Western Pleasure Training with Jamie Novak (part 1)

[horsesarecoolio101]

how would i get my 15-17 yr old gelding to do western pleasure ...have a less choppy fast trot .. and get him to lope?

[NovakEquineCenter]

@horsesarecoolio101

As I will say in all cases, make sure your horse is physically feeling good...(hocks dont hurt, teeth are done, feet are balanced, and your gear fits right) minus those things, a typical cause for difficulty in getting a horse to lope, especially if you say he has a choppy and fast trot, is there is too much tension in the horse and likely in your body. Tension / lack of relaxation due to negative anticipation of a gear, such as the lope, can be common...usually it doesnt

[NovakEquineCenter]

@horsesarecoolio101

appear in total refusal to lope, rather just an "added gear" such as a fast trot before going into it.. the 2 things that need to be changed are the tension factor when you cue for the lope and what part of the body responds FIRST to your cue. The FIRST place a horse wants to respond is in the chest and shoulders, NOT the hindquarters. This is a reaction we train out of the horse by teaching it to respond in the hind end first...the better the horse gets at that, the

[NovakEquineCenter]

@horsesarecoolio101

more broke your horse is/becomes.. I would need a little more history and/or a video to see exactly where the communication errors are happening in which you are wanting one thing and getting something other than what you asked for...

[HowlerOfTheWolves]

Hi, I'm thirteen and I want to get into western pleasure. I have a half-standardbred gelding, and I'm trying to slow his trot and canter, and turn him into a western pleasure horse... Only I need a starting point. Could you offer me a few tips?

[NovakEquineCenter]

@HowlerOfTheWolves

Hi Howler... check out some of the comments I wrote to the person just below about head issues and speed control...check your side to side balance, or squareness of shoulders... a saddlebred naturally likes to be a little more hollow backed, so you will need to learn some lateral exercises to help teach him how to do "crunches" with his tummy.. right now Im sure he is a little stretched out kinda like a weiner dog....and he needs to learn how to slow the front end down to

[HowlerOfTheWolves]

@NovakEquineCenter I will definetly take your advice! ^^ Last night I took him out into the arena, and there were about five other people in there, and I tried sitting deep into the saddle, only I couldn't get him to stop without having to pull really hard against his mouth.. I do my best to be gentle, but he is pretty stubburn. Plus, he LOVES to slam people's legs against the fence. He dragged me over to the gate, and literally tried to open the gate while dragging my leg against it. I was

[HowlerOfTheWolves]

@NovakEquineCenter really embarressed, and it took awhile to get him away from the gate. I was a little shaken up, but kept walking around. He was still acting strange, and twisting his head to the side while biting the bit. I'll work with him on saturday, but I'm getting a little frustrated... Thanks for the tips, though, I'll try them! ! ^^

[NovakEquineCenter]

@HowlerOfTheWolves

wait for his backend....I know you're not old enough to drive yet, but my best visual for the kind of action you have to teach this horse and the feel it should have is like a manual or stick shift car...you have to learn how to "ride the clutch"....(as us drivers call it) until he becomes an automatic...:)....this is feeling for when he's rushing, taking a firm enough contact with the bit to feel him acknowledge you asking for something and with a bungee cord motion,

[NovakEquineCenter]

@HowlerOfTheWolves

"chisel" off the tension or pressure he's putting against your hands...what i want you to keep in mind is that you are not wrestling his mouth per say.....but rather, you're settling down his chest and shoulders from pushing into his face...your leg should just have a light contact that lets his butt know to keep loping, but dont drive him into the bit....just tell his butt with your soft leg to STAY loping while you ask the shoulders to slow to the speed of his butt....

[NovakEquineCenter]

@HowlerOfTheWolves

technically his shoulders/chest are double timing the speed of his back end and you need to get them in sync....now you have to "work" his face with massaging type motions that are small and feel for pressure....ask him with your hands to ease off your hands by not bracing against his mouth but rather working him with small "chiseling" motions to get him to say "uncle" in the body then release and when he rushes again, repeat....stay back with your upper body and keep your

[NovakEquineCenter]

@HowlerOfTheWolves

pant pockets in your saddle so your weight doesnt throw him forward ...and so you can better feel his body stiffening and bracing or relaxing and saying "uncle" ....this is very important so you can get the timing down for your release....make sure you are breathing steady and slowly ....not holding your breath....theres so much I could keep saying but my fingers are cramping...good luck ...i hope you understand what I am tryng to explain..

[luvshorsesmka]

hello i am wanting to teach my 9 year old Thoroughbred quarter horse cross he is a little fast and need help setting him head. any ideas on how to train him? i would love any help.

[NovakEquineCenter]

@luvshorsesmka

My best guess is that your horse's back is stiff..which causes his shoulders to travel too far ahead of his hindquarters...thus is what makes his fast and head issues...the other issue could be lateral balance...if his shoulders arent squared up, he cant balance himself without his head ...so it depends which is the root issue or if both are..my suggestion, start with checking to make sure his shoulders are square...for example, do his ears pretty much sit in front of his chest?

[NovakEquineCenter]

@NovakEquineCenter

I look for alignment of right ear in front of right shoulder, left ear in front of left shoulder...if you have your horse's head bent beyond center line of his body toward the inside of your circle and can see that his outside shoulder isnt traveling on the track right behind, you've got yourself a lateral balance issue....this would be no different than trying to set a plate(head) on a tv tray stand of which one of the 4 legs is not squared with the other 3 and its

[NovakEquineCenter]

@NovakEquineCenter

now impossible to keep your plate from falling off or sliding...this is how a horse's head feels when it cant find a "stable/square" balance point to "sit" on....so it now becomes the balancing point rather than the body....the speed issue is directly related to this balance problem, although, I guarantee you, if you fix the first layer of your problem which is the squareness of shoulders, you will automatically affect the speed in proportion...not that it will completely

[NovakEquineCenter]

@NovakEquineCenter

fix the speed issue, but you should definitely feel a significant change in the RPM's or " overdrive" or pushiness of the lope... i hope that helps as a little bit of a visual....good luck

[molly1305271]

I have a question. My horse rides with two bits. The snaffle in a warm up, and then a California bit. He rides very well in the snaffle but when we put the California in his mouth he keeps popping his head up and down. I'm not sure if its a habit or he doesn't like the bit. He is almost seven. Hes been doing this habit for quite some time now.

[MsBarrelracing]

I really love your training videos.

[ThePirateOnHorseback]

Beautiful horse :D

[GTponyproductions]

@NovakEquineCenter I am having a hard time getting my 5 year olds lope together. If i were to post some video of him going undersaddle/on the lunge line, do you think you may give me a few exercises that could help me?? The standard lope stop back repeat ... or stop rollback lope repeat teqhniques just arent working with him!

[NovakEquineCenter]

@GTponyproductions

Hi GT ponyproductions....I am getting ready to put up a total training and interactive website to be up this spring....with that website we will be taking on peoples videos and doing interactive web cam teaching....where I'll watch a video and get on the phone with the individual and we'll pause and talk and play thru the whole thing finding reasons for why the horse is or isnt doing something and what to do about it while others listen and watch...so keep watching....:)

[bunnyschatzi1]

Tolles Pferd (: :*

[timthepyramidguy]

Really great video...you are a kind, compassionate trainer and easy to understand.

Thanks for your great work!

[ICanICan123]

I just watched all 3 of these videos and feel I can definitely do more with my 9yo. paint mare. I did a lot of contesting with her, but I am trying to switch her into being an all-around pleasure horse. She will hold a nice frame and gait when she wants to, but it is keeping her there and actually getting it out of her and slowing her down that we have problems in. Do you have any suggestions for getting her to calm down and listen so she is able to look the part of a pleasure horse?

Thanks!

[Sockatears101]

How do you get you horse to low his head like that? Is there a certin way?

[NovakEquineCenter]

Yes..There actually is a very methodical approach to lowering a head. With limited space, heres a nutshell, make sure you get the horse's shoulders completely straight side to side, then work on the back lifting while teaching to sink in the haunches so he can support his neckline in a natural free way. Each horse's connection point is different based on conformation so the ultimate height will vary slightly. But that is the jist. I have a consultation program if you get curious enough.

[Sockatears101]

I would love to know more! Can you please tell me more about your program??

[N1CH00L3]

You're an awesome trainer and rider.

You helped me sooo much, my jumper mare is now getting her head down and mellowing out, you're methods are great and you're very gentle and understanding of your horses, keep the awesome work up (: