in the overall change a horse makes and are more signs of submission than okayness. Lee sees the try and builds and encourages it. This is different from say John Lyons who doesn't see the try and punishes the horse for anything but obedience. I'm sure that is the difference with what you were seeing when Lee worked your horse.

As for the story in my book that describes Walt being able to get a horse to respond to changes in his breathing pattern, I would urge you not to take the breathing thing too literally. I know some trainers like Mark Rashid talk about the importance of breathing, but honestly unless you are holding your breath I don't place too much importance on how you breathe. I think if you are clear in your body language and aids, the way you breathe has very little influence on the outcome. Even if you breathe in a way that causes you to be tense, horses can soon sort out that your tension has no meaning to them if your riding is clear. But riding without clarity and having good breathing will still cause trouble for your horse.

The point of the story was not to tell people that a horse picked up on how a person breathes. The point was that to illustrate that very subtle changes in the way people present themselves can be detected and have meaning to a horse. I don't think I have ever used breathing pattern as an aid - I'm sorry of that disappoints you. But I have taught a horse to go from walk to trot to canter to trot to walk to halt by simply shifting my weight from one foot to the other without moving my feet. I knew a fellow who taught his horse to perform canter lead changes when he blinked one eye while riding. I don't doubt that a horse could be taught to respond to changes in breathing patterns, but it is not magic and no different to any other very subtle cue. If a person is clear enough there is not much you can't teach a horse that is within his physical capabilities. We sometimes get clients who love to use voice commands and I have thought how much fun it would be to teach their horse to canter when they say "whoa" and stop when they say "canter"!

So while it is great that you are thinking about these things and asking questions, I don't think you should get bogged down in the mechanics too much and be looking for a magic bullet, like controlling your breathing, as a means to improve your horsemanship. This comes with enough experience to see what is about to happen before it happens and knowing what to do about it.

Keep in touch with updates on AJ and if you get a chance to take him to Harry I wouldn't miss it if I were you.

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6 April '10

Equine Influenza in Australia

Bill Saunders from Cyberhorse has written an article on the present state of debate regarding the future of government policy and responsibility and the horse industry role in equine disease control in Australia. The debate comes in the aftermath of the Equine Influenza outbreak 18 months ago.

You can read the article here

I agree with almost everything in Bill's article, but the thing that disappoints me most is the Australian Thoroughbred industry has not been made to re-examine the practice of importing shuttle stallions into Australia. The EI outbreak derived from a shuttle stallion that arrived in Australia from Japan for our breeding season. While there is no doubt that the lax quarantine practices at Eastern Creek allowed the escape of the virus, the carrier horse should never have been allowed in the country in the first place. The TB industry only allows registration of foals that have come from live serves and do not allow artificial insemination. The racing industry claims it would cause too much fraud to allow AI into their industry, yet every foal must be DNA tested when they are microchipped. DNA testing would prevent any fraudulent breeding registrations. Every other horse registration allows AI including the harness racing bodies.

I believe the real reason behind the insistence of live servings is to protect the enormous service fees that the wealthy breeders in this country can charge for top stallions. If AI were allowed many more mares could be served at a much reduced price. The investment of millions of dollars paid for top level stallions would drop dramatically. While I appreciate the right of breeders to protect their business, I think their right to make a lot of money does not supersede the right to protect the whole horse industry from introduced disease. If shuttle stallions where no longer allowed or at the very least required much more stringent quarantine periods, the risk of exotic disease outbreak would be greatly reduced.

But as it stands the racing industry has a government minister who sides with them and is pushing for vaccination of horses against EI which would be the worst possible outcome for all horses across Australia. It would mean a heavy cost to horse owners and not protect horses from contracting or carrying EI - only from showing the symptoms. This means horses that were not vaccinated would be at risk and also it would be very difficult to trace the source of the infection because the carrier is not likely to show any symptoms.

Let's hope the Minster for Agriculture sees sense and does not allow the racing lobby to get their way and put the rest of the horse industry at risk.

Molly The Wonder Horse

Hi Ross,

Here is a photo of Molly alias ( Moll ) taken when I first brought her.
Not realy knowing the potential she had, thanks to you I'm glad I did.

Thankyou Gwenda

Thanks Gwenda for the photo and I am glad you are happy with Molly's progress. You can certainly see in the picture the horse she was to grow into - not exactly petite, but still a great beauty and loves her food.

Nancy's Horse

Dear Ross

I have a horse who had a traumatic event happen just after I had tacked him up. Another horse bolted with a rider and I dropped the reins and tried to stop the horse. My freshly tacked horse took off on his own trajectory thru some pine threes whose branches broke off wedging themselves under the seat jockey and under his girth on both sides. He bucked quite a bit and then came to a stop. I rode him very slowly after that for three hours as we walked the other horse till he was calm. My horse was fine but that was the last ride of the season. The next year...my pocket pony wanted to avoid my putting a saddle on him but finally stood still...then as I walked off asking him to follow I turned to see him bucking...very worried toward me for help. I couldn't figure out what was wrong.

It took allot of discovery to figure out that it had to have been the experience the year before. Lee Smith saw him and also agreed. Physically he was OK from head to toe. Chiro OK'd him. Teeth floated. Saddle fit OK...etc.

My problem is that this is 3 years later...and he seems to still feel the need to buck and get worried. He wads up and his middle swells against the feel of the tree of a saddle when he makes a move forward after being saddled. In August of 2008, I was unseated when he bucked without my anticipating it and tried to pull myself up to avoid going off his outside hip where I might have gotten kicked or bucked upon....I was immediately turned into a lawn dart with severe injuries and had to lie waiting for my husband to get home to find me 3 and a half hours later.

The next spring I had a girl come to see what he would do if she did a little ground work with him. He was perfect as if nothing had happened. He was a little worried not knowing her...he softened and she decided to try to saddle him. He backed away a little but she was very good with him and after allowing her to put it on and take it off his back on both sides a couple times she saddled him and rode him in the indoor arena. He was beautiful. Just like he used to be with a nice low neck and head. He was relaxed and willing being ridden in a halter. I rode him that day and it went very well. But I am hesitant to work with him when I am alone.

A few weeks later I began working with him and he bucked on line when asked to circle. Same thing the next time. I swear it is as if he thinks I want him to buck now! I also have a bit of anticipation too. Perhaps I am sending him the message to buck.....Do you suggest selling a horse when things get so balled up between the horse and owner? I thought I could take care of this myself. The day we had the wreck was the best day ever...and then we had the wreck after a case of my doing so well why not just saddle him, that went so well...why not ride him? That went so well, lets go outside the barn, That went so well lets go into the woods. sigh....greedy! I allowed him to graze on the way back where he had shown some concern on the way out. After he had grazed a bit I had asked him to move and he had started to buck before his head came up...since we were on about a 45 degree uphill slope...I was unseated before I realized what was happening...off balance and the two reins in my hand, I tried to pull myself up. He coiled and shot me to the moon but my hands didn't let go of the reins and he did a sharp 180 out from under me away from the barn no less. My husband found him about 50 feet from me staring into the woods.

You mentioned that it is possible for the owner to change responses...it is just harder....Right? But it is possible. It just takes time...and your answer to the pig rooting pony...I might have to resort to that? I haven't worked with him much because of my fractured elbows leaving me feeling a little vulnerable with a worried horse on line much less trying to hold on to the girth while he is circling. Sheesh!

He is a wonderful horse. We were such a pair before all the initial bolt and scare. I am thinking that scare was the first he had in his lifetime. So now he is skittish where he used to be very gentle and easy going never a spook.

Thanx for anything you might share with me. I can tell you that I have learned lots from Harry and I have gotten along with all my horses. The horse that bolted was mine but he never bolted or bucked with me. He was bolting because a huge pine tree that had two large forks was splitting and in Dec. it split and fell after which there was no more spooking at that site by any of my horses. EXCEPT it was at that same spot where I was tossed in August by this horse. There were chickens in the underbrush. A Coyote would hide in that location and catch chickens for two week period prior to the accident. Their paddock fence where they are fed was not more than 10' away from this spot.

I trained him to do everything. He is a very find mover. Kentucky Mt Saddle horse with smooth light Paso movement. He was trained to gait for 30 days when he was 2.5 by a notorious trainer in Kentucky so I am thinking that some of this has to do with the way he was started...somehow? Or maybe it is just all the bad luck we have had together and my learning how to work with him and making errors with little headway...the habitual aspect you mentioned in your story.

Nancy

I'm sorry that you have such problems with a horse you clearly like and has such potential.

I can't tell why he is bucking, but my first thought is that there is every chance that your problem stems from the bolting and having a tree branch stuck under the saddle. I have met horses that have similar persistent bucking problems that seem to go back as far when they were broken in and the saddle slipped under their belly. You can never be sure that such accidents are the trigger that caused the problem, but it seems very likely. If your horse was not bucking before the incident, but started after the incident it's not hard to draw that conclusion. Traumas that occur early in training stay with a horse for the rest of their life - they never forget - but they can learn to live with their worry.

It is true that I believe we have a tremendous capacity to change how a horse responds. But this takes time and the level of skill required to bring about a change in how a horse feels. Michele and I and many of clients have helped change the way many horses have reacted in situations that normally traumatize them. But there have also been horses that we have failed to help sufficiently to make them safe. I don't doubt that a better trainer could have helped those horses, but as I said one of the limitations for getting a change in a horse is our own ability or lack of ability. It is my experience that just when I think I really know what I am doing with a horse, some bloody idiot sends me a horse that makes me realize I am a rank amateur.

You mentioned that Lee Smith has seen the horse. Lee is a first class horsewoman and I would take her advice and recommendations seriously. She has the experience and wisdom to give you an insight into your horse that you could trust. Failing that, I would be trying to take my horse to Harry for his assessment. There is nobody better in the world in my view who has a clearer understanding of horses and their thinking.

I don't have any special words of wisdom to offer you because the problem sounds serious enough that it requires a hands on assessment. One of the issues I believe you need to consider is your confidence in your ability to work with your horse. Overcoming such serious behaviours requires not only skill and time, but also a confidence that things will change and you can do what it takes to evoke those changes. If you lack that confidence then I think it is appropriate that you examine whether or not this is the horse for you. It is never a mistake to find a good home for a horse that you can not help.

I'm sorry I'm not much help to you, but I would be very interested to learn what happens with the horse and I wish you lots of luck.

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4 April '10

It's been a busy weekend. Despite the easter holiday Michele and I have been hard at work. Tomorrow we get a day off and we are both really looking forward to it. I plan to sleep in to 7am!

We had a 4 week old foal and dam arrive today for handling. It seems the foal is pretty strong willed and the owner is smart enough to realize she needs some professional help. I'll get some photos of the foal being worked over the next few days and put them up.

Using a Whip to Establish Forward

Hi Ross

I have been riding for only a couple of years and own a very sweet Welsh Cob mare. She is really good to ride except that no matter how much I kick she is very difficult to make go forward. She just wants to plod everywhere. I had a lesson with an instructor last week and she said I have to either start wearing spurs or carry a whip. I've never used either of those things before and don't know how to use them. Do you think I should use spurs or a whip and if so can you give me advice on using them.

Regards
Shelley

I never use spurs on a horse that won't go forward. Spurs were never meant to be used to teach responsiveness to the rider's leg. Their function is to aid in refining the leg aids, so that a rider can do less with his leg but maintain the same level of responsiveness. I know many people do use spurs to make their horse go forward, but it is wrong in my view and I can't recommend it to you.

However, a whip is a different matter. Perhaps a couple of times a year I come across a horse that a whip can be helpful in teaching them to be responsive to my leg. I don't use a whip to replace my leg aids, but to teach a horse to listen to my leg. When that happens I stop riding with the whip.

Most people have their own way of using a whip, but I'll tell you what I do and you can experiment to find out what works for you. To me, it doesn't matter if you use a short crop or a dressage whip because the way I tap the horse with a whip is always on the shoulder. The whip only has to be long enough to reach the horse's shoulder. I don't like using whips on the flank or rump.

The other part of using a whip for me is not to use it with force or as punishment. Sometimes you see people take the whip in one hand and whack a horse with quite a lot of force over the rump. Not only is this not necessary, but it is also counter productive because the whip is not being used in a way that the horse can learn something from it.

When I ask a horse to go forward or increase it's speed, I lighten my seat and at the same time I release the reins a little more. If no response from the horse I apply a light leg. If no response from the horse I tap the horse on the shoulder in a flurry.

This is very important. I do not tap the shoulder and wait to see if the horse gets more energy. I tap, tap, tap, tap really fast (maybe 4-5 taps per second) on the shoulder and keep tapping really fast until the horse changes. They are not hard taps, but firm enough to register with the horse. The moment I feel a change in energy I stop tapping, pet my horse and allow him the freedom to go forward. I then bring him down to a halt or a walk and try again. I repeat the procedure several times until the horse responds from just a lifting of my seat and maybe a slight squeeze from my legs. It is important than when the horse is going forward that you ride with the horse, but not to keep driving him with your leg. Ride passively. If he slows down, allow it but then ask him forward again by lifting your seat, a little leg and if no response then tap his shoulder with a flurry from your whip until you get the change you are looking for.

I have found this a very effective way of teaching a young horse to be responsive to the rider's leg. It only takes a few rides where the rider is entirely consistent before the whip is not longer needed and can be left in the tack room. Remember it's not the force with which you use the whip that is important, it's the persistence of the flurry of taps that makes the difference. If you only give one tap and wait to see if he changed, then gave another tap and waited again and then another tap etc, you won't ever be able to ride without your whip. Good luck.

Won't Come Out of The Float

Dear Ross,

I picked up my knew Warmblood yearling from the seller yesterday. The owner told me she had taught her to load onto the float and was terrific when I loaded her to bring her home. Then trip home took around 40mins and she did not moved at all the whole time, even when we had to stop at traffic lights. But when we got home I could'nt get her off. She refused to back up and go down the ramp. I tried for almost 20mins to pushe her back, but eventually was able to take out the divider and turn her around and walk her out forward. I never had a horse who didn't want to come out before. My old horse wanted to come out all the time before I was ready.

What advice can you give me for fixing the problem. I'm scared to load her again in case I can't get her out. I love your wen site and your advice so I know you'll be able to suggest an idea to fix her.

Thanks
Poppy

It's really hard to be specific with any advice without seeing your horse first hand. But the first question that comes to my mind is does your filly know how to back up softly? It maybe that the previous owner never taught her to back up on the lead rope or only taught her to back up with some resistance. But when you have a horse that only backs up poorly and then ask them to back up down a ramp you often have a situation where the horse refuses to budge.

Test to see how well your horse backs up on level ground. If it's not very good, then that's where you need to start - get that right. If it's pretty good, see how well she backs up over a pole or down a ditch or over a tarp or anything that presents as a bigger challenge than just level ground. If those things are a struggle for her, I'd work at making them less of a struggle before going back to the float.

When she is backing up really well on the ground and over poles, ditches or whatever, then it's time to try the float again. But this time instead of taking her all the way into the float and trying to back her out, take her only a step or two up the ramp and stop. Let her settle there. Don't let her back out or go further inside. When she is settled, ask her to back out. If she can't back down the ramp a step then there is no need to take her all the way into the float until she can. Work at getting her back up soft when she is only 1 step into the float. Then take her 2 steps in and make sure her back up is fine. As she gets better keep adding more steps into the float and testing how well she backs up. If at any point she gets stuck or rushes out, there is no need to go further - you work at that level until it is going well before asking for more. Eventually, you will be able to take her all the way inside and have her back out calmly and smoothly, one step at a time. But be patient. If you rush the process she will only get scared and learn not the trust that floating will not get her killed.

I hope that helps and gives you an idea to try. If you have no luck, get back to me and tell me what's going on and I may be able to suggest other things to try.

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1 April '10

Easter weekend is coming up. I was hoping Michele and I could take a few days off and enjoy a break, but we have so much work to get through and more keeps piling up that some time off will have to wait for awhile. Traditionally winter is the most quiet time for us, so hopefully we will be able to take a holiday in a couple of months.

I have archived the March Soap Box - see the sidebar. There is also a new story on the Story page which I hope you will enjoy.

The foals I have been handling had a big day today starting with being branded and then their first hoof trim. I was very proud how they all handled it. Even the farrier and brander commented that they were among the best they had done in a long time. They will get a break from being handled now until their next trim in 6 weeks and then they will be microchipped at the same time. By then it will be time to wean them. Unfortunately the fellow who owns these horses is a big believer in separating the mares and foals abruptly, so there will be some terrible trauma ahead for these babies.

A Yearling in Trouble

I have talked before about how troubled horses can be unsettling to the rest of the herd. I was talking to a lady a few days ago with regard to a yearling I have handled off and on for her a few times. It was a difficult foal to handle because she had so little confidence and very reactive. Even walking into the round yard was enough to cause her to try to climb over the 2m fence. But eventually she settled really well and was easy to catch, tie up, pick up her feet, lead, touch all over, float load etc. When she was weaned I did a little more handling of her. I could see she had deteriorated quite a little from when I last handled her. She was hard to catch again. But after about 4 sessions she was as good as any other horse on the property - and better than some. The owner put the filly in with an older gelding which worked really well. The gelding was a strong leader that took no nonsense, but at the same didn't hassle or pick on the weanling. The filly seemed to be doing well. Then the owner added an older broodmare to the mix. The broodie was pretty good towards the filly and the gelding, but for some reason the filly soon became more difficult to catch and handle. Within a few weeks the owner said she had become feral. I was called back to handle her again and found her to be terrified about being caught, kicking when asked to pick up a hind foot, stiff as a board and shaking all over if you touched her behind the wither. However, in a few days she was back to her old self and doing really well. I suggested the owner handle her at least 3 times a week to ensure she didn't fall into her old ways. But unfortunately the owner had young kids and couldn't commit the time that the filly needed. The owner then put the filly in a herd of 10 other yearlings because it was the easiest way to manage her paddocks. Two months later I got another phone call telling me the filly was dangerous again.

When I visited to see the filly I suggested that the owner consider selling her. I said the horse needed a lot of time and regular handling and if she was able to provide that then the filly was going to have a life of hell. The owner didn't seem to believe me and told me the real problem was not the filly but the fact that the other horses picked on her and this was the cause of the behaviour.

I told the owner that I disagreed with her. It seemed to me that the horse was not getting picked on, but it was being shunned and not welcomed into the mob. There is a big difference. The filly was not loopy because it was being ostracized, it was ostracized because it was loopy. The odd behaviour of the yearling was unsettling to the peace and calm of the herd. Her disruptive behaviour was not welcomed and so they kept her at a distance. The filly was showing odd behaviour long before it was introduced into the herd and so I don't think the behaviour can be blamed on the way the herd treated her.

I think people are the same. Imagine a new kid in school who showed very odd behaviour in a class of normal kids. Most of the other kids would avoid the new kid because they disrupted the normal flow in how the class dynamics worked. Horses are no different. They like a quiet, calm, ordered and predictable life. It makes them feel secure. So to have a fruit loop enter the mix that upsets their quiet ordered existence is a stress in their life. Their sense of safety and security is compromised by a horse who doesn't act like the other horses. It's no wonder they don't welcome her into the herd.

In the end, I feel very sad for the yearling filly. She is going to have a very hard life. Her inability to adapt to getting along with most humans will mean that she is probably going to suffer quite a lot of brutal training and get passed from hand to hand. Hopefully she will find somebody who loves and understands her. But she is a horse that few people will be able to get along with. I sometimes think that the kindest thing for horses like her is to humanely euthanize them rather than go through life from person to person and beating to beating.

Pig Rooting Pony

Hi Ross and Michelle,

As you know, after participating in one of Harry's clinics this year, I went home with a great deal more confidence in myself and what I could hope to achieve with my little horse Murphy. Thank you both for your support and encouragement over those days. It was much appreciated. I actually think some of those things you have been trying to get me to understand over the years has finally started to sink in!

At home I have continued to work at getting Murphy to respond to a softer aid particularly when asking for a halt. Whilst it is slow going he is improving. I have also been working on his rushing forward (which obviously goes hand in hand with his lack of stop). I am happy to say that for the first time ever I am now able to walk him around our whole property, without another horse and rider being present, without him being overly distracted by his buddies calling out in the other paddock , and without him speeding up and if permitted then breaking into a trot. Some days when he is particularly relaxed I have also been able to ask him for some walk trot transitions and we have been able to do this without him mentally leaving me as soon as I ask him up. His mentally leaving me for his buddies in the paddock and subsequently trying to rush off as soon as I ask more from him is still a major issue but we have had days where I've been really proud of the changes he has made. We even rode a short way out of the property, something that I have not been able to do with him when riding on my own since not long after I bought him, without his rearing!

One issue that continues to worry me is his pigrooting and sometimes bucking when he is saddled. The frequency of his doing this directly after he is saddled has actually increased over the last couple of months, to the point that he is doing it about 90% of the time. When I rode him before we had 18months off he never pigrooted, however I also never asked much of him as we just went out trail riding with others. He was pretty shut down I believe. Now whether I ground work him for 30 mins or 10 mins before he is saddled, whether he is focused and standing quietly or fidgets whilst saddling, he is just as likely to do it. After saddling him (girth fairly loose) he will already be tense and lack forward and when I ask him to move forward ( on lead rope) he will start to pigroot.

Now my question is - How should I deal with this? - Should I be asking him forward knowing he will pigroot? I know that if I work him on a shorter lead and just ask a few steps forward and then back I will eventually get him to soften and he will no longer feel the need to pigroot.

At other times I have asked him to go out on the circle and allowed him to pigroot until he gets it out of his system (once around and he is usually done and I am able to get him to start focusing on me again. I have been told I shouldn't allow him to pigroot as it will become a habit of his. Is this true? Should I be getting him to walk out on the circle and then trying to shut him down when he attempts to pigroot?

Finally, is there something I can be doing to try and elininate his need to pigroot? He shows no signs of unsoundness and I do not believe that it is caused by an ill fitting saddle. He is, I believe a very worried little guy. Whether he pigroots before a ride or not however seems to have little bearing on how good a ride we have afterwards.

Sorry for the long convoluted email but would love to know your thoughts on how how I should be handling this issue.

Hope all is well,

Irena
ps Ross - Andrew says you'll say "It depends...."

Well Irena, your husband is right of course. It does depend. Let me know when Andrew is having a clinic so I can come - he seems to know what he is talking about! hahah!

While reading your e-mail my first thought was to wonder if Murphy is carrying a soreness and the saddle is making it worse? The fact that he is pig rooting when first saddled really suggests a tension in the girth area - that he is holding his muscles tightly. You see this a lot with girthy horses. Sometimes it is physical and sometimes it is emotional. I would want to rule out the physical first. So maybe have a good vet or therapist you trust to check Murphy for any physical problem that could contribute to the behaviour. I know you don't think he is sore, but I would still get an expert to confirm your thoughts.

Assuming it is not a physical problem, then you are dealing with an emotional issue. The tension is caused by the worry he has about the work.

There are several things you can try to help overcome the "cold back" response to the girth. Some are things you can try and some are things you should not try without adult supervision.

Things to try with adult supervision:

• Before saddling, poke Murphy's sides (girth, shoulders, flanks etc) with your thumb. Wherever he shudders and your thumb bounces off his skin you have tension. Keeping poking softly over and over again in those regions until you feel a substantial softening of the muscles underneath and a reduction in way your thumb bounces of his sides. When this is pretty good on both sides, saddle him and repeat it before asking him to walk off. It can take anywhere from 5 to 30 minutes to get a change in a horse
• Before saddling, use a belly rope around his girth area. While he is on the lead rope, ask him to walk around you by bumping him with the belly rope. Let him walk or trot for a lap or so and then put a sustained pull on the belly rope. He may buck, but keep the feel on the rope. If he shuts down and stops moving, bump some more with the rope to encourage him to go forward. When he is moving forward, but not bucking or rushing madly, release the pull on the belly rope and give him a break. Then start again. You are trying to teach him that a small bump on the belly rope is a signal to move forward softly and a sustained pull means to slow down and even stop - but with softness - not a stop with a hardness to it. You keep repeating this until you have such a change. Make sure you do both sides - left and right.

This is an example of using a belly rope on a horse that is about to have his first saddling. I got him to trot around me by bumping the rope that is around his belly. When he was able to do this smoothly and calmly I then took a firm feel of the rope around his belly to simulate the tightness of the girth. As you can see he bucked with some effort. But he soon smoothed out and was trotting around with a sustained feel on the rope. Eventually, he learned to stop and relax when he felt the pull. Then he was ready for the saddle which caused him no bother. The advantage of the belly rope is that when the horse makes a change for the better you can instantly release the pressure as a reward. But when you saddle up there is no release from the pressure until you eventually get the saddle off.

Things to try on your own:

• Put the saddle on Murphy, but don't girth it up. Instead, reach under the horse's belly and take a hold of the girth in your right hand and the lead rope in your left hand. Make sure the girth is plenty long to reach the girth straps because with your right hand you are going to hold onto the girth buckle and a girth strap at the same time. When you do this you want the girth to just touch him belly - not tight. Using the lead rope in your left hand lead him around you. If he doesn't hump up or attempt to buck, release the girth and rub him . Take up the girth buckle again and this time hold it a little bit firmer against his belly by using more of the girth billet on the left side of the saddle. Again walk him around you. If he goes to buck, interrupt it before he bucks by turning him or backing him up. Keep trying to get in his way until he stops trying to buck. If you have to let go of the girth, grab the saddle with your right hand to ensure it doesn't fall to the ground and scare him. Repeat the process again and again until he seems very comfortable with having the girth held firmly against his belly and walking around. If it's good at a walk you can do it again with him trotting around you in a small circle. You can stop at any time and pat him to reassure him he isn't go to die. You will need to do this both sides of the horse.
• Call a good trainer and get help.

These exercises (except for calling a good trainer) need to be repeated every time until you can do them 3 days in a row without a sign of worry or bucking from Murphy. You say the problem is getting worse which means there is a lot to be done to overcome his ever growing worry. His pig rooting and bucking is possibly becoming a habit, so perseverance is going to be needed - not a quick fix. I'm sorry there is no easy answer. But I also know you well enough to know that you have it in you to help this horse if you set your mind to it. Good luck and let me know how it goes.

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