Notes & Seminar Overview
Notes from Debra
I believe horses are highly intelligent Beings with the same emotional landscape as humans. Because of this belief system I choose to interact with horses in a kind, patient, respectful and trust building way.
The level of peace, love, joy and communication that develops with Equine Clicker Training is something I cherish. Sometimes my horse Magic and I go to a place together in our hearts where laughter, joy, and oneness fill us. We forget we are different species. We become two Beings sharing creativity, play, music and dance together.
I have been with horses most of my life. I love horses. I love to share with people and horses this amazing communication tool of Equine Clicker Training. It is something the horses love. To see their eyes light up and their brains working hard to figure out the new behavior, and when they figure it out — oh, how proud they are of themselves!
Over time the horses learn to own and love their work. The work of balance, beauty, grace and elegance taught through positive reinforcement and marker signals. As John Lyons once said, “Go to people for opinions and the horses for the answers.” Horses answer a big YES to clicker training!
The Seminars: A General Overview
It is very important that we spend a chunk of time getting the foundation lessons solid. Foundation lessons focus on emotional control and body awareness. “How long does this take?” you may ask. It depends on the horse’s background and life experiences. For example, my horse Magic spent a winter in the head down position during his training time, to help him reframe his reality into one of "all is well in my world". After a winter of practicing head lowering he emerged a different horse. From the information I could gather I was his fifth home by age seven. He needed time to chill out, relax, and to know his world was safe. Magic is an extreme example perhaps, yet I am sharing his story with you to help answer your question of “How long does it take”. The answer is, “It takes as long as it takes.” We are in no hurry. These horses are our beloved horse friends. Do we want them to go through life stressed out, tensed and inverted? Or do we want them calm, focused and trusting so they can learn easier and love stronger?
Next we start to teach the horse how to balance his/her body on the ground/in-hand and then later this transfers to riding. In other words, we teach the horse the balance in-hand first before we sit on their backs. It is a step by step progression, each layer building on the previous layer. It is very cool. This step by step approach is very accessible even to novice handlers.
We learn how to access the horse’s spine through good mechanical skills of rope handling and rein mechanics. We must first ask the question, “Does the horse trust me enough to give me access to his/her spine column through the lead rope?” If not, we start there. If yes, we go on to teach the horse how to use his/her spine correctly. We work on the ground beside the horse to help explain the subtle delicate movements and reward each approximation in the evolution of balance. Nothing is forced. We allow the horse to find its own balance, so the horse owns this work. We do not ride in the beginning. When we teach the horse how to use his/her spine correctly we are helping to maintain soundness. For if we love our horses, how we ride them and work with them becomes equally important.
Are you willing to not ride your horse until you can teach them to be balanced on the ground first? If so, when you get on to ride that balance will be there for you! It is the most amazing feeling! And it is worth the time it takes…to have those experiences of riding heavenly balanced gaits on a focused and happy horse.
So in these seminars, we learn how to teach the horse through a series of approximations and mark with a click and a treat each piece of improvement the horse offers. This fills in any questions the horse may have. This accomplishes a number of things, such as: our timing becomes excellent, trust is being guilt, clarity is provided, joy in the learning process starts to happen, and often laughter from both human and horse surfaces. It’s a hoot to watch the horses becoming so proud and willing to share with us how much they understand. To me it is priceless.
There are many, many layers to teaching this work of balance to the horses. It is a wonderful journey, of discovery, amazement, joy and wonder. It is a journey of looking for the positives to reinforce and ignoring the undesirable behaviors, so the positive behaviors are more and more likely to reoccur. Training becomes fun!
If you would like to explore the nuances and details of Equine Clicker Training, balance, communication and relationship building, I invite you to attend many of the seminars at The Magic Center.
Each seminar at The Magic Center is geared to where each horse and human is at in the learning process. Most people and horses start at the beginning of Equine Clicker Training, which is the most delightful place to start! Others are a little further down the path. It doesn’t matter. Truly. Each place along the path is sacred. Sometimes the earliest stages are the most Divine, sometimes the middles stages are the most Divine. It doesn’t matter. Each piece of the work is sacred and each piece keeps evolving.
We are learning from our horses. The main purpose of these seminars is to empower people to learn how to teach their horse anything they are physically capable of doing with kindness, patience and respect for the spine and joints. Time is spent discussing training theory. As people return to learn more, new layers are added. It is a lifetime study.
Please feel free to contact me regarding any questions about the Equine Clicker Training Seminars offered at The Magic Center at debraolsondaniels@wildblue.net Or you can call me at 360-274-6310. I will get back to you as soon as I am able.
And for people totally hooked on this amazing work of Equine Clicker Training and balance of the horse and rider, I suggest you attend an Alexandra Kurland Advanced Equine Clicker Training Seminar held at The Magic Center 3 times a year. There are specific requirements before attending the Advanced Training Seminars. Please contact Debra for further information of Ms. Kurland’s Advanced Seminars.
The Horses Thank You Too!
Debra Olson Daniels
- Equine Clicker Training
- Certified Equine Massage Therapist
- Certified Biofeedback Specialist
- Certified Stress Reduction Specialist
- Certified Pain Management Specialist
- Bachelor of Science
- Bachelor of Fine Arts