Get Calm, Be Calm, Stay Calm! Why Horses

S AVTVI M
Y ECS L UB
G OLD M E M B E R
Get Calm, Be Calm,
Stay Calm!
Why Horses Have
Trouble With People
CCRSS For
The Human
D I G I TA L ISSUE 4
Savvy
TOUCHSTONE 4
Calm, Connected, Responsive, Supple, and Successful.
How do we get our horses to be successful, to optimize their potential?
Well, they need to be Calm, Connected, Responsive, and Supple.
Every great horseman brings these qualities out in their horses.
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SPORTS SPOTLIGHT
Cowboy Mounted Shooting
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BREED SPOTLIGHT
Gaited Horses
39 QUIZ
Calm, Connected,
Responsive, Supple
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Why Horses Have
Problems With People
Get Calm, Be Calm,
Stay Calm!
Exploding The Myths
About Horses
Pat Parelli
Linda Parelli
Pat Parelli
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Three Reasons Horses
Have Trouble
Dark Horse To
Dream Horse
CCRSS For The
Human!
Linda Parelli
Kristi Smith
Dr. Jenny Susser
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MEMBER SPOTLIGHT
LT Umfleet
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CENTERFOLD
Remmer
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TRAIL TIP
All For One & One For All
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LIFESTYLE
Home On The Road
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DID YOU KNOW
Jumping Facts
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JUNIOR SAVVY
Body Language Word Puzzle
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FLASHBACK
Pat’s Special Horses
ISSUE 4
28 ARENA TIP
Stay Close To The Rail
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Why Horses Have Problems
With People
BY PAT PARELLI
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Let’s Get The Obvious Out Of The Way First:
People Are Predators, Horses Are Prey Animals. They Know We Can Eat Them!
As If That’s Not Enough Reason For Having Trouble…
Most problems horses have with
people stem from this most primal
of relationships, the prey-predator
gap, but I think more important
is a heightened awareness of how
we trigger it.
If you’re a Parelli student, I know the last
thing you want to do is scare your horse,
or punish him, so it’s the unintentional
messages we need to become more
self-aware of.
This is not easy because we have to
overcome our own natural instincts –
as predators.
Simple, right? Just do that!
Of course it’s easy to say, harder to do,
but that’s what this program is all about
because first and foremost, this is a
training program for humans.
The techniques are easy, it’s changing our
habits, instincts and attitudes that is hard.
But if we can truly put the relationship
first, horses “magically” have less trouble.
Hmmm. How interesting!
When things don’t go as we want, or planned, it’s natural
for us to do what’s in the chart below. Do you do any of
these? These are the first things I want to encourage you
to become more aware of and learn to overcome:
A powerful thought I regularly share around the world is:
“If you want to be good with horses, just watch what everyone else does…
and do the opposite!”
So now, what would the opposite of all those be?
8 Get Firmer
4 Get Softer
8 Get Faster
4 Get Slower
8 Hold Tighter
4 Release Or Soften
8 Get Annoyed Or Angry
(with the horse or even with ourselves
– horses can’t tell the difference)
4 Be More Emotionally Fit
(in control of your emotions – faking doesn’t
work either! You have to truly not be bothered.
You need to be more understanding.)
8 Apply More Pressure
4 Back Off – Retreat and then
re-approach in a better way.
8 Get Scared
(horses can’t tell if you’re afraid or attacking)
4 Get Off (if you are riding)
or get to a safe place if you’re on the ground.
8 Correct The Horse
4 Well That Didn’t Work… Try Again!
Remember, horses don’t know they’re wrong.
It’s your job to help them be right.
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Get Calm, Be Calm,
Stay Calm!
BY LINDA PARELLI
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Kinda Funny Having An Exclamation Mark
After The Word Calm, Isn’t It?
But I put the exclamation mark there
to be emphatic! When things are not
going as we planned, the calmer we
can be, the better.
We have to be able to think
during chaos… to respond
rather than react.
This does not come naturally to most
people, it’s something we have to learn.
As a child and teenager I had a very
short fuse and blew up easily, and did so
regularly. Don’t worry, I wrote my parents a
big apology letter when I was 23! But back
to the point of my story…
In my early 20s I somehow discovered “self
development” and over the ensuing years
attended some very powerful seminars
and courses with great teachers such as
Robert Kiyosaki, Stephanie Burns, and Glynn
Braddy. They changed my life as a person,
in relationship to myself, but I didn’t know
how to apply it with my horses.
The first clinic I did with Pat in 1989 brought
it all together for me the moment I learned
about the horse’s mind. What a revelation…
I can apply what I’d learned in the human
world to horses! Doesn’t get any better
than that.
Even though I didn’t get mad with my
horses I sure got frustrated and lost my
way a lot. Those kinds of emotions have
a negative effect on a horse because that
energy is frightening.
I have a favorite saying when things go
awry: At least one of you has to stay
left brain! And I’m not talking Horsenality,
I’m talking about confidence… the
ability to think, to not panic, to take
appropriate action.
It’s easy for us to get distracted or focus on
what the horse is doing when it’s having
trouble, but what we really need to do is
take command of the situation.
Last year (2014) we hosted a trail ride for the
Parelli Foundation in historic Mesa Verde,
CO, famous for its ancient Anasazi ruins.
I was riding one of Pat’s young horses
and as we were returning from lunch and
riding down the side of the mesa on a
narrow track, my water bottle bounced
off the saddle horn and flew down the
lead rope part of my reins. My mistake,
I didn’t secure it properly – I’ll never do
that again!
The poor horse got so startled by this thing
that was attacking her, she panicked and
started running backwards.
Parelli Foundation 2014 Ride in Mesa Verde
National Park, Colorado, USA.
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I knew I had to take control of the situation… there were horses in
front of me, horses behind, a rock wall on my right and a sheer drop
on my left. And the trail was only 12 feet wide! Here’s what I did:
“Use Adrenaline To Fuel
Effective Reactions Rather
Than Be A Victim Of The
Situation.”
2.
3.
In that split second, my years of mental rehearsals and
horsemanship experience kicked in. There was no time for thinking.
1.
I Instantly Matched Her Energy.
I Kept The Horse’s Nose Facing The Cliff,
To the degree that she
panicked, I took charge.
no matter what. You’ve learned this in the
Controlled Catastrophe exercise! I had to be fast
and strong because if she turned her
tail to the cliff we would have both gone
backwards over the edge.
“The Ability To Get Calm,
Be Calm And Stay Calm
So We Can Be The Leader
Our Horse Needs, Is
Something That Will Not
Only Connect Your Horse
More Strongly To You,
It Will Help You Connect
Even More Strongly
To Yourself.”
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It took about 10 seconds and suddenly she stopped, front feet
braced, shaking and staring at the water bottle hanging on the lead
rope under the right side of her neck. I stayed quiet and calm and
waited for her to start breathing. Then I slowly stepped off. Phew!
Pat looked at me with a wry smile and said “Good job.” Not his “first
rodeo” either!
I’ve since done reenactments of this incident at several courses I’ve
taught, because realizing how fast you have to act and what it takes
to match that energy and stay focused on the result can be quite
eye-opening. But the main point of the story is about staying calm
enough to think. Sure, the adrenaline is up, but I used that to fuel
effective reactions rather than be a victim of the situation.
As the horse’s leader I believe emotional fitness is the single
most important quality to develop, the capacity to be LB in a RB
situation, to develop the ability to stay conscious and in control
in a scary situation.
I Didn’t Focus On The Horse,
I Focused On The Result
And What Had To Be Done To
Achieve It…
and I did whatever it took –
mentally, emotionally, and
physically, without hesitation.
If we’d been in a larger area
I would have jumped off
immediately, but this was
such a small trail I
didn’t feel I had the choice.
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Dark Horse
To Dream Horse
BY K RISTI SMITH
4-STAR SENIOR PARELLI PROFESSIONAL
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In 2008 I Had The Opportunity To Travel To
Dubai To Help Share The Parelli Program.
While I was there I played with
some amazing horses. Among those
horses were Andalusians and
Lusitanos, and I instantly fell in love
with the Iberian breeds.
When I returned from my trip, I started
telling everyone who asked me about
Dubai about how much I was in love with
Iberian horses and how desperately I
wanted one.
Saturi is by nature a fairly extreme Left Brain
Extrovert. Adding fuel to that flame, she is
also an orphan. Her mother died within 24
hours of her birth of septicemia, and never
had the chance to teach her about common
horse language, or how to be successful in
a herd.
Being an orphan has exaggerated all of the
qualities that we use to identify an LBE. She
is mouthy, naughty, playful, and smart all to
an extreme degree.
One such conversation was with a very
dedicated Parelli student. Her name is
Laura Nelson.
reflex. She would rear, kick out, pin her ears,
wring her tail, and scream out for her herd
mates. I was going to be at the Colorado
campus that summer, so I reached out to
Linda for help.
She learns very quickly and is easily bored.
Our journey together has been very
challenging for me. There was even a point
in our relationship that I had to wonder
whether or not I was over-horsed.
That lesson was a turning point in our
relationship.
She has always been a joy to play with
on the ground, but when it came to
riding I was lacking in the knowledge and
confidence to be the kind of partner that
she could trust.
I wasn’t being progressive
enough for her and felt
really uncomfortable
matching her while riding.
Lucky for me, I have
access to some incredibly
wonderful mentors.
First up was Linda Parelli
in 2012.
As I was declaring my new found affection
for these breeds, Laura declared that she
had three such horses, and would be happy
to give me any one of them if I felt that it
was a good match.
I couldn’t believe it! I had thought that it
was going to take me several years to save
up to be able to afford such a wonderful
partner, but here was someone willing to
gift her to me! It was a dream come true.
I fell in love the moment I met Saturi.
She is an Iberian Warmblood (Lusitano X
Thoroughbred) and was only six months old
when we met. She was all legs and full of
sass and I LOVE that!
Left Brain Extroverts are also very selfconfident, so it can be difficult to earn the
role of leader. Saturi is generally convinced
that she has the best ideas and that humans
are here to amuse her.
In the summer of
2012 I was at a breaking
point with my ability
to ride Saturi.
Saturi – six months old, extreme Left Brain
Extrovert, all legs, and full of sass!
Every time I asked her
for more she would get
annoyed and express some
pretty intense opposition
The reason I was getting
in trouble with her
was because I was being
too careful with her.
I have complete trust in Linda and her
horsemanship and once she showed me
how to make progress with Saturi, I was
able to get things back on track.
Another burst of progress for Saturi and
I came last summer while I was at the
Colorado campus riding with Pat. I knew
that Saturi and I still had lots of room to
grow our partnership and was looking for a
way to put our relationship to a bigger test.
Turns out that test was cows!
I have no plans for doing anything
competitive with cows with Saturi. The cows
turned out to be a stimulus that resurfaced
an old fear in me that I am not capable of
being the leader she can rely on.
That age-old voice we all have that says,
“You are not enough” was getting loud
enough that I knew I needed help. This time
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it came in the form of Pat Parelli himself.
The lesson began with a group of us trying
to move the cows from the Arena Grande
to Pat’s playground. Saturi was manageable
as long as the cows were moving away
from her. But, whenever a cow would turn
in her direction, I felt as though we could
potentially bolt in any direction.
I mustered the courage
to tell Pat that I was really
nervous, and he created
a situation that would help
me see that not only could
Saturi handle this intense
learning opportunity,
but so could I.
Pat had the other riders herd the cows into
his 180-foot round corral. Then, he had me
take Saturi in and turn her loose.
He then played with her at liberty from his
saddle horse. She was pretty terrified and it
took him nearly 45 minutes to convince her
that he could help her.
It was hard to watch her struggle and
search for an answer. I wanted so much to
rescue her. But, once she accepted Pat’s
leadership, progress with her confidence
came quickly.
This lesson ended with me riding her and
following a cow all over Pat’s playground.
The confidence I gained in what she
can handle grew, and this has helped me
to encourage her to experience more
things that might make us both a bit
uncomfortable, in an effort to expand our
comfort zones.
I am so thankful to Linda and Pat Parelli for
their guidance on this journey with a horse
that has caused me to reach deep into
myself and grow as a horseman and modify
what I believe about myself and what
is possible.
Saturi’s partnership means the world to me.
Without Parelli Natural Horsemanship this
horse would be my worst nightmare.
Saturi is my dream horse every day and
I will always be grateful to the Parelli
program for that partnership.
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Kristi Smith is a 4-Star Senior Parelli Instructor
who is available for lessons, clinics, and
camps all over the world. For Kristi’s details/
schedule, and more information on the
Parelli Professionals program, check out
professionals.parelli.com
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Exploding The Myths
About Horses
BY PAT PARELLI
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Age Old Secrets And All Kinds Of Advice Have Been Handed Down Through The Ages,
And Very Little Of It Is Based On Understanding The True Nature Of Horses.
This is part of the reason why people tend to have so much trouble
with horses. Here are some of the most common myths.
Myth 1.
“Horses are not smart.”
TRUTH: Horses are actually very
intelligent (on the prey animal scale).
They are quick learners and they
never forget.
They are prey-animal smart, so it’s
unfair to measure them on the scale
that includes predators such as people,
dolphins, and dogs. Their whole
existence, and therefore the way they
think, is very different.
Have you ever been out-smarted or
out-maneuvered by a horse? It
happens every day and not only to
the inexperienced!
Horses are born to out-think predators.
This is why people can have so much
trouble with them. They can’t catch
them, can’t shoe them, can’t control
them, can’t bridle them... they get
kicked, bitten, struck, or charged at.
Horses can make a million moves to
avoid being trapped and they can read
people like a book.
They know what you are going to
do before you do it and their brain is
programmed to do exactly the right
thing to foul you up and get away!
Once on a horse’s back, there’s not
much that they can do to defend
themselves except run, buck, rear, or
throw themselves down.
They run out of options and of course
the good rider is still there. But on the
ground, they are quicker and wilier
than anything.
Fredy Knie, world famous horse trainer
from the Swiss Circus Knie, told me that
of all the circus animals he’s trained,
horses are the most difficult to train well.
Myth 2.
“Punishment and reward is an effective training approach
– you have to show a horse who’s boss.”
TRUTH: Punishment does not work
for prey animals, and “showing a horse
who’s boss” in our predator way only
causes intimidation and resentment.
What does work with horses is
reinforcement.
Here’s the difference. Reinforcement is
instant. It’s like an electric fence. It gives
you instant feedback about your decision
to touch it and you learn your lesson fast.
Also, reinforcement has no emotions or
attitude attached to it.
It’s hard for people to get firm without
getting mean or mad, and when a horse
reads this emotional charge to the action
it will result in one of two reactions:
fear, or aggression. Pretty soon a smart
horse will recognize the emotions as
your weakness, and he’ll start pushing
your buttons because he knows you
lose control.
The more you can do with a smile, the
better. Use comfort and discomfort, and
reinforcement. Don’t get upset or angry.
In fact, if you feel that way, pet your
horse and apologize to him and then
leave him alone. Start again only
after you’ve calmed down totally and
developed a new perspective.
See every challenge or resistance your
horse puts up as an invitation to improve
your skills and savvy. Treat it as a game –
your horse does!
About showing your horse who’s boss...
There’s a different way to do this.
Prove to him that you are alpha, by his
definition. This means you have to be
calmer, smarter, braver, and more athletic
than he is, as well as more mentally,
emotionally, and physically fit.
You need to have leadership qualities and
offer friendship, security, and play. Then
your horse will respect you and follow
your lead – without question. This is what
becoming a Horseman is all about.
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Myth 5.
Myth 3.
“Horses are safe and simple.”
TRUTH: They are safe and simple, but
only when you have savvy. The ‘safe
and simple’ assumption is a dangerous
one, and it’s the reason so many new
horse owners get hurt.
It’s also why 80% of all new horse owners
get out of horses in their first year.
They start feeling unsafe, get hurt, or
become totally frustrated through lack of
understanding, and the fun starts to fade.
Savvy means safety. It’s what you put
in your head rather than on your head
that will keep you safe. You need to
understand horse psychology, their
behavior, their instincts, their needs,
their nature.
Then very little will surprise you and you
won’t make the common mistakes and
misjudgments that are responsible for
99% of horse related accidents. You’ll
know what to do, and what not to do.
Myth 4.
“Carrots and kindness will spoil a horse.”
TRUTH: Carrots and kindness
are important. They show a horse
you care, they bring out the soft side
of you, which in Parelli terms is
The Friendly Game #1.
It’s also important to note that kindness
without control can be dangerous. Once
a horse is no longer afraid, he can learn
very quickly how to play dominance
games with people.
It is the most important game because
“horses don’t care how much you know
until they know how much you care.”
This is where The Seven Games gives you
a great balance of kindness, friendship,
and dominance.
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“You shouldn’t work with a horse for more than 20 minutes.”
Truth: You can’t work a horse for more
than 20 minutes – but for how long can
you play? The key word here is play.
Working is not fun for a horse. They get
bored, they stop putting in effort, they
probably dream of being in the pasture
playing with their buddies. Some horses
will play all day long.
Playing The Seven Games, giving your
horse challenges to work out, and giving
him a chance to think his way through
things becomes very stimulating for him.
You’ll see his expression change and he’ll
start looking forward to his time with
you. A dull horse will come alive, and
an emotionally insecure horse will
become braver.
Sometimes cutting off the session too
soon doesn’t get you the result you need.
I often play with horses for two or three
hours at a time and, using the following
secret, the results are fantastic...
The secret to spending more than 20
minutes with your horse is this: make
it fun, intersperse plenty of Friendly
Game #1, have periods of rest (even five
to ten minutes can do it), use him as an
armchair, for transport, or just hang out.
Make sure you spend undemanding time
with your horse as a balance.
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Myth 6.
“You just saddle up and get on, no preparation is needed.
You just kick to go, and pull to stop.”
TRUTH: Don’t just saddle up and get
on. Preparation is the key. This is what
pre-flight, or in this case, pre-ride
checks are all about.
how to tell when your horse is mentally,
emotionally, and physically ready to
accept a rider on his back your riding
experiences will be ten times safer.
You need to check your horse out
mentally, emotionally, and physically on
the ground to see what side of the
corral he got up on.
If you don’t kick to go, and don’t pull to
stop, what do you do?
How is he feeling today? Is he good
natured and willing, or feeling a bit
disrespectful? Is he full of vip and vigor,
or a bit slow? Is he limping, stiff, or sore
in the back? You need to check all of
this out, and using The Seven Games is
the best way.
Sort it all out before you ever get on his
back. The easiest bucking horse rides are
made from the ground! If you can learn
If you were a horse, would you like to be
kicked and pulled, or would you rather be
softly squeezed and lightly lifted?
The technique you use will make all the
difference to your relationship.
Instead of kicking you will learn how
to teach your horse to respond to the
softest squeeze to go. He’ll learn to stop
when you quit riding and lightly lift the
reins. In higher Levels, you won’t even
need the reins.
Myth 7.
“Tough horses need tougher bits.”
TRUTH: Do tough horses really
need tougher bits? Big bits are used
when the common belief is that to
get control of a horse, you have to
overpower him.
Having to use a bigger bit is a sure sign
you have little or no communication
with your horse’s mind. By following the
Parelli Program, you’ll be guided into
developing real communication with
your horse and, ultimately, any horse.
When you have this you won’t need big
bits because your horse won’t be running
away or trying to escape from you.
In fact, you won’t need any bit to have
control. You’ll be able to choose a bit for
greater refinement, not greater force.
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Myth 8.
“Spurs are for speed.”
TRUTH: One of the questions I’m often
asked is: “My horse is lazy and slow,
should I get spurs?” Spurs are not
designed to make a horse go faster, if
they did, jockeys would wear them!
A lazy horse may respond to the use of
spurs at first because they are sharp, but
it won’t take long before he returns to his
lazy ways and becomes resentful!
Spurs are designed for enhancing
lateral maneuvers (going sideways)
and increasing suspension. They
are most valuable in higher Levels of
horsemanship.
I recommend that you complete
the first three Levels of this Program
without spurs so you learn how to
motivate a horse using communication,
understanding, and psychology rather
than mechanics. When you and your
horse are ready, spurs will be introduced
for greater refinement, not for greater
force. For communication, not pain.
Myth 9.
“Lean in the direction of the turn.”
TRUTH: Why is it that we do the
opposite to change directions when on
a horse’s back than what we naturally
do on our own feet?!
If you walk a straight line then make a
turn to your right, which foot are you
leaning on to push off with? The left foot.
Your weight is on your left foot so your
right foot can lift and shift its position to
take up the new direction. It’s the same
for your horse.
In this Program we’ll teach you how
to ‘push’ your turns instead of leaning
into them.
It will feel so much more natural for your
horse. Your turns will improve, and your
horse will start to use his hindquarters,
rather than lean on the forehand.
Myth 10.
“English and Western have nothing in common.”
TRUTH: The difference between
English and Western is like the
difference between a violin and
a fiddle. It’s the same instrument, you
just hold it in a different position and
play a different style of music.
The horse is the common instrument
in English and Western. He doesn’t care
what you wear, but the communication
signals are the same.
There might be some different
maneuvers, but ultimately we are looking
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for a soft, willing, well-balanced horse
that works from his hindquarters.
We can learn a lot from studying other
styles of riding. The English rider could
learn about better stops and turns. The
Western rider could learn about lead
changes and lateral movements.
Being open to a universal form
of teaching, you will develop an equine
athlete that you can do anything
with, do it well, and have your horse
enjoy it.
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CCRSS
For The Human!
BY DR. JENNY SUSSER
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Do You Get Lost Focusing Only On
Your Horse? Do You Focus Too Much On
The Goal Instead Of The Process?
Do you get frustrated with yourself
or your horse, and wish he/she was a
car that you could just kick the tires
in anguish?
Don’t feel badly if you do, because we all
get a little tunnel vision sometimes. Being a
horseman doesn’t make one immune from
the power of wanting to achieve our goals
and objectives. Even I get lost in the result I
seek, forgetting why I’m doing something,
only to discover that I’m doing it to my
horse instead of with my horse.
A valuable tool that has helped move my
horsemanship experience (as well as goals)
to the next level is Linda Parelli’s genius
grid of Calm, Connected, Responsive,
Supple, and Successful (CCRSS applied to
Horsenality).
CCRSS is a template for
what to look for during the
warm-up and even
during the training parts
of your sessions.
I have used this as a guide for sessions with
my horses for a while now and I find it very
helpful to keep me organized, as well as to
know when I am “there” with him and we
are ready to ride.
ad as
n be misre
Over-Flexed ca
Supple
I learned this from the master herself, Linda,
when she was visiting us and swapping
brilliances with Mette Larsen.
I am not a life-long horsewoman, so I don’t
share the level of horsemanship that Linda
and Mette do, but I am ever the eager
student, looking to take my game to the
next level. When Linda taught me this
grid, I was immediately empowered with
my horses.
You don’t have to be a Parelli student to
look for Calm, Connected, Responsive, or
Supple in a horse. You do need to learn
what each quadrant of the grid looks like,
however, because each of these “states” has
a secret double agent hidden within, ready
to fool you into a false sense of security.
As Linda, Mette, and I sat around one
evening, we talked about CCRSS and horses.
Linda and Mette went over each of the
horses they played with and looked for
ways they met the criteria, and ways they
failed. It was fascinating.
As they looked deeper, what they found
was the secret double agent of each
isread as
Quiet can be m
Calm
Successful
e misread as
Reactive can b
Responsive
Obedient can
be misread as
Connected
quadrant, and how we can look at and read
a horse one way, when really the energy is
another—a secret double agent!
This, of course, prompted me to think
about each of the quadrants from a
human perspective.
For each of the quadrants: Quiet can be
misread as Calm, Obedient can be
misread as Connected, Reactive can be
misread as Responsive, and Over-Flexed
can be misread as Supple. When one part
is misaligned, they all are, preventing the
desired center of Successful.
Do we have our own secret double agent
lurking inside, pretending to be OK when
really we are not? Do we look one way yet
feel another? And what tools do we need to
help us align our energy with our actions,
behaviors, and goals? The answer to all of
these questions is an emphatic “Yes!”
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See, humans have this unfortunate (ha, ha)
ability to hide our feelings, to pretend we
feel one way on the surface when we feel a
different way underneath. In other words,
we have the ability to lie.
Horses do not have any of these abilities.
I promise you they do not, because they do
not have the cognitive or brain capacity
for this kind of advanced thinking (yes,
lying is advanced thinking).
The equine brain is smaller (but perhaps
mightier) and does not have the frontal
lobe that humans have. The frontal lobe
or prefrontal cortex is where all abstract
thinking occurs, and where the trouble
begins for humans!
Sparing a neurobiology lesson, just know
that horses cannot lie. So, where does that
leave us? We need to increase our horse
psychology and learn how to read our
horses better.
Let me just tell you that learning to read a
sentient being that does not have a frontal
lobe is incredibly difficult for the being that
does! That sentence is basically the origin
of the phenomenon “anthropomorphizing.”
Because we can make things up, we do,
and because we are in the same place as a
horse, we make stuff up about them. Oh, it’s
a tangled web we weave…
The take away here is we need to use our
frontal lobes better to read our horses
better. And it takes time, lots of time, and
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lots of patience. I have been working on my
skills in Horsenality for almost three years
now, and have been fortunate to have the
best teacher in the business (Linda). And
every time I think I’ve got it, some new
puzzle appears.
But that’s the great part about
horsemanship: there is never anywhere to
“get,” yet always room to grow.
ALL THIS TALK ABOUT
READING HORSES, LET’S
START WITH HOW GOOD ARE
YOU AT READING YOU?
This is where Emotional Fitness comes
in. Linda and I have been talking about
Emotional Fitness for some time now,
so let me give you a quick update on
our progress.
What is Emotional Fitness you ask? Let
me ask you this first: when you become
emotionally elevated, good or bad, what
happens? Do you know? Have you thought
about this?
What I see everywhere I go is that any
elevation in emotion creates disequilibrium
in the person. Emotion creates excitement
physically, which can drastically distract the
mind. Emotion creates excitement mentally,
which also distracts the mind.
All these distractions create a
“disengagement,” or a disconnection, from
whatever you are working or focusing on.
This process happens so rapidly and so
automatically, that we miss it and don’t
“come to” until after the event is over and
the opportunity has passed.
This is the core of working on Emotional
Fitness: to be able to experience an increase
in emotional energy and remain mentally,
emotionally, and physically stable…with
the ultimate goal of remaining powerful.
Calm vs. Quiet
If I hooked a heart rate monitor
up to you, would your heart rate
tell the story of Calm, or Quiet?
Quiet is not the same as Calm…
Calm is an energy, not just a
physical appearance. Quiet is a
physical lack of noise masking
a blend of nerves, upset, worry,
or un-confidence mentally and
emotionally.
Humans are not unlike horses in
that underneath a Quiet horse
can lay an explosion, because
the energy is not Calm, but more
likely very noisy and just trying to
keep it together.
A Calm human has a low heart
rate, a thinking mind as opposed
to a reactive mind, and remains
connected to the goal or
objective while being able to
evaluate the process and
make changes deliberately.
That is quite the sentence, I know,
but stay with me. The key to
remaining Calm is to notice when
you drift out of Calm (which you
WILL do because you are alive –
so will your horse).
Look for what your thoughts and
resulting physical energy does.
You will feel different when you
are Calm vs. when you are simply
managing to look Quiet.
I would bet that if you were really
paying attention, your horse
will tell you when you move out
of Calm and start pretending to
be Quiet.
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Connected vs. Obedient
Just like Calm, Connected is an
energy, a feeling. Obedience
is behavioral and requires no
emotional connection because
it is simply action and can occur
without any feeling at all.
We Obediently write a check
to pay our taxes with very little
Connection to this event. Now,
some may become frustrated,
mad, or emotional from this
Obedience, but that is not a
Connection, it is a reaction (try
Emotional Fitness training for
this event!). Writing a check to
a charity, a rescue, or a loved
one you are helping out is the
same physical action as paying
taxes but with a very different
Connection to the event.
A Connection requires an
investment mentally and mostly,
emotionally. Now, an emotional
Connection is not always filled
with tears! Sometimes, that
Connection will move us to tears,
but it is not a requirement.
Connection seems to come from
someone offering themselves
up first. If you sit around waiting
for your horse to Connect with
you, your butt will get sore. As
the leader, you need to offer
your Connection first. When
your horse sees and feels your
mental, emotional, and physical
investment in him/her, then they
can safely step into that space.
The other thing about Connection
is that it lives only in the present –
you have to re-Connect each day
Think about this with your
because the half-life is minutes
horse…when you are with him/
long. So, if you have a great
her, do you remain Connected to
Connection one day and then
the tasks you are asking of them
expect it to be there the next day,
or does it become a “to-do” list
you might land in Obedience and
with items to check off or get
through? If you are not Connected sadly, disappointment. Oh, and
by the way, it works the same way
to the task, your horse can
with other humans (darnit).
only be Obedient, guaranteed!
Responsive vs. Reactive
The difference in these two states
originates in our brains. Stay with
me here, though, because this
is important and at the heart of
Emotional Fitness.
When we become emotional, our
brains undergo a physiological
change. It’s the same thing we
notice in our bodies when we
become physically elevated,
whether it be from fear, or
anxiety, or excitement. Think
about what happens to your
body: your heart rate goes up,
you might shake, get stomach
discomfort, sweaty palms, etc. All
of these changes are Reactions
that our body does automatically
to survive (it’s called the
Sympathetic Nervous System).
Horses do the same thing. When
your horse gets excited or scared,
all of a sudden, he’s 18 hands tall,
doesn’t notice you, and all his hair
is sticking up!
The thing most of us don’t know
is that a similar process occurs in
the brain – emotional elevation
creates the same set of issues
in our brain, hijacking our ability
to Respond and making us
React out of fear, frustration,
anger… survival.
So, a Reactive horse moves
quickly, which is what we want
from a Responsive horse, but
the energy is different. They are
quick but dis-Connected. They
move as a fearful Reaction to
pressure instead of a willing and
Calm Response.
Same thing in humans (yep, you
knew I was going to say that).
Reaction is void of thought but
not emotion. Response is when
you have both working together
in harmony.
Of course, the energy and the feel
are completely different when
you are Responding because it is
wonderful and easy, vs. upsetting
and difficult.
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Supple vs. Over-Flexed
Think about a body builder on a
stage. Now that is Over-Flexed!
Nothing Supple about it, right?
It’s not relaxing or soothing to
watch, it’s more tough and forced.
It’s correct though because the
purpose is to look like a marble
statue, not a soft, flowing,
Supple body.
Think about the way an OverFlexed horse looks: it’s the same
thing, there is an element of force,
rigidity, tension. There will often
be a tense or frightened look in
that horse’s eye, jaw, and mouth.
The feeling you get watching an
Over-Flexed horse is not one of
Connection or Calm, is it?
When you watch a Supple
horse, they are Supple physically
because they are Supple mentally
and emotionally. The human is
Calm, Connected, and Responsive,
allowing the body and spirit of
the horse to be Calm, Connected,
Responsive, and what do you
know, Supple.
What do you look like? I bet if you
paid attention, your horse would
tell you. Are your movements and
actions flowing or jarring? Are
you breathing and moving with
your thoughts and intentions,
or holding your breath and
bumping up against yourself and
your horse?
The key here is you. You need
to figure out what you look and
feel like when you are Supple.
It will not look like Pat, it will not
look like Linda, it will only look
like YOU.
When you stumble upon this, then
you can find what Supple looks
like for your horse. This is where it
is at and what I call Success.
One more thought about Success:
it is an individual event.
What Success looks like to you is NOT
what it looks like to anyone else, so don’t
be fooled by trying to be someone else’s
version of Success.
I happen to live with an outstanding
horsewoman, Mette Larsen. If I tried to
make my Success look like hers, I would
NEVER Succeed! We have very different
goals… because we have very different
abilities. I don’t ever let myself get trapped
by comparing my level of skills, abilities,
or accomplishments to hers. I would never
touch my horses if I did!
I learn from her in the physical skill world,
and guess what, she learns from me in the
emotional skill world.
THE MORAL OF THE STORY
IS ALL ABOUT YOU.
What is your definition of Successful? Is it
competing at Grand Prix? Is it having great
walks or trail rides? Is it in the relationship
you have with your horse? It doesn’t matter
to anyone but you and your horse.
Once you define this, begin to work
backwards from there. Look for the
energy and feel of Calm, Connected,
Responsive, and Supple in you first, and
then in your horse.
Know that you must cause all of these
things to be each and every day – in you
and in your horse. Know that they are
fleeting, in the present elements, and they
will come and go seemingly at will. But
don’t let that stop you. Find your flow and
work endlessly with it.
Dr. Jenny Susser is a long time Parelli student
and Clinical Psychologist. Her specialization
in sports psychology has led to working
with top football teams, Olympic athletes,
and equestrians. She is a top presenter of the
Corporate Athlete based on the work of the
great Jim Loehr. More recently, she and Linda
have teamed up to present a groundbreaking
series of Emotional Fitness Super Clinics. Learn
more by visiting www.jennyrsusser.com
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There Are Only Three Reasons
Horses Have Trouble
BY LINDA PARELLI
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There Are Only Three Reasons
Horses Have Trouble: Fear,
Dominance, Or Confusion.
When horses act up and don’t do what their
told, most people think this is disobedience, that
the horse is wrong.
But when you take a clearer look, with psychology in
mind, there are really only three reasons horses do
what they do: fear, dominance, or confusion.
I want to encourage you to think about
your issues with your horse differently, to
acknowledge that the reason for your
horse’s actions may be about fear,
dominance, or confusion rather than
disobedience or stupidity.
Therefore, both the immediate solution,
as well as the prevention of problems in
the future, lies in fixing the root of the
problem. You need to:
1. Build Your Horse’s Confidence And Trust.
1.
Fear
Horses often react out of self-preservation,
survival, self-defense. Being prey animals,
their instinct is to fly from fear… to get as fast
and far away as possible. If a horse is afraid of
you or an object, or a noise or a movement,
it is going to do something you don’t like!
Solution: Build Your Horse’s
Confidence And Trust.
2.
Dominance
If horses are not afraid, they
will argue. This means they are
challenging your leadership.
Solution: Develop
Your Leadership, Earn Your
Horse’s Respect.
3.
Confusion
When a horse is confused and
doesn’t know what to do, it is
likely to become emotional and
afraid, or emotional and fight.
Solution: Be Clear In Your
Communication.
2. D
evelop Your Leadership, Earn Your
Horse’s Respect.
3. Be Clear In Your Communication.
Horses are highly emotional animals and think very
differently from humans. We need to learn how to
think more like a horse.
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ARENA TIP
Stay Close To The Rail
BY LINDA PARELLI
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FIX IT
RIDER IS CROOKED
HORSE IS CROOKED
Have You Ever Had Trouble Riding Next To The Rail In An Arena?
Just like people, horses can be ‘lefthanded’ or ‘right-handed’. This means
they are not quite straight and will
travel a little bit crooked.
actually stay close to the rail on the side
they are more crooked!
You can see this when playing the Circling
Game, especially because one way will
be easier than the other. When it comes
to riding along the rail, your horse will
For example: If the horse looks to the
right when on a left circle, they will stay
close to the rail better when going around
the arena to the left (with the rail on the
right)! And vice versa. This is because
the nose will be naturally pointed more
Being a balanced rider is one of the
most important qualities we can offer
our horse. Think of this, if you were
carrying a child on your back, how would
it affect your ability to walk in a straight
line, if they hung off to one side?
for any crookedness in our body by
placing more weight in one stirrup
compared to the other. The moment we
press one stirrup harder than the other,
we influence the horse’s direction. It
also makes the saddle go crooked!
We tend to be better, more balanced
riders when riding bareback because
when in a saddle it’s easy to compensate
For example: If you have more weight in
your right stirrup, your horse will tend
to veer right, and therefore stay close
The immediate solution is easier than
you think, and can be as easy as putting
a little more weight in the stirrup
closest to the rail – and you should do
this before even touching your reins!
Don’t lean over, just press your foot a little
firmer in that stirrup.
The real solution, however, lies in
becoming a more balanced rider, and
helping your horse become more
supple. You can do this by:
1. S tanding in your stirrups for a few mins
each time you ride as a regular exercise
to improve your overall balance.
2. B
ecoming conscious of your horse’s
straightness or crookedness.
3. O
bserving your horse’s tendencies and
then thinking about how they might be
mirroring yours!
4. E qualizing the weight in your stirrups
– especially if your saddle tends to
slip to one side. How nice it would be
to blame the saddle, but rider error
is easily proven as soon as you ride
towards the rail than away from it.
Here are some reasons a horse can
be crooked:
• Unequal muscle development
• Not level in the shoulders or hips
• Injury
• Weakness
• Rider is crooked.
to the rail when going left.
This might sound confusing at first, but
once you think about it, you’ll see how
it works. If a horse naturally veers, or is
caused to veer to the right, having the rail
on its right side will keep it straight. But
going in the other direction with the
rail on the left, the horse will veer away
from the rail.
without stirrups. Interestingly, it will feel
like you’ve got a lot more weight on the
weak side for a while, but only because
you’ve become used to the opposite
feeling. You can even shorten the more
dominant side for a while to help.
5. S traighten your shoulders. You might
be surprised to find out that your
shoulders are carried at an angle,
instead of facing squarely ahead, so
your horse will do the same with
his shoulders.
Have you noticed that
it’s better in one
direction than the other?
Why is that?!
TRY THIS QUICK TEST
Ride next to the arena rail
at the walk or trot on a loose
rein. First to the left, then
to the right.
Which way was harder
for you and your horse – in
which direction did your
horse have more trouble
staying close to the rail?
In most cases, one way
is harder than the other
because either the horse, or
rider, or both… is crooked!
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My Special Horses
BY PAT PARELLI
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I Was Asked The
Other Day About My
Favorite Horses...
I would like to start by saying one of
my favorite horses was a mule!
Thumper
Thumper was so special; she was a Right
Brain Introvert with a heart of gold.
The reason her name was Thumper is
because, when the first Bishop Mule Days
event (in Bishop, California) started back in
the late 60s/early 70s, Shirley Green had a
little mule named Rabbit, and Rabbit won
everything! Now, you have to understand
Bishop Mule Days started off as a fun day
for “packers” in the late spring just before
they would head to the mountains, so
everyone was competing on their pack
mules. Well along came Shirley and Rabbit
who could do everything – run barrels,
rope, do ranch work, and outdid everyone.
When Gene Hammerlin approached me to
train his mule he asked: “Who’s the most
famous Rabbit?” Thumper of course! From
the Walt Disney movie, Bambi.
So that is how Thumper got her name and
I have a saying: “Mules are just like horses
only more so,” and Thumper was amazing.
I rode in the prestigious Snaffle Bit Futurity
in 1979 where she earned the third highest
reining mark out of 375 horses.
The spectators were excited but all the
owners of the horses she beat were upset!
The rules committee decided to take
action and as a result
established a rule
that still stands today:
“Your entry must
be a horse.”
Thumper is still close
to my heart. We did
many competitions
and inspirational
bridleless
demonstrations
together, including
an invitation to the
1980 Futurity – the
year after that rule
was written!
Salty Doc
Next came Salty. Salty Doc’s registered
name was Fresno Salty Doc, by a horse
called Doc’s Dynamo, who was by a very
famous horse called Doc Bar. In those days
a son of Doc Bar was highly desirable.
Salty Doc was an effervescent gold
buckskin, which is the only way I can
describe it. He gleamed from the inside
and had long black socks. There was
something really spectacular about this
horse, not just his looks.
Salty Doc (LBE/I) is the horse that changed
my life as a horseman. He helped me truly
learn about horse psychology under the
guidance of my mentor, Troy Henry.
Salty Doc is the first horse I ever did
any bridleless demonstrations on, and
it all started one day when Mr. Henry saw
me having terrible trouble with him
and told me to take off the bridle. Well…
did he take me for a ride! But it was the
change Mr. Henry needed to make in me
that changed the relationship between
Salty and I.
We did countless demos together,
inspiring the start of natural horsemanship
everywhere, in fact… he was in the video
that Linda talks about seeing in the tack
store that made her come to my clinic!
Now remember, I was already doing
bridleless demonstrations on Thumper,
and another mule named Sissy, but Salty
Doc was the first horse for me. He could
ride and slide, spin and win, turn and burn
as well as any performance horse that I’d
ever ridden – an incredibly powerful horse.
His owner, Mr. Showalter finally gave me
Fresno Salty Doc as a gift, because he
so loved the job that I did with him and
wanted him to have a great home. Salty
lived until he was almost twenty and he
passed away naturally at my friend and
Parelli Professional Dave Ellis’ ranch near
Bakersfield, California.
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Scamp
Scamp’s real name was Roan N Royal. I was
starting a lot of colts for a man in Clovis,
California and he sent me this little muscle
bound, red roan filly. She looked like a
walking meatball and was just full of it –
LBE, as you can well imagine!
I started her when I first moved to
Clements, California and on her first ride
I was riding from the round pen to the
arena and came across a cow.
Sparky
Next came “Sparky” whose real name
was King Grey Links. I got Sparky from
the famous horseman and cutting horse
trainer, Shorty Freeman. He was out of
Royal Weeks, a great daughter of Royal
King. I actually bought Sparky for a
customer of mine, Tyke Carleton.
Bobby Ingersoll, now a legendary stock
horse and bridle horse horseman was the
agent and he recommended Sparky to me.
He said, “Pat this is your kind of horse, he
gets into every kind of mischief, likes to
play with everything, likes to open every
gate, and I know you are going to do well
with him.” Can you guess his Horsenality?
That’s right... LBE.
I trained and showed Sparky successfully
at many Snaffle Bit Futurities around the
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country, and he won or placed at every
event we went. Of the three phases of
Reined Cowhorse competition – reining,
herd work, and down the fence – he
could do it all.
Even more special, Sparky also was the
horse that really helped my son Caton
learn how to ride. I had Sparky do
everything with voice cues so Caton
could cluck once and Sparky would trot…
double-cluck and he’d canter… say “Walk”
and he would walk… “Whoa” and he’d
stop… “Back” and he would back up.
Caton had a lot of trouble walking, but I
would strap him to Sparky and we would
go gather cattle all over the country! We
did several “father and son” demos when
Caton was quite small. Sparky is now in
horse heaven and, as you can imagine, is
still very close to my heart.
I felt her swell up, she felt like a cat that
had just seen a mouse, and she went over
there and started to play with the cow.
I think she totally forgot about me on her
back, that’s how strong her cow-horse
instincts were! She put her ears back,
drove that cow, and started playing.
From that moment, I knew this horse was
really special. Everywhere I went, people
tried to buy her. Scamp starred in several
of my videos over the years, and traveled
all over the country with me to clinics,
along with Salty Doc and Sparky.
Scamp lived until she was 27 years old and
is the horse that is now responsible for
getting Caton interested in riding cutting
horses. She gave him the bug!
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Casper
Casper is for sure my most famous horse,
along with Magic. Linda and I saw him
in Alberta, Canada at a clinic in 1995. At
lunch, we both looked at each other and
said at the same time: “Did you see that
black stallion?!” He was the most stunning
horse I’d ever seen, and the bucking-est
horse I’ve ever seen, and I had a rodeo
career for 14 years!
His owner, Hazel, said to me the reason
she rescued/bought him was because
he’d been starved down by some trainers
him the blank check
and told him if he ever
reconsidered, please
give me a call. Two
months later he called
and said you’re right,
she should be yours.
who just couldn’t get him to stop bucking.
He had allowed her to ride him but only
because he trusted her. She knew it was
not safe, and not right, that’s why she
brought him to my clinic.
Even though she rode him during the
clinic, I knew it was not good for the future
and offered to check him out and do more
with him that evening.
Casper was a real “saddle bronc,” as we’d
say in rodeo, because it was the cinch that
caused him to buck. We played on the
ground a little and then I saddled him.
When he stepped off, he exploded… He
bucked hard, and bucked, and bucked,
and bucked for 45 minutes. I kept
playing with him on the ground and
he finally came over to me and I petted
him. I felt him connect, so I crawled up
into the saddle and we rode together.
We asked Hazel if we could buy him
and she and her husband said no.
She really loved Casper. But a month or
so later she decided he would have a
more successful future with me, and the
rest is history.
His real name is Dial Bar Hemp Moon.
His friendly but very spooky nature is
why they called him Casper, after the
famous cartoon, Casper The Friendly
Ghost. Casper (LBE) captured hearts
everywhere with his spectacular
presence and charisma. He became my
super liberty horse.
Magic
This story cannot end without my all-time
favorite horse, Magic. In 1989 I was in
Launceston, Tasmania, and Magic (RBI)
was one of the horses brought along to
choose for the demo. She came with a
long list of problems, after going through
a long list of trainers – all of them had
said she was no good.
Magic was hard to catch, and if you did
catch her, she would bite and kick you, and
was tough to ride. She was spooky about
everything – hyper-sensitive, everybody’s
nightmare… but after a few minutes
I knew I had found my dream horse. I
remember riding up to Linda and saying
“I want to buy this horse.”
At the end of the demo, I gave the owner
(a Parelli student who first helped Magic
find kindness) a blank check and I asked if
I could buy her. He said no, but I handed
She lived in Australia
for about a year with
one of my top students
at the time, Phillip Nye.
Then we flew her to
the USA.
Magic’s registered name was Maloga
Cut The Deck. Her nickname was
Spider – after the black widow spider! I
immediately named her Magic, because
that’s pure and simply what she is. Pure
Magic. She was fast, could work a cow,
ride and slide, flying lead changes, piaffe,
and jump four foot with this cowboy
aboard a western saddle.
I’ve taken her all over the USA, and flown
her twice to the UK for our mega event
at the NEC Birmingham… and once to
Germany for Equitana. I have yet to find
another horse as special as Magic.
She is 25 this year (2015) and Caton still
plays with her and rides her a couple
times a week. We wanted to breed her
because of who she is, and she just
loves foals, but she never ‘took,’ so she
happily lives with the mares and babies
as the caring matriarch of them all.
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Types of Releases when Riding:
Basic Release, Short Crest Release, Long
Crest Release, Automatic Release.
Some Types of Jumping Sports:
Show Jumping, Cross Country Jumping, Fox
Hunting, Steeplechase, Hunter Over Fences.
Cross Country jumping
takes place on an outside
jump course with a variety
of obstacles and requires
bravery, scope, endurance,
speed, and accuracy.
“I choose,
we approach,
you jump.”
– Linda Parelli
The world record for highest jump
successfully completed by a horse is 7 feet,
10 inches. The unofficial highest jump
is 8 foot, 3 inches!
‘Bascule’ is the shape of the
horse’s body through the
air over the jump,
specifically the
curve in his neck
and back.
Show Jumping takes place
over a jump course in an arena, it is
a timed event in which the goal
is to have a clean round, meaning
not knocking down any rails or
going off course.
Jumping is
one way to
play the Parelli
Squeeze Game.
Jumping Facts
To best judge the jump
a horse is approaching,
he must look down his
nose at it.
DID YOU
KNOW...?
Phases of a Jump:
Approach, Take-off,
Flight, Landing.
The longest jump
successfully completed
by a horse is 28 feet.
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HOME
TRAIL TIP
All For
One, And
One For All!
BY PAT PARELLI
HOME
“All For One, And
One For All...” I Love
That Call From TV’s
Three Musketeers In
The 1970s, And It Is
Especially Relevant
On The Trail.
Your horse
is jigging and
over-excited but
everyone just keeps
on riding down
the trail.
Everyone
takes off up
the hill and your
horse goes
berserk!
People and horses get in trouble
when they ride for themselves
and are not conscious of what’s
going on for others.
I strongly believe and teach that
everyone has a responsibility for
everyone’s safety and enjoyment.
Don’t ride with people who don’t care.
Be sensitive to what’s going on for
your fellow trail riders.
You can be part of the solution,
instead of part of the problem.
Your horse
won’t cross the
stream and
nobody waits
for you.
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Find your Parelli
Professional at
professionals.parelli.com
HOME
1.We Often Mistake When The Horse Is
Calm, Connected, Responsive, Supple
For When He’s Actually:
CCRSS Quiz
4.Left Brain Extroverts Need
To Become More:
8.How Long Is A Session Supposed To Be?
a.Calm.
b.Connected.
c.Responsive.
a.As long or as short as you like, because it all
depends on your outcomes.
b. An hour for extroverts, two hours for introverts.
c. 30 minutes.
d.Until the horse can do everything perfectly.
2.A Horse That Is Responding Through
Obedience Rather Than Connection May Be:
5.Right Brain Extroverts Need
To Become More:
9.The Four Ways A Horse Can Respond To
Pressure Are:
a.Fearful.
b.Distrusting.
c.Uncomfortable.
d. All of the above.
a.Calm.
b.Connected.
c.Responsive.
a.Does not yield, yields, seeks comfort, unity.
b.Does not yield, yields quickly, seeks safety, unity.
c.Yields slowly, yields quickly, seeks comfort,
harmony.
d. Slow, medium, fast, very fast.
3.What Is The Goal Of A Warmup?
6.Left Brain Introverts Need
To Become More:
10. What Are The Three Kinds Of Goals?
a. The horse is confident and calm.
b. The horse’s muscles are loose and ready to work.
c. The horse is tired and therefore safe to ride.
d. The horse is calm, connected, and responsive.
a.Calm.
b.Connected.
c.Responsive.
a. Realistic, unrealistic, optimistic.
b. Big goal, short term goal, session goal.
c. Dream goal, short term goal, 5 year goals.
d. None of the above.
7.Right Brain Introverts Need
To Become More:
a.Calm.
b.Connected.
c.Responsive.
Answers
1. a., 2.d, 3.d, 4.c, 5.a, 6.b, 7.b, 8.a, 9.a, 10.b.
a. Quiet, Obedient, Reactive, Over-Flexed.
b. Quiet, Shut-Down, Reactive, Over-Flexed.
c. Quiet, Obedient, Reactive, Shut-Down.
d. None of the above.
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BREED SPOTLIGHT
Gaited Horses
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Gaited Horses Come
In A Variety Of Breeds
And Offer A Variety
Of Ways Of Going.
“The Tennessee Walking Horse, also called
Plantation Walking Horse, is a breed of
horse that derives its name from the state of
Tennessee and from its distinctive gait—the
running walk. In a broad sense, it originated
from all the ancestors that could do a
running walk.
Some of the popular breeds include
the Tennessee Walking Horse, Missouri
Fox Trotter, Rocky Mountain Horse,
Spotted Saddle Horse, Kentucky
Mountain Horse, Paso Fino, Peruvian
Paso, and Icelandic Horse.
Allan F-I (foaled 1886), a Standardbred
stallion with several crosses of Morgan
breeding, had the greatest influence on
the breed. The walking horse is heavier and
stouter than, and lacks the refinement and
style of, the American saddle horse.”
Many of the gaited breeds are known
for their unique and beautiful coat colors
as well as their invariably smooth way
of traveling.
Non-gaited horses have four distinct gaits,
the walk, trot, canter, and gallop. Gaited
horses can also perform a variety of other
gaits depending on their breed.
Here are some of the gaits and a few
examples of the breeds that perform them:
pace (Standardbreds, Icelandics, Peruvian
Pasos), fox-trot (Missouri Fox Trotter), rack
(American Saddlebred), running walk
(Tennessee Walker), tolt (Icelandic Horse),
and revaal (Marwari).
This month we’ll take a closer look at the
Tennessee Walking Horse.
source: http://www.britannica.com/animal/
Tennessee-walking-horse
“Characteristics: The Tennessee Walking
Horse is a noble looking animal with a
straight profile and an upright build.
In the running walk, each hoof hits the
ground independently; the gait can be
as fast as the canter. The smooth canter
is often described as a “rocking chair”
canter. The horses are shown flat shod
(Plantation Walker) or with weighted shoes
(Performance Horse). The Tennessee Walker
stands from 15 to 16 hands high and can
be found in the following colors: black, bay,
chestnut, sorrel and white.”
source: http://www.horsechannel.com/
horse-breeds/profiles/tennessee-walkinghorse-horse-breed.aspx
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HOME
Classic
Rogue
GAITED HORSE PROFILE
Color: Black with a large star, snip and near hind pastern.
Height: 16 hands high.
TENNESSEE WALKING HORSE
with 3-Star Parelli Professional Jenny Trainor
Sports: English, Western, Driving, Trail, Packing, Hunting.
Horsenality: Medium Spirited Right Brain Extrovert.
Registered Name: Classic Rogue, by 10 WorldChampion
Classic Generator out of an Ebony Masterpiece mare.
Parelli Level: Level 4 Complete - Level 5 skills.
Age: 15.
Best Savvy: Liberty, he is eye catching!
Breed: Tennessee Walking Horse.
Partner: Jenny Trainor, 3-Star Instructor.
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About Classic: Classic has been a great partner to
teach me how to help gaited horses in the Parelli
Program, as well as those that are not! He is not the
most talented of TWH, don’t tell him that. He is a bit
on the trotty end of the gait scale for my liking, but
through the program he has developed into a horse
with a strong flashy head shaking walk that is able
to bring home blue ribbons! True to his breed, he is
very versatile and does well with trail riding, jumping,
demos, driving, family horse, and has packed out a lot
of game. He is sensitive, a blast to ride, has a big heart,
a very pretty head, is tall and elegant to look at, and
has amazing eyes that you can see deep into.
HOME
Gaited Horses
And Anti-Soring
Initiatives By Lori Northrup, 2-Star Parelli
Professional and President of the
Parelli Foundation
Gaited horses are a deep love of mine. This
love started in one of my first businesses,
when I was 17 years old and operated a trail
riding stable with a string of 25 horses.
I had 24 registered Quarter Horses and
Appaloosas, and one big gangly gelding
without papers that all my customers
always wanted to ride. Turns out he was a
Tennessee Walking Horse, and that started
my love affair with gaited horses.
Three years later I met my husband Bill, a
customer on one of my trail rides, while I
was riding a tall black walker mare named
“Lady.”
Years later, a Tennessee Walking Horse mare
“Maggie” was my Parelli Level 1 partner,
although our audition ride wasn’t very
refined and our canter to an emergency
dismount was a bit wild.
Then I read the book which changed my
life: “From the Horse’s Mouth,” by Eugene
Davis. This is an exposé into the ugly
world of soring abuse, which is rampant
in the traditional show world for gaited
horses, radiating from the epicenter of
Tennessee Walking Horses in Shelbyville,
Tennessee. Soring is a cruel technique of
using pain, intentionally caused pain, to
teach a horse to exaggerate his gait into an
awkward, exhausting caricature that wins
in these types of show events. I joined a
nonprofit organization FOSH (Friends of
Sound Horses) that is active in advocating
against soring abuse, and offering a sound,
natural show circuit to people who want an
alternative. I served as President of FOSH
for about 12 years, and I am now the Vice
President of Anti-Soring Initiatives.
During those years, a Tennessee Walking
Horse filly, “Magnolia,” was born in our
pasture early one May morning, and she
went on to become my levels partner all
the way through achieving Parelli Level 4
and becoming a 2-star Parelli Professional.
When Pat Parelli invited me to start
the Parelli nonprofit, now the Parelli
Foundation, I was intrigued because it
combined my love of Parelli philosophies
along with my desire to truly help horse
welfare, including stamping out the horrors
of soring done to gaited horses.
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HOME
The efforts to end soring
abuses are various, and
include everything from
federal legislation, to social
media and public protests,
to TV exposés, supported
by volunteers, FOSH, the
nation’s Congressmen,
the largest veterinarian
organizations, and national
humane organizations.
We organize national conferences every
few years, and a high level working group
that meets monthly on these issues. A few
recent highlights are listed below, in the
efforts to end soring, along with the action
you could take to help the cause.
The PAST Act would outlaw the “big lick” or
performance style of showing, with heavy
shoes and chains, as well as toughening
up the penalties for soring violations. The
reintroduced PAST Act in the Senate (S.
1121) now has 48 co-sponsors. Recently
introduced in the House, by Republican
Ted Yoho, a large animal veterinarian, the
matching PAST Act (HR. 3268), the House
bill has 190 co-sponsors already. For a
current update, just go to www.Congress.
gov and type in the bill number. Contact
your Congressmen and get them as cosponsors.
Soring made the news big time when Big
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Lick Tennessee Walking Horse Trainer Mr.
Jamie Lawrence of Vinemont, Alabama
was booked into the Maury County Jail
on July 24, 2015, after being indicted on
Aggravated Assault with A Deadly Weapon
charge by the Grand Jury. Lawrence had
swerved his truck and horse trailer toward
Ms. Teresa Bippen, President of FOSH, at
the end of May at a performance horse
show, where Ms. Bippen and others were
protesting the cruelties of the big lick. Read
the recent news on soring, always posted
on www.StopSoring.com. FOSH maintains
this website, and has over 1,000 articles,
dating back to 1956 with Sports Illustrated
coverage.
downright painful. This may have been an
accepted style 50 years ago, but these days
we know better. There is just no excuse for
causing an animal as much pain as these
horses are subjected to in order to get such
extreme and artificial movement. I’m glad
there are people who love these horses
enough to say it’s time to be training them
with natural methods and to accept them
for their natural beauty and movement.
Thank you for posting this video, it’s
very helpful.”
If you would like a daily blog sent to
you with soring news, check out www.
BillyGoBoy.com and register at that site.
Social media is on fire with news about
efforts to end soring … make sure you avail
yourself of the late-breaking news.
Groups and individuals are gathering each
month to work on the issues of soring.
Comments continue to pour in from the
general horse-loving public about the style
of the big lick, such as this commentary.
Our thanks to this viewer, who posted
these words after watching the Big Lick
compared to a natural gait on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=UObsbjyHxt8 “That “Big Lick”
movement makes it look like the horse
is trying to crawl uphill. When the horse
is cantering, it looks totally artificial and
If you want to get involved, or learn more,
you could join FOSH for $30 per year, or
stay current at www.FOSH.info, or check
out www.hpadata.us, where trainers with
soring violations are publically listed.
Along my horse journey, I was lucky
enough to meet the positive influences
of natural horsemanship, and learn lots
about the Parelli methods in conjunction
with the challenges of bringing a gaited
horse through the program. I’ve met many
Parelli enthusiasts who have asked the
same questions that I once did: “Will it ruin
my gaited horse to trot?” “Must I have a
different horse from my gaited horse to
accomplish the Parelli levels?” “What gait is
my horse doing right now?”
We were able to offer a Gaited Horses
Naturally course this November (2015), at
the Parelli Ocala Campus. I am attending as
a full student, along with my barn manager,
and a friend who now owns one of the
Tennessee Walking horses that we bred
and raised.
Keith Dane, VP Of Equine Protection, Humane
Society of the United States, is a long time Parelli
student and the driving force behind making a
better world for horses, and especially the gaited
horse. Read more about the Humane Society’s
Gaited Horse Investigations in the Parelli Blog >
Photo: Presenting Pat with HSUS Horseman of
the Year at the 2009 Savvy Conference.
Being able to study again with 5-Star
Parelli Professional David Lichman, along
with 3-Star Parelli Professional Jenny
Trainor, with special sessions from some
of the FOSH judges, who are well trained
in gaited horse talents, will be a great
treat. It will be lovely to ride our barefoot,
gaited horses with other Parelli students
of like mind, and have those days
together to just enjoy the ride. And what
a ride it is!
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THE PARELLI FOUNDATION
Help make the world a better place for horses and humans with the Parelli
Foundation, an independent, non-profit organization for the natural
horsemanship community! The Parelli Foundation is focused on providing
programs and assistance, financial and otherwise, in the following areas:
• Youth Horsemanship
• Horse Welfare
• Therapeutic Horsemanship
• Equine Talent & Career Scholarships
This wonderful organization is dedicated to fulfilling
Pat Parelli’s lifelong mission of providing natural, effective
horsemanship education to students all around the world,
for the benefit of horses and the humans that love them.
Visit parellifoundation.org to learn more!
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SPORTS SPOTLIGHT
You Can Shoot A Gun
Off Any Horse... Once!
J ESSE PETERS
4-STAR SENIOR PARELLI PROFESSIONAL
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Jesse Peters Grew Up On A Small Farm
In Ohio, Three Miles From The Birthplace
Of Annie Oakley.
Growing up he spent countless
afternoons playing cowboys in the hay
mow of their big hip roof barn.
The Peters boys and neighbor kids all
came together and built hay forts on each
side of the hay mow and proceeded to
use their cowboy imaginations to shoot
at each other using toys and the sound of
their voices, “Boom!” You could say that
Jesse always had a bit of a romantic dream
that the silver screen cowboy inside of him
would get a chance to come out one day!
Fast forward to the year 2001 and Jesse
was just getting started in a program called
“Parelli” and around that same time was
also introduced to the sport of Cowboy
Mounted Shooting by friends in Cincinnati.
Cowboy Mounted Shooting is the fastest
growing equestrian sport in America.
Mounted contestants compete in this fastaction, timed event using two .45 caliber
single action revolvers each loaded with
five rounds of specially prepared blank
ammunition.
The Cowboy Mounted Shooting
Association (C.M.S.A.) has a variety of levels
of competition for everyone, ranging from
novice levels to the seasoned professional.
Jesse got started in the sport while
borrowing both guns and a seasoned
shooting horse from a friend to figure out
if the sport was really for him or not (Parelli
Principle #7, Horses teach humans and
humans teach horses).
It turned out, the sport was for Jesse and
he competed in the CMSA for four years. He
quickly rose from a beginner level 1 shooter
all the way up to a level 4 Open Men’s
division and Midwest Regional Champion.
In 2005 he left shooting to follow his
Parelli Professional career pathway as a
Parelli Center Faculty Team member and
then Parelli Instructor in the field. It can be
hard to be serious about shooting when
all the competitions are on the weekends,
because it is during the same time
customers want their clinics scheduled.
Jesse used his years away from CMSA to
work on advancing his horsemanship. He
knew he had to figure out a way to help
his horses to be competitive in a speed
and control sport, all the while keeping his
Parelli Principles in sight and putting the
relationship first.
In 2013, with some urging from his wife
Stacy, Jesse prepared his 2006 AQHA
gelding, Great Pine Whiz (GPW), for
shooting. The pair attended a couple
Cowboy Mounted Shoots in Florida and
Ohio when time was available.
The competitive mounted shooting bug
slowly started to wake up inside Jesse again
and he worked hard to get his talented
horse ready to become competitive.
Many folks are running big fast Gymkhana
bred horses, where Jesse’s horse had a
talent for spinning and slide stops in the
reining pen. Jesse helped GPW become
more and more tolerant of the sport,
eventually accepting the gunfire, patterns,
and speed required to be respectable in
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Cowboy Mounted Shooting events.
Pat Parelli always says, slow and right
beats fast and tight (fast and wrong). If
there was ever a recurring theme in every
lesson Jesse has ever taken from Pat it was
always, “Jesse, slow down!”
One of Jesse’s dreams was to
not only compete in CMSA
competitions, but he wanted to
be able to do it bridleless one
day while being competitive!
He knew that if he was
ever going to be able to
accomplish this goal
that he and GPW
would have to start
working together
as not only a
team, but as ONE.
By following the Parelli
Program and taking
his time with GPW and
putting in lots of practice,
soon the team was ready for
stepping their competition up
a few notches.
In 2015 Jesse got the opportunity
to shoot in a national competition in
Louisville, KY at the North American
Livestock Exposition (NAILE).
One of Jesse’s friends, CMSA Hall of Famer,
Bobby Ruwe knew that Jesse had a dream
to shoot from his horse bridleless one day.
Bobby asked Jesse if he had ever practiced
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shooting bridleless at home, and if he was
interested in shooting bridleless for the
NAILE crowds.
Jesse thought about it for maybe a whole
second-and-a-half before he said, “SURE!
Let’s do it! I’ve never tried shooting bridleless before but I bet everyone here would
LOVE to see me try!”
A rider should never take the bridle off
unless they know without a doubt that they
have full control to turn and stop and get
off if needed. A picture is worth a thousand
words, so here is a video of Jesse’s very first
bridleless shooting attempt EVER at the
NAILE in November 2014: https://youtu.be/
hD112z4S-fM.
The next big public demonstration was at
a Parelli Tour Stop in Murfreesboro, TN and
then Tampa, FL which can be viewed here:
https://youtu.be/XnADJg2gZXg.
By this time Jesse and GPW were having
a blast in 2015 shooting at several CMSA
competitions bridleless whenever they had
the chance.
Some may wonder why Jesse would even
want to shoot without a bridle when his
runs are slightly slower. The answer? He
loves to spread the Parelli message and
it sure caused a stir amongst many of the
competitors to see him compete in such
a high speed, accuracy based sport as
Mounted Shooting!
There was such a buzz about it that many
clubs said they would forbid Jesse to take
the bridle off in competition. However, a
national director for the CMSA organization
enjoyed seeing the bridleless runs so
much that he suggested and nominated a
“bridleless riding rule.”
The ruling created a nationwide rule that
permits anyone and everyone to shoot
without a bridle on their horse in all CMSA
competitions except for the costume
driven class called Calvary Class!
Just one week after the new rule was in
place, Jesse and GPW wowed a county
fair crowd with bridleless shooting in the
shotgun competition all evening. The
result? Overall Shotgun Champion out of
14 shooters and Overall Champion in the
regular match!
Jesse’s takeaway message for everyone
doing anything with their horses is that
horses will run faster and jump higher out
of heart and desire!!
Follow Jesse and GPW on Facebook and learn
more about Jesse’s details and schedule at
professionals.parelli.com
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BEHIND THE SCENES
Pat & Linda’s
Home On The Road
Have you ever wondered
what’s inside Pat and
Linda’s bus and trailer?
Click on the play button
and they will take you on a
personal tour!
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Upcoming Events >
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J U N I O R S AV V Y
Body Language
Word Puzzle
Have you ever wished your horse could talk
and just tell you what he is thinking? It sure
would make things easier, wouldn’t it? Did
you know horses really do talk? It’s true!
They just don’t speak our language, they
speak the horse’s language.
Horses speak by nickering, whinnying,
snorting, and blowing, but most of their
language is spoken with their body. It is
called body language and horses use it
much more often than sounds.
If you watch closely, you will see that
horses use their eyes, ears, nose, mouth,
head, neck, feet, and tail to communicate
with each other and with us. All these parts
of the body say something about what the
horse is thinking.
If we want to have a really good
relationship with our horses, it is very
important for us to learn their language.
After all, they can’t really learn ours,
can they!
Look at the puzzle here and see if you
can find all the words that have to do with
how horses speak their language.
Words run across, down, and diagonally.
Have fun!
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HOME
Level 1 On Line = Red Savvy String
Level 2 On Line + FreeStyle = Blue Savvy String
VIEW A LIST OF OUR MOST
RECENT LEVELS PATHWAY
GRADUATES!
The Parelli Levels Program began in 1991. It was the first
ever horsemanship home study “college” course of its kind
designed to teach people how to become a horseman and
professional, comprising four levels in “Four Savvys”: On
Line, Liberty, FreeStyle and Finesse. Each month, students
who graduate these official levels are awarded certificates.
See this months list of official graduates!
If you are new to the Savvy Club, the Levels Program is
built into the curriculum. But if you are ambitious or have
professional goals, you may want to get more in depth and
participate in Levels tests as well. You’ll learn more about
this option in Touchstone 5 - The Four Savvys.
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Level 3 On Line + Liberty + FreeStyle
= Green Savvy String
Level 4 On Line + Liberty + FreeStyle + Finesse
= Black Savvy String
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The Parelli Web Shop
Check out our online shop for the latest and greatest in Parelli products! From
education and equipment to apparel and accessories, and everything in between,
the Parelli Web Shop is your one-stop shop for all things Parelli!
Introducing our Parelli Partners!
Dear Savvy Club Member,
We are happy to introduce our official Parelli Partners! Each of these wonderful companies
share our dedication to improving the horse industry, and the quality of their products is
matched only by the strength of their principles and values. To our Parelli Partners - thank
you for doing what you do, and for helping us make the world a better place for horses
and humans!
—Pat & Linda Parelli
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Pat’s Top 13 Favorite
Cowboy Movies of All Time!
1. 1972 The Cowboys - Shows how natural humans are until they are 12.
2. 1988 The Rounders - Fairly realistic for the times, and turned into
a TV sitcom where the horse was the best comedian!
3. 1953 Shane - The song - Mariah (They call the wind Mariah).
4. 1966 The Appaloosa - The hill climb of all times!
5. 1948 Red River - The river crossing.
6. 1974 Blazing Saddles - I like the campfire scene - the beans!
7. 1967 The Good, The Bad, The Ugly - The theme song!
8. 1969 Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid - The cliff scene.
9. 1972 Judge Roy Bean - Many years later I aced someone who was the
judge at a rodeo I competed at, and they said, “You know, Judge Roy Bean!”
I had no idea, but then I went to see the movie.
10. 1973 High Plains Drifter - The fact that it took me three viewings before
I figured out ‘he’ was a ghost.
11. 1990 Dances With Wolves - I loved how much the muleskinner loved his mules.
12. 1966 Texas Across The River - That Texas had oil where water should be!
13. 1976 The Outlaw Josey Wales - A friend of mine, Harley May, was the
stunt rider on the bucking horse!
See You
Next Month!