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Oct 02
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Back In Australia

By Blog, Horsemanship

It has been nearly 2 months since my last website blog. It seems ages, since I was in a hotel in London, writing a blog for August. My U.K. tour went very well and it was wonderful to catch up with everyone in the U.K. To be able to pick the conversation up from where we left off 5 years ago was amazing. Thank you to all those that made it possible. This was also true of my short time in Spain, Rachael also enjoyed her time over there. Her Spanish vocabulary has certainly increased, my Spanish is still very elementary.

Presently, I am half way through my Western Australia schedule. Again it is wonderful to catch up with all over here in W.A. Jenny Jackson welcomes all who come through the front gates and are wonderful hosts. The horse, in the left image is of a young trakehner horse at the current course in Western Australia.

Current Schedule: When I return home shortly, I have young horses coming in plus a home course at the end of October. If you are interested in the home course, message or email me, as these do fill up. Towards the end of the year, I hope to have next year’s schedule up on website.

I have again put together a couple of horsemanship articles below, happy reading.

Getting Down To The Feet: I am not the first one to mention about getting down to the feet and have spoken of the relevance before. When I heard that said 38 years ago, I could say the words, but nothing more. In learning how to be effective in getting down to the feet, I sometimes did too much and other times not enough. Sometimes you could get things to happen on the ground, but not in the saddle or in the saddle and not on the ground. I had to develop my feel and timing and so now as I look at images I can see that I am having an influence on the horses feet.

What does it mean to the horse: On a horse that I was riding recently, I could feel that the horse was tight and bothered. The horse did not try and buck me off or do anything of that nature, but there was a tightness on the inside of that horse and at some point that was probably going to come out in one form or another.

Through working with that horse in the saddle and freeing the feet up, by moving the hind and forequarters and getting to where I could direct those feet, you could feel the horse start to loosen up and that tightness start to disappear and the horse start to tune in to you mentally.

The images above are of a mate’s horse that I rode in the U.K. This was not the horse in the story above that I speak off. The images show a little of how you can get the horse to start reaching with that front inside leg.

Giving a Horse a Purpose: The video below is from a U.K. Cow Working course that I did in August at Sudbrooke Park Cattle Company. I am of the belief that while there needs to be principle, it is important to give the horse a sense of purpose. While cow working does not always have to be that sense of purpose, hacking out or riding horses outside an arena helps to keep their mind fresh.

Details below, for those that are looking to continue your education.

Online Course - The Start

Online Course – The Start

The online course –  The Start; is exactly that, it is designed to get you started.  There is 4 videos with 2 hours and 40 minutes of video content. The videos include ground and ridden work. In addition there is also a trailer loading, plus a saddling and bridling video. The lessons and notes associated with each of the videos I trust all will find useful.

While this course may not replace attending one with your horse. We sincerely hope that this online course provides information to all that are wishing to progress in the pursuit of developing a nice saddle horse.

While the information is applicable to young horse starting, this is not a young horse starting course.

You have unlimited access to this course for 12 months

A$170.00 inc. GST
Shop now
Aug 04
Love0

Back In The U.K.

By Blog, Food for thought, Horsemanship

We have finally made it back to the U.K. after 5 years. The flight over, has not shorten in duration, but it was smooth flying all the way. Now resting up, before starting on Tuesday and then it is a busy schedule there after. For more course schedule details please visit https://www.davidstuart.com.au/courses/

It has been a very busy 2 months since my last blog. We have had cattle work at home with weaning and preg. testing our breeding herd, plus outside horses in for starting and a home course and the general day to day duties and chores of normal station life.

It was not until my Singapore stopover, did I actually start to realise, I was en route to the U.K. I am very much looking forward to having the opportunity to catch up and renew the many U.K. friendships formed over a long period of time.

When I return back to Australia in September, I have 9 days in Western Australia. This is from the end of September to early October and is at Horsemanship First with Jenny Jackson and her family. Jenny and her family have been wonderful supporters for many, many years now. They have a great facility and make all very welcome and comfortable. I always enjoy my Western Australian trips and as with the U.K. look forward to catching up with friends.

I have put together a horsemanship article below. This article is more of a horsemanship journal and is of a horse named Elegance or Ellie to her friends. Enjoy the read.

The horse in the image above is of a 7 – 8 year old mare named Elegance, she is owned by Jenny Jackson from Western Australia. I have probably ridden her around 20 – 25 times. I did not start her, she had a handful of rides before. I believe that she was started late in life.

This line of horses goes back to the Abby /Abdul line of horses, who were Australian Stock Horses. They are well known for their abilities in many worlds, particularly the cow working or camp drafting world in Australia. This line of horses are known for being sensitive and hot horses to be around. If you get it right they are wonderful horses, if you do not, we all know how that one works out.

Theo Hill and his family from New South Wales promoted and bred this line of horses for a very long time. I had the opportunity to work for Theo and his family back in the 80s. Ray Hunt would always hold courses on the family station. The knowledge learned from Ray was passed on and while this was mostly above my head at the time, I did remember and apply with time and experience.

Over the years I rode a lot of horses with this breeding and at first I did not always get along with them. I hung in there and learned from my mistakes and successes and with time, experience and thus knowledge, they became horses that I loved to ride. I suspect that there was a strong influence of Thoroughbred within this particular line of horses.

As fate would have it, I am to give a presentation in the U.K. in Newmarket, the home of British racing, this coming Thursday. ( My wife Rachael also has a love of Thoroughbred horses and has owned a few now. )

These horses have a strong sense of self preservation and if you can develop the self confidence of these horses and without trying to push your ideals on to them, get down to their feet and pay attention to their cadence. Their natural athleticism and abilities will do the rest. If they did stumble they will find an extra leg and find their feet again. These horses do not like being out of balance, if they get out of balance you are more likely to experience their athleticism in ways that many would prefer not to.

Horses of this nature have plenty of “heart “ and you will most certainly still have a horse underneath you at the end of a long day. As a side note I would add the traits of their sensitivity and athleticism are what challenges the human in their initial stages. It is also what makes these horses so special.

I am sure that Ellie, will put a smile on Jenny’s face for a many years.

Mar 20
Love0

An Australian Autumnal Blog

By Blog, Uncategorized

The year is flying by, and while there is still a bit of heat in the sun in the north of Australia, the cooler months will be here soon. A few horses are already starting to thicken up in their coats.

Whats Been Going on?

To date this year, horses have been coming and going and we have also had a home course as well. I have also just recently returned from 2 weeks at Barkly Downs, a large cattle station owned by the company: ACC. ( Australian Country Choice ). Words do not do this operation justice. This was my third year at Barkly and my role with regards to horsemanship is with staff training. The attitude of all involved, was a credit to the company and those associated. A great experience.

Barkly Downs 2022

Whats coming up;

I am home now for a little bit with horses coming in and cattle work to see too. In May I am off to Western Australia, preparations for my overseas schedule for later in the year are also underway.

Impulsion:

Can be a conversation that does not have a start or an ending. The horse below is Rachael’s horse and he is a retired race horse. She has named him Clancy, his racing name was a bit long for us. I have ridden him a handful of times and he has a nice nature and a big engine.

In an arena environment, when you ask him to walk, trot and canter, he moves easily up through his transitions and also easily back down through his transitions. At times, off your seat aids.

Clancy – 2024

When you have the life in the horse connected to the horses feet, they become sensitive and light to your aids.

Framing themselves into a frame:

While this is not the first time this conversation has been had, as riders we perhaps need to continue to hear it time and time again to understand and appreciate the significance. Perhaps when you feel it, it gives more meaning to the words.

As your horses balance and impulsion develops, so will your horses emotional stability.

Some sage words of advice from an old friend, the amount of frame on your horse was determined by the amount of hindquarter engagement. With my friends and mentors they all placed impulsion ahead of flexion.

Hopefully the above is helpful and insightful, stay safe out there and enjoy your horses.

Nov 24
Love0

An Australian Summer Begins

By Blog, Horsemanship

It has been a little while since my last blog, so time to rattle the keyboard again I guess. My typing is quite slow, so the keyboard does not get to rattle loudly. Since my last website blog we have been busy with horses, cattle and courses.

Whats Been Going On: We have had 3 home courses in the last 5 months, 2 of which were open to all and a private course for an agricultural company. Horses continue to come in for starting and foundation education. Our country and livestock, like all of us are waiting for rain.

As yet we have not got to putting next years schedule up on the website and that will probably happen in the new year. There will be home courses and away courses, so stay tuned for the schedule update.

I have put together a horsemanship article below, happy reading. In case a December Blog does not happen.

Rachael and I would like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Thank you all for your support over the now many. many years.

When putting these articles together I try to make them of useful nature. A friend of mine told me a long time ago, David you need to read more to confirm your beliefs and understanding and to increase your knowledge and understanding.

I do get writers block and this is where videos perhaps say more than words. The video below is of a horse that I have started recently for a client. This filly is very intelligent and athletic and I am sure will have a successful future. She is also quite a sensitive horse and could also get to taking over as well.

Horses are very sensitive to movement and the horses eye is considerably quicker than the humans. Her sensitivity to movement is also what will make her a very athletic cow horse.

While she already shows a strong interest in cattle, with a horse that is still very green with a little over 20 rides on. I prefer to get her confident with situations like the flag and swinging a rope and riding outside. With a filly that is small and slight in build, I am also conscious of not over riding her. By keeping things slow and as she gains in strength and confidence, her ability will shine through when she does get in front of a cow.

In case readers where wondering about the baling string, it is a means of helping a horse that may be inclined to put their tongue over the bit. It will not always prevent it, just makes it a little difficult. The audio is poor with the video, but maybe the footage is helpful. My back cinch is also very loose due to not having a smaller one available.

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Sep 18
Love0

An Australian Spring

By Blog, Horsemanship, Uncategorized

It has been a couple of months since I last put a blog up, so had better make a start on one for September, or December will be upon us all before we know it. Since my last blog, there has been a home course and another week spent in Western Australia. We continue to take outside horses in for starting and beyond, with another intake in progress as we speak.

Whats Coming Up: We have another home course in November on the 11th & 12th. This course is a Horsemanship / Cow Working course. More course information is available https://www.davidstuart.com.au/course/aust-horsemanship-cow-working/

Our online course is also available at https://www.davidstuart.com.au/courses/online-course-the-start/

The video below, is old footage filmed in the U.K. and is of a foal and a young horse that I handled. It was a case of just going with the flow and what was offered and every situation is different. The horsemanship article below is a little longer than previous and is on the topic of hands. Happy Reading.

Hands, as many coaches will tell you are not easy to teach or to understand. Developing good hands as a rider and understanding how they affect your horse is important. Perhaps this article gives a glimmer of understanding to the subject. For riders to have developed their seat to where they are not using the reins for their balance or blocking the horse with their hands or reins is a really important aspect of riding a horse.

The image below is from Western Australia at Horsemanship First and is a lovely 6 year old mare owned by Jenny Jackson. I have had a handful of rides on her over a couple of trips to W.A.

In this image, the mares frame is quite open and I am riding the mare towards my hands. My hands and arms are not pulling back and my fingers are open, so that I am not blocking my horse from going forward.

Developing feel in your hands, legs and seat is easy to say and another to live. It takes time to develop feel and awareness and I believe feel is a quality that you are always developing. When you reach for your horse, what sort of feedback do you get? Does your horse feel braced or nervous?

In a conversation with a jumping coach sometime ago, they said, ” It is called riding and not sitting.” Riding is about being effective with our aids, some horses will require much less with our aids and some horses may need more initially.

A quote that I read recently by Thomas Ritter; “The legs bring the horse to the seat, and the seat brings the horse to the hands. When the teacher says ‘shorten the reins’ it needs to be translated into: ‘engage the hind legs, sit on them, and then take the slack out of the reins’, because if you shorten the reins from front to back, the horse will only resist.” ~ Thomas Ritter

A good friend said to me, a long time ago that the amount of frame that you have on a horse is dependant on the amount of engagement that you have. When horses are ridden from the front to the back you may also tend to see a shortening of the neck and the horse may not be accepting of the hands.

The horse in the image on the left is again the mare in the above image. She is starting to find forward and carry me in the gait and be in front of my leg. She has a little more frame on her than the image above as a result.

The image below is an old one from the U.K and was of a horse that I started and had a handful of rides. His frame and head carriage is again fitting for where he is at in this image. Note that there is a float in the reins here.

Riding your horse to your hand or riding your horse into a frame rather than just shortening the reins at the front is a concept that is hard to teach in practice.

If your horse lacks forward and impulsion riders can tend to frame their horse up off their hands and this tends to lead to the horse being on the front end and over bent. Horses may still be over bent or on their front end if they are impulsive or running through your hand as well. Good Impulsion may help you to have better hands. I hope the above creates some awareness and insight in the importance of having good hands when riding. Stay safe and enjoy your horses.

Jul 24
Love0

Horses & Cattle in July

By Blog, Horsemanship, Uncategorized

Due to rain, it seems like a good time to put pen to paper. Over the last month we have been busy handling and processing weaners we weaned last month, while also riding outside horses. As a result there has not been too much spare time.

We have also held several virtual courses in the U.K. with the last one to be held at the end of August. As I have said a few times publicly, I was a little sceptical as to how these courses would work. I am continually impressed with how well they have worked, and the progress that all the riders have made. The wonderful thing about these virtual courses, is that as a spectator you can watch a course from whatever country you are in.

Whats Coming Up: As mentioned there is a U.K. virtual course at the end of August, I am also back in Western Australia at the end of August beginning of September. We also have a home course coming up on August 5th & 6th. We continue to have outside horses coming in as well. Below is another horsemanship article and video clip from the online course from my website on trailer loading. Enjoy

An image from the U.K. some years ago.

Trailer Loading: There are many ways to get a horse onto a horse trailer and I am sure that I have most likely spoken about trailer loading before in a blog. Sometimes a video or a picture says more than words, so I have added a short clip from the online course.

I hope the above gives some insight into trailer loading, and as I mention in the online course. Preparation is a big factor in the success of trailer loading. (Due to internet speeds in rural Australia the video quality is a little grainy. The video quality in the online course is good. ) This filly was from Ross Grazing, a local rural property that has breed high quality competition quarter horses for decades.

When you take the time to handle young horses well and put the time in. Horses like this filly have a wonderful future in whatever they do. Enjoy your own horses.

For more information: email: [email protected] or message.

Jun 18
Love0

Aust – Winter Blog

By Blog, Horsemanship

After 25 years of never having seen a full winter, I am now experiencing another in Australia. Even if it is still a little like a U.K. summer in Central Queensland. (Those in the U.K. tell me they are having a warm and dry summer. 😀) The last month has had me in Western Australia for a couple of weeks and I am back there at the end of August & the beginning of September at Horsemanship First in Serpentine with Jenny Jackson and her family.

Presently we have outside horses in for starting as well at home, some of which are getting close to returning to their owners. We have also been busy with cattle work, preg testing, weaning and taking the bulls out.

Whats Coming Up:

Outside horses are continuously coming through our home facilities and at the beginning of August we have a 2 day Foundation Course here at home. In the U.K. we have a 3 day virtual course coming up in Shropshire this coming weekend, starting Friday. These courses have been very well received and the technology does work. For those that are interested I have an online course available as well from the website: https://www.davidstuart.com.au/courses/online-course-the-start/ In September there is also a 3 day cow working and horsemanship course in Townsville. For a full course schedule please visit the website. www.davidstuart.com.au I have put together another horsemanship article below, happy reading, it is long one.

Getting Things Solid

” Have Your Goal Be: To Develop A Dependable Riding Horse.” Yes it does take time. For those that have invested in their own education and have taken ownership of that goal, horses that once, would have troubled them are now in a better place as is the human as well.

In my online course, one of the videos is on trailer loading. This horse had not been on a trailer until 5 minutes before the camera started. I had though, played around and got her more confident with other things. As a result of good preparation, the trailer was not a problem. Prepare your horse for saddling, for riding, for trailer loading, for tying up etc.

As your horse becomes more solid other experiences are often more pleasant for us all. The video below I have put on social media, so some will have seen it before. It is the same horse as in the image above and a very athletic mare and really nice horse to ride. ( There is no music to the video, it took me all day to work out how to upload it to a blog 🥲)

Perhaps if I can give more insight into the video in this blog. At a Ray Hunt course in France around 2005, Ray was having some of us straddle a small ditch with the young horses that we were riding. He said this was something that Tom would often do. It was not intended as a trick, more an ability for you to know where your horses feet are and then be able to direct them to where you would like them to be.

When riding count cadence with your horses feet. Do this when you are out on the trail, it will help you with your feel and timing. It is a simple thing, but it will take discipline on your part.

If you can get to the feet then maybe you could get to the mind, then maybe you could help to get the horse to let down. Maybe it would help you with leads etc. Maybe you could do the same on the ground as well. Horses learn to control each other through how they move each others feet. So there is a lot to this. This is not about dominance, maybe it is about learning to dance with each other, have a conversation with each other.

As you play with this in different ways it will take less and less. In the saddle the feet may start to feel like they are your feet.

As you have more quality to what you are asking it will take less quantity. There are no ribbons or prize money to be won and it is not a competition. It is about enjoying your horses and horsemanship and taking pride in what you do.

I hope the above is genuinely helpful to those that have made it this far. We all have our own road to walk and we all have different outcomes. Keep looking forward, you have come this far, keep going.

May 15
Love0

A Website Blog For May

By Blog, Uncategorized

We are nearly half way through the year, it seems to have flown by. I am now in Western Australia running a course, that Jenny Jackson at Horsemanship First is hosting. Presently I am enjoying a couple of days rest at Madurah while looking out over the Indian Ocean, the dolphins were again a no show this morning Jenny. Jenny and her family have a wonderful facility and make everyone very welcome. The next block of courses and lessons start on Wednesday at Serpentine.

Schedule: Back home in Central Queensland we continue to have horses in for starting and also have a home course at the beginning of August. For more information please email me at [email protected] We also have our online course available on the website; https://www.davidstuart.com.au/courses/online-course-the-start/ In the next month we hope to update the course schedule with up coming courses for the second half of the year.

I have added a horsemanship article below, happy reading everyone.

Western Australia – May 2023

The Foundation – The mare above is a really nice mare and now has a handful of rides on her and is really progressing well. She is a sensitive mare and her self preservation is always there on the surface. Apart from riding, we have trailer loaded her, got her to where she is comfortable with a rug and with having her feet picked up. Ridden her outside in a different environment. As she gains more confidence in the human she is also gaining more confidence in herself as well.

When riding this mare, I have done lots of upward and downward transitions, mainly walk to trot, trot to walk with a few canter transitions. With the focus being to keep the transitions smooth. Again all of the above helps to build confidence and a calmness in the mare. I am trying to use and direct that sensitivity and life in a positive way.

While this does take time to develop a mare like this. You have to go slow to go fast, if you want to find the holes in your approach, just add speed.

Apr 07
Love0

An April Blog Update

By Blog, Horsemanship

It has been a couple of months since my last blog, so time to put pen to paper. In the last few months we have been busy with courses at home and in Brisbane at Anstead Acres. Thank you to Pam Andrews for another great course at Anstead Acres. We have also had many horses in for starting as well. Presently I am running a horsemanship course on a large cattle property in North Western Queensland, everyone is doing extremely well. To have an opportunity to fly up here from home and see the country from the air is amazing. To see how the country has responded to recent rains and the scale of size, words do not do justice.

Whats Coming Up : As many now know we have had to reschedule our return to the U.K. for next year, it had been planned to take place in August. We now have a small schedule of virtual courses planned for the new year. These have been well attended over the last couple of years and work very well. The schedule is now available on the website; https://www.davidstuart.com.au/courses/ In May I am back in Western Australia at Horsemanship First in Serpentine. It is really great to see the progress that all have made now over many years. There is also a home course planned for the middle of the year and there is also the online course available as well. For the online course, please go to the home page and click on courses and a drop down box with online courses will appear. I have put together a horsemanship article below for all. Happy Reading.

The image above is from a young horse presentation at a home course earlier in the year. When you start a horse well and get things to where they are solid. You make life so much easier for horses and humans. I am also of the view that we also need to continue to educate ourselves for our horses. I believe, that like the horse does not do things to be wrong, neither does the human. We often do not know how to be right for the horse. With experience and understanding we can often adjust to fit situations better.

Most times I like to use a rope halter, in this case one was not available. With time, presentation and feel, you can overcome many shortcomings. As Ray Hunt said many times ” In the midst of adversity, lies opportunity.”

On this occasion, I only saddled and sat on this mare and bent her head around. The time invested here will pay dividends in her future development. Stay safe and enjoy your horses and I look forward to catching up in our travels.