Monday, October 26, 2009

VIDEOCLIP Meet Isaac 3 -- Overcoming Challenges of Pulling & Bolting (Working With A Float Using Feel and Release)

Meet Isaac... Isaac is a 13 yr old Quarter Horse. He is super quiet, right until he isn't... He has a history of pulling and running away.


In Part 3, Karen continues teaching Isaac to follow the float in her rope. The lead-rope is equivalent to the inside rein in these exercises, so she also teaches him about following softness offered in a rider's rein later. "Feel and Release" follows the philosophy of less is more, demonstrated here as Karen accesses Isaac's mind to help him gain confidence about following direction with her in his right eye.


Ironing this tightness out is pretty important, because when his owner rides him, he can see her in both eyes. The kind of tightness he shows about Karen operating from his right side likely contributes to the "short fuse" he has had under saddle.




Posted by at
Labels: , , , , , , , , ,

3 comments:

  1. Andrea O.October 26, 2009 at 3:18 PM

    I really enjoy your videos with Isaac (was wondering why the fist one is not on youtube, but now I found it here).
    Do you have advice, how one can practice the moving off from fenceposts, stones, plants, etc.? I do understand the concept, but was wondering if there is something like body-position/-language that does assist, or some other way how a person and horse can start working on this together.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Karen MussonNovember 5, 2009 at 11:20 PM

    Hi Andrea -- thanks and welcome!

    The key to this is really in the moment(s) before the release off the fencepost etc., meaning in the observation of where he is in his mind, where his feet are, where his weight is... does he feel accessible?

    If the horse's weight is tipped over the forehand (as Isaac's was at the start of this session), a release like this will be challenging without first freeing the shoulders, so that he can move all of his feet with some genuine lightness.

    If the horse is "available" in this way, the release is mostly an expression of clear intent about space, with sureness, relative to the maneuver you ask of the horse and where you'd like him to take his feet.

    I hope this is helpful!

    KM

    ReplyDelete
  3. Andrea O.November 8, 2009 at 11:29 AM

    Thank you Karen,
    yes, your answer did help me a lot. Looking forward to read more on your blog :-)

    Andrea

    ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)