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[RC] Ponying: do they learn anything - A. PerezAbsolutley! Voice commands, crossing water, etc can be taught, but most importantly you can teach your young horse to 'expect the unexpected': if only ridden in one place until fully saddle broken, a horse may think "Oh, we're going riding: that means the ring", and be surprised and insecure at suddenly finding himself being heading off into the woods. If, on the other hand, the young horse is taken to new and different places throughout his training, he'll think "Oh, we're going riding: I wonder where we'll go today". With my filly I am spending as little time int he ring as possible, so she does not depend on it for security. I have been ponying Lexi with good results (apart from my psychotic gelding being an idiot to pony from). I was thrilled when I first took Lexi out on the trails, and she walked right into the first stream we had to cross and started drinking! I doubt she'd have done that under saddle, given the novelty of being ridden combined with the novelty of the trail. ________________________________________________ Get your own "800" number Voicemail, fax, email, and a lot more http://www.ureach.com/reg/tag ============================================================ Prudence and focus will carry you a long way on a horse. ~ Frank Solano ridecamp.net information: http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/ ============================================================
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