Glenys, Author at Online Horse College

Addicted to Horses

Working Student Needed

Are you looking for a live in working student position in a horse business? This is an opportunity to train for Horse Riding Instructor qualifications with OnlineHorseCollege.com including ‘hands on’ training and assessment for all practical components on your course. For further information, please click on the link below http://www.birsaddleclub.com/working-students … [Read more...]

Your Gift ‘On Horsemanship’ by Xenophon

At Online Horse College, we are partnering with a PhD student to develop courses for Equine Assisted Learning courses. As part of her research, she would love to survey you about your coaching and learning styles and as a reward for your input we have a gift for you! Xenophon is one of the earliest riding masters, training horses through kindness and reward. Topics include his teachings on selection of a young horse, breaking colts, selection of the older horse, care of the horse and grooming, handling correctly and safely, mounting, riders position and training the rider, advanced training of the horse including jumping and cross country and much, much more... If you would love a copy of this book, simply complete the one page equestrian coaching survey on the link below to … [Read more...]

The First Rule For Any Horse Business, Including Non-Profits

The First Rule For Any Horse Business, Including Non-Profits People who start non-profit charities or causes within the horse industry often have hearts of gold. They are supporting a cause that they are passionate about for animals that have touched their heart. However, if you are thinking about starting a non-profit to support a great cause within the horse industry, remember Non-profits in the horse industry need to run at a profit as well! Without the ability to run at a profit, your cause will not be able to increase awareness and build in size and influence. As with any equine business venture, do your homework first and make sure you can run at a profit! To Your Success, Glenys :) … [Read more...]

Teaching Styles in Equestrian Coaching

Equestrian Coaches Only! Think about this for a moment! You may know what you coach or why you coach but have you considered how you coach? As a coach you can use a variety of teaching styles in your lessons with students. You could be more familiar with the words coaching or instructional styles or even facilitative methods or approaches depending on your discipline and training. Many equestrian coaches use a more direct style of teaching in their lessons where the coach gives commands or demonstrates and the students follow their cues. Take the survey here about equestrian coaching styles Think of one of your lessons where you say: Whole ride, trot and the whole ride trots on or you say: Everyone, come in here and everyone comes in together to the designated place. … [Read more...]

Horses And Their Imagination

What was that? Aasifa pricked up her pretty little Arab shaped ears. Talisman pricked up his long thoroughbred ears and snorted. Zamizin pricked his ears, snorted and held his tail up. It was important that he held his tail up high so everyone could see that it has been broken in a floating accident. He had survived so he really must be the bravest horse in the herd. Trendy trotted up to the front of the group, not because he thought that he was the bravest but because he wanted to make sure that if it was terribly scary then he wanted to be the fastest to get away. Just in case whatever it was had a particular hunger for fat leopard appaloosas. “It must be a bunyip” said Aasifa who had told everyone about the mythical Australian creatures where she used to live. “There are … [Read more...]

When You Choose, Always Think Of The Long Term Outcome

As a business consultant to the equine industry, people ask me “What if I train my staff to gain a qualification and they leave?” My answer is “What happens if you don’t train them and they stay?” When you make choices, continually think of the long-term outcome. You owe it to your clients to deliver to them the best possible outcome for them and their horse and part of that is to continually train and monitor your staff to serve your customers needs at a higher level. Not only will you gain a great reputation from your customers for delivering the best possible outcome, but you will also gain a reputation within the industry for meeting the needs of your staff. This second reputation will mean that you can attract potential employees who are looking for a career within the … [Read more...]

Looks Like The Joke Is On Us!

When you mix with people who are from outside the horse industry, do you feel like they are talking another language? You know that you are highly motivated and serious about horses, but now you can have a bit of a laugh about yourself and pick up on the views of ‘outsiders’. If you are looking for a top quality horse read, check out this hilarious new book from Funny Horse Cartoons and download your free copy now! Funny Horse Cartoons Download Your FREE Copy Now! Pick Up Your FREE Copy Of Funny Horse Cartoons Exposes the Truth! Name*: Email*: Country*:AfghanistanAlbaniaAlgeriaAndorraAngolaAntigua and BarbudaArgentinaArmeniaAustraliaAustriaAzerbaijanBahamas, … [Read more...]

Strategies for Settling Competition Nerves

In a highly competitive environment, it is easy to become very critical of others “How could THAT horse win, didn’t the judges see that all the changes to the left were late behind” “She couldn’t sit to the trot to save herself” “Who owns that umbrella? It is scaring my horse!” Instead, we would remain in a far happier state of mind if we were more appreciative of other horse/ rider combinations “I liked the way he rode when he corrected that resistance/ evasion” “Every time I have seen that combination they have continued to improve” “Wow it is raining, what a great opportunity to expose my horse to wet conditions” If you tend to get tense and nervous at competitions, try using these strategies Remember that people have different reasons for riding at the … [Read more...]

Three Rewards for Your Horse

Have you ever noticed how when people ride their horses and reward them all the time, the horses go well for them? There are other riders who are always angry at their horses and give them a hard time. Keep a diary of everything that went well on your ride today, just the best three things and what you did to reward your horse. It could have been a softening of the reins allowing them to have a stretch and a break, a walk break or to finish the work session. When you focus on what went well and the rewards you give your horse on a regular basis, you look forward to your riding and training so much more. … [Read more...]

Your Equine Priorities

If one of your high priorities is to ride your horse, gain an equine qualification or make more profit in your horse business and you haven’t done anything about it in the last twenty-four hours then you may need to re-organize your actions! Research has consistently shown that ‘Overnight Successes’ have been taking continuous action steps towards their goal (of becoming a success) over the preceding months or years. So if you have a horse business that should be more profitable, have been thinking of studying towards your horse career or need to ride your horse more regularly, then make sure you take a step towards that goal every single day! Remember to live your dreams, Glenys :) … [Read more...]

Equine Meditation

Do you enjoy early morning rides with your friends? Then on the day you wake up and realize that your alarm clock didn’t go off and you are now running quite late for your ride? Did you go into a panic, trying to get everything done as fast as you can? Throwing things around, speaking fast or yelling only to forget where you put your boots or keys and then arrive late and blame it on your alarm clock? How does your horse react when you are like this? Do they get upset refusing to co-operate and generally behaving out of character? Or do you focus on working efficiently? Do you ask yourself what absolutely has to be done to be ready on time? Do you plan each move ahead so you know where everything is minutes before you need them? Do you focus on your breathing so your … [Read more...]

How Addictions To Horses Are Created

Horse Addiction I finally worked out why I was addicted to horses! According to Tony Robbins, humans have six basic needs and if they find an activity that satisfies at least four of those needs there is a very strong chance they will become addicted to that activity and find it difficult or impossible to stop. Certainty Uncertainty Significance Connection Growth Contribution I know with me, horses satisfy every one of those needs! No wonder so many other people are also addicted to them! If I have never met a horse before, I can be certain they have characteristics and behaviors that are unique to the horse. At the same time, every horse and every situation is different. Even on a well-trained horse there is always a degree of uncertainty in the way they are going … [Read more...]

Understanding Horses

Have you ever had your foot stood on by a horse? Horses’ brains have been wired to remember the negative/ survival memories. These survival memories have evolved the need to remember danger, potential danger and to act as a herd when another horse is acting suspiciously. They don’t always have the same thought patterns as humans, so if we plan to ride them, train them, teach them and teach with them it is in our best interests to understand them as much as possible. The next time a horse shies, bucks, kicks out or even if one stands on your foot, then try to understand from their point of view what made them do it. Real horse people don’t blame horses; they only continue to deepen their understanding about them. … [Read more...]

Teaching Trot Diagonals

When your student doesn’t understand something (such as trot diagonals), most coaches automatically go back and re-explain in more simplified terms.Part of re-explaining in simplified terms is to break down a complicated skill into steps. As students develop a greater understanding of riding at each level, they are more likely to progress on to the next level without the constant need for revision and to go back and ‘fill in the gaps’. The explanation ‘Just sit each time the shoulder moves back/forward/up/down does not give a student sufficient understanding of trot diagonals. Unless an instructor has a system of how to teach trot diagonals, it can be confusing for their students and anyone watching the lesson. While I may not teach every step every time, these are the steps I … [Read more...]

Equine Goal Setting

When Goals Change At the beginning of each year, we often set goals for the coming year. The number of times each week we are going to ride, how we are going to save up for a new saddle or focus on our competition schedule for the year. We often talk about SMART goals (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-lined), and also about the steps towards achieving your goals (define what you want, know what you have, plan how you are going to get there and take action at least every day towards achieving your goals). Then it rains, going out with friends becomes a higher priority than the new saddle and the nominations closebefore you put in your entries. Goals were never meant to be set in stone! They should be flexible, reflect your values, your dreams and your … [Read more...]

Centrelink Horse Course

Centrelink Assistance for EA Trainees Many EA (Equestrian Australia) Trainees are not aware that they are able to access Centrelink Assistance while they are training for horse qualifications or in the equine industry. While Equestrian Australia is not able to provide this assistance to trainees directly, EA Coach Educator Glenys Cox offers aligned Centrelink approved courses so you can receive a horse related educational qualification at the same time as your EA qualifications. With prices around $5.a day, these courses are ideal for those on a budget. The courses are all delivered online, so your study time is flexible and can be completed around your other commitments. For more information, please phone Glenys Cox on (07) 3102 5498 or email Glenys @ OnlineHorseCollege.com... … [Read more...]

How many horse ‘accidents’ can be prevented!

I just heard the police minister talking about how rarely a real ‘accident’ happens and that most are caused by preventable actions like drink driving, speeding and fatigue Many horse accidents can also be prevented. Accidents can be caused by unsafe handling and riding, mismatch of horse and rider/handler, inexperienced/ untrained instructors or complete lack of supervision by a competent person So . . . when you are about to do something with your horse, or give an instruction to some-one else about a horse . . . just take a moment to think about what could possibly go wrong and what you could do to make it safer That way, you can prevent those ‘accidents’ happening Happy (and safe) Riding, Glenys :-) … [Read more...]

Uncharacteristic Behaviour in Horses

Price is always a consideration when buying an asset for a business. So when his owner told me that he was selling him cheap because he won’t ‘tuck his head in’ and he throws his head around even after his teeth has been attended to, I was interested. His mouth and back seemed fine so the next step was to ride him. Sure enough, as soon as he started to go forward with a focus on energy, rhythm and tempo with a few bending and flexing exercises then he responded positively. As I said . . . we have a lovely big chestnut school horse called Sunny. We were able to buy him at a very good price because I recognized that the throwing of his head was a response to him not being ridden correctly. The way he was being ridden was the real problem. Horses communicate in all sorts of … [Read more...]

First 5 Tips For Teaching Children’s Horse Riding Lessons

If you were one of the people who took our recent survey, THANK YOU! In particular, if you were one of the people who asked for some tips for teaching children then this series of tips for teaching children’s horse riding lessons has been written for you! 1. Keep Children Active And Moving Children like active riding lessons with maximum participation. Once they have learnt their A, B & C’s (attitude, balance and control) they generally love to canter and jump. They like to keep moving, but rather than having the ride go in single file behind one leader for the whole lesson try these suggestions - change leaders - go into and out of open order - leading files in succession to perform a specific arena movement - two rides in single file going in opposite … [Read more...]

This Is A Good Example Why Lesson Plans And Training Plans Should Be Flexible And Adaptable

I remember the first time I taught Doris. She was a middle-aged woman, not particularly athletic and a little overweight. Her first three lessons were cancelled at the last minute so when the fourth lesson came around I was almost surprised that she turned up. She took ages to get ready and the lesson time was half over when she was eventually mounted. I knew that she was scared. Her breathing was rapid, she was shaking and her acknowledgement of hearing my questions was non-existent. I talked calmly to her about the horse she was riding, told her a couple of stories of other riders he had helped and just kept chatting to her in a one way conversation. Eventually she started nodding and communicating when I asked her a question. After another ten minutes or so (and after … [Read more...]

The Reason Why It Is Simple But Not Easy To Ride,Teach Or Have An Equine Business

When you meet someone who has had no experience with horses, do they ask you “Is it simple to ride a horse?” I usually reply that it is simple, but not easy! Simple means that there is a step-by-step process to learn the A, B, C’’s (Attitude, Balance, Control) to minimize the risk and to maximize the effort. But if you think it is easy, then no! If you want to ride horses then you should have the right - attitude to challenge yourself both mentally and physically often further than you have ever done before - balance to stay on top of a moving, living animal that can go right, left, forward, backward, up and down in a split second with no warning - control to move this animal by a light touch to your wishes, often against their own wishes and … [Read more...]