When some people first see or read about the TTEAM methods, they may either feel unsure about where to start or think they could never take the time. In this first part I'll describe the basic body work that you can start doing with your horse.
One of the most effective ways to use TTEAM is to integrate the "tools" into your everyday day of working with a horse. Even if you do not use the specific methods, your attitude and way of looking at things will help you relate to your horse in a different way.
The easiest time to integrate TTEAM is when you are grooming. If you groom your horse on cross-ties, check their height. If they are set so that the horse cannot lower his head enough to have his neck level with his withers, he will not get the full benefit of the grooming. When the head is held high, the back has a tendency to drop as it is brushed. When practical, I suggest teaching your horse to stand without being tied; or use the "Taming the Tiger" position so that the horse can lower his head and have the opportunity to turn his head to see what you are doing.
Allowing the horse to maintain an effective head position is important to the horse's physical, emotional and mental balance. Additionally, the TTEAM process of teaching the horse to lower his head on cue:
Photo
1: This is one way to lower a horse's head. While standing in front of the horse,
with my fingers held lightly but firmly on the noseband, I ask Budha to lower
his head. I have the 30" chain threaded straight into the ring on the left side
of the halter, down and then once up and over the noseband. Then from the inside,
the snap goes straight out through the ring on the right side. Finally, the
snap is attached to the top ring on the right side.
Because so many people have seen a chain used abusively, sometimes there is controversy about our use of the chain. The way the chain is attached gives the horse a much clearer signal than a rope attached to the ring under the chin. We do not use the chain to shank the horse; and of course, we NEVER tie up a horse with the nylon lead if they have the chain on.
Photo
2: With my right hand on the crest and my lest hand on the chain, I ask the
horse to lower his head so that his poll is level with his withers. As shown
here, I will ask a very nervous horse to lower his head slightly lower than
the withers. With the head at this height, I find that the horse can relax and
still focus and not "bliss out."
With my right hand I can use a combination of TTouches. I can do the "Clouded Leopard" by using the pads of my fingers to make single circles at the top of the neck, or I can do the "Snail's Pace" by lifting the crest gently with my fingers and thumb, holding, and slowly releasing.
Using this method to lower the head easily transfers to riding time. If your horse becomes upset and raises his head, reach forward and work his crest in the same way you did from the ground. He will relax because that has become his habitual response. You might not be able to reach as close to the poll while you are in the saddle, but he is accustomed to the TTouch.
Taking a few minutes to lower your horse's head before you groom will help him relax, and he will be able to focus more quickly when you mount.
To help your horse relax between classes, try the "Neck Rocking." With one hand on the crest and the other under the neck, I gently rock the top and bottom of the neck back and forth.
Photo
4: With my left hand on the noseband of the halter and my right hand on the
face, I make random, single, clockwise circles on the forehead, around the base
of the ears and down the face. A couple of minutes of this will help an overly
emotional horse stay more focused. Also, it will help you gain a wonderful rapport
with your horse. Or if you horse is head shy, difficult to catch or untrusting,
these TTouches can make a difference in the horse's attitude in just a few sessions.
Photo
5: Working the mouth is very helpful for horses who are overly emotional or
reactive, who are difficult to bridle, paste worm, twitch or float their teeth,
who bite, who chew the bit, stick out or suck their tongues, or grind their
teeth. In this photo, Linda's hand is open with her fingers close together.
She is rubbing back and forth across the gums where the upper lip meets the
gums. If your horse's mouth is dry, wet your hand. Notice Linda's left hand
is holding the halter to stabilize the horse's head. Work the bottom gum as
well.
Working the nostrils will help make your horse more tolerant and easier to tube. Once the horse is used to having his nostrils TTouched, this TTouch relaxes. I keep one hand on the halter lightly yet firmly. I use the heel of my other hand to stroke down in a gentle and firm motion. If the strokes are too light, it will tickle, whereas too firm could very well irritate the horse.
Photo
7: If your horse has trouble lowering his head or is stiff under saddle, try
showing him how to bend his neck. I stand at the horse's left. My left hand
makes "Raccoon TTouch" circles near the vertebra while my right hand on the
halter, or on his nose, guides him to turn left. Rather than forcing his head,
I ask. Many times a horse will swing his hindquarters away rather than bend
his neck. He is not being resistant. Because he is stiff and cannot bend his
neck easily, he moves his hind end instead. If this happens, ask his to give
his head less. Perhaps try raising or lowering his head to find a comfortable
range to teach the movement. Or use another method of asking him to bend described
in the next photo.
Photo
8: As my right hand rests lightly on his right jowl, my left hand guides his
head. Start with the side your horse bends more easily and take him just to
the point that he becomes stiff. Then take it back to the other side. By using
this method, you can influence the plane of the face and prevent him from tipping
the nose which often happens.
If you spend about five minutes on the head and neck, once or twice a week, before riding, you will see improvement under saddle.
TTEAM tail work is also easy to incorporate into the grooming process. Photos 9-12 show about 3-4 minutes of attention.
Photo
9: Use the "Raccoon TTouch" along the tailbone and down the buttocks before
picking up the tail. If your horse's tail is very clamped, these circles will
make the tail work easier. Usually a horse will release his tail because of
the circles.
Photo
10: One of the ways to work the tail is to support it with the upper hand (left
hand in this case) and push the tail bone up slightly with the right hand, making
a question-mark curve with the tailbone. Keeping the curve in the tail, circle
the tail 2-3 times in each direction.
Photo
11: Slide your hands down the dock and gently rock your weight back. Do not
use arm muscle to pull back; rather feel the tailbone's connection to the spine.
Hold for about 5 seconds, then SLOWLY release. A fast release will not benefit
the horse. Try to pull in a straight line from the spine and watch your horse's
body for a response. Most horses love this exercise and some will turn to see
what is happening. Others allow themselves to be rocked back and forth with
the pull and release. Repeat 2 or 3 times.
Caution: If your horse has a very loose tail (when you start to pull, there is no resistance; and it feels like the tail is attached with a loose rubber band), DON'T PULL. In this case, use the position in Photo 10 and besides making circles with the tailbone, gently pull back with the tail curved. Then push the tailbone toward the spine. Also, I would suggest doing more circles at the top of the tailbone of a loose-tailed horse to help him make a better connection to his tail.
Photo
12: Another way to work the tail is to move each vertebra back and forth like
a string of pearls. Here, I am pushing in with my thumbs on the top of the tailbone
as I pull out with my fingers under the tailbone. Start from the top of the
tail and work downward. You will notice that some vertebrae are more flexible
than others.
The work with the tail has many benefits. It is a non-habitual movement. The tail work connects the back end of the horse to the front end through the spine; helps horses who are afraid of things behind them; helps mares accept the breeding process and veterinarian attention; helps horses engage their hindquarters under saddle by giving them a new sense of awareness of their hindquarters.
Leg Exercises: As you pick up your horse's feet to clean them, add a couple of the TTEAM leg exercises. They won't take more than 30 seconds extra per leg.
When picking up his foot, instead of leaning your shoulder into your horse's, stroke down the leg with your hand and use a lift/release motion with your fingertips just above the fetlock joint. This signal teaches the horse to take his weight onto his other three legs and to rebalance in order to lift his foot. Often people put their shoulder into the horse and then wonder why he leans back.
Photo
14: Here I support the fetlock joint with my left hand and keep my left forearm
alongside the tendon in order to prevent torqueing the horse's knee. (From the
right side of the horse, the right hand and forearm would do this.) My right
hand supports the hoof with my thumb on the heel and my fingers around the hoof.
My right elbow rests on my right knee so that my legs do the work rather than
my back.
Circle the hoof, leg and shoulder in a horizontal circle (like a helicopter propeller). The circle goes in toward the other leg, forward, around to the outside, and then back. Imagine a line running from this horse's right leg straight out to the side toward his other leg. This line becomes the center line (the diameter) across the circle. The ROUNDNESS of the circle is more important than its size. A small round circle is better than a large, odd shape. In Photo 14, the leg is shown out to the side and at a height just below the knee.
Photo
15: Here the hoof is coming back behind the other front leg and is about at
fetlock height. At each height (knee, mid-cannon, fetlock, pastern) make 3 or
4 circles in each direction.
Photo
16: Instead of putting the hoof down, continue a circle as close to the ground
as possible and tap the toe on the ground on several points of the circle. Then
rest the toe as shown so that the shoulder can release in a nonhabitual way.
If your horse is very tight in the shoulder or low in the heel, resting the
toe my be difficult at first.
With some horses you have to "build up the ground" with a block of wood or a pile of leg quilts for a couple of sessions until they can release to the ground. Stroking the tendon while the toe is down relaxes the leg and shoulder. Most horses rest the toe only for a moment. This position improves their balance.
To do the hind leg, stand beside your horse rather than with your hip into him. This teaches the horse to keep his balance instead of leaning on his handler. Run your hand down the back of the leg and ask with the same squeeze/release signal for the front leg. When I don't know the horse or he is difficult, I hold the tail with one hand.
When the horse is tight in the hindquarters or nervous about having the leg held, I support the leg in the direction he wants to take it. When you try to take the leg back immediately, the horse becomes more stiff and tense.
In this kind of situation, try using the TTouch on the hindquarters before picking up the foot. A few minutes of the "Clouded Leopard" with a 4-5 pressure, combined with the softening "Jellyfish Jiggle," will help loosen the hind end.
Photo
18: Since most horses are expecting their leg to be held up after being picked
up, resting the toe is very non-habitual and helps the horse stay focused and
comfortable. With this horse, I am holding the hock lightly to encourage him
to stay in this position. In this case, I would stroke the tendon with my other
hand. Some people teach their horses to rest a toe as they clean the hoof.
Photo
19: Pick the leg up as shown, and make horizontal circles with the foot at whatever
height is easy for the horse. The circle, as with the front leg, is in relationship
to the other hind leg. Take the hoof forward, to the outside, back and then
to the inside. Circle the leg 3 or 4 times in each direction and then rest the
toe. Rest your outside elbow on your outside leg and use your body rather than
just your arms. This will prevent stress on your back. Remember to breathe.
If you incorporate TTEAM leg exercises into your normal hoof cleaning process you can make life easier for both your farrier and your horse, increase the range of motion in the shoulders and the hindquarters, lengthen stride, and improve your horse's balance.
If the exercises are difficult for your horse, make the circles very small and do them quickly, then put the foot down. You will find that in a few lessons, without force, the leg will be much freer. These exercises are not stretching exercises. The intent is to have the horse experience a new way of moving his legs in a non-habitual, non-threatening way.
You may choose to do all of these exercises (head/neck, tail, leg) in a time-frame of 10-15 minutes, or you may wish to do only a few of them in one session. Because they seem so simple, any people cannot imagine that they can really make a difference. We have seen improvements often enough to know that they do work.
For example, spending just a few minutes working on the head of a horse who is upset or nervous will settle that horse and make him more focused. This is especially useful with the farrier or the vet, at a show, or when loading a horse into a trailer.
Many people write that they used 'TTEAM to solve a problem; then use it only as needed. That is a great way to incorporate TTEAM into the methods you already use. TTEAM offers alternatives, more "tools" to use in your everyday way of working with your horse.
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