Natural Horsemanship and Foals

March 11th, 2010

Playing with a one-month-old filly, using natural horsemanship methods. Includes the first haltering. This filly is not for sale, but her yearling brother is available for purchase. He can be seen at http://deer-run-stables.com/_wsn/page3.html

Duration : 0:8:16


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25 Responses

  1. ponygirl72 Says:

    Thank you for such …
    Thank you for such a kind comment! Your father sounds like a wonderful horseman… I would have loved to be able to talk with him and pick his brain.

  2. DrGomezNZ Says:

    That is fantastic! …
    That is fantastic! It actually brought a tear to my eye as I used to live on a farm with horses and I loved interracting with the foals. My father was a horseman for over 40 years, and I learnt a great deal from him and the techniques you used for breaking in are exactly what he taught me.

  3. ponygirl72 Says:

    Aw… thank you. …
    Aw… thank you. And good for you for rescuing a sale barn foal! Just remember, techniques will be quite different for a foal that hasn’t been handled from birth, at least to start with. Good luck!

  4. ponygirl72 Says:

    Você é muito amável!
    Você é muito amável!

  5. aldinhobsb Says:

    maravilhoso
    maravilhoso

  6. HorseyLuv28 Says:

    Awesomely AMAZING …
    Awesomely AMAZING video!! :)
    I’m DEFINATELLY doing this when I rescue a foal from the sales some time next year :)

  7. ponygirl72 Says:

    Thank you! Bella is …
    Thank you! Bella is two this year, and is growing into a really beautiful young horse. Good luck with your filly next year!

  8. ponygirl72 Says:

    Thank you! She is …
    Thank you! She is two this year, and is really starting to fill out.

  9. ZotFlipkonijn Says:

    Very nice!
    This is …

    Very nice!
    This is the way I’m going to approach my filly next year.
    I think it’s the best way.

    You can see the filly really trusts you.
    Especially when she’s curious about you and comes to check on you is beautiful.
    Good luck with her!

  10. mariahandmeT Says:

    She is really pretty
    She is really pretty

  11. ponygirl72 Says:

    Aww… thank you …
    Aww… thank you for the kind words. Isn’t she hysterical? She’s two now, and still cracks me up on a regular basis.

  12. parellichick Says:

    WOW!!!

    That was so …
    WOW!!!

    That was so increadibly inspiring to watch.

    The face on that foal when you put the halter on was just priceless. What a cutie!!

  13. 69ANGELAH Says:

    VERY GOOD JOB
    VERY GOOD JOB

  14. ponygirl72 Says:

    Hi, there! I …
    Hi, there! I appreciate your courtesy in making the effort to ask, but there’s a lot of stuff being called “natural horsemanship” that I don’t agree with. I’d prefer not to have my videos used in any compilations. Sorry, but I do wish you good luck with your project.

  15. newzealandgal74 Says:

    Hey,

    do you mind …
    Hey,

    do you mind if I use this video for the video I’m making on natural horsemanship?? I will credit you :)

  16. ponygirl72 Says:

    You’re welcome. …
    You’re welcome. There are as many training philosophies as there are people training horses. All I can say is that my young horses lead forward just fine, and the first pressure they felt on the halter was asking them to follow a soft feel and take a step sideways. If a horse of any age sulls up about yielding to pressure forwards, I always think first about directing some energy back to the rump, either with the end of the rope, or a training stick and string (or a butt rope for a baby!).

  17. MissDottieWestt Says:

    That is very …
    That is very helpful, I have been told though threw halter breaking that trying to start with moving them to the side can lead to confusion in the farward leading. I’m not sure if I have worded that clearly, but the getting the foal to move sideways first makes more sence to me.
    Thank-you!

  18. ponygirl72 Says:

    The 2nd is your use …
    The 2nd is your use of the word “pulling”, and the concept of the release. Watch 2:30 minutes into the video, specifically, watch my hands. They are slightly open, and the rope is sliding through them a bit – I’m not “pulling”. But the instant she gets curious & “follows the feel”, there’s an immediate “release”, i.e., slack in the rope. I don’t pull & let go, pull & let go, because “letting go” (the release) is her reward for moving away from the pressure of the rope. Clear as mud? ;-)

  19. ponygirl72 Says:

    Hi! Glad the …
    Hi! Glad the haltering advice is working. There are a couple of things about leading. The 1st is that you are probably trying to lead her forward. Always start leading babies by having the pressure be to one side or the other, so they want to take a step to the side to regain their balance. I’ll address the 2nd thing in a separate reply, because there isn’t enough room here.

  20. MissDottieWestt Says:

    hello again,

    hello again,
    Sorry to bother you, but I am having some troubles. The advise that you have me about putting to halter on is working AMAZINGLY! But I am have trouble with leading, I have got her to walk farward to the feel of butt pressure, but I put her halter on and use a butt rope and pull the halter and the butt rope but she DOESNT MOVE! She’s like a stubbern old mule! I stod pulling letting go pullng letting go, just pulling and she wouldn’t take one step! I would like some suggestions

  21. ponygirl72 Says:

    In nature, …
    In nature, predators try to grab the top of a foal’s neck in their jaws. The panic/fight/flee response to pressure in that area is an instinctive life-or-death response in foals. She needs to learn a different response to pressure on the poll before you try to buckle the halter again. If she were my filly, I would first teach her to drop her head from light pressure on the poll from my hand, and then from a soft rope. Then haltering will be easy.

  22. MissDottieWestt Says:

    My Baby can do all …
    My Baby can do all those things but let me put the halter on… I can get it around her nose but once I start buckling it up she backs away. And suggestions? She is only 3 weeks old, and is still attached to mom… so I cant take her that far away.

  23. LisaNH19 Says:

    Nice movie!
    Nice movie!

  24. Kaibuko Says:

    Thanks, for the …
    Thanks, for the information, and as he gets bigger and grows more, I’m sure, we will bond!
    Thanks again, and if I have any other problems I will let you know so you can help me out!

  25. ponygirl72 Says:

    Aw, that’s * …
    Aw, that’s *wonderful* news! Thanks for updating me. Don’t be surprised if you have to backtrack a bit next time you go out. It will probably take several sessions before he really becomes comfortable on the right side; however, you’re obviously on the right track. He’s a lucky boy to have an owner who’s patient and caring. :-)

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