Quiet Riding

"In equitation we obtain much by requiring only a little at a time. Patience then, and no roughness, which will always prevent us from obtaining our end."

"...we must bear in mind that all work which fatigues the horse discourages him, if he is not brought up to it by degrees and prepared by successive suppling lessons."

"Give yourself and your horse the time it takes to get right."

"...if you take your time and experiment quite a little with your feel and timing, why even a mixed-up horse can start to get switched round in their thinking."

"When a person ignores the little things the horse does to try and let them know how objectionable their feel is — well, that's going to get him going on some habits like head slinging or rearing."

"Take as many fresh starts as you need to."

"If it doesn't seem like the understanding is there, you'll always be ready to give that horse the benefit of any doubt, of course, and not hurry him on the start."

"You'll want to have plenty of patience and no thought on the clock."

"The idea of slow and steady progress with the horse has a real big part in this, too, because when a horse is rushed, many things can happen that slow down his understanding."

"If the horse isn't ready, take more time."

"It's when a person rushes a horse's progress that people are inclined to make comments about that horse being what they'd call a 'problem'."

"Any hurried motions or impatient feelings a person introduces will just change the meaning of everything they do with the horse into the wrong idea, for the horse."

"It takes the time it takes."

"If a person needs more time in some spots to clear up his understanding of things, he'd be please to spend that time. If his plans include advanced maneuvers of any kind, that time investment will pay off for him later on."

"There's no point in speeding things up or trying to finish a horse when he's missing the basic understanding of how to shift his weight from one foot to the other when you want him to."

"...the chance of a horse remembering what he's supposed to be learning is a lot better when a person isn't trying to rush the results. And if the person's going slow, why he's liable to see when that horse is missing the part he's trying to get across."

"It's quite an amazing thing to see that more progress can be made with a horse that isn't rushed than one who gets hurried past the basics."

"It is important that we always approach things with a great deal of patience. We never pressure a horse. Instead we give him the opportunity to overcome the obstacle independently and with confidence."

"...one must like horses, be energetic and bold, and have abundant patience."

"There are horses who become obstinate in one direction, even though they initially seemed supple and obedient on that side, because one has forced them to obey too soon and has gone from one lesson to the next too quickly."

"One often demands things that the horses are not capable of doing in a desire to push them too fast and teach them too much. These excessive demands make them hate exercise, strains and tires their sinews and tendons, upon whose elasticity suppleness depends, and often these horses end up ruined when it is believed that they have been trained. Thus, no longer having the strength to fight back, they obey, but without grace or any spirit."

"Adherence to the idea of art is often shelved for economic and practical reasons; shortcut methods are introduced, with gadgets used to circumvent days and months of solid training. Yet these so-called easy ways rarely work for more than a few weeks. Nearly always there is a downside to crude work, which accounts for the thousands of difficult, resistant horses which appear daily on the equestrian scene."

"...taking time to lay solid foundations reaps its own rewards."

"Pushing the horse too far, which is the result of human impatience, inexperience, ineptness, or anger, may spoil the lesson."

"They [horses] cannot be forced into understanding something faster just because we're running out of time. This in itself is probably the biggest reason why people have problems with their horses. This and the fact that many people seem to have an inherent need to dominate and intimidate horses, more than a willingness to communicate with them."

"...if you don't have the time to do it right, you will have to take the time to do it over."

"Anyone concerned about the health and long life of the horse should be thinking long-term."

"A horse can only develop to his best when you allow him enough time for his physical and mental development."

"A hasty training schedule that concentrates on mechanical work (exercises) always leads to problems."

"Many riders have little patience or time to wait until the horse finds his way to suppleness and becomes connected through training. Instead, they frequently force the manufacture of a 'beautiful' frame and demand what they want to have in front of them (round poll, elevation) with physical force."

"Progress must be according to the ability and understanding of the rider and the horse, not according to any time schedule."

"All improvement must be gradual."

"Your journey must unfold at a natural pace, the pace of the horse. There are no quick fixes; if you resort to them, it becomes a different sort of journey."

"I am convinced that in the end it saves time waiting for horses to say when they are ready for the next advance."