the Kalahari Hippogriff ® 

                                                a two-spirit notice on modern horsemanship

Django (unchained) - Condroz

10/05/2020

how shapeable is a horse...

a full stallion in this case, and not just any stallion, but one that goes by the name of Django.

Django naturally unchained.

can I turn a traumatised, human-fearing at first, unsociable and solitary-minded horse into a perfect hippogriff, the imaginary projection of what we want a horse to be: loyal, reliable, performant, steady & sane.

for humans applies: giving the best you can with everything you got is enough. can't ask much more from anyone. that's where it stops.... yet we tend to ask more from the horse, moulding it onto a high standard ideal .

 

we as humans can push ourselves way beyond, shape ourselves and change ourselves, yet this requires a work of personal conduct as well as a strong will aiming to become different and better: the urge to prove oneself as an unquenchable desire. A horse is not busy with such thing: they accept life (thus themselves) as it is.

harmony is something we humans constantly pursue in relation to our horse.

horses in the wild benefit from harmony but do not always pursue it. they provoke dynamics... in hierarchy, in mating.

Equinethology® should be about accepting diversity within the horse community, embracing the individual limitations & ambitions, instead of imposing our own: the one that are convenient to our species.

can we push the performance or qualites of a horse just because there is a human urge to prove, an ideal to chase, a bond to make.

is there enough consideration for what the individual horse is most suited to actually do, feels truly comfortable with, assuming that we can provide in the horse's needs (especially in the case of a pure & healthy young stallion).

how shapeable is a horse...

how shapeable is a horse's character and suppose we take the horse's inherent character as an asset, how shall we cast each horse in our daily live.

I took Django alone on a 3 day hike into the wild and realised that my primal & constant goal to have him good and trustworthy reveals that I did not yet acquire the level of inner peace that allows me to simply let go. 

to NOT try to shape anything at all, but accept.

...and very concrete, do I have to keep Django as a stallion, hence isolated, feeding his introvert authism,  

or shall I give hime a life in the "domesticated" herd on the property, providing him to go out accompanied by other horses, hence redeemed from his natural task: to reproduce, fight within the hierarchy and protect from danger.

 

a dilemma every stallion-owner can relate to: the catch-22 of castration.

Equinethology®

Kris Dane 

Namibia - Kuzikus Farm, 15/02/2019

See your horse not as any human

nor as a working tool,

see it rather as a full-fledged soul, a true spirit and a valuable partner who earns your outmost respect.

exchange goes both ways:

earn the respect of your horse by giving to the horse your soul.

listen to the soul of your horse and open up in return.

Talk softly and use a language that comes from within and is understood by no-one.

Sound equals language.

Hum softly while you groom.

Meditate: be calm / confident / coherent. Don’t try to (over)act in such manner without truly being, for the horse will not consent.

Gently walk or sit together with your horse.

Become a horse, think like a horse (guide, reassure and protect).

Respect your horse and your horse’s limitations. Be patient, don’t ask too much for too long.

Do never treat your horse as if it were a child, an infant.

Eradicate stress and show understanding, but be firm and consequent. Don’t let the horse fool you around. Nonetheless try to soften and relief your horse’s stress, instead of using whip or reprimand.

Dance together with the movement of the horse. In order to do so: unlock your pelvis.

In your contact with any horse, be pure and uncompelled.

Get rid of thoughts. Awake your primal animal senses instead. 

Come to yourself. Be zen & compassionate, natural and intuitive.

The relation between rider/groom and horse is not about I versus you, but about we.

A horse is a spiritual friend, a brother, a sister, a master.

All horses, also the so called difficult or vicious ones: hard to read, troubled, traumatised, ill-treated, introverted or bold, are our friends.

The relation between rider and horse comes down to finding that approximate point of mutual understanding: it may take time and patience for the horse to fully understand us, and for us to understand the horse.

Therefore, with regards to handling and groundwork, create an environment where you can be alone with the horse. Horse behaviour can be strongly influenced by the presence of fellow horses and other animals, as well as by exterior elements such as sound, scent, wind & weather, unidentified objects….

Grooming methodology according to

temperature

humidity

environment

exercise / freedom

herd life / the individual

training = studying the horse (keep note)

trying things out / being inventive

always look to improve mental & physical welfare of the horse. Also if it means granting the horse rest, the time necessary to let the matter of teaching sink in.

grooming

showering / shampooing

massage / handling / caressing

melody / intonation / sound 

horse meditation: being together doing nothing in silence

Instead of a teacher, be an apprentice. Master both as one, as the horse is both teacher and apprentice, yet unaware of his mental and physical strength. 

Under the saddle

For breaking horses, the following suggestion. Build a few working stables/barns especially for the purpose of saddle breaking. Put the colt inside a few hours a day so he can accustom: groom / bond / stretch legs / pick up feet (stand still) etcetera… and do just the same outside with additional groundwork and handling until the relation between rider and horse is comfortable and secure.

Important ! The stable must have a solid closure on door or fence and will need the right dimensions: 3 to 4 meters on 3 to 4 meters.

Mounting and/or saddle breaking will -for some specific cases- go easier and faster in a closed area such as a stable or closed barn compared to saddle breaking in open spaces like meadows, plains and/or paddocks. 

Run next to the horse. Walk with the horse. Use the same pace of foot placement, experiment with acceleration or deceleration in simultaneous coordination. Like two dancers: one dance, one leader.

Food

Grazing !

Hay

Oat-hay

Lucerne

Power food (mix)

Lucerne pellets

beetroot pellets (cold weather)

Horse Management

Sustainable and profitable horse management: breed the Kuzikus Horse and develop a Kalahari breed for sale and export.

A horse has a different perception of time & pace. Go slowly and gently on the horse. Elegant like a dancer, yet firm and consequent.

One can see when a horse is tired, irritated or confused: either you demand too much, or what you demand is not clear to the horse.

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In music I feel I’ve been to the moon & back. I’ve lived the good and bad side of things, seen the uppers and downers. The urge to do music only is gone. The horses are calling out louder than ever before.

I complementary decide to dedicate the rest of my life to these magnificent creatures: horse care, equine science & research, saddle breaking, breeding… as well as to transcendental meditation. 

I will  continue giving concerts, recording and releasing new material whenever the muse arises. 

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Horses and meditation

no reluctance / no craving: love & compassion

If one meditates one grows free from prejudgement. One grows to be calm, with no to little stress, without confusion. In return one becomes compassionate, filled with comprehension. An empty page with no complexity. Clear and consequent in action.

Such automatically and inevitably reflects on the horse, for the horse is both a mirror and a sponge. The horse needs reassurance & guidance.

Wisdom & meditation, together with compliance and litheness make a good guide.

Be physically fit. Go to the gym. Practice Yoga or Pilates.

Stretch & dance. Be like a dancer, a guiding partner to the horse.

A horse needs a spiritual leader as well as a physical guide and is not served by any physical or psychological overpowering or dominance. The relation between rider and horse is a partnership upon a clear agreement on who is leading the dance. The horse’s position is at first sight that of the follower, although in some situations and upon request of the rider, the horse may be allowed to lead.

“If one can sing to horses, one can sing to mankind”

Horses need sand to roll in: after riding or after showering, and even more so in case of hot & dry weather.

Stay at all times soft spoken and well mannered towards the horse. One can be sad, serene, calm, excited or joyful, yet never loose your patience, never stress but reassure and be confident.

Rather whisper using no language but sound & body language, and do not raise your voice in anger for it will cause confusion and transfer signs and emotions that are often incomprehensible to the horse.

Speak like an elf or mentor, with everlasting kindness, wisdom & faith.

At times when one corrects a particularly unwilling horse, a dominant horse or a horse that shows no fear, with a short but fierce & powerful slap of the whip just above the leg, one should in voice, body language and temperament not show anger or discontent, but kindness, both staying firm and gentle in handling… and this at all times.

Isolate the horse, sit down & observe… think, and then free yourself from thinking. Go to the horse and show kindness as well as the clear intention to start working, with no time-stress, no distraction… until you come to an understanding.

Consent to progress with little result. Go step by step yet know when to stop: when the focus of rider and/or horse fades.

Blondie / The fall

Occurred because I asked too much of the horse. Didn’t listen enough to my initial feeling and had external courtesy and non-horse related matters prevail over my decision to go out riding and take the lead with a horse that was not ready to take on such responsibility on such short notice.

I got too confident and misjudged, allowing myself to be influenced in my decision. I should have relied entirely and solely on my gut feeling.

The Kalahari Method is incomplete. 

checking out a closed area/stable to bring the horse into comfort for mounting + an open pathway/lane with trees or hedgerow for first walkouts.

The horse as well as the rider need reassurance. Whilst mounting there is no room or space for any flight behaviour upon invitation to trot or gallop.

preparative groundwork stays the same:

walk the colt or filly in the open.

get the horse acquainted with environment: objects, colours, sounds, odours…)

make bonding / build trust

introduce saddle and headset

reining / lunging

get the horse to be reliable, to stand still and be comfortable with all handling: saddling and tacking up.

THEN ONLY practice the same inside the closed area with the horse mostly relaxed and accustomed.

Research

Fight or flight response with regard to mounting a colt in a closed versus open area.

Horses rolling in the sand after riding & untacking/unsaddling. What about stable horses: don’t they need extra compensation like after-grooming or body-massage?

A rider and horse in a vast open space: in such case the horse might tend to go into gallop when trotting is demanded. How to hold the horse back from doing so by free will, without pulling and struggling with the reins too heavily + relation to the fact that this more often occurs when a horse is taken out alone in wide & open surroundings. Is this a mental game about who is in charge, testing the rider ? 

Horses used as a unity horse-rider with the focus on external work (not tourist related): rounding up cattle or wildlife, check-up on fences, fauna & flora observation & conservation, wildlife surveillance & protection … 

Equinethology®