--- In BillsBook@yahoogroups.com, Russ Burns <burnsranch@...> wrote:
>
> "Pressure:

> Maybe you could say "excess of pressure" because that is what any of it is
> where it concerns a horse. What we're in hopes of is that people will want
> to learn about feel, and how to apply it in a way that a horse can
> understand it, and that word pressure has no part of that. Firmness with
> your better judgment has a place in some cases, and it all depends on so
> many variables as to how you would go about applying that firmness." PP346
>

This was a really great posting that I appreciated so much. For over a year I
have been working on re-educating a pony who has been nothing but dragged,
pushed, pulled, and whacked. I don't like the "pony stereotype", and think it
comes from people being even rougher and more thoughtless with them than with
full-sized horses because they can, because of their size.

I would like to comment on what constitutes "pressure". So many people are
starting to talk about "improving feel" - but they still wave flags around,
stare at one part of the horse's body to move it, swing halter ropes around, and
turn their horses into fences. Petting the face, blocking vision, and so many
other little ways of crowding horses we're no longer aware of is a lot of
pressure, and our emotions put pressure on the horses as well.

The fences are a big one. Of course most of us only have arenas and wooded
trails to ride in, so we get done as much as we can, but I recently moved from a
barn where the rut along the rail had to be constantly repaired because of the
endless circles people were riding along the fence. I have had the great
pleasure of moving to a farm with 200 acres of open fields perfect for riding
in. I have been able to work with so much more than I ever have before, having
grown up riding in a heavily forested region.

Following a clinic with Leslie last spring, I've really been working on
improving the feel of my seat through turns. Now that I don't have to turn my
horse because of the fence, I finally can feel so much more than I did and now I
understand some of her instructions better. It has been interesting to
periodically return to the arena, and to feel just how much the fence influences
my horse's responses.

I've also been working with some ponies who, in typical pony fashion, have been
nothing but pushed, pulled, yanked on, and whacked - because people could,
because they are little. Kind of like the kids that were mentioned. Working
with an unruly pony in the middle of an unfenced hay field has given me all
sorts of things to think about regarding feel - as well as a diconcerting
reminder of how much pressure I still fall back on.

Pam



Pam