Sample Game

New!

The Pony Games Book Volume 2:
Games to build focus, muscle-memory, and stamina!

See it below!

Coming Soon! New Books and DVDs

  • PonyPros Migration and Play DVDs! Riding and ground skills instruction for pony-lovers.
  • Volumes 2 and 3 of Kali's 3 volume book of interviews with contemporary trainers including Ellen Offstad, Craig Stevens, Cheryl Glen, Ivy Schexnayder, Jan Norman, Beth Bliss, and others!
  • PonyPros magazine, podcast radio show, and YouTube tv series, "The Bareback Club!"

  • Sign up to be notified when these new items are released!

PonyPros DVDs

EQxpressionism for Kids and Kids at Heart

Grounded in Hunter/Jumpers, Classical Dressage, Trail Riding, Clicker Training, and Natural Horsemanship


PonyPros Intro to Synchrony

Get In-Synch with Your Pony!

Synchrony DVD Cover

by Kali Vanagas and Les Freeman

Featuring horses and ponies ages 3-8 and kids ages 8-12

Get in synch with your pony! Synchrony, one of the 3 elements of the PonyPros program, is about bringing you and your pony together in harmony. At the novice stage, synchrony primarily involves exercises that help the horse and human to read each other's body language. This language is used to develop dialogue and connection, which leads to greater suppleness, flexibility, and softness - the qualities of a relationship where horse and human are in synch.

This DVD features kids ages 8-12, and horses and ponies ages 3-8. The kids are all novice riders with minimal cantering experience. The exercises shown here are based in natural horsemanship, Classical Dressage, hunter/jumpers, trail riding, and clicker training. The goal of the dvd is to demonstrate exercises that help the horse to become balanced on all four feet, in every direction, so he can have a greater range of mental and emotional balance. The dvd is filmed at the end of a 3-month colt starting process with two 3 year old Welshes and their 8-10 year old owners. It also shows a 4 rescue horses and ponies, and a nice QH mare who has had about 8 months of training.

"Intro to Synchrony" features about 20 different groundwork exercises, plus seatwork on the longe, and beginnger rein aids under saddle. It has demonstrations of teaching general yielding to pressure, teaching the rein aids on the ground, and doing groundwork movements with an obstacle (like sidepassing a pole). It also shows a technique for getting on a pony's back for the first time, despooking with a tarp, and stretching exercises that are phenomenal for rehabilitation, or keeping a pony healthy and happy. The material demonstrated in "Intro to Synchrony" is what the PonyPros use for the first 1-3 months of the colt starting process (not including the work done on the trail, which is being made into a separate dvd called "Migration").

"Intro to Synchrony" is broken down into 5-minute "how to" videos where a student is shown working with a horse/pony and trainer, Kali Kiger, does a voice-over. After every couple "how to" videos, there is a 2-5 minute clip of Kali and her husband and training partner, Les Kiger, talking about what to focus on while you are doing the exercises and the theory behind them.

This is a "zero budget" dvd made at home by Kali and Les Kiger so please enjoy the information and try to look past the production flaws.

Here is footage of the two 3 year old Welshes 6 months after we filmed the dvd, so about 9 months training total -
Maddie and Peanut
Zoey and Wallie

Cast:
Kali Kiger, Les Kiger, and students

Title #287895
Format: DVD-R


PonyPros Books

The Pony Games Book Volume 2


Games to build focus, muscle-memory, and stamina!

Sample Game

By Kali and Les Kiger

Sample Game
Click the image to see a preview page

Click here to purchase The Pony Games Book online for $14.95

The Pony Games Book Volume II eliminates the instructor's need to nag by using the excitement of games to create an alert and engaged mental state in the rider. Most of the games can be played for 5-10 minutes without stopping, enabling riders to build muscle-memory and stamina. Included in the book are diagrams of nearly 40 patterns that can be used in addition to simple rail work. Most of the games are call-and-response style designed to deliberately distract students so they can learn to think and ride at the same time. The quick pace of the games helps horses and riders to stay focused while learning to manage spacing, pace, and steering.

Examples of Games from The Pony Games Book V2:

- D is for Dixie where students act out a word that starts with the first letter of their horse's name each time they pass in front of the leader
- Oh, Great Oracle where the Great Oracle asks students amusing questions that they answer while riding
- Alphabet Associations where students name things that start with each letter of the alphabet while riding on a pattern

The Pony Games Book provides detailed descriptions of how to play 27 different games. The Pony Games Book puts a whole new world of fun activities at your fingertips!

Paperback: 40 pages Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.5 x 0.1 inches Shipping Weight: 5.4 ounces


Equuality: Reflections on Life with Horses


A Book of Essays on Life, Horsemanship, and Empowerment

Equuality Cover

By Les Freeman

Life with horses is not easy, but neither is life without them... I enjoy blessing with hooves and manes, so I have chosen the path of the horseman.

Horses give us so much more than a ride. They give us a mental and emotional lift. In Equuality, I share my reflections on blessings I have received, lessons I have learned, and joys I have experienced while walking the path of the horseman.

Through humorous anecdotes, poignant insights, and touching stories, the essays in this volume remind us to look for and receive the gifts offered by our equine partners. When we undertake this process, we begin to experience horses with a depth of appreciation and gratitiude that makes each day a wonder.

Not only will our horsemanship blossom to new levels as we experience the lessons and blessings of our horses, we will also discover an amazing spirit within ourselves that fuels growth throughout our entire lives.

  • Click here to read a preview section or listen to a preview podcast!


    • EQxpressionists


    Conversations with Individuals Modeling Horsemanship as an Artistic Practice

    EQxpressionists Cover

    By Kali Vanagas


    Volume 1 - Interviews with Kim Sturgeon, Cheryl Glen, Ivy Schexnayder, Kim Gould-Wende, Karen Clouston, Joyce de Vos, Julia Thut, Les Freeman

    EQxpressionists is a book about playing with horses as artistic expression. Featuring interviews with seven progressive trainers from around the world, EQxpressionists questions what makes horses special to people, how we can create good relationships with our horses, and how we can develop a horsemanship practice that is fuel for life. Those interviewed share their experiences training horses for showing, trail riding, and demonstrations. From Classical Dressage to trick-training, the individuals featured are sure to inspire. EQxpressionists encourages readers to imagine their dream horses and digs at the question, "How should we work with our equines so that they can truly be the horses of our dreams?"


    The Pony Games Book


    Fun, creative, and educational games for kids and ponies!

    Sample Game

    By Kali and Les Kiger

    *If you have any trouble ordering or downloading, please let us know and we'll try to help! This is our first book so we're getting the kinks worked out :) Email

    Sample Game
    Click the image to see a preview page

    Click here to purchase The Pony Games Book online for $14.95

    Have fun while learning to ride! The Pony Games Book provides you with games to play to achieve specific horsemanship outcomes, without the monotony of rigorous instruction. Students who have fun while they are learning learn more! The games in the Pony Games Book integrate easily with existing training programs and are helpful to trainers, parents, 4-H leaders, and PonyClub instructors alike. Most of the games in The Pony Games Book can be played while riding or with the pony in-hand on the ground.

    Examples of Games from The Pony Games Book:

    - In the Manner of the Adverb where students act out different adverb/gait combinations like "trot brightly," "walk sneakily," "canter mysteriously"
    - Bumpity Bump Bump Bump where students try to name a body part on the horse before the game leader can finish saying "bumpity bump bump bump"
    - I'm Thinking of an Animal... where students get to ask questions about the secret animal whenever they successfully complete a small task

    PONY GAMES BOOK HIGHLIGHTS:
    - You don't have to be a horse person to be a game leader- trainers, parents, friends, and kids can facilitate games
    - Students' skills evolve naturally with the playing process- nagging not required!
    - Helps parents teach their kids without kids becoming defensive or feeling patronized
    - Each game includes tips for gauging the improvement of the horse's or rider's skills
    - Games for all personalities and po-nalities
    - Games are not discipline specific- Hunter/Jumpers, Western Pleasure riders, and Dressage riders alike can have fun with this book
    - Gives students a lesson plan to use on days when their trainer is unavailable
    - Helps home-studiers know what steps they need to take to achieve their horsemanship goals
    - Gives you games to play to reduce anxiety at shows
    - Great for groups or individual students
    - Keeps frustration low and fun high!
    The Pony Games Book provides detailed descriptions of how to play 23 different games. The Pony Games Book puts a whole new world of fun activities at your fingertips!

    Why are games good for teaching horseback riding?
    Games are an ideal way for you to teach horsemanship skills because they directly address the way kids and ponies learn. By using games instead of drills, you can turn boring, repetitive training sessions into fun, exciting (and EDUCATIONAL) play-days. Kids and ponies stay interested and focused, and learn new skills while having fun!

    Publication Date:
    Oct 31 2009
    ISBN/EAN13:
    1449571751 / 9781449571757
    Page Count:
    26
    Binding Type:
    US Trade Paper
    Trim Size:
    8" x 10"
    Language:
    English
    Color:
    Full Color
    Related Categories:
    Pets / Horses / Riding


*If you're looking for games to play without a horse, Kali just started a book for you too! Kali's new book will be a game book for children who don't have access to horses. The book will include games that help kids use their imagination to pretend to do horse sports, like pretend dressage, pretend barrel racing, pretend show jumping, etc. I will include judge's score cards, specific equestrian patterns, information on how far to set obstacles apart to make your course like a course real horses use, etc. So, if you're looking for a book that doesn't require horses, we'll have that soon too! Please click here to sign up to be notified when the pretend pony games book is available and to receive updates with free sample games.