MARK RASHID CLINIC REPORT

by Jodi Denning

Part 1

I haven't been posting much in the last several months - partly because hubby and I have been building our new house, and partly for the same reason I don't strap antlers on my head and a furry white tail on my backside and walk through the woods during deer season. But I'm jumping in with both feet because this was something that was very important for me and my horse, and maybe it will help someone else as well. I just had the incredible experience of riding in a 4 day clinic with Mark Rashid. (Thank you, Jaki Cast, for devoting the time, energy, heart and soul into making this clinic THE MOST AMAZING clinic I have ever attended!) I can honestly say I don't think anything will ever be the same for me or my horses again!

This gifted and sincere man patiently guided, helped and encouraged me to see some things about my approach to horsemanship that were perhaps not quite in the spirit of developing a real partnership with my horse. I am greatly indebted to him for sharing his thoughts and insight, and helping me find a clear path to follow for myself and my horses.

Now the hard part...how to try to put these changes, which were so significant and important for me and my horse, into words.

I suppose, prior to this clinic, I considerd my horse fairly advanced. He is familiar with a bit of various groundwork, and is pretty far along with under saddle work. ...or so I thought...

Mark began by asking some very simple things of my horse in the round pen, just to kind of see where things were at. Now Mark isn't familiar with the various groundwork exercises I've been doing with my horse, so he asked my horse to move like he asks any other horse to move - very quietly and politely - just directing himself towards the horse's hindquarters and raising his hand a little. My horse responded to Mark by offering a rapid fire succession of various groundwork tasks...as if to say "yield my hindquarters?. yield my forehand?, sideways?, backup?, forehand the other way?, hindquarters the other way?, sideways the other way?, sideways faster?, etc....."-and this all happened in about 10-12 seconds!!! Mark was genuinely stunned, and ended up just taking a few steps back, standing there and taking a deep breath.. My horse stopped and looked at him.. I stood beside the round pen, probably with a little grin on my face, thinking "my, what a clever horse I have" - look at all the "neat" things he knows! I began noticing Mark had kind of a wrinkled brow, and a bit of a frown.. Mark said "WOW", and then very much to my surprise, Mark began to express a LOT of concern about what he saw in my horse. I'm sure I had a "HUH?" look on my face, because I was pretty sure he didn't say what I thought I just heard him say.

Mark said he had never seen a horse offer this many responses, so quickly, to a simple request to move in the round pen. But what really concerned Mark was the look and demeanor my horse had. Mark saw some things I had never noticed (and I'm going to have a big talk with my eye doctor real soon, cause it must be time for new glasses!). Mark said my horse felt like he HAD to do those things, and felt like he had better get it right. Mark also used the word "mechanical" several times when he was trying to explain to me what he was seeing.

So I'm thinking "now wait just a minute mister...my horse is just very responsive, and he was just trying to do what he thought you were asking him to do". I've never really "got after" him, or "made" him do anything (with a little voice in back of my head saying "right?"). I have a pretty fair understanding of these "natural" principles, from a respected variety of clinicians, and have applied them to quite a few horses with good results ("right?"). And what the hell do you mean, "mechanical" (is that kinda like "just going through the motions...?").

Mark suggested I saddle up and ride, so I said "you bet" (and I might just show him a couple of pretty cool things my horse can do under saddle too, since he didn't seem to be real impressed with my horse's groundwork).

I began doing lots of what I thought were fairly fluid, blended movements. Disengage, bring the front end across, walk out, stop, back up, etc. It was going to be pretty impressive, because I never did more than about 3-4 steps of the same movement before going to the next one. My horse was obedient, and did everything I asked (oh, but ignore those tail flicks, and that "slight" brace in his shoulders...we just have to work that out...).

Mark said "hmmmm", and had a look on his face that I can only describe as sadness and concern. I'm figuring there was a cartoon bubble over my head with "????" in it, because I'm still sitting on my horse, feeling pretty good about everything, and thinking that he very obediently did every single movement I asked for...so what's the problem, and why does Mark seem so bothered by me and my horse???

Now folks, I've had this horse since he was a long weanling. The good, the bad and the ugly in this horse all comes from me. It's pretty fun to take credit for the good, but not nearly so enjoyable to contemplate the other stuff...

After 4 days with Mark, I have had some pretty hugh realizations. It was an emotional ride, and the phrase "soul searching" doesn't even begin to describe it.

I think this pretty much sums it up...

I had lost sight of how my horse felt about this whole deal. I was feeling pretty pleased with being able to "boss" my horse around through all these various maneuvers, but meanwhile my horse was on his way to just mentally detaching from the whole thing. I didn't ever really think about "helping" my horse when he would get bothered or stuck, because I thought he was having "a respect issue" or "showing his attitude", which (of course) just meant he needed more work. You know...the "you want to move your feet...well, ok, let's move those feet" thing. I thought I was "asking" things of my horse, and giving him the opportunity to make his choices about doing the "right" thing, or being "uncomfortable". I can sure see now that I really was just "telling' him to do things (bossing him around), at my whim, for my purposes, without a lot of consideration of him. I had a dictatorship, not a partnership, and I never really gave my horse much of a voice in the whole deal. I will forever be grateful and indebted to Mark for helping me see what I was doing to my horse.

This was not an easy thing for me to go through, but the wonderful thing about horses is how quickly they forgive. I had some pretty incredible moments with my horse during the next 3 days of the clinic. The really neat thing was my horse GAVE me those things I was asking for, instead of me having to do much to get them. I began trying hard to meet him halfway, and he began trying real hard to meet me halfway too.

None of this was about a specific technique, or specific equipment, or specific anything really. It's just about your attitude, your approach to your horse, and paying attention. The things going on with me and my horse would have probably been really subtle, if even noticible to most folks. I thought I was really "trying" before this clinic, and I've been working pretty diligently on myself for many years to "learn this stuff". I don't think I was out of the ballpark, but I wasn't close to home base either.

I'd like to encourage everyone to step back and take a really good look at your horse, and an even deeper look at yourself. Be sure what you are getting from your horse is really what you are after. Think about the "why" with each and every single thing you ask your horse to do, because you can bet your horse will be asking "why".

All the horse is asking for is a fair deal, but the fainess comes from HIS perspective, not YOURS. Make sure you are really doing right by your horse, because he can't sell and buy another one.

Thank you Mark, for opening my eyes and my heart, so I can see my wonderful horse!!!!

Ok gang...here's the last "installment" from the Mark Rashid clinic!

We'll just start right in with asking your horse for a stop. Mark suggested right off the bat to make sure you are asking your horse for a stop, and not just asking the horse to slow down. Make sure the picture is clear in you head, so it can be clear to the horse. A fine distinction, and one that makes a pretty big difference for the horse. Mark encouraged riders to do a slight rounding of your back, with a slight settling into the saddle prior to asking something from the horse. A pretty classical english half-halt. It's a way to tell your horse "something's coming, let's get ready". It's really helpful to allow the horse to prepare himself for your upcoming request, whatever that request may be. If you can catch that spot in your horse's stride where he relaxes and slows a little in his gait, that's a really good time to ask for a downward transition or a stop. Have a clear picture in you mind of which you are asking for. When you're ready to stop, shift you weight back and stop riding forward, and use your reins with a light, conversational contact (if necessary). Timing of the release is a big part of getting a good stop.

If your horse drifts forward a few steps into or just after the stop, you may be holding on too long to the reins. The horse begins to get in the habit of bracing against your hand, which has the horse thinking "forward". then when you do release, he drifts forward, because he was thinking forward. Just pick up lightly, and ask for the stop again. You might back up a little, to the original place where you asked for the stop, to help him understand. It's not a big deal...just help you horse understand you are asking for a stop. As always, consistency is a big key.

As for speed control within a gait, just get a few steps at the desired pace, and as soon as you feel (or just before!) the horse begin to speed up, go ahead and ask the horse to slow down. Help your horse understand what you are after.

Mark says a lot of these things are like standing in the middle of a teeter-totter and holding a bird in your hands. It takes thought, coordination, timing, balance,...and feel.

Some more thoughts on backing... Correcting crookedness while backing can be a touchy thing. If you rely on your legs too much, you can end up making your horse pretty grumpy. This is so simple it's not even funny, but just keep your horse's head straight, in relation to something in front of you. Let the horse make his own corrections to get straight. It will be uncomfortable for him to be crooked, and he'll fix it himself. Bear in mind that it will be harder for a horse to back when there's something behind them, because of their vision and depth perception.

Some general thoughts...

Sometimes you may need to just take a short break if the horse is trying, but just not getting it. Then give it another try.

Don't expect perfection, just look for improvement.

I noticed that when a horse would lose his attention, looking at something outside the roundpen, Mark would always look in the same direction as the horse, just briefly, before asking the horse for his attention back. I didn't get a chance to specifically ask Mark about this, but I really don't think I had to. It just makes sense. Acknowledge the horse's concern, and then focus back on the "job at hand".

Just show the horse what you want and give them the chance. They'll do it for you. You don't have to "take" it from them...it's much, much sweeter when they freely "give" it to you. Night and day!

Don't expect your horse to make mistakes. Just focus on the good stuff.

Don't focus too far away from your horse when doing turns. You'll be so far away your horse can't find you. Focus closer to your horse, where you want his feet to go.

Do as little as possible.

If the horse says "I'd rather not do this", evaluate your purpose, your aproach, and why you are doing it in the first place. Maybe your horse is right.

Each horse's body language is different - there is no cookie cutter for horsey body language.

Wait on the horse - he'll make it - just stay with him.

Keep in mind, you are working for tomorrow, not for today. Time isn't a factor for the horse. Most of the time, Mark didn't even know what day it was!

I guess one recurring theme was that we need to do everything we can to HELP our horse understand what it is we are asking of him. You need to constantly evaluate life from your horse's point of niew. Meet your horse halfway. Recognize that the horse just wants to get along. It's so easy to take things personally when your horse doesn't do what you are asking. If you can just toss that out the window, and objectively evaluate what's going on when you run into a problem...things get a whole lot easier for everybody involved.

In closing, I'd like to share the following questions with you...I keep them written on a small card that I carry in my purse, and have carried them with me for quite some time. They have a whole new meaning to me now.

* Why do you have a horse?

* What do you expect to get out of the relationship with you horse? What do you expect to give?

* What are your responsibilities to your partnership with you horse?

* What kind of relationship do you want with your horse?

* What kind of relationship do you believe is possible with your horse?

* What are your goals? Are they realistic?

* When you look at your horse, what do you see?

* When your horse looks at you, what does he see?

* Do you trust your horse?

* Does your horse trust you?

* If your horse could switch places with you for a day, how would he treat you? How would you react to him?