In my training, I use pressure and release technique (negative reinforcement) as well as positive reinforcement. In this article, I would like to discuss my own understanding of pressure and release. I once had a conversation with someone who told me, my horses don’t…
Whether a horse is reacting or responding to an aid actually makes a big difference in our training. During my first internship at Bent Branderup’s, Christofer Dahlgren spoke to us one evening about the difference between reaction and response, an idea which changed my…
On the way to collection there is horizontal balance. The horse goes from it’s natural balance to shifting more weight to the hind legs and becoming more free in the shoulders. If you imagine an old fashioned scale, then the scale is about equal….
I get many questions by riders who would like advise on how to improve their riding or groundwork. At the same time, many of them seem to focus more on limiting conditions than on what is possible. And it is really true: if you…
Last days I have thought a lot about this. Let me tell you a little anecdote that brought me a step closer to understanding collection: When I was a working student at Bent Branderup’s place, he was talking about collection with one of…
The power of praise can not be overestimated! Horses will go out of their way if they feel your honest appreciation and love. Etienne Beudant said “„Demand little, repeat often, praise a lot!“. How can we understand this? First, “demand little” does not mean…
I still owe you the photos from our wonderful course with Marius Schneider, 22.-23.04.2017!!! First of all thank you so much Marius for coming to us ❤ I know you have more requests for courses than you have weekends, so I really really appreciate…
When we talk about “lightness” we refer to the horse’s body, to the level of intensity with which we would like to give aids. Softness, however, refers to the horse’s mind. The horse can be light on the aids and yet not be fully…
Most of us would like to achieve something in our horse training. We would like to improve a gait, refine an exercise, or learn the next one. Quite often, when I speak to horse people, I hear “I want my horse to do X”,…
If you follow my blog you know that training my horse Nazir is not always a Sunday walk in the Park. By now, I know that I have sometimes failed to interpret his behaviour correctly in the past and that I would like to develop a…
From 8-24th of August I helped out as a working student at Bent Branderup’s place in Denmark. And I fell in love with a pony. On a holiday in Denmark, me and my husband took the opportunity to attend Bent’s public evening on…