Herd Boss vs Herd Leader

Krinkles and her colt "Tiger" our in front of the herd...

I have to admit, having a "herd" of horses that live on pasture and interact pretty much like nature intended them too, has certainly enlightened me over the years. We all know about the "herd boss" and how that horse can move horses out of its way, usually is the first one to eat and just is generally bossy...and many people try to emulate that behavior in training...

But...the more successful way, is to emulate the "herd leader." Sometimes the herd boss and the herd leader are the same horse. But more often than not...they do not hold both titles. The herd boss, rules with an iron fist..the herd leader, takes no flack off any member, yet rules with a more passive and kinder nature. The herd leader moves the herd. All herd members must have respect for the herd leader, or they will get left behind ( a sad truth that some herd bosses found out the hard way here...LOL ) the herd leader decides where the herd will graze, when they move to water, when they rest and sleep ( and often stands watch ) and when they head to the barn for dinner! The herd leader has the ability to earn the other herd members respect, often with just an ear movement or some other subtle body language. We have had ONE single herd leader since the day we moved here....our herd matriarch, Krinkle Clown. There have been several mares that tried to take her position, often keeping a few horses rounded up for their own little herd, but none have been successful for more than a few days. Eventually, they all return to the herd, and accept that just one, wise mare really knows how to run things. Kudos to you, Krinkle Clown for years of keeping our herd safe. I have even seen this mare return up the hill, to rescue a youngster that took the wrong path and got lost from the herd. She always had a bit of a "I can not believe I have to do this" look on her face, but never the less, she returned to help the youngster out. The fact she has a whinny you can hear for 3 counties helps her out.

Now...how does this relate to the training of horses and our horse/human relationship. Most folks don't have a herd leader to observe, but if you did, you would learn that body language is of the utmost importance. and...consistency, though hard for some humans, seems to come easy for these herd leader horses. Learn the body language of horses, and be consistent and your herd leadership skills will rise to the top of the herd.....consider it, and put it into practice!

Something new to read

While recovering from surgery this winter, I ordered a couple new books to read...after all, I DO have the time for it ;-)

I purchased the book "Better than Bombproof" from Amazon.com and it arrived last week. This book is amazing. There are not very many training books, that I would plug, but this one is so different, and if you take the time to actually read it, and to then apply what he tells you, to your own horse, you can reach goals you never thought possible.

For several winters, I took adult group lessons at a local riding center. We worked on many things, most of them dressage oriented, EVEN though we were all western riders ( at that time ) and had no desire to compete in dressage. What I learned though, is.....you need to know this stuff to be a competent rider...and your horse needs to know this stuff to become really 'well broke" which is what most of us strive for.

The author Sgt. Rick Pelicano puts the theory into practice, and guides you one gentle step at a time to boost your riding ability and your horse's ability. What I REALLY like about this book is, he does most all the exercises in hand, then in long lines, long before he wants you on the back of the horse. Imagine if you long line your horse past the scary mailbox. If you horse spooks or bolts, you have control with out the added problem of being scared while on your horse's back. Once you and your horse have conquered the scary mailbox, think how easy it will then be, when you are on his back, to know what reaction he will have!

I also am quite pleased this book shows the training to aid horses that will be driven..that was, my main goal in getting this book, I "thought" it would be helpful, turns out, it is MUCH more helpful that I could even have imagined! so..pick up a copy and happy reading, you could be ready to ride bomb proof by summer if you start now. Also...most of these exercises can be done with a horse of ANY age, so get out your youngsters and do all of this in hand......what a great way to make an exceptional horse! I plan to take each and every horse of mine through the whole book...one step at a time...my summer goal I suppose.

Being a leader - the secret of horsemanship

What if I told you that the real secret to horsemanship is a tiny fact. Could it really be a simple thing, after all, there is a whole industry trying to help you develop your horsemanship....is there something they are leaving out?

To those words, I would reply..yes, horsemanship is a simple thing, so simple in fact, you probably have never really thought about it.

All of us want a great bond with our horses, but many times, we fail to communicate on a horse's level of understanding. We often hear how we want to have our horse, be our partner. Well, that is in error, we don't want a partnership, a partnership would imply that our horse has a 50% part of our relationship. The wisest horsemen/women, instead refer to this relationship as a "team" A team has something a partnership does not. A team has a clear leader. A partnership implies that each member has an equal share in the matter...look at it this way. When you come to a fork in the road, do you let your horse decide which way to go? If he is a partner, then he should have a say in deciding which path to take...but if you are a team, the team leader would decide which path to take....am I making sense yet?

So, My horse and I are a team. How can we advance our relationship? One of my favorite things to help my horse see me as the team leader is to let my horse hand graze. Simple enough, I take them out of their pasture, pen, stall, whatever, and let them eat grass....very simple indeed! but did you know there is a proper way to hand graze, and doing it the wrong way can make your horse think he is in charge of your whole relationship?

Hand grazing is done alot here on our farm. We seem to have lots of spots with good grass, and no access to those spots for the horses..I just enjoy hand grazing my horse, and I like to start my youngsters in this exercise as early as they are weaned. To be a leader and to correctly hand graze, you must lead the team. You must move the horse to you, not let him eat and wander wiley niley all over the place dragging you behind. IF you set the rules for hand grazing ( you must follow me horse, I make the plans here ) hand grazing becomes a bonding tool. If you let the horse decide which area to move to next, with no regard for you, you will find out quickly that all other commands you ask of your horse, will be ignored, or at least argued with.

Hand grazing is a tool we can all use, any horse, any age, any place ( as long as there is grass ;-) Next time you take out your horse, let him/her hand graze and practice being in the team captain role...you will be amazed at the difference it makes in your horsemanship!

Deilvering Darkie

Darkie and his Dam....DKH Black Sage

Earlier this week, we delivered *C-C Handsome Dark Knight to his new owner. "Darkie" is a long yearling gelding, sired by our former ranch stallion "*Shadow's Hawk Spirit" aka "HeartBreaker" ...( he stands in Canada now ) .....out of DKH Black Sage, a mare we lost to colic when Darkie was just a week old. Darkie joins a mare we sold these folks a while back, and will grow up to be a stellar trail horse. He is pictured with his Dam, the black mare, and his adopted Mom, the white pony, and a head shot from last winter....

Darkie and his Nursemare Adopted Dam ..."Addy"

Here at Creekside, we have often delivered horses to their new owners. If it is a reasonable mileage trip, we often do our own hauling, it saves the buyer a heap of money, and is VERY good customer service. We planned this haul for a weather break, and felt comfortable with our trip plans.....the only thing I can say is....Don't trust the weatherman !!!

We left home before daylight, and a few miles into our trip it was apparent it would not be an easy haul. 60+ MPH winds beat on us the first 100 miles...the 2 nd 100 miles we had icy roads and snow, snow and MORE snow.....

We actually arrived just a couple hours late to our destination....Darkie hauled well, and was anxious to see other equines at his new home. His owner put him in with a 3 month old orphan BLM filly...with a real attitude..she marched right up to Darkie, stomped a foot, turn and kicked at him and did all sorts of funny dance moves to show her dominance....Darkie just smiled ;-) he is used to "little" bossy girls....LOL...when we lost his Dam, we were fortunate to find a nurse mare for him..an 11 hand pony! He has also been exposed to all the 2010 babies since they were born, and Darkie is a very gentle soul, not a mean bone in his body...I can not wait to find out how long it takes for the two of them to be roughhousing and grooming each other.

So, there is yet another curly in an awesome home, that will be used and well loved ;-) The gentleman that bought him considers Darkie his "own" and is looking forward to the journey of youngsterhood, to finished horse.
Darkie in his winter coat......handsome boy!

The trip home made the trip there look easy...boy, semi trucks look alot bigger when they are on their side......we made an unplanned stop for the night...after 14 hours of driving, we were just worn out. We arrived home the next day, that drive as about as impressive as the rest of the trip had been. We later found out, the road closed behind us ....and traffic stood still for hours...I often hum to ease the stress of winter driving...everything I can think of, "Blue Skies", "White Christmas" such things...after we passed the semi wreck and the stalled, jackknifed semis, I turned my humming to hymns, something along the line of "To God be the Glory" my moto for our safe trip in a world of really bad weather.

But...all in all, a successful, though stressful trip, and a curly in a home that will cherish and grow him up...nothing better for a curly horse breeder!
Linda

A New approach for a New Year!

2011 brings change for Creekside Curlies. Our decision to retire from our breeding business, due to my health issues has been a journey for us. Our quest for quality, however, has always remained at the top of our goals, and we have several youngsters still here. Some are offered for sale, and as horses sell, others may be removed from our sales list.

I am very excited to pursue a life long dream and move into the world of carriage driving. In addition to driving for pleasure, I discovered, that CDE's ( combined driving events ) offer dressage tests in a driven form. Putting driving together with my past goal of producing top notch dressage horses suddenly came into focus....I have landed in my own dream world! All the years work spent breeding quality horses will now benefit me in the world of driving. Watch us as we get started in the world of driving, we hope to have 2 horses going nicely in harness in 2011. We also have retained frozen semen from our superb stallion "Shadow's Hawk Spirit" aka"HeartBreaker" and will be looking for trades, so we can raise one more foal, this time from a HeartBreaker filly.

Stay with us as we pursue our goals, summer looks very promising around here, but I have a bit of medical work to do before then.....so, stay tuned!

Merry Christmas Everyone!

We wish a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to each and all of our dear friends....Creekside horses span the world and we hope that all are toast in their beds and a true blessing for their owners.

Raising horses has been a God give gift to me, the joy of a newborn foal, the pride of seeing a youngster learn and grow, the thrill of a Champion, it all is a treasure I will cherish.

What a better place for baby Jesus to be born, than in a stable manger...all the animals, along with the humans celebrated this new life.

Merry Christmas to all!

Pretty in Pink

Here is my filly "Kallie" !!! Pretty in Pink! Kallie wears pink...Legacy wears purple and the rest of the herd...well, they have to earn their colors so to speak!

I have been having a blast training Kallie...she is one of those horses that just connect in a way that only folks dream about. She is smart, capable, eager and willing..and oh so talented...Trainer Mike says she moves every bit as nice as her Sire "HeartBreaker" or even perhaps a bit better!

Kallie and I are aiming to be a team, a driving team....she has made great progress, and has never made a miss step in her training. Soon, I will be hitching her up, we have just a few things to tweak before we head out driving. I will say, this has been one of the MOST enjoyable journeys in horse training I have even been on...and I hope the same for when Legacy and I become a driving team also.