Groundwork Tips, Ideas, Etc...
Most importantly -
Keep it interesting for both you and the horse.
Be consistent.
Reward any effort the horse offers...he's trying!
Always, always end on a good note. |
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Groundwork classes coming soon!
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Explanations / Definitions
As little as it takes: Referring to your energy; increase pressure gradually.
Balanced Work: Practicing from both sides - everything that is done from the left side needs to be done from the right side.
Confidence: The horse’s trust that you’ll keep him safe - If he has confidence in you, he will trust you’ll keep him safe and he won’t panic or endanger himself (or you) with exposure to new situations and experiences.
Coordination: Balance, self-awareness
Desensitize: Get the horse to relax, stand still and not move away from pressure.
Distractions: Occurrences that cause the horse to lose his focus on you. Do not allow the horse to have a hard focus on a distraction while you’re working him – if this happens, make him work outside of his comfort zone by asking him for many turns, by waving a plastic bag, etc.
Drive: Force the horse to move forward from beside or behind him.
End on a good note: Especially if you didn’t have a “perfect” session…practice something the horse is good at and THEN call it quits.
Flexing: Bending the horse’s head (getting him to yield to pressure) without moving his feet. Lateral flexion is getting the horse to yield his head to one side; vertical flexion is getting the horse to yield his head by relaxing his poll.
Focus: Attention
Groundwork: The foundation of teaching the horse how to start, stop and steer
Hard focus: When the horse has completely disregarded you and is locked on something else.
Lateral Flexion: Bending the horse’s head to one side (getting him to yield to pressure) without moving his feet.
Maintain a positive attitude: Frustration leads to war. If the frustration is overwhelming try something (anything!) else. If you’re still frustrated, put a quick end to the session (make sure it’s on a good note).
Personal space: Whatever distance you establish (usually a few feet) to have between you and the horse.
Pressure: Urging, pushing or squeezing from a moving stimulus.
Quiet time: “Hanging out” with the horse in an area that’s not confining for twenty minutes.
Respect: When the horse looks to you as his leader. Respect is gained by controlling where the horse’s feet go – the more he realizes you can do this, the more respect he’ll give you.
Reward: Release of pressure.
Reward the slightest try: When the horse begins to give you what you’re asking for, especially when teaching him something new, reward him.
Send and draw (aka “catching game”, “join up”): Free lunge the horse, then draw him in by rolling your shoulders the direction you want him to turn (if sending him clockwise, roll your shoulders in 90 to the right) and motioning him to come to you. To continue sending him but in the other direction, just follow through with rolling your shoulders (pausing after the 90 to make sure he’s turning with you), then completing a 270 turn total (another 180 after the 90), coming out with your arm pointing the direction you’d like him to go.
Sensitize: Get the horse used to moving away from pressure.
Set up for success: Begin all exercises in the correct position or you are asking for failure.
Soft focus: When the horse has not disregarded you but is aware of something else.
Whoa (when doing groundwork): The horse disengages his hindquarters, turning and facing you (giving you both eyes) and all four of his feet stop for at least three seconds. |
Parelli's Seven Games
1. Friendly Touch the horse all over his body with your hands… then a rope… then a carrot stick (nifty stick, handy stick… whatever you prefer to call it!); this builds trust and desensitizes the horse to contact, building his confidence
2. Porcupine Apply pressure in phases (start with a very light pressure and increase if the horse doesn’t respond); release the pressure as soon as he responds; this teaches the horse to follow a feel and to move away from steady pressure
3. Driving Suggest pressure through body language and by tapping the carrot stick on the ground or along the rope (in the air), driving the horse in all four directions; eventually to be able to simply use your hands to tap the air in front of the horse to move him
4. Yo-yo Send the horse backwards and then ask him to come forward, while he remains straight and balanced (but concentrate on the forward and backward motion before worrying about straight and balanced); strive to bring him to you with just a signal from your hand and without the use of a rope
5. Circling Similar to lunging – send the horse out on to a circle around you and have him maintain direction and travel until you ask him to turn and face you; this teaches him to look for you and come to you
6. Sideways Have the horse face a fence so that he won’t move forward and use rhythmic pressure at his head and hindquarters to move him sideways; this teaches the horse that he can go left and right equally with ease
7. Squeeze Ask the horse to go between you and an object (some cones, for example); this teaches him to overcome his phobias and should help prevent him from fleeing from danger. Be very aware of your personal space (and guard it if necessary) during the squeeze game. |
Sample Groundwork Routine
Start with things you can do with the horse standing still so he doesn’t get “hyped up” and just want to run when he enters an arena or roundpen.
Play the friendly game
(I usually just use the tail end of the rope, throwing it over one side of the horse’s body in different places from the neck to the rump, around the front legs and then the back legs, then repeating on the other side of the horse’s body.)
Do some lateral flexion
Disengage the horse’s hindquarters
Play the friendly game (briefly) again
Drive the horse’s forequarters
Establish some respect quickly by asking the horse to move his feet frequently.
Send the horse to the left and to the right in half circles.
Try to do this just at the walk. If the horse is a bit non-responsive, ask him for a brisk walk.
Play the friendly game (briefly) again
Warm the horse up by circling him, starting at the walk and then asking for a trot. Try not to have him go around you the same number of times each time – if he circles you once one direction, have him go three times the other so he doesn’t learn to anticipate the movements. Ask him to whoa from time to time.
Only after the horse has been warmed up properly, ask him to canter – either on a long line or by free-lunging him. Ask him to walk and trot and every now and then, too. If free-lunging him, send and draw him several times.
Cool the horse down by only allowing him to walk until his chest no longer feels hot.
Playing the friendly game, disengaging hindquarters and driving forequarters may also be done while cooling the horse down. |
