Bitless has always interested me. Not putting a piece of metal into a horse's mouth is appealing concept. When natural horsemanship increased in popularity, so did riding bitless. This post goes over my jump into bitless this year as well as my thoughts on bitless options and my journey up to this point.
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I've always been drawn to liberty work. It has an almost mystical allure. When there are no ropes, there is only the truth. The freedom and beauty is attractive to even non-horse people. I started my liberty journey early on with Zeke and followed methods that were popular at that time. However, as I grew in my horsemanship journey I started doing less liberty and did not like how it always affected Zeke. Then I found a new way, a better way. No chasing. No tools (not even a whip). Just harmony.
I LOVE trail riding and competing in Cowboy Dressage, but both are activities that requires trailering. More specifically I love competitive trail through the North American Trail Ride Conference which for the full "A" rides usually requires being tied to the trailer overnight. This for most people and their horses is simple and the advice most often given when people show apprehension about tying to the trailer for long periods of time is "as long as they have food and water the horse is usually fine". I assure you, my horse Zeke is not fine. As you can imagine this puts a damper on our adventures. But I know for sure that he doesn't like anything about the trailer. However, I'm taking steps to overcome this major obstacle and want to share them with you.
Wow! That's a lot, but what does it mean? Let's start with the PSNS. You'll see me use this acronym numerous times in posts, so you'll want to memorize it. PSNS stands for parasympathetic nervous system. It is the nervous system behind rest, digest, and play. It is in opposition to the other nervous system, the sympathetic nervous system, that is behind fight, flight, and freeze.
Comparable parts is a concept found in Sally Swift's Centered Riding. The idea behind comparable parts is that what we do in a specific area of our body directly affects that comparable (equivalent) body part of the horse. One time during a Centered Riding lesson I focused on relaxing my tongue without being told to do so. My instructor was watching the horse and not me. "What did you just do? He just relaxed his mouth!" she said, and this is when I truly learned the power of comparable parts. Self-carriage is a term you will hear often in horsemanship, and it can be defined in many ways by many different people and disciplines. Commonly it is defined by the horse having a rounded back and engaged hind-end with the weight being shifted toward the hind-end causing lightness in the forehand. Okay.... So how does this all come together? |
DisclaimerOther than my partners/affiliates listed on my recommended resources page, I am not affiliated with any product or business other than being a customer, supporter, or member. I am an amateur (with an accounting day job) and do not receive any income from the horse industry. Anything I write about is from my own experiences. Nothing is intended to instruct you in how to act. All horse activities are innately dangerous, so please use caution and understand the risks. Categories
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Welcome to my Blog!
Here I share my in-depth & often analytical thoughts along my journey. I hope you enjoy my musings, and feel free to share your thoughts! I enjoy learning from you!
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