"No Hype - Just Horse sense"

 

September/October 2008 Newsletter

• News from Cynthia
• Imprinting and Educating The Foal
• Introducing the New Light Rider English Bitless Bridle
• Barefoot Bits & Pieces
• How Magnesium Can Help Your Equine Cope With Grass
• Hay Feeders = less gorging and waste
• DVD Review - Wrangler Jayne's Relaxed Riding
• Subscriber News & Photos
• Web Site Reviews
• Book Review - Horsonality: an insight into Equine Behaviour
• Hynotherapy For Horsemanship
• Events News for Tasmania
• Calendar & Classifieds

News from Cynthia
These past couple of winter months I’ve been delving into books on horse communication and behaviour which has taken me on an amazing journey of discovery into what the horse truly is and what they want from us.
I have come to realise that it’s so important to consider what the horse wants above what we want from them if we are to have a truly beneficial relationship.

So much of what we’ve been taught through natural horsemanship methods has stressed the issue of leadership through dominance, but I now realise that leadership through understanding and respecting the horse as a sentient being is essential for their and our happiness. In other words a little bit of love goes a long way.
Two life changing books for me have been ‘One With The Herd’ by Liz Mitten Ryan and ‘Horses From Our Side Of The Fence’ by Sandy Lagno. I will review both these books in coming newsletters but if you want to read a bit about them beforehand, click on the link above.

Well winter is officially over in the southern hemisphere and the wattle blossoms are coming through which seems to signal the horses to start shedding hair. That also means the grass is starting to grow again and the combination of fresh growth and low night time temperatures will shoot sugar levels in grass high enough to affect pretty much all horses, especially those prone to laminitis – pretty much all horses!
Now is the time to put in your track to restrict access to grass, look into some anti laminitis supplements and keep up a regular exercise and hoof trimming schedule.
More details on these can be found below in the Barefoot Bits and Pieces section.

Another major focus for me lately has been developing and releasing the English version of the Light Rider Bitless Bridle. Have a look at my re-vamped Bitless Bridle Page for loads of info, articles and to see the new English style Light Rider – the best looking bitless bridle out there. There is also information on the new adjustable chinstrap and how to upgrade your existing Light Rider Bridle.

My book writing is progressing, albeit slowly, with information gathering and sorting causing me to review much of the work I’d already written. The amount of written information about equines is staggering, but I’m yet to find a book that encompasses all the up to date information on keeping, educating and understanding the needs of the horse. That’s what keeps me heading towards my goal of providing such a book.

Until next time you here from me, enjoy your horse and never stop learning and looking for better ways to be with them, Cynthia.

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IMPRINTING AND EDUCATING THE FOAL by Cynthia Cooper

Fortunately, many horse breeders now recognise the pay offs for spending time with the foal in the early days. And many like myself have also realised that socialisation and education is the most important part of human interaction, not the imprinting.
Although imprinting helps initially and forms a much stronger bond between foal and humans, it is not an issue if you aren’t there at the birth and miss that small window of opportunity.
In fact studies have shown that the mere presence of the human at birth, either passively or gently rubbing and touching the foal, is enough for acceptance of the human in the horse’s world. Frequency of time spent with the foal seems to be the vital element.

In those first few days and week, spending short periods with the foal many times a day, just being friendly and finding all their ‘itchy’ spots will encourage their natural curiosity. When the foal is confident with having you around and providing something they enjoy, then education to pressure and de-sensitising can begin. It may only take a few hours on the first day of frequent visits to reach the stage where the foal trusts you enough to allow things like a towel, or plastic bag rubbed all over it. De-sensitising to clippers, tarps and more can be part of your foal’s ongoing education and will be readily accepted if the foal trusts you first.

The quickest way to destroy any trust you have built is by reverting to the “I’m stronger than you” mode where you force the foal to accept anything, or any pressure.

They are a horse first and foremost and have the same reactions and responses of a wild horse. We must treat them with respect and not grab, push or pull them around just because we are stronger. This sort of education will teach the foal to push against pressure and will set up resistances both physically and mentally.

Good horsemanship starts by ‘asking’ the foal/horse with a mental picture of what we would like then to do. You can say it out loud if it helps - “Can we see if you can move backwards?” for example, would precede a light touch on the chest that becomes rhythmic pressure until the foal responds.
“Can we walk over there, back to mum?” - “Can I rub this halter all over you before I put it on?” - “Can you take one step this way?”.
Always ask…. only ever ‘tell’ if it’s a life threatening situation.

When you ask the question and are not in a hurry to get a response, the foal is given a chance to understand what you’re wanting. So often we are tempted to just grab that leg and lift it up because we can use our strength, or pull on that rump rope to move them forward, ….because we can.

Remember that you are not only training the foal to respond to pressure, you are training their attitude as well. Watch your foal’s expression – are they flicking their ears back or switching their tail at lot? If so, they are trying to tell you something – possibly to not be so rude or rapid with your requests. Many ‘imprint trained’ foals get a bad name for being pushy, dull or un-interested in their training because they learned to push back (reflecting your ‘pushiness’) or switch off totally.

By the time they are ridden, they can be so zoned out to their rider’s requests their apparent quietness turns into stubbornness, grumpiness or dullness.
Who wants a horse like that? Quietness yes, but I’d rather have respectfulness and responsiveness in my young horses while retaining the interest and enthusiasm for being with me.

A foal is strongly influenced by the mare, who ideally should trust you and be educated to the basics of being caught and handled herself before she has a foal.
Sadly, some people breed from a mare because she’s not good to handle or ride and this then sets up a pattern with the foal, of negative learned behaviour where humans are concerned. If your mare is worried about you, she will transfer that worry to the foal so it’s very important to develop the relationship with her too. She should also trailer load well and tie up, in order to be helpful when teaching the foal these things.
If the mare becomes over-protective (which is natural), then you will need to have a good yard to work in for the first week or two until she is not in the habit of running off with the foal whenever she sees you. Feed her in the yard and she will realise it’s a friendly place to be.

It is well worth spending time with the mare before she foals and then reinforcing things with her after the foal is born. It will make handling her in case of a
problem such as needing to be milked, veterinary attention and so on, that much easier.

Think carefully about the sort of education you are giving your foal. Look upon training a foal as a privilege and an opportunity to refine your horsemanship skills.
A foal is a blank canvas, brand new and ready to absorb everything we do with them, be that positive or negative. Above all, enjoy the wonder of having a new foal and the process of educating them.

For more information on educating foals and weaning, check the web site articles on www.naturalhorseworld.com/foalarticles.htm or get Cynthia’s Young Horse Education Double DVD set for just $45 through the Online Shop.

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INTRODUCING…. The Light Rider English Bitless Bridle

Check out the Light Rider Bridle page and updated Bitless Bridle page for more information, testimonials and articles on riding with a bitless bridle.

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BAREFOOT BITS & PIECES

TAFE Certificate 3 in Equine Hoof Care Graduates: Congratulations to Libby Franz from Mountain River TAS, Kaya Femerling from Mullumbimby NSW and Julie Scott from Meadow Heights VIC.

PROFILE: Julie Scott - In 2004 I enrolled at the National Collage of Traditional Medicine here in Melbourne to do the Equine Myofunctional Therapy course. I thoroughly enjoyed the course as it went into depth in anatomy and physiology of the horse which is something I have a keen interest in. I am also a qualified Animal Technician with an Associate Diploma in Applied Science which is a qualification that enables you to work with any species of animal in confinement such as zoo's, wildlife sanctuaries or medical research.

It was during the EMT course I was introduced to barefoot trimming and in theory this made complete sense to me so my own horses Doulton and Kate both had their shoes removed in 2004.

Once I started practicing EMT I soon realised that if the upper body problems were related to poor hoof form and hoof pain I was never going to fix the problem without addressing the cause, I was merely providing a temporary fix and temporary relief for the horse. I saw this in my own horse Doulton who has zero pain tolerance so if something wasn't right I'd know about it. Transition wasn't smooth for him but boy has that horse taught me a lot, four years later he is sound and happy.

I did a couple of weekend barefoot trim clinics and started to maintenance trim my own horses, then progressed to trimming friends horses, I then found myself totally obsessed with hooves and the first thing I did and still do is look at the hooves before looking at the horse and I don't pat them I feel their muscles. I decided that I need to follow this hoof trimming path to learn more about how the hoof works and how it effects the upper body. I enrolled in the Cert III Hoof care course at TAFE Tasmania in Oct 2007.

This course offered everything I needed to become a professional hoof care provider. I have the confidence in assessing conformation and movement, I am able to identify hoof pathologies and provide a trimming treatment plan, provide advice and support to owners considering the barefoot lifestyle for horses that have been shod long or short term and I can give advice on feeding and housing regimes for maximum hoof health. All of this is backed up by a fantastic support team from my extremely knowledgeable lecturers Cynthia Cooper, Jeremy Ford, Jen Clingly and Marg Richardson.

This course has also opened doors for me such as being invited back to Tassie to lecture to the June intake of Cert III hoof care students on how hoof pathologies effect the musculoskeletal system and I lecture at Box Hill TAFE in Melbourne on the benefits of natural hoof care to the Cert II Horse Care course.

All this satisfies my interest in anatomy and physiology and it enables me to provide a whole therapeutic package to these wonderful creatures that generously give so much to us...our beloved horses.

FEEDING THE HOOF
Diet is one of the most important aspects of horse health, but barefoot horses hooves reflect dietary issues more so. This is because they don't have shoes to mask seasonal hoof-related symptoms that can be attributed to dietary imbalance.
Some of these symptoms include ‘stress rings’, abscesses, tenderness on hard or rocky surfaces, white line separation, cracks in the hoof wall or bars and poor solar concavity.
If you’d like to learn more about how feed affects your horse’s hooves, read this new article on 'Feeding the Hoof' by Pete Ramey.

A new Paddock Paradise page has been added to the all-natural-horse-care website. Click this link to see how to keep your horses fit and healthy in a paddock paradise setup – this is one of the best examples available with maps and photos along with a detailed description.

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How Magnesium Can Help Your equine cope with spring grass.
In the spring when grass is growing faster due to an increase in rain, sunshine and sometimes fertiliser, it produces excess potassium. Potassium slows the uptake of magnesium which horses have a limited ability to store. Magnesium uptake can be aided by the presence of sodium which is why it’s important to have a salt lick available for your horse at all times, but especially so at times of rapid grass growth.

Modern day diets are often low in magnesium and the high stress lifestyle of some equines leads to an increased need for magnesium. Areas with acid soils and soft water may not provide enough Mg in water and soil for the needs of performance horses.

Magnesuim is a very important mineral. It helps regulate a number of body functions. As well as regulating moods and muscle function, it is essential in regulating some of the metabolic issues inherent in chronically foundered horses, such as blood sugar levels and thyroid.
A lack of magnesium has been blamed at least in part for a number of conditions including equine metabolic syndrome and obesity, both precursors to laminitis.

Though it is hard to overdose a horse on magnesium (they get diarrhoea when they get too much), it is important that magnesium and calcium are fed together since they "compete" for the same amino acids, be sure the horse is getting adequate amounts of both. If you feed Speedibeet which is high in calcium, or a small amount of lucerne chaff, that should balance it out.

Which form of magnesium?
Epsom salt magnesium is the least readily absorbed, although some of the magnesium does get taken up by the body so it can be useful in an emergency situation. Magnesium oxide is next in line. Magnesium oxide is the form found in most feeds because it is the cheapest. More digestible magnesium is in the "chelated" form, ie it has amino acids attached to make it more useable by the body. There are many different chelated magnesium products available and all are better than magnesium oxide in digestibility.

The magnesium in dolomite is as absorbable as that in magnesium oxide but the problem is calcium and magnesium share some absorption pathways and the body preferentially will take the calcium first. If the diet already has an excess of calcium, some of the absorption pathways will be blocked to both calcium and (as a secondary effect) magnesium. This is why it is best to use a pure magnesium supplement first when trying to correct a serious and longstanding magnesium deficiency. Once the symptoms have abated, you should then switch to a supplement program that contains both adequate magnesium and all other minerals in correct balance.

References: Equine Clinical Nutrition By Lon D. Lewis, Anthony Knight, Bart Lewis, Corey Lewis
Nutrient Requirements of Horses, Fifth Revised Edition, 1989 (1989)
Board on Agriculture.

You can purchase an organic chelated form of magnesium called Placide, from the Natural Horse World web shop.

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Hay Feeders = less gorging and waste

While doing a spot of web surfing, I found the site of Swedish hoof trimmer, Ove Lind who has put together an interesting selection of hay feeding options to enable 24/7 hay and to reduce gorging and wastage.
He says “I have found that as long as there is a limited supply of hay the horses tend to eat faster.
We will have to start feeding our horses again tomorrow even though we are in the middle of the grazing season and there is tons of grass out in the pasture. The heat has increased the number of mosquitos so much that our horses hardly leave their shelter during the whole day and when they come out they eat much to fast. So I filled one of their feeders and put it inside their shelter for them to eat while they are hiding in the darkness from the mosquitos”.

This is just one of many times throughout the year when horses need to have hay provided in a small area. For me, the motivation was to make the job of putting hay out daily for 10 horses much quicker and have less waste when it was wet and muddy.
For the first part of winter I was feeding our 5 times a day – in meal sized portions so the horses ate it all and didn’t tread the hay into the mud or mess in it.
Then it got hard to find areas where there was no manure or mud, so I had to come up with some other options.

The first idea came when I decied I had to reduce the number of times I fed them and this resulted in these hay baskets made from plastic fence trellis.
I could fit two meals in each one, they were safe, allowed the seeds to drop on the ground to regrow grass, and the horses didn’t scatter or waste any hay. Most importantly, the small 50 x 50mm holes slowed down their intake to match a more natural grazing pattern. It took them twice as long to eat their hay and they all adapted well, learning to stand on the basket with one foot so the hay came out easier without lifting up the basket.

But when the mud and manure took over the pasture, I decided to change back to my hay feeder boxes which I’d previously used but had abandoned due to the arguments and lack of sharing it caused.
The two horses lowest in the hierarchy always seemed to miss out so I had to find another solution.
Large barriers worked out to solve the issue perfectly. I drove two steel posts in, slid some large diameter PVC pipe I had over them to protect the horses and discourage them from rubbing on them (they have plenty of trees for that), and then tied a portable fence panel across to make two sides to the feeder.
I’ve since swapped the portable panels for shade cloth so I can use them elsewhere and that works just as well.

Inside the hay feeders, I have heavy duty mesh (the kind they use for making gates) clipped to the base with old rug clips on some baling string, so they can be easily removed for filling the hay, and to stop the horses tossing them out. The holes could be smaller but it works ok at the moment, keeping most of the hay in the feeders rather than being tossed out as they search for the tastiest morsels (which always seem to be at the bottom!).

Before next winter, I’ll add some gravel around the feeders to help with the mud/slipping when it’s really wet and this will also give them a dry standing space.
While researching hay feeders, I came across some interesting examples where feeding systems have been automated – some are very sophisticated and would definitely save time, giving you more opportunity to ride and maintain your horses. Have look at this site for some interesting ideas.
This site also has good thermographs of hooves/legs and Turf King hoofboots.

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DVD REVIEW – Wrangler Jayne’s Relaxed Riding Vol. 1

Wrangler Jayne’s Horsemanship With Heart Program now includes a 3 DVD set on riding. In this set Jayne introduces the foundation skills in the saddle, bareback and without a bit. She gives you detailed practical instruction that will build your confidence and help you be a gentler communicator. This DVD set is a continuation of the Horsemanship with Heart Essentials 1,2 & 3 series on groundwork, and like them is very professionally presented.
Jayne’s in depth instruction is enhanced by demonstrating herself, then shows how she teaches a student to do the same on a different horse.
The filming and sound quality is excellent and as she talks through everything so thoroughly, you could even play the DVD in your laptop near the arena – it would be almost the same as having Jayne right there with you!
Her enthusiastic style keeps you interested through over 3 hours of instruction – it’s probably best to watch one DVD then practice, before going onto the next one.
Topics covered include polite saddling, mounting, getting moving, turning, stopping, yields, backup, riding through poles and along the fence. For just $79 this 3 DVD set represents excellent value for money and definitely one for those wanting a good start in riding their horse naturally and bitless.

SPECIAL OFFER to Newsletter readers - get 20% off the retail price of $79 plus p/h. You will need to put "CYNTHIA" in the comments box to get the Discount. Go to www.wranglerjayne.com to purchase.

OR Win this DVD set by sending me the names of 2 or more friends you think might enjoy reading this newsletter. Entries close on the 30th of October.

Congratulations to Natalie Siggins - the winner of the Carlos Tabernaberri DVD – ‘Through The Eyes of The Horse’.

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WEB REVIEWS

FUN4PONIES.COM
This fun and colourful site promotes good horsemanship for kids with lots of pony games, daily tasks and fun learning activities.
Children (and adults) can test their knowledge with the games and pony quizzes online.
It’s a great way for them to learn more, have fun, stay safe, share pictures and stories about the ponies they know.
There are online lessons with pony videos, photos and sound and you can purchase
‘First steps with your pony’ – a book on CD about natural horsemanship for kids.
Kids can join for Free. (use pic of Eliza with ponies).

NATURAL DRIVING Simon Mulholland in the UK has invented the 'Saddle Chariot' and a way of driving any equine safely with more fun than you can ever imagine.
His sense of humour and gentle approach to horsemanship make this site a delight to explore, even if you’re not into driving. In fact, once you’ve finished, you might be tempted to try his Saddle Chariot with its unique quick release system, especially if you have ponies too small for you to ride.
Simon and his Australian agent, Jackie, will be coming to Tasmania in the near future to demonstrate the saddle chariot so watcvh this space for more news!

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BOOK REVIEW – Horsonality – an insight into Equine Behaviour by Andy Beck.

If you wanted just one book on horse behaviour this is the one!
But it doesn’t just cover behaviour as such – it goes into how our choices regarding the way horses are kept, fed and ridden, affects their behaviour.
Andy raises many questions and while showing how he feels horses prefer to interact with humans and each other, he leaves it up to the reader to decide which way is best for them.
All the information is provided for you to make good choices for whatever you want to do with your horses and how best to keep them physically, mentally and emotionally healthy.
Andy relates his discoveries of herd behaviour over a 15 year period of studying two herds, a foundation group, and their progeny, in a relatively natural environment in New Zealand so this book will be of particular interest to the breeder.
I found it invaluable in understanding how horses live, behave with each other and how their social structure works within a herd. Knowing things like how a horse has its own personal space and who it allows into that space for what periods of time can be valuable in our interactions with them.
This wonderful E-Book has many photos and diagrams to illustrate everything from environment, safe fencing, treeless saddles, bitless bridles, body language and herd interactions. It has a comprehensive bibliography at the end of each chapter and is filled with interesting insights so we can truly get to know the horse as a unique species.
The contents list below gives you an idea of the wealth of information contained in the 200 plus pages of this E-book that comes so highly recommended by me that I’m selling it through my web shop for just $29.
Chapter headings:
~Evolution
Domestication and Tameness.
~Foundations of psychology and behaviour.
~The Equine family.
~The bachelor group – making of a stallion.
~Behaviour and enclosure management.
~Body Language – Kinesics and Proxemics.
~Training and the psychology of learning.
~The tack we fit; gadgets and gimmicks or the paraphernalia of servitude?
~Welfare, Ethics and Rights, Work and the 5 Freedoms.

To read some articles related to the book go to www.equine-behaviour.com or to purchase go to the Natural Horse World Web Shop.

Not sure about E-Books?

E Books are essentially books available online or on a CD in PDF format ready to print. They bring the cost of the book down considerably as you’re not paying for expensive printing, binding and distribution.
They allow you to read your book on the computer, on a book reading device such as a ‘Kindle’ (see www.amazon.com) or to print it out and have it spiral bound.
I’ve found the easiest and cheapest solution to printing it (much easier to read and refer back to) is to print double sided (saves paper) and then laminate the front and back covers and spiral bind it at the local post office, print shop or library.
This usually costs about $10 all up in paper, ink and binding and still results in a very presentable readable A4 book.

Some E-Books are also available through the Print On Demand (POD) process and this gives you a professional looking book at a similar price to regular printed books. The only difference is each book is digitally printed as it’s ordered which has to be better for the planet in terms of less waste from large print runs that may not all sell.

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HYPNOTHERAPY FOR HORSEMANSHIP

For the last twelve months Linda Gulbrandson has been studying for a Diploma of Clinical Hypnotherapy, and has recently finished the course. She is excited about the relevance some of the strategies have to the Comfort Zone model. Linda noticed that an NLP (neurolinguistic programming) technique could incorporate this principle beautifully and would therefore be useful for anyone who wanted to overcome negative feelings associated with their riding. Other riders and handlers could benefit enormously from hypnotherapy, whether the issues are performance or emotional issues. Many of us are familiar with feelings of nervousness around horses, even though we dearly love to spend time with them. Sometimes we feel frustrated because the dream seems so far away from actuality.

A frequently asked question is, "What is Hypnosis"? Answer - Hypnosis is a type of awareness that involves an alteration in the experience of consciousness. We become inwardly absorbed in an experience and distanced from our normal perceptions, thoughts and feelings, and responsive to suggestions that are in our interest to pursue. In the safety and comfort of the therapy room it's possible to deal with the emotional issues that are hindering our horsemanship.

If you believe this service could benefit you, please contact Linda for details. Appointments are available Wed, Thurs, Fri, and Sat am, but if someone can only come at another time, I will do my best to accommodate that.

The price of a hypnotherapy session is $70 which is in line with other therapists in the building. That is for an hour plus. No extra charge for time over the hour, even if it goes well beyond that.
Linda’s therapy room is on the corner of Elizabeth and Charles Street, Launceston, above "Gifts of the Earth".
For more information ot to make an appointment talk to Linda Gulbrandson - phone 0418140971 or email me at nazarenelily@hotmail.com
Check out her website at www.lindagulbrandsonhypnotherapy.com

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Subscriber News & Photos

Zilla's Niobe in the snow at Mount Seymour - a common event this winter.

Cowboy Puss (Smudge) belongs to Lisa Marie and enjoys riding Sharni.

Takira and her goat friend Püppi who often enjoys a ride.

Karen's Bluey prefers to load backwards when he was asked to try out some other horse floats at the Comfort Zone day. I guess it's quicker to get out if you're facing that way!

Michelle Dennis is an incredible hosrsewoman - pictured here with her old faithful -Stormy who Michelle saved as a yearling and turns 20 this year.

Michelle with 'the magnificent seven'!

Watch some wonderful video of Michelle playing with her horses at www.firehorseinspirations.com.au