Western Branch Equine

05/02/2023

“Teaching is the hardest thing I ever tried to do,” he said. “By doing these clinics, I really learned to have respect for teachers. It doesn’t matter what you know; it doesn’t matter at all. If you can’t teach it and communicate it to other people, it doesn’t do anybody any good. You just die and it’s gone. Whatever horsemanship any of us have, if we can’t teach it to other people it’s not that much.
- Bill Smith, "Horses That Buck"

04/06/2023

02/03/2023

https://www.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=625508606244689&id=100063566648158&post_id=100063566648158_625508606244689&sfnsn=mo&mibextid=6aamW6

Bend em before you send em !
A great poem by Bruce Kiskaddon .

11/06/2022

Facebook won't let me post videos and pictures in the same post right now. But the next clip could have been me stepping up on Texas here. A horse that will let you lay them down and be all over them is usually pretty willing to let you climb aboard. This seems to be one of the biggest training days in a young horse's life, to me. If you miss the window to lay them down, there are other options. But this goes an awfully long way and you can usually tell the difference in their first few rides.

11/05/2022

Sometimes the first ride looks like a dream. Sometimes it looks like this. But a little bit of patience and sticktoitiveness goes a long way. If you don't get too bothered, they will settle in eventually.

10/02/2022

This little mare is not what I'd call halter broke, by any means. But after three weeks, I got a halter on and off of her a few times this evening. Horsemanship requires some knowledge, yes, and quite a bit of feel and timing. But sometimes, the biggest part of horsemanship is just sticktoitiveness. I spent a couple hours today, on and off playing with her since I knew I was out of time. It might stick, or it might not. But I'm a firm believer that doing almost anything with your horse consistently will work eventually. I've known great horses that were trained what I might think is the wrong way, but their owners or trainers were consistent with them. There are a lot of things that will help you communicate with your horse better, but I think being constant and consistent is the foundation no matter what.

09/13/2022

Evangeline wanted in on the halter breaking action. Here she is learning how to use the helping hand on Circle K!

09/03/2022

Tad's background conversation with Jesse here is very instructive. It's real easy to start out too tight on these youngsters, like I'm doing at the beginning here. Following up on the last post, the day before this, I laid her down, and she trusted me in her most vulnerable position. Here at first, I was not quite returning that favor while I was at my most vulnerable, halfway on her. Horsemanship is give and take. You don't have to trust a horse to let you mount, but If I can't trust it, then I don't really want to get on it.

09/02/2022

Foot ropes and laying down, done right, are two steps in the same trust building process. Horses are fight or flight animals, and both of those responses require their feet. If a horse will lead by their feet, and allow you to handle them, they are surrendering their only means of defense and escape. When they lay down for you, they are willingly allowing a predator to handle them, and get on either side and over top of them. They are agreeing not to run away from, or try to kick you, and trusting you not to try and eat them, in their most vulnerable position. That's a good agreement to come to before you climb aboard them and trust them not to pile you in the dirt, in my book.