IAABC 2012 Why Do Ground Work? A Little Work That Garners BIG Results Most of us have horses because we LOVE LOVE LOVE to ride. Ground Work sometimes seems not only boring, but unwieldy and sometimes even dangerous!

Making Ground Work with our horses count does not mean just a better horse on the ground, but transfers to BIG results under as well.

Being an eclectic type, I have found that the principles of AND of Clas- sical In Hand Work are not only complementary, but also accomplish different types of education with your horse. I cannot imagine using one to the exclusion of the other at this point.

Using Natural Horsemanship and the principles and exercises of can make your horse safer. But better yet, it can improve your relationship with your horse - and bring a satisfaction of achievement.

But wait - there’s more! Ground Work improves your under saddle work in every way. It fixes problems before they start. It teaches YOU about biomechanics of the equine and about how your body affects your horse in a way that you do not “get” when you are only ever in the saddle.

I will use film and photographs to demonstrate Ground Work exercises that you can teach your own horse so you, too can discover the secrets of horsemanship that only Ground Work can teach you!

What Does Ground Work Do For Me?

I use Natural Horsemanship & Classical Dressage techniques to: ✴ Establish a trusting, mutually respectful relationship ✴ Learn about my horse’s innate reactions ✴ Turn reactivity into responses ✴ Improves ALL under saddle work

I use Natural Horsemanship techniques specifically to: ✴ Make my horse safer ✴ Learn about my horse’s comfort levels ✴ Discuss personal space and flight/fight behaviours ✴ Learn about the species! ✴ Improve my timing ✴ Learn how to implement an Escalating Cue System ✴ Learn how to bring my energy (and the horses’ energy) up and down ✴ Teaches the horse not to worry about “pressures” and become reactive, instead to think and look for an answer (respond) ✴ Discover the finer points of desensitization - In my mind, this is the true genius of Natural Horsemanship I use Classical Dressage techniques specifically to: ✴ Educate my horse about the ✴ Teach lateral work and body awareness ✴ Teach the rider about biomechanics of the horse’s body ✴ This work taught me what actually do - from the horse’s point of view ✴ Learn the meanings (although not always the pronunciations of...) many French and German words ✴ Improve my compassion and understanding for the gymnastic work my horse does

Don ’ t Be Scared. If I Can do This - You Can Do This! When you delve into these topics at all, first you will end up much more confused that you star- ted!

As far as Natural Horsemanship goes, some people like Buck Brannaman and some prefer Clin- ton Anderson and some swear by the Parelli Program. They are all excellent programs, it is more a matter of deciding whose program you feel most comfortable with - or you can mix and match, like I tend to do.

Because my end goal is to do lovely classical Dressage, the Ground and In Hand Work takes on a more faceted meaning. In Dressage, the Work In Hand and the Work Under Saddle are quite in- tricately interwoven.

If you are interested in Work In Hand (Dressage-style) the information tends to start with the skill level of a Grand Prix Master required. So that can be a bit more discouraging! It also seems to be a lot more difficult to find resources for this work. It is almost as if the information is pro- tected by the Secret Dressage Societies and is not to be released to us lowly mortals who are not FEI riders. ; )

I had not “done” Dressage for very long, when it dawned on me that I will probably never rise above mediocrity. In fact, sometimes just the researching of Dressage and Classical Work In Hand is enough to put people off. The language and the anal-retentive detail can be very off-put- ting. However, take heart! There are plenty of us out there, struggling along with average horses, average body types and few funds. The Olympics look like way too much pressure for me any- way! (Lucky for me, the pressure is off. No one is recruiting me for the Olympics.)

The important point though is that we can have loads of fun with the journey. I am having the time of my life learning more about animal training via the Ground Work. I am working short, rather chubby Morgans (who seem quite impossible to fit a saddle to properly) in- stead of the tall and more traditional Warmblood generally chosen for Dressage work. My Mor- gans are actually an advantage for some of the Ground Work because I am not very tall - and am getting, well, long in the tooth. (Discovering I was old enough for the Vintage classes and awards, well, need I say more? I had one instructor tell me that the horse I was riding at the time would stop and running into the next county with me, when my core muscles were stronger. She was history. Let’s face it, at my age, my core muscles are only ever going to get worse, not better. She needed a more advanced tool box than that to help me out! Just a small les- son popped in there in regards to finding a good instructor...If they sound snotty and superior, get rid of them.)

Nonetheless, I win my share and lose my share, pretty much like everybody else. My fat ponies occasionally show up to beat the fancy Warmbloods, and my friends with Quarter Horses and Ar- abians do the same. Horses and their unpredictability have a lovely way of evening up the board. Plus, I figure, just because you can afford a fancy Warmblood doesn’t mean, necessarily, that you can ride it well. Whereas my fat ponies, with their excellent education in Ground Work actually can have a bit of an edge - and so does their rider, armed with the information she has gleaned from all this Ground Work.

I have many DVD’s and books and have perused their contents in detail not just a few times, but quite literally hundreds of times. I read or watch a little section, then go get a horse and try to fig- ure it out. Thank goodness horses are, for the most part, patient teachers. By their reactions, re- sponses and even with my fumbling, dropping , tangling us up in lines and leads and occa- sionally falling over (okay, getting knocked down by the previously referred to “patient teacher”) while working In Hand, I have gained a priceless education in equine (and human) psychology and biomechanics. I have also increased my understanding of Positive and Negative Reinforce- ment and these experiences have enhanced my dog training efforts in myriad and wonderful ways.

Roots - The Origins Of Ground Work

Remember, Natural Horsemanship begins and ends with safety, mutual respect, trust and loving your horse as a partner. These techniques were developed by working cowboys and ranchers. They had a job to get done, so there is a lovely practicality and simple elegance about these exer- cises. Often a ’s very life depends upon how well-trained the horse is and how well the horse thinks of him! The horses were working specifically around unruly cattle and used to con- trol the cattle, as well as for transportation. Unruly cattle and unruly horses are an extremely poor mix, so these folks were very motivated to have reliable and “thinking” horses. Classical Work In Hand developed alongside Work Under Saddle. It’s origins are very old, and the first treatise on classical horsemanship and the horse as a partner, rather than as an adversary was written by Xenophon around 438 BC. After Xenophon, horsemanship entered a dark age and it was finally with de la Gueriniere, a French nobleman, that published “Ecole de Cavalerie” in 1730 that modern Classical Dressage was born. Again the horse was treated with respect and love and as a partner. While Dressage is often presented as the original training for war horses, it is most often thought of as a living art form by classicists.

Where I am attempting to go with this, is that Classical Dressage was not for the commoners, so to speak, in its early history. It was an art form, practiced by those who had plenty of time and money to spend on determining burning questions such as whether a shoulder-in on four tracks was superior to a shoulder-in on three tracks, biomechanically, for the purposes of gymnasticiz- ing a horse. This is, by the way, an argument that is still going on today, centuries later, amongst the elites in Dressage. Just for your information, the classicists say four tracks and the “competi- tion” people say three tracks. Just for fun, in the competition ring, they want a travers in four tracks (easier for the judge to see), whereas some (not all) of the classicists prefer the travers on three tracks because it places the horse less on the forehand. This argument is still raging on with the same vigor and intensity as in the 1700’s.

So we have 2 rather separate bodies of knowledge, evolving for different reasons, but like all great animal training minds, there are similarities in the thought patterns of the trainers and in what is being accomplished and there are basics that are common. For instance, everyone is working on a principle of Negative (application of and release of pressure) and Positive Reinforcement (social approval, stroking and treats).

Ground Work Is For Everybody!

In the end, it doesn’t matter whether you are a trail-Riding afficianado, riding Reining horses, Jumping or working at Dressage: Ground Work is for everybody... And no one explains that bet- ter than those who are skilled at Natural Horsemanship. Even the most basic Ground Work makes horses better, improves relationships and understanding and most important for all of us who wander blissfully through life acting as if working around 1200 pound, flight/fight based creatures with a brain the size of our fist is a natural thing to do - it makes our horses safer and more predictable. It creates the trust needed to control spooky equines and the authority to live around willful equines. Since we have absolutely no hope of out-muscling a horse, we must be mindful of his mind and his size and create an atmosphere of willing cooperation. Otherwise, you will never get by that mailbox! My first motivation to do Ground Work, other than basic line driving prior to hitching a horse, came when I got Mick. Mick was lovely, peppy and would have been a great mount for me if had still been 25. Unfortunately, I was old and fat and out of shape and hadn’t ridden seriously for many years (childbirth, and the insanity of raising said baby - now a lovely young woman and useful member of society). Each and every ride with Mick was sort of like a real-life horror flick. He waited until you were relaxed and confident. Then he would startle violently and bolt. The only way to stop him was with a pulley - or as I would now call it: a One Rein Stop. I took him to a couple of Dressage trainers, and quite frankly, they had no clue what to do with him. Granted these were not high level Dressage Masters, but still the best I could find in my area. Discouraged and terrified, I did some research and got a Clinton Anderson Tape and some Parelli Tapes. (Whoops, dating myself again - now I buy DVD’s.)

These quite literally changed my life with horses - and with my canine friends, too. I learned more about fight/flight behaviours and desensitization and how to manipulate pressures that were real and imagined (by both of us: horse - or dog - & handler).

The basic tenets of Natural Horsemanship are: ✴The horse is a flight-based animal ✴Horses tend to be very reactive ✴Horses are born cowards - they are afraid of everything that moves; or doesn’t move; or that changes locations; or appearance; or anything that makes a noise ✴The things they are not afraid of they will pretend to be afraid of out of habit ✴Horses are extremely claustrophobic ✴ Horses are addicted to forward motion & You better be having conversations with your horse about this stuff or you are going to get hurt or killed.

This type of Ground Work begins with programs of desensitization and sensitization, carefully separated and ping-ponging back and forth from one to the other until you find a good balance. Each temperament of horse may require a different balance here, and you can experiment with the exercises to find the right combination for your own individual horse.

Two Important Concepts To Have Clearly In Your Mind:

Desensitization ✴Release the pressure when the horses feet are still... and look for one further sign of relaxa- tion:

licking & chewing

head lowering changes in breathing

Sensitization ✴Release the pressure when the horses feet are moving

Equipment

✴ String (available on Downunder Horsemanship website & Parelli website. You can find “knock-offs” cheap, but they are not nearly as nice as the above listed ones.) ✴ 12’ (again refer to the above websites. Their Leads & Longe lines are yachting rope that has a lovely feel in the hand and a life that aids your signals) ✴ 30’ Longe Line ✴ Stick & String

The Basic Exercises

✴ Basic Desensitization (Parelli Equivalent: The Friendly Game) ← Rope ← Stick & String ✴ Yield The Hindquarters ✴ Backing Up ← Wiggle Walk Wave & Whack (Clinton Anderson) ✴ Yield The Forequarters ✴ Point & Go ✴ Flexes with the halter ✴ Circle Driving (Parelli Equivalent: The Circling Game) ← Point & Go ← Yield & Go ← Step in front of the drive line ← Karen Rohlf’s Melt to a Stop in lieu of Yielding the Hindquarters ✴ Sidepassing on the Wall ✴ The Squeeze Game (Parelli)

The basic tenets of Classical Work In Hand are: ✴ The horse needs to be educated systematically and with consideration for his nature ✴ The sign of a talented rider is that he thinks like the horse ✴ The horse should be a cheerful collaborator and partner ✴ A horse must be worked in dressage in order to strengthen his body appropriately to carry the weight of the rider ✴ Work In Hand makes lessons Under Saddle easier for the horse ✴ There is a pyramid of training, each lesson is carefully built on this foundation & Riding and Work In Hand are an art form. It is important to be anal-retentive - whoops - I mean attentive to details, elegant and to always keep the understanding of biomechanics of horse and rider foremost in your mind. The purity of the gaits is everything! You are nothing! The horse is noble, your teacher and your friend. There is nothing finer than collaborating with this noble beast, blessed by God himself.

Different Kinds of Classical Work In Hand

Work on the longe line - this is commonly done using a and Work with long reins Work according to the Iberian School (Short Reins) Training in hand according to the Viennese School ( in Vienna) includes Short Rein work, but mostly work on shortened long reins using a surcingle Work on Free Long Reins

I just tossed that in to show you I did my research. What I have done is sort of pick and choose exercises from a variety of schools. I am reasonably certain that some of the stuff I do no one (well at least a Dressage Master) would recognize, but it has still been of great service to me and has still benefitted both my horses and myself.

Equipment

✴ Cavesson (available on Dover website & various other websites. I prefer the Vien- nese sort of Cavesson, which is harder to find but can be found on www.equuslibris.com and some other baroque or iberian tack websites. The easier thing to find here in the states is a Micklem , which Dover has.) ✴ Regular length Bridle Reins for Work in Short Reins ✴ If you wish to do long or doppelganger lining, you will need to get long lines. They can be anywhere from 15’ to 30’. (These can be found in many tack stores, web sites, etc.) ✴ I made some lines from mountain climbing rope that I really like. One set is 15’ end-to-end and the other is 22’ end-to-end. They are looped, rather than open and I put snaps on either end to hook to the Micklem bridle or the bit. Some instructors do not like snaps and say you must have leather reins with buckles or you are not getting the proper “feel.” They are, I am sure, picky for a reason, but I was short on cash, so these are working pretty good for me. (Real Dressage People never admit they are short on cash, so that might help you to classify me...) ✴ Eventually you can use your bridle with a to do some of these exercises, but at that point you better have your s*** together. Forgive me, my plebeian background emerges mo- mentarily, this is an elegant pursuit - You had better be nearly perfect in your execution of the exercises and control of your own body. The mouth of the horse is not just physically sensit- ive but also a very emotionally charged area for the horse. So do be careful and considerate, and exact in your technique before you use the bridle for any exercises. ✴ Some whips. Well, I have quite a collection. I sometimes use a 39” or a 43” for Short Reins and Free Long Reins. You will probably want also a piaffe-length whip of about 60” at some point. I really like the whips I got from www.imagineahorse.com . They have a little ball on the end instead of a lash. My horses much prefer them and they are much more ver- satile for cueing. I do not like “whippy” whips, but prefer very stiff ones, as they transfer the amount of pressure you want to use much more on a 1:1 ratio. The whippy-whips can some- times take your cue and transfer it closer to a 20:1 ratio. So a stiffer whip gives a better feel and when you have a lower error rate, you are less likely to get kicked by an irritated horse who felt you were a bit unfair with the amount of pressure! When I do not use the whips with the funny balls on the end, I use the kind that has a flat leather flap rather than a lash. You have to look a bit for these, but they are around. Dressage Extensions and Dover Saddlery both have some. ✴ Mirrors or a ground person. It will take longer to learn some of the Classical In Hand exer- cises without the benefit of one of these two items. I am thinking mostly of when you are working to get an exact angle on the shoulder in or travers, it is awful handy to have even one mirror so that you can see the results of what you are doing with the reins, whip and your body position. Not impossible without mirrors, just easier! Do try this stuff even if you don’t have mirrors. You will start to get a good feel of when the horse is “falling away” from you and when you are over-bending the neck if you proceed slowly and pay attention. But mir- rors are super fine feedback if you have access to them. ✴ Vet wrap. I use this to tie up the tail. If you are doing anything other than Short Rein work, braid the tail up and wrap it. Tangling the whip in the horse’s tail, for instance as you are crossing behind them, or having the lines tangle in or underneath the horse’s tail, is a bit like crossing the streams in the movie, Ghostbusters. Not good.

The Basic Exercises

I would first like to explain that I much prefer the Natural Horsemanship Circling exercises to any sort of longeing that I have ever done or seen done. It gives the horse a lovely freedom and teaches him to balance on his own, preparing him to be in self-. Also, the constant changes of direction used get the horse in a thinking mode, rather than just sending them around and around as typically is done with traditional longeing. It can also give you a chance, during the more advanced exercises, to be playful with your horse, something that can bring great joy to both of you!

So I will skip immediately to the work I love, which is done in Short Reins and Free Long Reins, and sometimes Long Lining or, as the Germans would call it, Doppelganger Lines - which is a sort of longeing, except you are using 2 lines instead of 1.

✴ Walk & Trot ✴ Transitions ✴ Gymnastic School Figures ← Circles ← Voltes (depending upon the school, a circle of 10 meters or less, or 8 meters or less or a circle of 6 meters.) ← Figures of Eight ✴ Leg Yield ✴ Shoulder Out (or Counter Shoulders In, depending upon which sort of confusion you like to use to express yourself.) ✴ Shoulder In on a circle ✴ Shoulder In along the wall ✴ Travers ✴ Canter ✴ Basic Flexions on the bit ← In In Summary ← What is most important to remember about your Ground Work, is that patience and observation is key. Clear your mind before you begin and stay in the moment. Have a clear plan when you begin, but be ready to be flexible and to move ahead or go back to kindergarten as required. Sometimes I might begin with Short Reins in mind, but Oliver just cannot concentrate that much. or is feeling a little claustrophobic on that day for that much collection. So I might turn him loose instead, and work on some liberty work. This sort of flexibility makes a big difference to your horse. I call these negotiation points in my training and it is my chance to show him that I under- stand him and care about what he brings to the table. Other times I might insist he do a bit of what I want and then quickly switch over to something I know he would enjoy more at that time. This can be a good survival strategy as well ; )

Short Rein Work can be very claustrophobic for a horse. It is important to work up to that sort of control and collection in a considerate manner. Do just a bit and then call it good! Quit sooner rather than later, for sure. Remember the mark of a good trainer is she knows when to begin. The mark of a great trainer is she knows when to stop.

Do get good DVD’s and in-person instruction when possible. You really need to see this stuff, and then proceed slowly. Sometimes I watch an exercise 30 or 40 times in a row, then go try it with my horse. Of all the teachers of Natural Horsemanship style Ground Work, I love Clinton Anderson’s way of presenting skill sets to learners. He has good approximations and on his DVD’s he is not working with ideal, trained horses. This gives you the opportunity to see what he does when problems up. Other people prefer the Parelli’s or Buck Brannaman (he is un- believable - a really astute horseman). There is also a Canadian fellow, Chris Irwin who does very nice work. With Clinton I would recommend his “Trust And Respect On The Ground” series to begin with. You can sometimes find those on ebay. If you like the Parelli’s, they have a “levels” system, you should start at the lowest level. Good information on the Classical stuff is much harder to find, and everything I have come into contact with shows you bits and pieces rather than a “system” like Clinton or the Parelli’s will provide you with. The closest thing would be Karen Rolhf, who combines Natural Horsemanship and Dressage. However, I will list everything I have read here, so you don’t have to drive your- self as crazy as I did trying to track down anything that might be helpful. Most of these materials are available from Amazon or from The Horse Studio, but you should be able to find other re- sources for them on the internet as well with your search engine. I have also had some in-person instruction with Bettina Drummond with the Work In Hand, and Herbert Seiberl from the Span- ish Riding School. The work we did was basic, but illuminating! If you get the opportunity to work with someone like these folks, do it!

This kind of work is not just a chance to see the biomechanics and hone the skills you will take to your ridden work, it is also a chance to make huge strides forward in your relationship with your horse. Cherish this time you spend with your friend.

Happy Training. Brenda Aloff

List of Resources www.imagineahorse.com - Whips, trick training DVD’s www.horsestudio.com - Books & DVD’s www.amazon.com - Books & DVD’s www.downunderhorsemanship.com - Clinton Anderson www.parelli.com - The Parelli Program www.carriagedrivingessentials.com - rein swivels for making your own reins www.sstack.com - Dura-Tech® MCR Long Lines 30' - lines made from mountain climbing rope. You could easily shorten them, if they are too long. www.doversaddlery.com - driving lines, micklem bridle, whips

Books & DVD’s You Might Like Training The Horse In Hand: The Classical Iberian Principles by Alfons J. Dietz (I loved this book. It gave a lovely overview of all the various forms of Classical In Hand work. Really fun to read.)

In In Hand Work I & II (DVD’s) by Bettina Drummond (Classical In Hand work. It is beautiful to watch and very informative. The devil is in the details!) These are available through Michigan State University Mary Anne McPhail Equine Performance Center. Ask for LeeAnne Kaiser. 517.432.5927

Dressage, Naturally (book & DVD set) by Karen Rohlf (This is an awesome set. It is invaluable and a pretty complete program, once you have the basic Natural Horsemanship exercises under your belt. Karen has a lot of resources for those of us interested in Natural Horsemanship & Dressage. She is quite unique and her material is easy to understand and very fascinating. She is a very nice person, too! Her website is www.dressagenaturally.net .)

Help in understanding Biomechanics: Activate Your Horse ’ s Core: Unmounted Exercises for Dynamic Mobility, Strength & Balance by Narelle C. Stubbs & Hilary M. Clayton Stretch Exercises for Your Horse: The Path to Perfect Suppleness by Karin Blignault

Help in understanding the bit and it’s influence on the horse: The Bit and the Reins: Developing Good Contact and Sensitive Hands by Gerhard Kapitzke Riding In Connection With The Reins (DVD) by Karen Rohlf The Game of Contact (Book & DVD) by Linda Parelli