My horse Tokia picked it up very quickly. Walking, stopping. She was taking one extra step so I schooled her back. Then I took off running and she pulled back like the video. By the 3rd time I took off running she ran right next to me with her nose at my shoulder.....It was the most wonderful feeling. I stopped and so did she.
She is having trouble with backing up but I was cool, Monty said they aren't naturally inclined to back up. I was satisfied with one or two steps back.
After her training I let her loose in the barn with me while I was writing in my journal. She came up to me and checked on me while I was writing and then wandered off to look for hay on the floor. I was finishing up and she walked up to me then stuck her nose in the trash can, I looked her in the eye and held my hand up palm out and she walked away. I talked to her in her own language. I talked Equus and she understood....Nice.
It feels so awesome, its like she has been talking in tongues to me all these years and now we're becoming friends again, and the communication gap has broken wide open!!
Just think, you are only experiencing the very tip of a very large iceberg. Karyn, I think you should look up the MUST SEE thread and watch that Youtube link posted there. Just to fuel your imagination, just try to imagine doing everything you did today (including backing up) with hardly a motion from your hand, without any halter, bridle or lead rope connecting you and Tokia...
What a lovely description karyn, it is a wonderful moment when we finally realise we are having the same conversation with our horses ;)
Lost soul.....no bridle???? Wow, I'll go look at it.
You are so right Vicci.
Well said Soul - the more people who are aware of the wonderful relationships possible with our horses if WE JUST LISTEN to them the better. Keep on learning Karyn as that is the best we can do for our equine friends. Cheers Jan
It really is humbling the first time they back up when all you do is make a small hand gesture, and I speak from experience.
You should really try riding sometime without tack, too, especially by moonlight. It puts a whole new meaning to the word trust.
And griffo.girl, it is simply amazing the number of people that never seem to understand that all you have to do is listen.
I'm still waiting for that first step back with only a hand gesture. But she is taking several steps back with her new dually halter now after the third day of exercises with her. She is pushing me back with her nose when I have her back up. So I make her take another step or two back after she does that. Still working with her ground manners, she still wants to bump into me and things that aren't cool. I have been having knee problems and want to get her ground manners better, and she needs to be able to go out in the park without trying to boss me around. I put away all my questionable tack, rope halters and cribbing collar and that iron looking curry comb, and the hair brush I have been using on her to groom her. I'm in the process of retraining myself.
Don't worry, and relax. After all of the mistakes I made with Beamer, it took almost 2 months to get him to quit biting me with the intent of causing injury. Be gentle and have a lot of patience. But before you hide the metal curry comb and the brush, remember its all about the hands that hold the tool. Beamer absolutely loves to have me brush his mane and tail with a metal brush. He will stand there as longer than you will brushing him, especially his tail. And I actually use a reasonably loose fit rope halter on him instead of a dually. Another surprising tool that I use is a crop. I use it as an extension of my arm, and NEVER to hit. The lightest touch is more than enough for communicating what you want. Remember that a horse can easily feel a mosquito land on them anywhere at any time, so be very gentle with an arm extension. A small diameter but reasonably long stick or lunging whip works well too. It just needs to be flexible.
Your approach to backing up is the same as what I used. I would say that Tokia trusts you, but she just needs to realize that she needs to respect you. Like I said, though, all good things come with time, and sometimes it happens faster than you expect.
She loves being brushed, and likes to be prettied up with braiding and messing with her tail and mane. I have some trouble with other horses making a mess out of her mane and it is so uneven i trimmed it last night....tried not to go any shorter than i had to to get it even, and its still long enough to put it in pony tails yet. Beamer sounds like a great horse!
He is....strange, and oftentimes a little too much like his caretaker.
Another thread you may be interested in is the Introductions thread under the Listening Lounge. You will find it most interesting, I think....
Praise for the Dually! I finally got mine and was able to use it for the first time. I had several goals in mind starting with improving Harry's leading and ending with solving a problem with the wash rack. Harry would not enter it willingly. To keep the energy down for the last couple of times I had resorted to bribing (something I and the trainer both did not want to do). Well leading was Harry and my intro to the dually and it did take a little adjustment to get the right fit. We then worked on lead position for about 20 min working backing as well as forward and he got it. Harry is 11 and had been trained to lead at his shoulder. Since he had a tendency to run to grass, he could easily push past me and shove me aside. With the dually he got the idea very quickly and we were on our way to the real problem area, the wash rack. It only took two lead ins and he had it. After about another eight or so, I switched the lead from schooling to standard halter and he came in without a fuss at all. This has proven to me that we can beat the problems back without a lot of anger or energy. I will reinforce the lesson over the next two days, but expect all to be great.
Good for you, I'm glad all is going well with your new dually.