basics - joke

You might be missing the basics if:
       - you turn your horse with the inside rein
       - you train your horse to 'lower his head'
       - you teach your horse his canter leads
       - you practice "patterns/movements" until he gets it right
       - you think you can connect a horse with no contact
       - you give your horse rhythm
       - you ride 'front to back'..... aka the head
       - you move any of your horse's body parts "for" him
       - you put your horse in a 'frame'

..... do not be ashamed if your were not taught the basics - 99% of riders today were never taught the basics. Please do not label me as a kook or as being judgmental just because I know the basics.
.... more importantly - I 'discern' what is not ..... the basics.

TTouch

I must admit - when I first saw this - I was intrigued. Cautiously. Something did not feel right.
Then I understood! To use this as anything more than a 'self hug' is ........ not helpful. Not a 'hug in motion'.
I do not want to sound critical of the TTouch. TTouch is a clear, kind "system" that the 'unaware' can practice to become more aware.
This is a cozy hug. The short coming of the body wrap is - it does not include the whole horse. More specifically the whole movement. The entire 'step'. Hindleg-foreleg-head. It is the WHOLE stride that makes it beautiful! The head and neck is an EQUAL part of every step of the ...... horizontal horse.
Our goal as 'forward riders' (on the ground and in the 'saddle') is to complete every stride. Alllll the way from the hind leg - through(!) the supple relaxed back - through(!) the foreleg - and out the forehead!!!!!
...... that "freedom" and "self-carriage" part. And FORWARD.

Fences

Let's talk about fences. As boundaries. As a training aid. Language in communication.

Fences are your horse's very first introduction to boundaries. Controlled by the human. Our first step in controlling the horse. Shaping their behavior.
And our first opportunity to demonstrate integrity. Unbroken. True to our word. Consistency. Who we are. This sets the stage for all future communication.
Now define a boundary. A limit. A border.
Next define integrity:

1. Steadfast adherence to a strict moral or ethical code.

2. The state of being unimpaired; soundness.

3. The quality or condition of being whole or undivided; completeness.

 

Put the two together and you have started your training relationship with your horse. 

 

The important thing we have learned  (right!) about boundaries from my earlier posts - They do not "attack". They do not push. They do not invade the horse's personal boundary.  They are respectful in that way.  
Special to fences - they have integrity. Unbroken. Sound. Consistent. (I hope!)

Connect the dots.
Acknowledge (own it!) that you ARE using the fence to  ...... communicate, control, channel, ...... speak to your horse. For WHATEVER reason.

Just do it respectfully. Never run your horse into the fence. And never allow your horse to lean on the fence. As if the fence were the only dependable part of your conversation. "Do no harm but take no shit"

While lunging, the fence is your outside leg. Be responsible for your outside leg - this boundary.  Ideally your goal in the picadero, round pen, lungeline, or big arena is to work the horse OFF the fence.

The test will be to free lunge your horse in a big arena. 

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Equine Occupational Therapist

This horse is lame ...... in my "perception". Probably not (quite) enough "pathology" to get the vet evolved. Yet. In my experience this is where it starts. The horse carries a rider in bad posture. You can see the heavy underneck, the braced withers, and the loose, sloppy stifles. At this time the urgent care must be for the stifles. The underneck is the most obvious (for the owner/rider) fix for the rider.

keeping caught up (first)

........ and he keeps caught up. He never sends the horse away. The distance is maintained by him - not created by him. In fact in this video he "joins" the horse's movement. In that way he "becomes" the one asking for the movement. Knowledge becomes authority. :) He keeps the engagement by staying engaged himself.

razor blades in monkey paws

Razor blades in monkey paws. My concern for the "self taught".
I come to the KFH way because of my (extensive?) past experience with horses.  Not because I was attracted to the beauty of the videos and books. His videos show the 'right' way - the way I was taught. I can not imagine STARTING with just the videos, books and essays. Only those. Someone must teach you the basics. Teach you to notice all the little details of being a horse. Sometimes that someone IS a horse.
For example - do you know what the  "significant" difference is in how he stops the horse. This is HUGE! Take as much time as you like - research youtube videos, google pictures, and the www of horse trainers. They all stop the horse by 'getting  in front', stepping in front, closing the front door, turning them into the fence, even the sutle turn of the shoulder, etc.  This little (!) misunderstanding teaches the horse that YOU(!) will stop them! (with the help of the arena wall - lol) (or a bit - aka pain) (disengage the hindquarters- by taking the head) (you are not enough - unless the horse is "dead")  Klaus is the only one out there that is actually telling the horse to stop THEMSELVES! He goes on (training?) to help them figure out how to do that, and physically develop the skill to do it ...... better. From behind.  One simple thing. He asks them to turn in. (the first step of shoulder-in) (the first step of collection) (the first step of self-carriage) (empower the horse) ( the horse remains the horse!!!!)
:)
This is the shift I speak of.

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Two part Question

"..... question is to what extent is it possible to successfully train your horse and more importantly, train yourself with access only to the videos, books and essays?" Klaus and his team have said over and over - "this is no technique". As long as you mimic what he is doing with his horse and expect the same results from  your horse ........  there will be a problem. What the horses actually "do" with/for Klaus is in itself not new. Not unique to Klaus. He doesn't own it and he didn't invent it. Yet, everything that happens in the videos is unique to that horse, in that situation, in that 'meeting'. That part is owned by Klaus and is unique to him. What he "does" with the horses is PROFOUNDLY  different and (IMHO) can only be learned in person.  Because his entire approach, perspective, vision is different. If you are coming from the place to "...  successfully train your horse and more importantly, train yourself....".  then the videos,  books and essays can only show you what is possible.   The videos, books and essays demonstrate the authentic conversation, communion, consensus, between two sentient beings - meeting at a place the *we* have never been.  That place is outside our society teaching,  a place of recognition inside ourselves. (he talks so much of mythology) Just mimicking the conversation is not the conversation. It would simply be learning to "act" .... like an actor. To 'do' the KFH way you must authentically, honestly, in real time see and RESPOND to the horse in front of you. Not just 'talk to' or 'train' them. Even in person he has had difficulty teaching "his way". Notice how his teaching has changed over the (20+) years.  Now it is almost all "Body awareness". We cannot get to where he is without it. We have to change our perspective. We have to learn to listen. Listen to the horse and concentrate on being accountable for our own actions before we can 'direct' the actions of the horse. IMHO The "nuts and bolts"about horses should be learned first from another teacher. Preferable, from a teacher that does not teach in the traditional format - with 'competition' goals. 

" ...... is anybody doing it right now and would they be willing to share their experiences with us of how they started and have continued with this way of learning?"You will get dubious answers to that one. Even with his strong words - "Sentimentality, horse as substitute for rabbit or baby, is the death of the horse." .............  Even with his words - my way or no way - *we* tailor his teaching to 'meet our needs'. You will get stories about people teaching their horse to go bareback, bitless and doing signal weight riding. All shared from the perspective that they 'taught' or 'asked' this of their horse. "Play" -  where the horse doesn't get a turn. (Yes, they are given a choice - but the choices are from a 'box of choices') For example - the horses rearing. Because so many of the horses are shown rearing in his videos - people get their horses to rear and feel 'success'.