What I've Learned So Far

1)   So far, I've learned a lot about how to correctly start a young horse, how to teach a sidepass, how to get a great stop, and which bits are good to use. I've been able to apply 3 of those things to my own horse. Each of them are very complicated, but after lots of practice, I was able to master the stop and sidepass.

2)   The result of teaching my horse how to stop! The perfect WHOA.






3)   The research that really helped me work with my horse was "Getting a Perfect WHOA" and "The Sidepass." Both were articles from Horse Illustrated magazine. I applied what I learned from "The Sidepass" to my horse, and was able to teach him how to properly sidepass, placing his hind feet first. I then applied the information from "Getting a Perfect WHOA" while reining with my horse, and was able to get his stops more accurate and get his hindquarters underneath him.

Independent Componet 1 Plan Approval

1)   For my independent componet, I plan on taking horse riding lessons twice a week, every week, for an hour at a time. I will be training with Kris Keeler, a popular Mule, jumping, and western performance horse trainer. During the lessons, she will be teaching me how to better myself as a rider, and how to correct and improve on my horse. I will also learn more about horse healthcare, varieties of tack, and different training methods and how they are effective/uneffective.

2)   I think that my plan will meet the 30 hours work requirement because I plan on doing this from now on; it's not just a contemporary thing. Thus, I will be going every week for my two, 1 hour long lessons. If the schedule keeps up, I should be able to finish my 30 hours in just 15 weeks, maybe even less if I'm able to get in  3 hours a week.

3)   My independent study componet relates to my EQ because it will teach me the basics such as being more patient, and it will teach me the correct training methods that really get results.

Defining the Essential Question

1)   My EQ is "What is most important to becoming a successful western horse trainer?"

2)   Important - qualities and/or aspects that are necessary and fundamental.
      Successful - being proficient by having the ability to maintain clientele, be well known, educate people on the methods used in your way of training, and have an effective way of training horses that proves to be natural and basic.

3)   Some possible answers to my EQ so far are:
                 - time to be consistent
                 - control of any emotions that may effect your horse
                 - confident leadership
Right now they aren't very specific, but I hope to make them more specific as I continue to research this topic.

4)   My most important source so far has been a documentary called "Buck". I recently watched this movie on Friday, and it has really changed the way I look at western horse training. The movie is about Buck Brannaham, a horse trainer from Montana that believes in natural horse training, meaning he thinks that horse and rider should have a strong bond of trust and boundaries. He works at the horse's level, with the horse's thoughts in mind. He makes it so that the horse can make sense of everything, and shows them that there is nothing to fear. In no way does he use force, dominance, or aggression when working with his horses. He has a way to solve any problem that a horse can throw at you. It truly inspired me.
    

Second Interview Questions

1)   How long have you been training horses?

2)   How long have you owned horses?

3)   How did you get into the horse training business?

4)   Did you go to college? And if so, did it help/enhance your career?

5)   Experience in this field is obviously essential. How did you gain the experience needed to be the successful horse trainer that you are?

6)   Gaining clientele can be hard in a competitive field like horse training. How did you gain clientele when you first started out?