The Piaffe like many horse/animal behaviors is a movement/motion behavior. If a still photo captures it and it meets a description/standard, you are the best which is why a standard is so important. If every animal meets that standard exactly, then you can move one to who has the best chest, the cutest butt, is the friendliest, or has the the best costume/presentation. But if you chose any of the above without the standard, you destroy the meaning of the piaffe.
Study the 3 "piaffe" photos and decide which one exhibits "the bringing of the hocks under the body and the lowering of the croup, together with the raising of the forehand, which lightens the shoulders and allows for the slowing down of movement, more and more without the loss of impulsion."
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Philippe Karl doing Piaffe
Eland--An unusual "exotic"
I am assuming they can't do much, irregardless of how good of a trainer you are. Some would make the ill informed statement that, "we are educating the public." If jumping an ugly hurdle which takes two people to hold is the extent of its capabilities, we would be more "educated" looking at it at a proper zoo with some well written graphics.
As long as Buckles has brought up "argumentative," I'm going to rattle the saber here a bit.
We have looked at pictures old and new, so we should have an idea of a cross section of the Circus around the world. I suggest the greatest harm done to the Circus has been done by itself, with a history of inconsistency, anything will do, and he/she's a trouper. The profession has ran from lumps of coal to the Hope Diamond. This act was arguably the greatest of it's kind ever seen. Pure magnificence, greatness, and talent with stunning animals, and with out an ounce of "cute and charming" and poor animals as seen in the next post. The demise of the act, is one of the saddest stories in the annuals of Circus history, and one of many not spoken about when we are publishing "glitter picture history books." Ursula herself when she retired, was almost penniless. How can that be? The pie was cut in a number of pieces and she got the smallest piece, for the greatest input. That's the way it works with no standard, no union, and no regulation. When creating a piece of art, a winning sports team, or a record breaking concert, what is the most valuable component? The sponsor/owner/producer? The artist/athlete/musician? Or the gallery/ball field/coliseum? "It's mine and I can do what I want" is an accurate self statement. You should be able to hurt/damage only yourself also. The problem is that kind of thinking damages a whole industry. If you produce a product, or provide a service with that arrogance, the public quits buying. A few will still purchase an inferior product, but most won't. They will find something better for their money.
Frederic Elelstein
This young man has been blessed to have the counsel of two of the best in Wolfgang Holzmair and Dicky Chipperfield, as Alex Lacey was blessed with Gerd Semonit, as I was blessed with Charly Baumann and Gunther Gebel William.
Thank you Buckles Woodcock
I would like to thank Buckles Blog for adding CircusNoSpin to their favorite links with the following words of encouragement:
Buckles said...
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Father of the modern day "horse whisper"
I am assuming about the mid 90's somebody came upon this picture, and thought, eureka!!!! If I tape 6 cents worth of rag on a 10 dollar fiberglass shifting pole and call it a flag, I should be able to peddle it for $100.00 at Equine expos. If I offer it in 12 different florescent colors, I should easily be able to get $150.00, with the matching "be kind" halter. Thus was born an industry.
Roll back not a waltz
This maneuver, which is not used much in a liberty act, is sometimes mistakenly called a waltz if they come completely around or a reverse it they continue in the opposite direction. It is a roll back, where they are blocked and chased in the opposite direction. A good training tool for saddle horses in a round pen to teach them to rock back on their hock and to reverse and move on the proper lead. Disadvantageous in liberty training because you are teaching the animal to go away from you instead of coming into you, and the horse will often use it to escape or "go away" instead of always coming to you, or into you. Sometimes it is inadvertently trained because it is easier to chase an animal away from you, then to bring it to you. One of the first, most basic things a liberty horse is taught it to go ahead. If you are scared or confuse "come into me" we can work it out. Never go away.
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I will do that very thing when I see Shannon tomorrow.
After all argumentative people should be entitled to an opinion.