Giving the Horse a Pathway to Solve Problems, From the Ground

By Mary Gallagher 

Very often, the mistakes the horse makes under saddle are mistakes by the rider in terms of balance, connection and lack of lightness in communication. Horses want to move rhythmically and efficiently, and too often it’s we that get in the way. Like other trainers, I am good at working through issues from the saddle, but I’ve been practicing new ways to reduce training time and get even better results from the ground. 

Trees Can Help Your Horse Find the Feel

By Mary Gallagher

Tree as helpful obstacle

Here at Freedom Farm we are blessed with a wooded playground we call the Emerald Forest. It has provided everyone here with the added benefit of exposing their horses to natural obstacles as well as a quiet retreat to strengthen their relationship with their horses. So with improved weather this month, it was a pleasure to get back out into this beautiful training area. Trees are wonderful obstacles: you can go around or between them, under their branches, over their exposed roots or fallen branches. Today I will share with you one of my favorite ways of using going around a tree to help the horse develop a softer feel.

Train While You Play—Lessons Learned from Baby Horses

By Mary Gallagher

Baby horses are four-legged balls of fun, interested in everything, playful and curious. We have been blessed with a number of bright young colts to start and develop, over the past few years at Freedom Farm, and I’ve been taking notes on our progress. I’ve realized how much power and potential there is in recognizing the energy of play as a resource in training, not only with babies but horses in general. Without overthinking things (a good first rule of thumb with baby horses), I wanted to share some insights and ideas to consider while playing with your horse of any age:

My Appreciations for 2021, and Prayers for 2022

By Mary Gallagher

Keeping Freedom Farm running takes the combined efforts of a lot of wonderful people—which many of you can appreciate after these last two weeks of below freezing weather. 

My Appreciations for 2021...

Honoring the Horse’s Learning Process: reflections on a clinic with Martin Black

by Mary Gallagher

We were privileged to host Martin Black for a great clinic last week, in which he stressed his approach to “evidence-based horsemanship” —recognizing the results of our communication in the horse’s immediate response. The participants came with a good foundation in connecting to their horses’ feet, so Martin was able to further refine our understanding and inspire us with his unique insights. He got us out of our comfort zones, challenging what we thought we knew, while giving us tools to communicate more effectively.

 

Readable Neutral: the art of slowing ourselves down and allowing our horse to communicate

By Mary Gallagher

Getting in sync, around the box slowly...

In our horsemanship ground class last week, we were debriefing after an exercise emphasizing real connection with our horses—literally getting in sync with their energy, rather than insisting they get in sync with ours. We had been working with this idea in earlier classes, and this week, we all seemed to get to the next level. Each student had their own insights, and as we reflected on our progress one commented, “Gosh, you can do everything ‘right’ and still not connect!”

Keeping Cool While You Ride (Connecting to the Feet Series)

By Mary Gallagher 

No, this article has nothing to do with that incredible hot weather we had last week. But wasn’t that something? At Freedom Farm, we survived by starting our day much earlier and getting our riding done before the heat of the day—something that folks in southern climates know a lot about! -MG 

Today I’d like to talk about keeping our cool while riding—maintaining that conscious patience so crucial to building and maintaining relationship. Losing that balanced attitude can jeopardize our connection with the horse, and if we don’t find and restore it, there goes our whole training program. I know this sounds extreme, but there can be a domino effect that takes us right back to square one. It starts with me. If I can just stay cool—keep emotions in check, stay patient and quiet—when my horse gets distracted, it will save time and frustration in the long run.