The Art of Natural Dressage

Working with the Horse's Initiative
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PostPosted: Wed Mar 12, 2008 3:58 pm 
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The cordeo cues when riding

Karen had a great post in which she summoned up the cues she used for riding, and that just had to be turned into a Riding sticky. 8)

***
Karen's post:

I just wanted to add that horses can learn many subtle variations of the cordeo position.

I use:

1) Straight up lift to mean just that - rear up or lift the front end.

2) More backward lift to mean stop or back up.

3) With two hands I lay the cordeo across the top of the neck with slight downward pressure...this means to lower the head (for a mounted Goat on a Mountain or emotional control, or travel with the head down)

4) Right or left light "tipping" of the cordeo with a straight up lift is part of the cue for Spanish Walk.

5) Right or left tipping of the cordeo at a slight backward angle is for right or left turn with forward motion and bend.

5) Right or left tipping of the cordeo at a more extreme backward angle is for a turn on the haunches (pirouette).

6) From the ground, and backward touch of the cordeo from one side (at the horse's shoulder) means to rock back the weight for a bow.

7) Also from the ground, a light lifting touch (should be whisper soft) to cue the ramener.

From the ground, a downward touch is to lower the head.

All the above are assisted with appropriate leg/weight/seat aids, or from the ground with accompanying vocal or body language cues. I think, with a skilled person, the list of potential variations of cordeo positioning and combinations with other aids is endless!

Now, I am OF COURSE not totally perfect at my consistency with all these, so Cisco (and definitely not Tam) is not perfectly consistent in his responses, but we're getting a teeny bit better each time.

But if you have already well established leg/seat/weight aids, then for riding it is just a matter of teaching the horse gradually to understand the language of the cordeo, and how the cordeo is used in conjunction with the various movements.

For turning, in essence I think you are teaching a dressage horse to neck rein like a cowpony...but it works!

If your horse will respond to body cues alone without anything on his head or neck, then you could, if you like, hold the cordeo with two hands as if you had two reins in your hands, but this is much harder to teach from the ground prior to mounted work unless you can easily reach over the horse's back as you are working in hand. Since I mostly work with only one hand on the cordeo on the ground, it made more sense for me to develop ridden cues with only one hand as well.

Oh...and stopping is a matter of trust in the extreme. I would work on this often, with many, many, many rewards. It also goes without saying that all work in the cordeo should be done at or below the horse's level of comfort where he can maintain his balance, composure and his connection with you. If you go beyond the composure level, he/she may push through the cordeo and you have to then go back to basics and re-establish the trust of the halt.


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PostPosted: Wed Mar 12, 2008 4:13 pm 

Joined: Fri Feb 22, 2008 4:54 pm
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Thanks Karen, this really gives me much needed insight with the cordeo.....it is so unlike the hardwired behavior that I have been "drilled" to do. It is really different.

I was sort of thinking of trying this with Merlin,
Riding him with reins attached to his halter and the cordeo, then try to use more cordeo than rein aids but try to aid in the meaning of cordeo...so I could signal first with cordeo then show him a bit with my verbal and rein...of course seat/leg too.

I wonder how that would transfer???

Your explanation of cordeo signals is excellent.
Thanks so much.

I agree, halt would be a highly rewardable behavior :lol:
I have taught the mustang to halt as a default for something starting to come off his back.... :lol:
( like me :oops: )
THANKS
Carrie

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PostPosted: Wed Mar 12, 2008 4:30 pm 
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It's a wonderful and enlightening exercise in patience, imagination and controlling one's own emotions to go through the process of teaching the cordeo cues without any back up or transitioning, but ONLY if you feel (and actually ARE) safe getting on your horse with nothing on his head.

IF, and only if you feel safe doing this, it's an amazing feeling to sit on a horse and know that you have no real control...only that which the horse grants you.

Yes, of course you can transition over using reins, but even in you have reins and a halter on the horse, see what you can do without picking them up.

Also, try not to overdo the touch with the cordeo. I mean, just as you don't want to balance on your reins, be careful not to balance on the cordeo either.

But without reins to guide the horses head, it becomes a journey in itself just figuring out how to convince a horse to bend in a turn. It starts on the ground, of course, but sometimes horses that bend well without a rider, don't bend so well as soon as someone is on them.


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PostPosted: Wed Mar 12, 2008 4:45 pm 
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Karen wrote:
Also, try not to overdo the touch with the cordeo. I mean, just as you don't want to balance on your reins, be careful not to balance on the cordeo either.


Indeed, much of the bending and turning actually happens without the cordeo. On the ground you ask your horse to 'curl around you' with your bodylanguage or by asking him to step further under with his inner hindleg or away from a finger that's pointing to his belly, and not that much with the cordeo itself. From the saddle, your main cue to bend the horse will be your legs. And it will probably take some time before both the horse and the rider are really used to that subtle seat-communication! :wink:


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PostPosted: Wed Mar 12, 2008 4:46 pm 

Joined: Fri Feb 22, 2008 4:54 pm
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I have "ridden" him without anything, just bareback, and I trust him in a paddock or arena, but he just does what he feels like, which I am on him just for fun so it doesn't matter where he goes. :lol:

I thought that I would go through the learning process with Merlin before attempting half hazard signals with my youngster. The baby( yeah, he is 15 hh and growing) will have years of ground work, so I am in no hurry. I am just trying to get myself together with the cordeo.

With Merlin, as long as cookies are involved he'll go along with anything :lol:

When I would compete, I would joke about having someone at the edges of the ring with carrots.
Or, dangling a carrot from the whip in front of him to get him going :lol: I am sure the judges would have loved that :shock:

Carrie

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Force no matter how well disguised begets resistance.

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PostPosted: Wed Mar 12, 2008 5:50 pm 
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Miriam wrote:
Karen wrote:
Also, try not to overdo the touch with the cordeo. I mean, just as you don't want to balance on your reins, be careful not to balance on the cordeo either.


Indeed, much of the bending and turning actually happens without the cordeo. On the ground you ask your horse to 'curl around you' with your bodylanguage or by asking him to step further under with his inner hindleg or away from a finger that's pointing to his belly, and not that much with the cordeo itself. From the saddle, your main cue to bend the horse will be your legs. And it will probably take some time before both the horse and the rider are really used to that subtle seat-communication! :wink:


Which, of course, makes the idea of cordeo work from the ground, adding the cordeo as the cue to whatever ground cues one uses, as a very interesting idea being explored by so many here.

It could serve, I think, to increase the feelings of control/cooperation later when mounted work commences.

Not that I don't join enthusiastically :D :D :D :wink: with everyone else as we watch the adventures of Karen and Tamarack from that first wonderful event on video of Karen riding Tamarack for the first time.

Donald Redux

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So say Don, Altea, and Bonnie the Wonder Filly.


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PostPosted: Wed Mar 12, 2008 5:52 pm 
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I spend a lot of time on teaching him to halt on a voice cue, now that he does that, I try to ride in cordeo only and that helps me a lot, I tend to try and control him to much and with the cordeo I cannot do this. I practice the cordeo signs on the ground and then just try them while being on Beau. I just want him to know the stop cue very well and then we just try :)

I had some problems with the idea of not being in control but now I see that it's what I need...


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PostPosted: Wed Mar 12, 2008 6:11 pm 
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Barbara wrote:
I spend a lot of time on teaching him to halt on a voice cue, now that he does that, I try to ride in cordeo only and that helps me a lot, I tend to try and control him to much and with the cordeo I cannot do this. I practice the cordeo signs on the ground and then just try them while being on Beau. I just want him to know the stop cue very well and then we just try :)

I had some problems with the idea of not being in control but now I see that it's what I need...


I can imagine, if I were to have a horse of my own and kept him or her nearby my home (I'm thinking even now of how to open up my 1.5 acre woodlot to a park like setting -- and my wife HAS figured out what I'm up to :wink: ) I would be hard pressed at my age to try what you are doing.

When I was young nothing worried me, as I knew I could handle it, and bounce pretty well even if I fell.

Now? Hmmmm...I think I'd go for safety and hope I never had to use it. In fact, I may just practice a bit with Dakota. Make a Cordeo and use it even though I'll have my hackamore on and resting.

You inspire me, Barbara.

But then, so does everyone at AND.

Donald

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Love is Trust, trust is All
~~~~~~~~~
So say Don, Altea, and Bonnie the Wonder Filly.


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