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Trail Blazer Articles |
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Click the links below to read articles
written by Deb, and published in Trail Blazer Magazine.
| "The Round Corral - Torment or Release?" |
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To horse owners, the round corral can
be a bit of a mystery. We’ve all
seen them, some of us have used them, and yet few of us realize how
many things we can do with and in them. Why are they circular? How big
should they be? What are the benefits of using the round pen, and what
can you actually learn from it? (more...) |
| "Using Aids, Not Anger" |
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When I first started riding horses as a
child at
summer camp, I had numerous "learning experiences" that formed who I
was as a rider. Like the time my horse threw me into the cow pasture
when he wouldn’t stop: and the time when I was bucked off into the
fence breaking all the boards (not to mention my ego). Even in
competition I was unable to get my horse to go into the arena because
he was too scared to go into the roping chute (more...) |
| "What Part of Whoa Don't You Understand?" |
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Every horse, regardless of their breed,
needs a
good solid stop. Even if you’re not on a dead run away, the ability to
stop quickly is critical for the safety of both horse and rider. And
every equestrian sport, from cutting to dressage to jumping, requires a
horse to be able to stop when necessary (more...) |
| "Patterning as a Learning Device" |
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Because every horse is as different as
its rider,
each horse we meet presents us with unique challenges. From getting
them to leave the barn (alone or in company), to getting them to not
jig on the trail home, to asking them to load into a trailer, riders
get to tackle new challenges every day. It takes time, patience,
willingness and a lot of imagination to overcome behavioral problems,
in both our horses and ourselves (more...) |
| "Posture, Position, and Flexion on the Trail" |
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Most horse owners have 2 categories of
riding: in the arena and on the trail. People who ride in
the arena tend to be afraid to go out on the trail, and folks who trail
ride tend to be bored by arena work. But to have a truly sound and
well-rounded horse, both the arena and the trail can become tools to
teach safety, maintenance, and responsibility (more...) |
| "Control His Mind and the Rest Will Follow" |
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There is an old saying that goes "good
horses are partners, not pets". What every rider wants from their horse
is a relationship based on trust, communication and respect. Oddly
enough, this may be exactly what our horses want from us as well. But
how horses and riders attempt to achieve this common end is usually
different (more...) |
| "Dealing With the Jiggy Wiggy Horse" |
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Every experienced horse person will be
able to relate at least one story about a "jigging" horse, a negative
behavior that can be a mild annoyance at first but can be difficult to
change and therefore lead to greater problems down the trail. My own
jigging story began with a Quarter Horse mare, Truly Autumn (TA) (more...) |
| "Putting a Stop to the Dead Runaway" |
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It is every
rider’s worst fear: you are riding your horse and suddenly he bolts and
runs away with you. Sometimes its triggered by something the human does
(opening a can of soda, taking a jacket off) and sometimes its an
unfamiliar noise (a snapping twig) or object (a fallen tree) that
scares him into taking off with you (more...) |