Incognito's Training Page
Incognito is a 5 year old Peruvian Paso gelding with some spooking issues. He
doesn't like the mounting block nor does he like to stand still for mounting. He also
shows signs of general spooky behavior on the ground. We like to give our new
"students" a day or two to settle in before we start their training. We are delighted to
be working with Incognito and thank his owner's Mary & her husband for this wonderful
opportunity.
To read more about the Peruvian breed, please visit the Peruvian Paso Horse
Registry of North America at www.pphrna.org.
doesn't like the mounting block nor does he like to stand still for mounting. He also
shows signs of general spooky behavior on the ground. We like to give our new
"students" a day or two to settle in before we start their training. We are delighted to
be working with Incognito and thank his owner's Mary & her husband for this wonderful
opportunity.
To read more about the Peruvian breed, please visit the Peruvian Paso Horse
Registry of North America at www.pphrna.org.
Incognito has officially begun his training. His first training session was both an evaluation and an
introduction of our training methods.
We started our work in the round pen just to give him a chance to work off some nervous energy. We also
wanted to evaluate his lunging skills to determine our starting point in his training. He lunged pretty well and
eventually understood what we wanted. We want him to pay attention, show respect and follow our
commands.
We then moved on to tying him and working on his spooking issues. We were surprised to see the extent of
his fear over simple objects such as a saddle pad, hands waving in the air and just our physical approach.
We all have our work cut out for us! Time, patience and trust are going to be key issues in his training.
introduction of our training methods.
We started our work in the round pen just to give him a chance to work off some nervous energy. We also
wanted to evaluate his lunging skills to determine our starting point in his training. He lunged pretty well and
eventually understood what we wanted. We want him to pay attention, show respect and follow our
commands.
We then moved on to tying him and working on his spooking issues. We were surprised to see the extent of
his fear over simple objects such as a saddle pad, hands waving in the air and just our physical approach.
We all have our work cut out for us! Time, patience and trust are going to be key issues in his training.
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Why do horses develop
"spooking" issues?
When a horse first comes to us
for training, we frequently don't
know their past or what may have
caused the spookiness. It's
possible that the horse may have
been mishandled by a previous
trainer. Sometimes the issue
never gets addressed if the horse
rides well. Lots of people think
"well, I can put up with a little
spookiness on the ground
because he's great in the
saddle!". Bottom line, it doesn't
really matter how we got to where
we are today. What's important is
that we know that he does have
some issues and we need to
address them. A horse that's
spooky on the ground with
inevitably be spooky under
saddle. Everything starts on the
ground and their ground
manners. If we don't first
establish trust and respect on the
ground, it's not likely that we're
going to get it under saddle.
The good news is that we have
lots of experience with nervous
horses and can help them learn
to deal with their fears. We can't
tell them not to be afraid. But we
can teach them a safer way to
respond and deal with their fears.
"spooking" issues?
When a horse first comes to us
for training, we frequently don't
know their past or what may have
caused the spookiness. It's
possible that the horse may have
been mishandled by a previous
trainer. Sometimes the issue
never gets addressed if the horse
rides well. Lots of people think
"well, I can put up with a little
spookiness on the ground
because he's great in the
saddle!". Bottom line, it doesn't
really matter how we got to where
we are today. What's important is
that we know that he does have
some issues and we need to
address them. A horse that's
spooky on the ground with
inevitably be spooky under
saddle. Everything starts on the
ground and their ground
manners. If we don't first
establish trust and respect on the
ground, it's not likely that we're
going to get it under saddle.
The good news is that we have
lots of experience with nervous
horses and can help them learn
to deal with their fears. We can't
tell them not to be afraid. But we
can teach them a safer way to
respond and deal with their fears.
UPDATE: Incognito is now standing
with a loose lead while we bridle and
saddle him. He has calmed down
100% and is beginning to trust. He
didn't move during the entire process
and is even learning to stand still while
being mounted. Our work isn't done,
but he is making huge strides! He isn't
as spooky as he was and he's learning
to "want to" be with his rider.
Great job Indy and Wanda - one of our
newest trainers.
with a loose lead while we bridle and
saddle him. He has calmed down
100% and is beginning to trust. He
didn't move during the entire process
and is even learning to stand still while
being mounted. Our work isn't done,
but he is making huge strides! He isn't
as spooky as he was and he's learning
to "want to" be with his rider.
Great job Indy and Wanda - one of our
newest trainers.
Indy and his trainer have been working on standing still at the mounting block for his
rider to mount. He no longer fears the mounting block and is now willing to stand as
his trainer prepares to mount. The next step is to add the saddle and mount!
Indy has always been very stiff when asked to flex to the left side. We realized that
this problem may be physical rather than emotional. We have set up an appointment
with a chiropractor for Indy to rule out physical discomfort. It's important during our
training sessions to listen to what our horse is trying to tell us. If our horse is in pain,
we can't expect him to perform the desired task. UPDATE: Indy had his visit to the
chiropractor. Please click here to see pictures of Indy getting his chiropractic
adjustment!
rider to mount. He no longer fears the mounting block and is now willing to stand as
his trainer prepares to mount. The next step is to add the saddle and mount!
Indy has always been very stiff when asked to flex to the left side. We realized that
this problem may be physical rather than emotional. We have set up an appointment
with a chiropractor for Indy to rule out physical discomfort. It's important during our
training sessions to listen to what our horse is trying to tell us. If our horse is in pain,
we can't expect him to perform the desired task. UPDATE: Indy had his visit to the
chiropractor. Please click here to see pictures of Indy getting his chiropractic
adjustment!
Now that we have Indys trust and he isn't as spooky, we're working him in the round pen with our buoys attached
to the saddle just to get him used to things touching his sides. This is to prepare him for the rider's leg.
to the saddle just to get him used to things touching his sides. This is to prepare him for the rider's leg.
Indy is just about ready for his
rider to mount. We've done all
our ground work and he now
understands flexing, giving to
pressure and disengaging his
hindquarters. We prepare our
horse with ground work so our
first ride will go more smoothly.
Since Indy had some pretty major
spooking issues, we wanted to
bring him along slowly so we don't
frighten him and end up back at
square one. Proper preparation
is the key to success! We don't
want to risk losing what we've
already accomplished.
rider to mount. We've done all
our ground work and he now
understands flexing, giving to
pressure and disengaging his
hindquarters. We prepare our
horse with ground work so our
first ride will go more smoothly.
Since Indy had some pretty major
spooking issues, we wanted to
bring him along slowly so we don't
frighten him and end up back at
square one. Proper preparation
is the key to success! We don't
want to risk losing what we've
already accomplished.