Training fundamentals

Hi, I have a 7 year old gelding appaloosa. I have broken my collar bone on him and have been terrified to get on him since because he is very spooky. I made a deal with myself that I was going to start training him starting with the basics and working my way up. I am fairly new at this and need some guidance. I saw Clinton Anderson's fundamental series that seems like a great program, but I can't afford the $600! I also like the idea of the 'barn mates' he has with his program. I thought since I can't afford that, I would start a binder with my own printed groundwork/saddle/etc. exercises and training ideas to help me have some sort of basis of what to do since I'm almost clueless as to where to start other than to lunge him. Anyways, my question is...does anyone know of a good website or program that goes over the basic (but not colt starting since my horse is already broke to ride) fundamentals that is reliable and not so expensive? I just need a good starting point and some resources to go along with it. Any ideas? Thank you!
Amy

Is your horse well trained and you broke your collarbone by a typical fall that could happen to anyone, anytime. ? Or does he have issues that need more training, and due to those issues, you fell and injured yourself?

I guess I am asking becuase if the horse has some real issues, and you admit to being new to this and now being terrified of him, I will be honest and say that you can't do this on your own. YOu will need to get a real human being to help you; a trainer. I dont' think videos will do it.

If the horse is well trained for the most part , then maybe you can work from videos. I would nto know which to advise. But, they all cost money.

Perhaps you could tell us a bit more about what's going on with your gelding.

Hi, yes my horse still does need some training but somedays he is good and others he is very skiddish. I am planning on taking him to trainer, yes, and to a clinic that focuses on getting confidence for me and my horse back but I would like to do some groundwork with him before I get there so I don't make a complete fool of myself. I can't ride him right now because I still have a rod in my collar bone which will come out soon. I know this trainer/clinic can help me, but I would like to do a little training on my own so I don't look like a complete idiot in front of the others there. I just want to learns some things I can do for groundwork and was hoping someone had some suggestions for a website with some articles or tips or exercise to help me gain his respect a little bit more to prepare myself for the clinic. Horses are a passion of mine but I learned from someone who thought they knew everything when they didn't know much themselves, but I have slowly been figuring things out on my own. I want to learn everything there is to know about horses and be able to gain his respect. I know there is some work to be done on my part in learning how to handle him and I recently had foot/ankle surgery, so I'm wondering if that was a factor in my falling off because I don't have the greatest balance at the moment (but I am working on gaining my strength back). I guess I just want some basics and fundamentals and support to get my horses respect back so I'm not so terrified so I can have a little more control over him. Hope that helps, thanks.

I agree with Tiny and am glad to hear you have plans to work with a trainer and attend clinics.

If you feel that Clinton Anderson's training method is the way you would like to go, you could join the No Worries Club, which is associated with his website. Once you join, you would have access to all of his weekly TV shows and some of the past NWC DVDs right on your pc that have been sent to members.
You could joint for a discounted rate of $149 per year. Sign up for their product catalog (free) off their website and there is a discount coupon inside, or there are discount codes in Horse Illustrated magazine. Or, you could just join for a month or two at $19.95 (or something similar) per each month and have access to what you are looking for.

The DVD Library is quite extensive and there are entire series that he has done with one horse that takes the horse from the beginning through the fundamentals. For example, there was an off track Thoroughbred named Tricky that he recently started right at the beginning, and each week on the RFDTV show they showed the lessons and the progress of the horse. There are other series with other horses too, and someone on the forum over there asked the same question… how can I learn the fundamentals without buying the green package? It can be done. J
There are also DVDs that you can watch of other people doing the training on the NWC and what they are having problems with.

There are also discounted Clinton Anderson DVDs available on eBay, and there are horse video rental places that I found out about from here. One is called giddyupflix that works like netflix. You can google the name for more info.
There are all kinds of horse videos and training DVDs available there too.

Anyway, with only half a cup of coffee in my system so far this morning, hopefully this makes sense. Welcome to HF and sorry to hear about the collarbone.

When I first heard of "Natural Horsemanship" I was directed this page. It's all about Icelandic pony training -- but it's a good start for any horse--and handler-- I think. It gave me confidence on the ground, anyway, and made it easier to understand my "real trainer" when I got him.

I agree, though, you shouldn't handle your horse if you're afraid or too nervous. He will pick it up, and do neither of you any good. Be safe!

The Seven (7) Games of Parelli Natural Horsemanship

Giddyupflux.com has so many DVDs. It's like Netflix but for horse training and has Clinton Anderson and lots of others. We would get one, take notes on the excercises and return it.
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I assume that since you say he is spooky, that for the most part he is trained but doesn't react well he is fearful. Desensitize him to as much stuff as you can, walmart bags are great running them all along his body until he stands quietly, small tarps along his body also putting them on the ground and having him walk across it. My friend starts all this on the ground first, walk them through trees where the tree can touch him, walk them through ditches, if you can find water walking them through that, even puddles make some horses anxious. Jumping up and down, waving your arm around the front end of the horse. Touching lots of touching. I put the saddle on and pat the saddle all over lift the stirrups and let them fall back into place. Do all of this on both sides. We mount our horses from both sides as well as dismount. Youtube has a lot of stuff type in spooky horse exercises and you will probably find all kinds of stuff. Have a great day

I LOVE Clinton Anderson! I have never watched the fundamentals series but I bought his book "Downunder Horsemanship" and watched Gaining Respect and Control on the Ground and my horse and I are making progress. I am learning how to assert myself more and he (the horse) is learning respect. I HIGHLY recommend the book if you cannot afford the fundamentals (as I can't either). Or read articles on thehorse.com, and google Clinton Anderson groundwork...you can probably find some stuff!!! Giddyupflix seemed good but they do have a very long wait list for the fundamentals series. I've used Parelli but it seemed to mess up my horse more than anything.


I got this book-it's pretty in depth for a book and covers all of the basics that you should master with your horse.
Amazon.com: Clinton Anderson's Downunder...

I just want to say that you should NOT feel like an idiot for having fear! You have experienced a traumatic event, you have every right to feel as you do, and you are to be commended for not allowing your fear to paralyze you. With all honesty most people who have gained any kind of skill with horses have experienced something involving horses that have caused us fear and sometimes even shaken our confidence. If we embrace it as a way to learn we grow.

Fear is what keeps us safe, and a healthy fear can help you to make good judgment calls. These are very large animals who do not reason out their actions, I would say anyone who has absolutely no fear of their horse is the idiot. I was just such an idiot(teenager) when I started working with horses, I believed the horse stories and movies thinking that if you loved a horse enough they would never hurt you, I learned nothing of value as long as I was under that delusion. When I learned to fear then I found the need to get more knowledge which evolved my fear into respect.

While you may not be in a comfortable place emotionally with your horse right now, you are taking yourself in the right direction towards better understanding.