Your Whistles are Your Reins

I grew up riding horses.  Not formal lessons in fabulous horse riding, nor horse understanding for that matter.  My Dad's theory on lessons: "Put away a wet saddle blanket every time you ride."  In other words, ride long and life lessons will teach you.  Of course, he could not help but throw in some "sit up" and "heals down" but the rest of the whole experience was left to us, his daughters, to figure out.  So now some, gulp, 35 years later, I am fascinated with Buck Brannaman and the Parelli's.

As I mentioned in my last post, when I had the opportunity to pick the brain of a horse man, questions spilled out of me like water from the rain barrel during a February downpour.  I'm trying to understand; if you are walking a horse you have the lead in your hand and your body and voice. If you are on the horse, you still have your voice, but now the horse can feel your body and legs and you have the reins. So how can dog training be anything like riding a horse?  I certainly see close at hand work being a bit similar but how about way out there in the hills of the dessert of Idaho at say, Oh....Big Willow? 

"Your whistles are your reins" ~ Don Helsley

Much of my whole time with Don could be summed up in that one sentence.  Not blatantly but surely with all my thinking and sorting post lesson, the subtlety started rising to the top.

Yesterday, I received a newsletter from the Parelli method and the article was called "Horse Training Tips - How To Ride Like a Leader"  The article is a discussion on REINS!!  Really!  Reins...who knew.  I mean I knew that everything I feel is transmitted through the reins but this article is so articulate in explaining all the nuances of the horse and the relationship of the rein.  The one quote that stuck out to me was this:

IF YOU CAN’T RIDE ON A LOOSE REIN, YOU SHOULDN’T BE RIDING ~ Linda Parelli

So how does this apply to working sheepdogs, which are predators but still need a leader.....for me, and only me....I have been riding with tight reins.  Not only tight reins but super tight reins, one in each hand and my go to is to pull straight back whenever I get a bit afraid.  As the article explains, that is the normal reaction when using a rein in each hand.  Now in an effort to preserve every reader's sanity, I will not go into the great details of over-thinking that I am enjoying as I sort through my journey with my dogs and the enitre discussion with Don mixed together with all that Linda Parelli's article discusses......but most certainly I am getting, loud and clear, that subtlety, nuance, clarity, and consistency are the key to developing a relationship with any animal.  Here is what I am learning:

A tight rein will not have the desired effect if a loose rein is not the norm. ~ Me

Seize the Day!