How to give your young horse the best start to riding. by Cynthia Cooper ‘Starting’ a young horse is a more positive than ‘breaking’ so I will use this term rather than the traditional ‘breaking-in’ that has become common language for training a horse to be ridden. After all, who wants […]
Starting Young Horses Under Saddle Read More »
Yesterday at my Young Horse Day workshop I met a wonderful soul in Boronia, a young shire mare. I was asked to work with her because she wouldn’t be caught, especially in the paddock with the other horses. She would give up in the yard as she knew she was
Giving Horses Choices – The beautiful Boronia Read More »
by Cynthia Cooper To horses, a treat is not a bribe unless you use it as one. I see it as a reward, or payment for a job well done. It offers incentive for the horse to earn more and they look forward to their work when payment is forthcoming.
Treats for Horses – Why Use Them? Read More »
by Cynthia Cooper Comfort zones are a survival mechanism for horses. If they aren’t familiar with something they become wary, putting them just outside their comfort zone into a ‘not too sure’ zone. When they become truly afraid for their survival, they go into their ‘Oh no I’m in danger’ zone
Comfort Zones – what are they? Read More »
by Cynthia Cooper Over the many years of being a student of the horse, pony club, Parelli, horse psychology, clicker training and many other great horsemen and women, I have learned a lot. In fact I’m a ‘learn-a-holic’! Learning is something I will continue to do until the day I
Educating My Horses Read More »
WARNING! Some people reading this article may think I’m taking an unfair swipe at various aspects of the horse world and those people who are involved with horses in one way or another. My only intention in writing this piece was to have a good, hard look at “what is”
Enslaved by Glenn Wilson © Read More »
by Cynthia Cooper Recently we had Melbourne Cup Day where the whole of Australia comes to a standstill at about 3pm to listen to, watch and cheer on the elite of the horseracing world. A huge amount of money will be won or lost, and the government will be happy
Spare a thought for the average racehorse Read More »
At an agricultural field day, I came across a small metal pen housing cute young miniature ponies. Three of them were in a tiny pen and as I got closer I saw they were all for sale. They were grumpy and bored and occasionally one would be aggressive to the
The Plight of Ponies By Vanessa Read More »
by Cynthia Cooper Have you ever thought how would your horse cope if it had to be transported by boat….in a ‘bull crate’? A bull crate is something like a single horse box but with big metal bars overhead that are quite low – the average horse would need to
Travelling by boat to Flinders Island Read More »
Lili convinces Zarb that floating is fun. Hi my name is Lili Foster and this is a story about floating Zarb ,my gray Arab, who was a problem float loader. I’ve had Zarb for 19 months. When I got him he would walk right on the float with no problem,
Lili convinces Zarb that floating is fun. Read More »
For many people, just getting their horse on the trailer is a struggle and when you finally do, it feels like the battle has been won. And because we are human and direct line thinkers, all we want to do is get that horse on and go somewhere which is
There’s more to Trailer Training than just Loading. Read More »
Question: I have had my horse for three months now and I can pretty much do all of the level one tasks without too much of a problem. The only problem is his biting, he was an avid biter before the last owner had him and she has apparently done
