I wrote the following in response to
buymeaclue's post over on
horsemanship about the methods we use to train / prepare our horses (natural horsemanship, clicker training, groundwork, classical methods) and if we feel its been a successful approach or not, and what our goals are for the future:
(
my long response )
If what worked prior to Parelli worked well and your horse understood you better why not incorporate some of that back into what you do today? I do Parelli and I really like it, but it is not the only methods I use with my horses. I think many theories of training can compliment each other. It's all about establishing a communication and relationship you and your horse understand. If they get it GREAT...if not...time to try something else.
It sounds like you were well on your way to a great relationship before starting Parelli. I'm not saying you should abandon that program, but pick and choose the best of the two that works for you. It also sounds like you are frustrated with the Parelli system and in my opinion if it's not fun, what's the point?
You say you have been doing Parelli for years, but just started one rein riding this summer? That being a level 1, I agree Sage is bored and ready to be challenged in new and interesting ways. Obviously I don't know your specific situation so please don't be offended by that comment. It is really just a thought that maybe you should move onto the next level or find something else to do with him and new things to teach him.
You have to figure out what that will be for the two of you.
That said I agree outside help can be a huge help, because they will see things from the outside that you can not and have ideas on how to fix it. Finding the one that fits within your beliefs on horses is the hard part.
Good Luck!
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After a few years of me not getting to see him more than once or twice a week (again due to health issues) he really changed. He lost faith in me and stopped being so affectionate. And now...he has his own mare, and seems to want a human only peripherally, I think?
That underlying dynamic means I have to work a lot on re-establishing my bond with him...and at the same time, that just makes him very bored. I think if we did just the parelli stuff Sage would be fine...but I've had a hard time finding a riding instructor that does ANY form of Natural horsemanship, let alone Parelli. And as I mentioned, the people I am aware of that do Parelli are either about 2 hours away, or have a reputation for being crazy. :/
So that leaves us with dvds and clinics for parelli stuff. And I think having him started by a non-parelli person...and then riding him like he was started by a parelli person has been confusing for him. :/ And I'm doing what I can, but I'm in college, not working full-time, and so we've scraped together the funds for 2 clinics...a level 1 in august of 2006...and then advanced level 1 in June of '08. Its just not enough...
So yeah, I guess I'm struggling with how to give him more structure and consistency, and have more structure and consistency for myself too. And I would love to have a parelli person to have sessions with every week or something...or even just a NH trainer that was supportive / open minded about me doing parelli. But right now...still struggling...
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