Theres a horse show across the state in a few weeks, and youre planning on being there with your horses. However, its been awhile since you last pulled a horse trailer, and youre a little concerned about your trailering skills. After all, you want to arrive at your destination safely, with the horses as calm and relaxed as possible.

Guiding a loaded horse trailer down a country road or highway requires practical experience and know-how. Theres very little room for error. What do you do to ensure a safe, uneventful journey?

How to Ensure Safe Trailering

If youre out of practice, or if youve never towed a trailer before, obtaining adequate personal experience prior to the actual event is of the utmost importance. Just as if you were learning to drive for the first time, you should begin by practicing basic driving skills before getting out in traffic with the trailer.

The more experienced you become, the more prepared you will be for anything that may potentially happen. With more confidence and a higher level of awareness and preparedness, you should be better able to handle any unexpected situation that comes along.

Find a level field or a parking lot in which to practice. Mark your course with several highway cones, then, set out to work on the following driving skills:

Ready for the Highway

After youve practiced all the basic driving skills while pulling your horse trailer and you feel confident in your ability to handle the rig safely, youre ready to test your skills out on the road.

Try towing your trailer for short distances, at first. Make sure that you feel comfortable with turning corners in traffic, with backing your trailer, with parking on a grade, and with being able to stop your trailer quickly (should the need arise). Once you are confident in your towing abilities, youre ready to travel any distance with your horses.

Just remember to always be alert when out on the roads. Drive defensively and be prepared for any possible situation.

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Here are five easy to use training tips for your new puppy.

1.) Chewing Problems – The most effective solution to a puppy chewing on something he shouldn’t is to not discipline him, but to simply replace the object that he is chewing with a chew toy and then to raise him greatly for chewing on his chew toy. Positive encouragement is what a puppy will respond to the most.

2.) House Training – The easiest way to house train your puppy is to always take him out immediately after his meal. Wait for him to go. Once he goes, praise him greatly. He’ll soon get the idea that going outside is the correct thing to do.

3.) Playtime – When you are thinking about getting a puppy, make sure you have the appropriate time to give to your dog. Estimated necessary time is about 10-30 minutes for eating (3 times a day), 10-30 minutes for a walk (3 times a day) and about an hour of playtime with your dog. Most people don’t realize the amount of time that a healthy puppy will require.

4.) Dog Crates – Dog Crates can have a positive impact on both the dog and the owner. It’ll give the dog a safe and secure area that is very close the den like atmosphere that dogs had in the wild. Once a dog is comfortable with a crate, it’ll allow the owner to safely transport the dog and help to house train a puppy (they won’t want to do business in their den).

5.) Hide The Chocolate – When getting ready for halloween, make sure you keep the candy out of reach of the dog, especially chocolate. Chocolate is very dangerous to a dog. It can make the dog very very sick. If you suspect that your dog has eaten chocolate, you should your veterinarian IMMEDIATELY.

For more dog training tips like these, head over to our web site: http://Weekly-Tips.com/Dog-Training and sign-up for our weekly email.

Todd runs the Dog Training Tips web site at http://weekly-tips.com/dog-training/ where you can sign up to have weekly dog training tips like these delivered weekly to your in-box.

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I was working with my yearling Pooka. She is an Arab-Shire filly. She leads OK and is not afraid of us. She comes up to us when we enter the field and will let us pet her when she is lying down. So today I decided it was time to handle her feet.

Just do it

I had a friend hold her lead rope while I started to touch her leg. I basically did the old approach and retreat working my way down to her hoof. This went well. I then tried to pick up her hoof and things did not go so well. She tried to move and jump around. I tried to hang on but she is about 500-600 lbs so in the long run, she won.

Plan B: Regroup and try again

OK, so maybe I was a little quick to handle her feet. So, I decided to take it a bit slower. I took my lead rope (15 feet) and tossed it over her back repeatedly. She was OK with this as I had done this before with her. I then tossed the lead rope around her feet. I would swing the rope so it would wrap around her legs. She did not like this. Pooka would kick and try to get away. I would just keep tossing the rope and making sure her nose was pointing towards me, so I wouldnt get kicked, until she stood still. Eventually she did. After a bit of a fight she stood still and all was OK. The rope around her legs did not kill her and she stood still while it happened.

Now it was time to pick up her leg. I took the lead rope and put it around her foot. So, basically I had this huge loop in my rope that went around her leg. If I dropped one end of the rope he leg would be free, just in case all hell broke loose. While keeping her nose pointed towards me I seesawed the rope back and forth all over the upper to lower parts of her leg. When Pooka was OK with this I pulled on the loop picking her foot up. She jumped around and kicked but I was safe, nose pointed towards me, and the rope felt no pain. Once she should stand still and let me hold her leg up for 2 seconds I would release the tension and let her put her leg down. I then worked up to 4 seconds and then 10. Once I could hold her leg up for 10 seconds I decided that it was time for me to pick up her hoof with my hand.

Finally (OK, only 20 minutes later)

After all this I again attempted to pick up her hoof with my hand. Wow, no problem. She let me pick it up. I would hold it for 2 seconds and let it go. Then 4 seconds. The 10 seconds. Then I took a pick and picked out her foot.

That was a good day for Pooka so I let her go on her way.

Todd Mera

Todd Mera is a Biochemist that has always had a love for horses. Todd started training horses in his 30s. He has worked with and trained many horse starting from birth and older problem horses.

http://www.EverythingEquus.com

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A Little Background

Vego (Thoroughbred/Percheron gelding) is about 2 years old. I have spent many hours doing ground work with him. He knows how to move away from pressure, lounge, back up, jump over logs, etc. When I bought Vego he was 4 months old and had never been touched by humans. So, I spent a significant amount of time getting to know him and of course on groundwork. In additions I spent a portion of every training session getting him used to loud sounds, plastic bags, walking over tarps, crossing water, crazy humans jumping up and down beside him and of course wearing a saddle. About 2 weeks before I decided to ride Vego I did two things. First, I would have him wear a saddle during each training session. After his session was over, I would put him in a round pen and leave him there with the saddle on while I worked with other horses.

Second, Vego did all of his training sessions with a hackamore. I used a regular rope hackamore, not a mechanical hackamore. I made sure that I could use the hackamore to flex his head to either side and have him stop and touch his girth. I also made sure I could yield his hind quarters with leg pressure behind the girth and then flex his head and have him come to a stop. This is a technique the Clinton Anderson, John Lyons and many other Natural Horsemanship practitioners use to get a horse to become more flexible and to stop during the early stages of training. The main goal was to make sure I could stop Vego if all hell broke loose. Remember, Vego and I had been preparing for this day for some time and I felt that Vego was ready. If I had concerns about riding him, I would have continued the groundwork until he was ready for the first ride.

I remember the second time I saddled Vego

The first time I saddled Vego was very uneventful. I saddled him up in the round pen, lounged him around and he was OK with it. No bucking, no rolling, it was like this was old news and he could care less. However, the second time I saddled him was a little bit more exciting. I saddled him up as usual and I walked him to the center of the arena. I then lounged him in a circle and immediately he began to buck. He was going to kick that saddle off! His font legs went into the air followed by his back legs with a big kick to the rear. Wow, this horse really could get into the air. He kicked a few more time and that was it. He has never tried to kick the saddle of again. One of the reasons that Vego was so good about letting me saddle him was because of all the groundwork that went into him in the beginning. This not only included the groundwork that took place during our regular training session but the little 5 minute exercises that we did during feeding and any other time I had, well, 5 minutes (More 5 Minute Training Exercises http://www.trainingthehorse.com/?cat=16).

Ready to ride

For our first ride I just wanted Vego to walk, trot, turn and stop in the round pen. I would provide leg queues and use the hackamore to direct his nose and bring him to a stop. But, for the most part the commands came from my wife, Rachael. So here is what we did. When mounting the horse I would stand up in one stirrup and stop. I would then pet Vego, slap the stirrup leathers and make some noise while keeping his nose tilted towards me. I would then step down and pet Vego. I did this a few times in order to make sure he was not worried about me being above him. I did this from both sides of the horse. Next, I stepped up in the stirrup and swung my other leg over the saddle. I sat there for a few minutes flexing his head to the left and right. Vego was doing such a great job. I would also pet Vego and let him know he was doing a good job.

Next, I had Rachael direct him around the arena. She would send him off in one direction and then ask him to do an inside turn and go in the other direction. We would also ask him to stop frequently to make sure we had control of his feet. When we (Rachael Vego and I) were comfortable with the walk, Rachael asked Vego to trot. Vego would trot about half way around the round pen and Rachael would ask him to turn the other direction. We would also have him stop regularly by yielding the hind quarters and then flexing his head to the inside. Vego did not buck, he was not frightened and did a great job that day. We worked in the round pen for about 30 minutes and called it a day.

Why did it go so well?

Vego and I have developed a good relationship with each other over the 2 years that I have had him. This is due to a few key factors. First, we have done hours of groundwork. Second, I have never hurt Vego. He trusts me and knows that I will not put him into a bad situation. Third, I just spend time with the horse. I will frequently go out to the field for nothing else but to pet him, give him and apple or just sit on the fence and watch him. When I sit on the fence in the corner of the field he will come up to me and let me pet him. I will pull him closer and have him put his head on my lap and hug his head and pet his face. He will frequently fall asleep when I do this.

So, now we move on to his 2nd and 3rd ride.

Todd Mera

Todd Mera is a Biochemist that has always had a love for horses. Todd started training horses in his 30s. He has worked with and trained many horse starting from birth and older problem horses.

http://www.EverythingEquus.com

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I want to be able to shoot a gun while sitting on my horses back and have them stand still. Of course I dont start there so this is what I have done so far.

Bubble Wrap

I love bubble wrap. You know the stuff you pack things in and then pop because you cant help it. I started by desensitize Aries (Arab gelding, 13 years old) and Vego (PercheronThoroughbred gelding, 2 years old) to the bubble wrap. I would get them used to the material first and then pop the bubbles. This was not so bad. They were used to it in no time. I used the approach and retreat method for this exercise as well as all of the others mentioned here. Now I needed something to go Bang! I thought about a cap gun but I would need to reload after every 8 shots. I needed something I could keep firing. Got it

Paint Ball Gun

I took my kids paint ball gun and full tank of CO2. I would have hundreds of shots J. I then help my horse on a lead rope and started to fire away from him. I should also mention that I did not load any paint balls. The CO2 alone made a big pop when I pulled the trigger. When the horse would relax I would stop and pet. I then started to shoot near the side of the horse. Once the horse relaxed I would stop and pet. I eventually worked my way all around the horse. I could shoot over his head, between his legs, all over.

Now what?

So now they are OK with the pop of a paint gun. What to do next? I need something that is louder. Perhaps it is time to use a hand gun loaded with blanks. I could just have several clips loaded with blanks and ready to fire. Also available are training pistols for training hunting dogs. They shoot .22 caliber blanks and do not require a gun permit or license. This could be a good cost effective option to a real gun.

Todd Mera is a Biochemist that has always had a love for horses. Todd started training horses in his 30s. He has worked with and trained many horse starting from birth and older problem horses. http://www.EverythingEquus.com

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The Goal

I was working with Vego and Gemini today. I have been working on desensitizing them to loud noises. The final goal is 1) to be able to shoot a gun while sitting on their backs and 2) to be able to ride them down a street filled with people, flying streamers, loud noises, fireworks, etc. Basically, I am trying to bomb proof my horses.

Look What I Found

4th of July had just passed and I still had fireworks. When I was younger I would have never had any firework left over. That would be a sin. I guess I have slowed down a bit and it is not so important to light every firework off or see how many I could light at a time before I had to run away from the eruption of flames, sparks and explosions I had initiated at ground zero. Because of my new found self control, we had some Black Cats left over. These are the little fireworks that just explode and make a big bang. I had 2 packs left with 100 firecrackers in each. So, what should I do with these firecrackers? I could save them till next year. No way! I recalled reading many forum entries were people had posted topics about the 4th of July and how the fireworks scared their horses. I would reply and tell them that they should desensitize their horse to these noises. So, that is just what I decided to do with my horses.

4th of July All Over Again for Vego and Gemini

I decided to start my lesson with Vego. Gemini was in a holding stall next to the arena where I was working with Vego so she could hear and see everything going on. I had a rope halter and lead rope on Vego. I then started to walk Vego around the outside of the arena. While doing this my 11 year old son was in the center of the arena. He started to light the firecrackers one by one. Bang! The horse was a little bit startled but we just kept walking. Again the firecracker went off and Vego jumped but we just kept walking. My son continued to light firecrackers one by one and I continued to walk around the arena circling in closer to the center. When we eventually circled to the center of the arena we stopped. One by one my son threw firecrackers all around the horse. He did not throw them so close that it could hurt the horse but rather out in front of the horse or behind the horse 6-10 feet away on either side. Near the end of the lesson, in the center of the arena, Vego was not bothered by the firecrackers. He would not even flinch as they exploded.

I repeated the same procedure with Gemini. She did equally as well. As a grand finally we lit off a string of about 20 Black Cats while walking the horses around the arena. They had no problem with noise and continued to walk at a relaxed pace.

Conclusion

This was not the first desensitizing exercise that I had done these horses. The results I had during the firecracker session went very smooth because I have at least one desensitizing exercises every time we have a training session.

Todd Mera is a Biochemist that has always had a love for horses. Todd started training horses in his 30s. He has worked with and trained many horse starting from birth and older problem horses. http://www.EverythingEquus.com

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Theres a horse show across the state in a few weeks, and youre planning on being there with your horses. However, its been awhile since you last pulled a horse trailer, and youre a little concerned about your trailering skills. After all, you want to arrive at your destination safely, with the horses as calm and relaxed as possible.

Guiding a loaded horse trailer down a country road or highway requires practical experience and know-how. Theres very little room for error. What do you do to ensure a safe, uneventful journey?

How to Ensure Safe Trailering

If youre out of practice, or if youve never towed a trailer before, obtaining adequate personal experience prior to the actual event is of the utmost importance. Just as if you were learning to drive for the first time, you should begin by practicing basic driving skills before getting out in traffic with the trailer.

The more experienced you become, the more prepared you will be for anything that may potentially happen. With more confidence and a higher level of awareness and preparedness, you should be better able to handle any unexpected situation that comes along.

Find a level field or a parking lot in which to practice. Mark your course with several highway cones, then, set out to work on the following driving skills:

Ready for the Highway

After youve practiced all the basic driving skills while pulling your horse trailer and you feel confident in your ability to handle the rig safely, youre ready to test your skills out on the road.

Try towing your trailer for short distances, at first. Make sure that you feel comfortable with turning corners in traffic, with backing your trailer, with parking on a grade, and with being able to stop your trailer quickly (should the need arise). Once you are confident in your towing abilities, youre ready to travel any distance with your horses.

Just remember to always be alert when out on the roads. Drive defensively and be prepared for any possible situation.

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The Horse

I bought Aries knowing that he had some issues. Not a problem, I like a challenge. One of the first problems we had to deal with is catching him. When I go out to catch a horse I make my intentions very obvious. I approach the horse with the halter and lead rope in my hand in plain sight. I NEVER use a bucket of grain to catch a horse. However, this can be especially difficult if the horse is in a large field. So, we have Aries in one of our large fields and all is calm, for the moment.

Something always happens 10 minutes before we have to leave

My wife and I were getting ready to go somewhere with the kids. My son and I were ready in about 15 minutes. Yes, this included a shower. My wife and daughter took a bit longer. Rachael, my wife, looks out the window and notices that Aries has somehow escaped. Aries is in an area adjacent to the field he was in were Rachael has a pretty nice garden. She informs me of the problem via our intercom system which consists of her vocal chords and a lot of wind, Aries is in my garden! I was all dressed up and knew I would be in big trouble if I got dirty. Rachael was still getting ready for our evening engagement. We decided that the horse would be OK there until we returned home. The garden might be a bit smaller but what could we do. We new it could be very difficult to catch Aries and were not ready to start a training session 10 minutes before we had to leave.

The Boy

I heard the door chime as someone opened the door. I didnt think anything of it and continued to put stuff in the car and most important, find the keys to the car. About 8 minutes had pasted from when I heard to door chime. My son, Che, who was 8 years old at the time comes walking into the house and say, OK, were do you want the horse? What? I said. I caught em. Were ya want me to put em? Che said. I went outside and sure enough, Che had caught Aries. We only had the horse for a couple days and had not started working with him. He was impossible to catch even with a bucket of grain. But somehow Che had managed to approach the horse with lead rope and halter in hand and convinced the horse to lower his head down far enough so Che could put the halter on Aries. Still not too sure to this day why or how Che was able to catch Aries but he did it. Maybe it was his approach, calm, quiet and non-threatening. That is what I think. Perhaps I should keep an eye on this little horse whisperer, maybe I could learn a thing or two.

Todd Mera is a Biochemist that has always had a love for horses. Todd started training horses in his 30s. He has worked with and trained many horse starting from birth and older problem horses. http://www.EverythingEquus.com

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Vegos first ride went very well. For the most part I just sat on his back Rachael directed him around the round pen. OK, so now for the second and third ride.

I lead Vego to the round pen and saddled him up. I put the hackamore on him and tied the throatlatch. I proceeded to do about 5-10 minutes of ground work. I lunged him at a trot in small circles changing directions frequently. I backed him up, did some single rein stops, flexed his head and yielded his hind and front quarters. He responded nicely so I decided that it was safe to ride him.

Vego and I walked to the center of the round pen. I mounted him and sat in the saddle flexing his head to each side for a couple minutes. I didnt want him to think we were in a hurry. I also dont want him to think that every time I am in the saddle it is time to move. I then yielded his hind quarters using leg pressure on his flank. All was going well so I decided to move to the next step and get him moving around the round pen.

The goal for this ride was to give more queues to Vego from the saddle and rely less on Rachael, who was on the ground, to direct Vego around the round pen. The sequence of events went something like this

To Move Forward

1. Rider: Squeeze with heels
2. Rachael: Point in direction horse should move
3. Rider: Make clicking sound
4. Rachael: Add energy and start to twirl lead rope or stick towards Vegos butt
5. Rider: Spank with end of reins

Note: If Vego moved forward at step 2 we would not continue on to step 3. In fact all queues would cease. If Vego stopped moving we would immediately start queuing him again from step one and progress as needed.

When we began Vego would start to move at about step 2 or 3. However, he would frequently slow down so we would have to queue him again. We walked him around the arena for about 5-10 minutes. Then we turned up the heat a little and had him trot. I would give the same queues mentioned above but would not release the queue until he was in a trot. For example, I would squeeze with my heels and he would start to walk. I would keep the pressure on and if he did not start to trot I move to step 2 and so on. Once he stared to trot I released the pressure from my heels and stop queuing him. Occasionally we would yield the hind quarters, flex his head to one side and bring him to a stop. We did this for about 5-10 minutes. We then used the same procedure that we used for the trot to get him to canter. He did very well with all of this. We only had to proceed to step 4 a few times during this session.

We stopped Vego in the center of the round pen. I flexed his head a bit and just sat there for a few minutes petting him and letting him know that he did a good job. I then dismounted and walked him out of the round pen, removed his saddle and hackamore and set him free in his pasture.

The third ride was very similar to the second ride. Vego never needed any queues from Rachael. She was there mainly for my safety. If for some reason Vego decided not to stop or get a little crazy, Rachael could assist by making him change direction and thus slowing him down.

Next goal, ride Vego in a large arena at a walk, trot and canter.

Todd Mera is a Biochemist that has always had a love for horses. Todd started training horses in his 30s. He has worked with and trained many horse starting from birth and older problem horses. http://www.EverythingEquus.com

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Everybody loves a baby animal and Westie puppies are adorable, but new dog purchasers often do not realize the commitment they are making when they bring a puppy home. For those want the companionship of Westies dogs, but do not have the knowledge or patience to endure the training process, rescuing an older Westie dog may be the right alternative.

When considering an older West highland terrier dog, the first thing that many people think is that they would be getting a dog with problems, either genetic problems common to Westies, or behavioral problems from improper training. The truth is, many Westie dogs go to shelters for reasons that have nothing to do with the dogs’ inherent qualities. Every year, dog owners die, move to retirement homes, change jobs, get divorced, have new babies, or, unfortunately, simply tire of the responsibility of caring for a dog.

The advantages of older dogs are many. They have already finished teething, and no longer feel the urge to chew holes in your shoes, rugs, and furniture. Westie dogs that are older have grown used to sleeping through the night while their people sleep, as opposed to westie puppies, who wake up and whine. Older pets will have already been housetrained and also should know the meaning of the word ‘no,’ making their continued training that much easier.

When you encounter a Westie puppy, you only have the breed standards to give you an idea of what kind of dog it will grow into. Although Westhighland dogs have a typical personality type, there are variations from dog to dog. The full-grown Westie is a know quantity. The Westie dog you meet is what you will get, and you can quickly determine if it will fit into your home.

It may seem like rescuing an older Westie provides you with an ‘instant dog,’ but that is not the case. At first they might become confused, upon arriving at a new home, and need to be reminded of their basic training. However, even allowing a few weeks of extra special care is easier and less stressful than the rigors of training a puppy.

(Disclaimer: Any information contained in this site relating to various medical, health and fitness conditions of Westies or other animals and their treatments is for informational purposes only and is not meant to be a substitute for the advice provided by your own veterinarian. You should not use the information contained herein for diagnosing the health of any animal. You should always consult and check with your own vet or veterinarian.)

I do hope that you have found the article of use to you.

Good health and happiness

Jeff Cuckson
webmaster@madaboutwesties.com

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