February 2024 Newsletter
Feb 13, 2024February 2024 Newsletter
Our February Newsletter is full of good stuff! Remember that out 2024 Theme is "HABITS CREATE DESTINY"!
Create habits this year that will transform your relationship with your horse and change your life!
This month, our membership Book Club is discussing 2 books (one for January and one for February).
January's Book Club is Think Like a Horse by Grant Golliher!
February's Book Club is The 5 Love Languages by Gary Chapman!
If you want to be a part of the monthly Virtual Meetup to discuss this book, make sure to JOIN our membership! It's just $1 for the first month through February 14th.
Missed the deadline? No worries! You can still join our membership!
Join the Membership Now!
Announcements
Clinics
- Obstacles and Trail Clinic - January 27-28 (Trail Ride February 3) - Due to the heavy rains and poor arena conditions, this clinic has been canceled.
- Fundamentals of Horsemanship Clinic - March 2-3, 2024
- We'll be covering ground work and riding fundamentals that anyone from Beginners to Advanced riders will gain valuable insight and experience.
- Problem Solving Clinic - March 16-17, 2024
- This is a specialized clinic for anyone looking to solve specific problems their horse is having, such as rearing, bucking, biting, bolting, buddy sour issues, spookiness, pushiness, trailer loading issues, etc.
- Does your horse have an issue you can't see to get over? This clinic is for you!
Contact Stacy at 480-888-5030 for details on the upcoming clinics!
Membership Pricing
- We are still offering the $1 for the first month membership. After February 14th (Valentine's Day), prices will increase to $39/month, and the $1 First Month will go away. Get your "almost FREE" first month membership clicking the Link Below.
- $1 First Month
Member Highlight
We would like to showcase members of Reata Horsemanship here. If you're interested in telling us about yourself, please contact Stacy at 480-888-5030 to apply!
February Theme - Seek to Love
Book Club: The 5 Love Languages by Gary Chapman
Every month this year, we will be reading a specific book, chosen to go along with our monthly and yearly themes. In February, we're reading the book, The 5 Love Languages, which goes into detail about how people feel loved, and what you can do to help those you love really feel how you do about them.
The Book Club is one of the benefits of being a subscribing member to Reata Horsemanship. Want to participate in our Live Meetup to discuss the monthly book?
Just click the link below to Join for just $1 for this first month!
__________________________________________
Monthly Training Tip - Know What You Want Before You Ask It
Too often, I see people during my clinics and private lessons who are being unclear in their communication with their horse. This leads to the horse and rider/handler getting frustrated.
Usually, when I ask what they are doing, they can't answer the question. I then ask them to stop and consider first what they are asking of their horse.
Are they asking for a specific movement? Or for more speed? Less speed? More try? Less reaction and more responsiveness?
Whenever you create a cue to ask your horse to do something or be a certain way, be very clear about what you are asking. When you are clear about what you want, then you can be more clear in your communication to your horse, both is your "ask" and in your "release".
I'll give you one example that occurred to me this week. I was working with a client's horse who is very, very reactive. Any cue I give to move forward is met with hyper-reaction. In other words, he tries so hard to please that he's actually overreactive to my "ask". When I point with my lead arm during lungeing, he flinches and bolts forward.
So, my goal was to get him to respond less, which is very rare, but in his case, this is what he needed. I pointed to speed him to a trot and he jumped forward. Instead of lowering my lead hand, I left it up until he began to slow down slightly, at which point I lowered my hand.
After doing this 20-30 times, he started being responsive to my point and not reactive to it. In this case, I was actually using a sensitizing cue to help desensitize him to that cue.
Remember, for sensitizing exercises, know what you want, ask for it lightly first, build pressure at needed, and release on the slightest try.
__________________________________________
Membership Benefits
Remember that it is by surrounding yourself with people who share your vision to educate, inspire, and support you, and by creating good and effective habits, that you will reach your dreams in life. Consider joining our Reata Horsemanship Membership for just $1 through February 14! Benefits are countless, but here are a few...
- Access to all FB lives from the Reata Horsemanship Family private Facebook group
- Access to all Reata Horsemanship Courses, including 2-3 new ones coming this year!
- Access to all Reata Horsemanship Training Videos, including Live Training, Problem Solving, Trailer Loading, and much more!
- Access to our Private Community
- Monthly Book Club Virtual Meetup
- Private Podcast - all Meetup recordings will be available to our members
- PDF downloads (from New Courses and Training Videos)
- PDF downloads (from previous PDF content)
- Challenges: We'll be doing challenges in horsemanship and other good habits creation this year!
- 10-20% off Clinics, Lessons, and Merchandise
Click Below to join our membership for just $1 today!
Click to Join Membership
We are excited for an incredible year of 2024! No matter where you are at in life and horsemanship, join us as we focus on creating good habits that will serve you, your horse, and all those you come in contact with! Together, we can make a safer, more enjoyable world to live in!
-Luke
Before You Go!
1. Feel free to share this email or post with a friend to spread the message of good horsemanship and good life habits!
2. If you haven't already, please JOIN our private Facebook Group called Reata Horsemanship Family. It's FREE! You can connect with others seeking a better and safer partnership with their horse as well, and I offer a Live Q&A Wednesday there, where I answer your questions about horsemanship! Please spread the word about this group to your friends as well!
3. Join our Reata Horsemanship Membership! See above in the letter to learn the benefits. We are offering the membership for only $1 for the first month, and if you decide to continue, it's only $20/month thereafter. Cancel anytime it doesn't serve you.
You can also purchase the year membership for $197, or a Lifetime Membership for only $247! These very low prices will only apply through Valentine's Day, February 14, 2024. After that, the monthly member price is going up to $39 or $390 for the year! If you become a member before February 15, you will continue to pay the low pricing as long as you are a member.
Great to have you here, and looking forward to an amazing 2024!