Young Horses

This past month, I have had the opportunity to start training with Angela Jackson. Angela trains out of Rhine River Farm in Henderson, KY, which is only two hours away from Paducah. Since she is so much closer, I am able to train with her weekly, which is really going to help me as I continue up the levels. However, instead of trailering Cody to Henderson once a week, she has allowed me to start working with her young horses- which is incredible. I have never ridden a horse younger than the age of 9, so being able to work with these talented, young animals will boost my education to the next level as I plan to bring up a young horse in several years. I have learned so much in just five lessons of working with young/green horses. 

To begin with, young horses work so much more differently than an educated eight year old. Everything you do with them is different: they way you ride them, the way you warm them up. Both their bodies and minds are not fully developed so training them must be approached in a welcoming manner. Not only must you keep them working and moving forward in their career, but you HAVE to keep them interested. You have to break things down to the most simple way possible so that they can understand and achieve new things without feeling confused or over faced, as confidence is the main part of training any horse. You have to handle things in a quiet manner while regaining their attention and keeping them focused. So, while remembering all of this, you must continue to train the horse in the most pleasant and enjoyable way possible. 

Especially with these young horses, you have to be patient, which includes a lot of- what some might call- "boring" work. Despite the fact that you may be just trotting around the arena, working on getting the four year old to follow the bit, is so much more beneficial to them than jerking their heads down and drilling the halfpass. It is necessary that with these young horses, that we teach them willingly. Jerking and forcing them into a "frame" does nothing but create a horse that must always be ridden with force. It is all about giving, with these youngsters. Yesterday, I rode Figaro- a four year old- completely above the bit, yet he still carried himself correctly, using his back and sitting through the haunches. Forcing any horse, for that matter, is not necessary, nor is it correct in any way. 

Quote from the British Horse Society:

 In order to properly develop a FEI horse, you must take into consideration the time and patience that goes into these horses. Just like Angela has said: "We have all of these FEI quality young horses, but no riders". This is because not just anyone can develop and train a young horse, it takes a certain amount of experience and patience- that not very many people have. It takes, easily, two years to train a young horse to eagerly follow and reach for the bit- many people want to cut corners and make it one year. The US needs young riders to show an interest in bringing up these quality young horses, for the future of US Dressage. 

Fortunately, there has been a growing awareness of the necessity of well educated Young Horse trainers/riders. I have recently seen a great article in the USDF Connection about the works of a Young Horse. These youngsters are blank canvases and must be treated with the utmost care and focus in order to create a beautiful piece of art. Take the German Young Horse program for example- the reason why they do so well and the scores keep getting higher, is because of the abundance of well educated Young Horse riders. In order for the future of US Dressage to be secure- and it has been improving tremendously in the past ten years- the young horse stock must not only have movement and quality, but talent under saddle, which can only come from a well educated rider. 

Do What Makes You Happy

Two whole months, am I crazy? Two whole months and I haven't even thought about a blog post! Fortunately enough, I did have one already written out, so I just had to tweak it and post it. However, a lot has happened this month, we moved Cody back home for the winter and I started working with a trainer much closer to home- so I will be able to lesson weekly and continue riding everyday. But, this time I promise to write at least twice a month, no excuses. Now that Cody is home, I can start writing about his training and plans for the future, as well as any other horse that joins the journey.

These past few months I have been plagued with the question of what makes me happy. For some people, plagued may not be the right word, but it is all in how you look at it. I've wanted to write about this for quite sometime, but I just haven't had the courage to post it. This is a very controversial topic for some people, but I feel that this is something that many need to realize. I know that I'm not the only one faced with this problem, which is why I chose to write about this. Many young riders go through these same phases of questions almost everywhere they go. So, I hope I can shine some light for those that are having the same problems.

It seems like everywhere I go and everyone I meet, people are asking me the same question: what do I want to do when I grow up. Well, that's easy. I want to go Professional with this sport. I want to represent my country at the Olympics and WEG, I want to give clinics around the globe, I want to train Dressage horses for a living, and I want to do this everyday for the rest of my life. But, for most people, that's not the answer they are looking for. They want to hear "Doctor, Veterinary, Lawyer, ect.". This has been something that I have had to deal with for quite some time, and I don't understand how people are telling you to "do what makes you happy in life", yet making it unacceptable to do so. 

Ever since I was four and I started riding horses, I wanted to go to the Olympics. Which, all adults thought was pretty cute- thinking that I would grow out of it in a few years. No, unfortunately for them- and eleven years later- I still want to do exactly the same. Why? Because it has always made me happy, I love what I do. Reading, riding, studying, everything is Dressage. So why not continue doing what makes me happy while taking it to the next level. I still am faced with the "oh that's cute" or the "rethink that in a few years" response when they hear my plans. But, it's never going to change. 

Some have even offered up the idea of continuing on to get a job while competing as an AA. But, sitting in a cubicle or work office all day is not at all what I associate with happiness. There is not a job in the world that would make me happier than training and bringing up horses. Happiness, to me, is waking up at 5 a.m. to feed, clean stalls and tack, then continue to ride and train horses until it is time to feed again. On the occasions that I have groomed for trainers, I was up to feed at 5:30 and I stayed until 10 at night untacking and hand walking horses- and I could not have been happier. There are so many people in the job world who do not enjoy their job or just hate what they do; life is too short to be counting the hours until you can go home. I don't want to become one of those people, I want to move mountains and make things happen, not calculate numbers and wait until it's time to leave. 

With that being said, everyone should pursue what they love, even if it is deemed unacceptable. The world would be so much happier if everyone was excited to go to work. At the end of the day, it is our happiness at stake and our life ahead of us. If you have a passion for something, nothing is more exciting than to wake up just to do what you love.