Knowing Your Horse: A Guide to Equine Learning, Training and Behaviour

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I guess the farrier saying 'you did not tell me he was still wild' sort of said it all although I hasten to add he did not actually say that to me Morse was on his best behaviour and generally interested in all that was going on and was watching everything quite happily over his stable door.

Session Plan for: Knowing your Horse - British Horse Society

I ride an imaginary horse any time that I’m traveling. If I’m in the car, or on a plane, I spend a great deal of time riding an imaginary horse through various scenarios. When I do that, I’m preparing myself mentally for the next time I’m in the saddle and that scenario occurs. That kind of mental preparation—and immersing your brain in “horse”—is key to building confidence. Don’t be afraid to recognise they’ve had enough and give them a break. They will appreciate that you have respected them. A brightly coloured object that your horse is not afraid of; a glove, tennis ball, small cone anything you can easily hold in one hand.However, I am obviously now lifting his feet everyday and he is much happier, and I can lift and clean, albeit not taking too long so yes we are getting there. The farrier cast a glance over his feet, but I think he was a bit relieved to be honest that I was not expecting him to mess around with them Watch for when they scratch. Do they always scratch a particular spot. Either on the wall, with other horses or themselves. Be aware that excessive scratching can indicate discomfort. Once you’ve found a likely spot watch their face closely for a reaction. A happy horse looks loose, eyes partially closed, swaying, loose soft lip and relaxed ears. An unhappy horse looks tight or worried. If your horse appears unhappy move to a different area and continue the exercise giving them plenty of treats and positive affirmations.

Knowing Your Horse: A Guide to Equine Learning, Training and

Eat and relax together: in their herds horses spent all day together munching away. Take your breakfast, lunch or dinner with you and eat with your horse when they are either grazing or enjoying their feed. Nothing is nicer than a picnic with your pony on a sunny day. Understanding your horse takes time, and there’s no substitute for that. But just putting in the time is not necessarily enough. People can spend years and years with their horses and never improve their abilities or confidence at all. It’s how we spend that time, rather than how much time we spend, that makes the difference. Here’s a pop quiz. Let’s say you’re riding along the trail on your horse, and a deer startles in the brush ahead of you. What is your horse feeling in that moment, and how is he reacting? Imagine if you could predict how he might respond in that situation, and in that split-second between the startle of the deer and his reaction, your mind, your body, and your cues are already moving one step ahead of him. If you could do that, wouldn’t you feel confident? When you always know what’s about to happen next, and how you’ll respond to it, you can feel self-assured in any situation, whether you’re holding the lead rope or the reins. Developing a signature drill can help you regain control of your horse’s body and his mind when things don’t go according to plan. Spend Your Time Intentionally When they come in from the field which parts of them are dirtiest; that usually means they’ve spent extra time rubbing that spot in the mud!If you understand how your horse learns and why your training is effective, you can train faster, more ethically, and more sympathetically. Knowing Your Horse will be a key resource if you want to better understand your horse’s behaviour and make the most of that understanding to improve your training techniques.

Knowing Your Horse: A Guide to Equine Learning, Trainin…

Groundwork is an excellent way to bond with your horse and reassure them when facing new obstacles. The more time you give your horse to adjust and accept their surroundings the more comfortable and relaxed they will be. An important thing to remember about this type of mental training is that you should always practice with a successful outcome in mind. Do not practice anything with a failure outcome. Ride through the scenario in your brain and visualize a successful outcome. When you practice success, you can experience success. Learning how to control your emotions in the saddle can help you become the confident leader your horse needs you to be. Develop Your Signature Drill

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The key is in understanding their body language, which will help you make a connection with them and be able to read what they are feeling. Here are my favourite exercises that can help: