DefinitelyDressage.com

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Has anyone used Pine Tar Soap or Shampoo on horses? I know it's supposed to be beneficial for people with certain skin conditions and has some anti-fungal and insect repelling properties. All these things make me want to try it as a shampoo for my mare who gets very itchy skin in the spring/summer. ...

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I'm glad these notes have been helpful for some! I love auditing clinics because I find there is almost always something either directly useful or that at least makes me think differently. And it's nice to see how the instruction influences the ride. It's also a lot cheaper than riding in a clinic! ...

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If I want to apply a driving aid, I don't at this point start swinging my seat more (which is what I used to do, and it caused me leaning forward a bit and tightening the thighs). Instead, I engage the very, very low abs and stiffen slightly. If the horse doesn't come forward, I use a leg aid, and ...

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lorilu said use a reader. I agree. I used to get so nervous at shows. I knew the tests well, but in case I had a brain fart, and just because my instructor's voice calmed me, I would always have her read for me. I usually don't use a reader because I never even bother listening to the reader, i'm s...

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I aim to have an effective seat. I want my seat to help regulate tempo and tell the horse what I want and what is coming next. But I don't ever think of my seat as polishing the saddle, nor do I want it to. That does not align with the idea of invisible aids. As a side note, I will say that I also r...

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I think perhaps the word 'driving' is misleading because it implies an aggressive forward shove. But I'm not sure that's what's really meant. If I'm doing a downward transition from trot, my seat does not say 'stop trotting' it says 'start walking' or 'halt' depending on what I want. Similarly an up...

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Hmmmm I don't really use legs away or on this much- I can't recall that i have "air space" between my calf and horse, and i don't really kick my horse forward. I also don't shove or move my seat back and forth. I (try) to find one spot for my seatbones. I use my abs for engagement and HH....

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helping him come up through his chest/sternum and getting a softer/rounder outline and trying to get him to open up through the gullet. She helped me with how to use the curb to get this roundness and release. She said trying to do it with a snaffle at this stage, will close him up. He tends to sta...

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This past weekend I audited the 2nd day of a 3-day Conrad Schumacher clinic. It was an interesting clinic, with lots of useful takeaways and included a wide range of riders and horses--everything from very green to FEI. I wanted to share some of the quick notes I took in case anyone else found somet...

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acheyarcher wrote:The Cuckoos Calling, Robart Galbraith

This series is really fun. The second and third are my favorites, but all 4 so far are really enjoyable.

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Or is it like your leg is on because you’re in gear, but taking it off is like stepping on the clutch to move to another gear? . For me it's mostly this... Another way to think of it is that in collected trot, I keep a light leg on, but the goal is that when I release that light leg encouraging col...

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Thanks for starting this thread, Piedmont! This is an on and off battle with my mare. I'm currently in a real slump, but had a really good summer and fall getting increased reactivity (where did it go!?!?). One of the things that helped most was that while I was warming up at free walk, I would test...

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Thanks, Chisamba. Additional thoughts and valuable reminders are always welcome and useful. Since summer I've been focused on riding leg off and not getting into the nagging that had become a real problem for me. This made a huge difference and I felt like I had a new horse. But now, that new horse ...

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Blob, please know that in another land, I am also a person "going wild" after my very pleasant mare blows off an aid. I'm trying to think of this process as being about "improving clarity" rather than "strictness." Wish me luck. I have obviously been teaching her that ...

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Blob, we really do seem to be doing the same investigations. I am trying to stay positive by noting that if we crack this, so many things will be much easier. I think we have skated by looking "pleasant" for too long! I got some ideas recently from a trainer who has been quite successful ...

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Blob, at least you have a "magical" trainer who can turn on your mare and get you the right feeling! I am grappling with some of this, too, but have less support. Does your trainer understand what you're getting out of the lesson vs in a lesson? Yes, I'm grateful for him, but it can also ...

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Really feeling for those out in ridiculous levels of cold. It has been cold for us here, but nothing compared to what those in the midwest/northeast are dealing with. I've been in a real slump with MM and am feeling rather discouraged about riding in general. This past summer/fall, I made a lot of c...

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Fzybtfrm, I'm also struggling with changes, particularly L to R. For awhile even if the changes weren't perfect, there was definite progress week by week on them. Now we've sort of stalled out and had no real progress for awhile. It's reassuring to hear about your PSG gelding. My mare is also on the...

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I've used baby foot! It works really well.

My only caution would be that if you have any raw/open skin areas from the cracking to make sure it's safe for that.

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I’ll also add to the excellent comments so far that, for me, one of the more nerve-wracking aspects to showing is timing the warm-up properly. This is especially so given that I have a huge, black horse who hates the heat, and has a very narrow “perfect energy-to-warmed-up” window. I also need to p...

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Mountaineer-- sounds like good progress! It's always good to recognize the small ways we are uneven. I am also working on correcting some right leg issues! Tuddy -- so glad to hear you're back in the saddle and had a good lesson! And fingers crossed for a saddle for Yonka soon. I have noticed some g...

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Thanks everyone for all your thoughts and advice. Here are some things I plan to put into practice right away/this show season (starts in March for me): *Wear a wrist watch! *Practice riding test like riding at home: moving from one movement to another in a sequence, rather than dividing up all my r...

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Still battling tricky weather--lots of wet, lots of wind, lots of cold (for us anyway). But trying to stay motivated through it. We're scheduled for some ice/snow next week, which will be a bigger challenge if that happens. Hoping we either get snow instead of ice or just some cold, dry days. MM: Th...

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There's an excercise that is used for SI rehab/ strengthening, that I've is also very helpful for the walk: Set up poles/caveletti for the walk 4' apart in the middle of the arena. Walk over the poles at a diagonal line and, loop around and come back the other diagonal, so you're essentially doing a...

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Lots of good ideas here for those of us who just train, too! One little thought for the pile is that it is really useful to routinely ride in front of other people esp. those who rail bird. If you have your own place or are at a very quiet barn, it can be a bit jarring to be at a show grounds. I've...

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People say don’t practice your test too much at home otherwise the horse will learn it. But I feel you need to practice it and I do this by walking through it warming up (at home) thinking trot/canter etc at the spots and then definitely running through the whole thing. You have to be comfortable w...

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It won't let me see it without a subscription. Grrr...

but parsnips and mushrooms sound amazing!

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Thanks, Dresseur, these are great tips!

#7 is a good reminder for me. I spend half my warm up asking the ring attendant or my trainer 'what time is it now?' every time I go by. Would be much easier with my own watch!

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There have been some conversations in the Jan/Feb goals thread about struggles around showing, so, I thought i'd make a separate thread. I have show related goals I would like to accomplish. I also believe showing is a good way to set training goals and check progress. But, I am not a very good show...

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Wow, Rosie, you're bolder than me! In that weather, I'd be indoors, under blankets! You and bliss look great and appropriately bundled! Mari, I also had a discouraging debut at second level last year that really zapped the show motivation out for me. I know i need to show more to get better, but I g...

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A few years ago, I was starting a lot of horses at a barn with a round pen. In the past I'd never had access to one. I ended up using it a lot with when starting the babies. But it REALLY highlighted how much of a crutch the rail can be. Often these young horses would really struggle lounging out of...

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Sounds like a great excercise, Flight, would love to see the video and will definitely try with my mare. Though i'm afraid it's probably too advanced for my greenie, who finds 20 meter circles and going doing the long side straight and steady challenging. We havn't even started baby LY yet!

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I've been feeling a bit uninspired lately, so I was hoping to get some ideas for exercises that are good for green horses and that can be done in the arena (all the wet and cold has restricted my riding to the covered arena for the time being). I'm open and eager for all and any exercises that you'v...

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Anova, but admittedly I don't know how cost friendly it is, it was a present. But I do really like it and find it easy to use!

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Full sympathy for those under the weather/dealing with bad weather. Motivation to ride has been very low for me. I too have been battling a nasty cold, which just doesn't want to go gently into the good night. It's also been either very cold (for our standards) or wet down here here. The barn I boar...

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I have one and use it almost exclusively for meat that I would otherwise roast, broil, seared, grill. I cook to the right temperature and then finish quickly on the stove/broiler to get a good sear or crispy skin, depending on what it is. It makes the biggest difference in red meat for me, where I l...

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In greener horses, I definitely adjust my rein length to what is needed for correct contact. Some horses need more neck in the canter, others in the trot. And at that stage, I want to maintain the right 'feel', rather than tell them to stay in a certain place. I can't say for sure about past horses,...

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Well I looked and it's not a toy I can afford; so, I'll see if my instructor is willing to video tape any of my ride tomorrow. I have to get my car fixed and my mother was just put on cardiac meds that neither medicare nor medigap will cover. They suspect the A fib she was just diagnosed with cause...

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That's interesting, Kathy. That technique sounds kind of like what I've been reading about a sous vide method for meat and finish over a grill. DH is interested in getting a sous vide device. I love using my sous vide device. And I finish on the stove top since I don't have a grill. It works really...

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scruffy the cat wrote:My red flag is no competition results or video footage in over a year...

If i were selling my horse, there would be lots and lots of moments like that by not fault of my horse but because of me!

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Thanks, everyone, these are fun!

I like Dashiell a lot. I also like Dash of Cinnamon, could even be Dash of Spice.

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Thanks, Exvet, will definitely look into that, sounds like that could lead to something!

@Canyon, yes my primary purpose would be for all-breeds and other added opportunities. He's a gelding, so there's no breeding benefit for me or for anyone else if I were to sell him.

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@dresseur sounds like a really useful lesson/epiphany! My January has been off to a slow start--I had some more travel and am currently battling a nasty and stubborn cold that has been hanging around for over a week and doesn't seem to want to slow down anytime soon. And in cold and wet weather my m...

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@Exvet--great news with Junior, sounds like you've had some really productive lessons and rides with him lately. I'm excited to keep hearing about your progress with him. I took with safety test while watching a documentary on netflix. You have to 'play' all the videos to the end, but they're all so...

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Kelo wrote:That is awesome - it is nice to "pay it forward" some times

Agreed! I think it's a great thing to do.

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Hello! As many of you know, I bought a new pony in September. He came with the show name Roanie Pony and the barn name Dash. I love the name Dash, but I'm not so crazy about Roanie Pony. He's a 6 year old, unregistered welsh gelding. Originally, I thought I might try to get him registered, but more ...

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I agree you don't need stock to make stock! But you do need stock to make soup (whether you make it yourself or buy it). The veggies I'd use to cook down stock will be too soggy for soup, so it really is a two step process. ETA: I've used the slow cooker to make stock plenty, it works really well. I...

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Yes, you'd need to make a stock from a carcass in order to get a flavorful chicken soup. And the cooking process for a stock is longer than you'd want it for the rest of the ingredients in your soup. So, if you just want to make the soup in your slow cooker, you'll want to use chicken stock or broth...

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I was just looking through my Goodreads for the past year. i had a good reading year and read 75 books (!). Here were some of my favorites: Fiction: The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender: indeed a strange and beautiful book. Magical realism novel that follows three generations of a famil...

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So is there any advantage to joining California DS or just skipping it and just joining USDF? There probably isn't much advantage for your situation. Normally joining something like California DS would cover rider USDF membership, make you eligible for you local year end awards, and lower cost/incr...

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