Cameron Foster Horse Training

Merry Christmas

2006-12-23T21:06:00.000-08:00

This is a good time of year to reflect on the past and look forward to the future. The love and support I get from my family is truely a blessing. Having a great circle of friends, some old and some new, is very fulfilling also. I look forward to making new friendships in the New Year and building a greater bond with the friends I have now. I've found new friends that would have never been started if it wasn't for those horses that entered into my life. The best advice I could give any horse owner would be, become better friends with your horse and you'll trust in each other more. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

The Buck Stops Where?

2006-11-21T12:49:00.000-08:00

First of all, Happy Thanksgiving! I am truely blessed with great family and friends. Blessed to be living in the best country in the world. Blessed to be protected by the most honorable service men and women, who protect our freedom and liberties. Thank you, to the soliders that give their lives daily for this great country.
When working with young horses on a daily basis, it is pretty common to have a few that will buck. Usually, the colts will buck the first time they are saddled. Once they get used to wearing the saddle after a few days, they do get better. Sometimes if it's a cool morning, they will feel good and need to work the kinks out. On the other hand, some colts that seemed extra bothered by the saddle, need special attention. Why are they bucking? Is it because their feet are stuck? It may be like a car in park and flooring the gas. The horse needs a place for that energy to go. By ponying your colt it helps them get used to you above them, plus getting them to move off of pressure and yielding to pressure. Work on moving their hindquarters away from you, as you ride in towards their hip. If you can, have another person pony you on your horse for the first few rides or until the colt is more confident will help. They can ride into the colt if he goes to bucking, plus the colt will buddy up with the other horse and help him move out. The other person helping you needs to be pretty handy or it could be a wreck. Working the braces out and getting the horses feet moving will save heart aches... and back aches.

Get The Go

2006-09-28T18:19:00.000-07:00

Back in my Grandad's day they would blind fold the horse as the rider was getting on, and turn him loose to " ride the rough off." Those bronco busters were tough. A good bronc twister was pretty valuable in those days. A lot of things have changed since then, some for the better, some for the worse. I've talked to a lot of old timers and most will tell you how rank some of those horses were. They had a job to do and they needed to get it done. I think it's very important to get the horse moving out in the first few rides. The upward and downward transitions are key to building a solid foundation in your horse. I prefer to saddle the horse and then take the halter off. Let the colt walk, trot, and lope in the round pen both clockwise and counter clockwise. There isn't a need to round pen the horse until they've worked up a lather. You will need that life in there later down the road. Having the confidence to let the horse feel you in those upward and downward transitions is the key. Even before I ask the horse to turn or back, I like him to move forward. Seems like almost everyone is making videos about horsemanship and colt starting. I would say learn from the best and buy Ray Hunt's "Back To The Beginning" video.

Heartfelt Thanks

2006-09-02T21:20:00.000-07:00

I would like to take the time to thank Mike and Anna Dean for not only their business, but more importantly, their friendship. Mike and Anna raise horses the right way. They spend a lot of time with their horses. Daily checking of the herd, especially the foals for bumps and scraps that come with growing up. I've had the privilege to start two 2 year old fillies of Mike and Anna's. The extra time they spent on the halter breaking process really helped in putting a solid foundation in their horses. If a person wanted some great Paint horses with out standing blood lines, my choice is Mike and Anna's. They can be reached at www.amdeanranch.com. The Dean's have a true love for horses and it shows.

Quiet Hands

2006-08-20T20:45:00.000-07:00

There has been a resurrection of the old Californio vaquero training methods. The starting of the colt in the hackamore, progressing into the two-rein, and finally straight up in the bridle. A lot has been said about the use of the tool, either the hackamore and or the bridle bit. What ever the training tool you use, it all comes down to having feel and quiet hands. The bit or hackamore doesn't control the horse, it is a tool of communication to correctly move the horses feet. It is hard to keep your hands perfectly still when riding, especially in a trot or lope. Everything you are doing when your riding means something to your horse. If your hands are bouncing the bit in the horses mouth, it's more then likely causing the bit to hit his teeth or the tender bars of his mouth. Good body posture includes quiet hands. I like to start most colts in a snaffle bit. Used correctly, it teaches the young horse a lot of things. Moving off of pressure, flexing of the poll, and the start of using the indirect rein (neck reining). Don't be nervous about experimenting with your hand position. By moving your hands lower to the saddle horn or higher slightly above your waist can help your horses movement, especially in the back-up. Good luck and ride safe.

Don't Be Too Critical

2006-07-14T19:51:00.000-07:00

Leon Harrel, the famous cutting horse trainer, once said," if you're always dinking with your horse, you'll have a dink for a horse." The line between not enough training and too much training is a thin line I think we have all crossed. When should a person stop or should they keep pushing for something more? I've seen folks at horse shows riding the horse around the pen for hours just see-sawing the horses head down. At the time, I wondered why the horse just doesn't buck them off. It's amazing what a horse will put up with. Setting a riding goal for the training session will help. Just recently I had a horse in for training that was 8 years old. The poor horse had a lot of human caused problems. There were a list of about 10 things I was hoping to help him with. If I picked on him on all 10 in the training session, I think it would have made him worse. Each day for our ride, I would pick one and ask him to do that one correctly. For the first 5 to 10 rides on a colt, I try not be too critical. It's been my experience that schooling a horse to soon takes away the bond you've made in reaching those first few rides.

The Ultimate Goal

2006-06-03T07:15:00.000-07:00

Setting and achieving your riding goals are very important for you and your horse. If you have a goal for that days ride, it helps you stay focused on the ultimate goal, having a well-broke horse. Sometimes it's easy to get "lost" in the ride mentally and the horse will leave you mentally. Staying with the horse is very important at least for the first 30 days of riding. We have all ridden a horse that you can't seem to get lined out straight. Finding a focus point out ahead of you and heading straight for that point will help keep him straighter. Keep him between your feet and hands. Bending your horse a lot in the first few rides will also make him wallow around instead of lining out straight. In the previous journal, I mentioned getting out of the round pen. This will help your horse move out if he has a place to go. On the ranch, the sooner the horse is being productive, the better. Riding out through the rocks and sage brush to a bunch of cows gives both you and the horse a job and a goal. That's good for both of you.

Real-world Riding

2006-05-22T21:57:00.001-07:00

As humans it's hard for us to get out of our comfort zone. Horses aren't much different. They want to feel safe in their environment. One thing as trainers and even just horse owners, the horse needs us to be the leader and provide a sense of safety. When starting a young horse, one of the best things for you and the horse to do is to get out of your comfort zone as soon as both you and the horse is ready. Staying in the round pen or arena for too long will become a potential problem that you will have to address sooner or later. Some horses will need the extra few rides in the safety of an enclosed area before heading out across the pasture. Some riders will need the extra time in the round pen to gain more confidence. Spend as much time in the round pen or arena as you need. The sooner you project confidence in yourself, the horse will sense that and riding "outside" will be much more enjoyable and less frightful.

A Life's Journey

2006-04-23T18:51:00.000-07:00

My journey began in January of 2000 without me even knowing it started. Sharing these thoughts might not help your training, but show some insight on the winding road that has led me to this point of my life. A close friend of mine's brother was training polo horses in Indio, California. The three of us drove down to California right around New Years of '00. As I watched Riley work with those colts, I could see something really different take place unlike any thing I've experienced before. The two working as one with a mutual trust in each other. Since then I knew there had to be a better way to handling horses. Over the last six years I've been blessed with a lot of different horses that have taught me a lot. Some the hard way. Each colt has showed me that they are all different and they all have their own personalities. I will never stop learning from every horse I swing a leg over. The most rewarding thing of all, is that everyone can reach that trusting connection with their horse.

Raise The Flag

2006-04-16T20:56:00.000-07:00

Each trainer has their own way of "sacking out" a colt for it's first introduction to the saddle and ultimately for the rider. The flag is usually a stick or pole with a plastic sack or cloth tied to one end. There are many different thoughts on the proper use of the flag. For a horse that is more sensitive or even spooky, the flag is a good extension of your arm in touching or rubbing those troubled spots. The most common use of the flag, is desensitizing your horse to quick and distracting motions by shaking it all around the horse. Done properly this method can be a useful aid. However, done wrong can be a real big problem later on. Horses have a fight or flight instinct. By shaking the flag down low at their feet could cause them to strike it, or by shaking it by their head could make them head shy. The results will be a dull, head shy horse. Don't try to touch an area until your horse has smelled the flag or sack. It might take some horses longer to know you are not trying to kill him with it and that it's really o.k. The last thing you want is releasing the pressure of the flag shaking as he is spooking or blowing away from it. Once again, remember timing the release of shaking once he is fine with you shaking or rubbing him all over with the flag. It would be a shame not to be able to get on your horse in a rain storm because of your slicker keeps spooking your horse. Each time you ride should be an enjoyable experience for you and your horse, Cameron.

Train At The Horses Pace

2006-04-09T18:20:00.000-07:00

As I work with a horse in for training, I see a lot of problems that come up that could have been prevented. I've talked to some owners who tell me they," saddled him and lead him around with a snaffle bit in his mouth." They may have done the right thing and I'm not being critical, but if they missed a few extra steps that the horse needed to understand what he was asking him to do, those holes or gaps will come out sooner then later. The first thing I do when I get a horse for training is desensitizing him with a grain sack, a flag, or even a rope. Timing and feel are very important to help your horse understand what you are asking. Later on in our visits, I would like to address using these tools to achieve the desired results. It has occurred to me that most people don't care if the horse understands just as long as he does it. Unfortunately, using force without release puts unwanted braces in the horse. Most of the time in their hindquarters. When the horse has a brace in the hindquarter, he is more likely to run off. It's amazing the pay off when exposing your horse to things in ways that it can register as opposed to assuming the horse should understand what you are wanting. Have patience and enjoy yourself, Cameron

Greetings

2006-04-02T10:19:00.000-07:00

Greetings from a typical spring day in Baker, Oregon. Cold and windy with a chance of snow and maybe sunshine. I really don't like the term "blog." It's too close to the word bog. So I am calling these "visits." Most folks who own a horse have them for two reasons. For their enjoyment and as a tool. I would like to think they combine the two. So how do you enjoy any relationship, human or equine more? Trust and mutual respect. We don't like to be degraded so why would a horse. How do we gain that trust and how do we project that trust to the horse? Next time we visit I will tell you some things that help me. Remember not every horse is the same, so what might work on one may be wrong for the other. As always on training a horse, quit on a positive note. Talk to you soon, Cameron