The Meshing of Spirits

I was watching RFD-TV this afternoon for a few minutes and in watching a program with a so-called horse "behaviorist", it just really irked me that people will label themselves as something they clearly are not. The person was basically a horse trainer and not one word was spoken about the behavior of horses in training, our positions in a "herd of two" when we are interacting with an individual horse, etc. It was only about riding the horse, the cues to give, etc, and nothing about why you give the cues you do, what you are trying to accomplish, what the horses thought process might be to assimilate the cues and various other things. The worst part was that the rider had a negative history with this horse of having been bucked off before and was obviously nervous about riding him, (and with this previous history, the trainer didn't even have her wear a helmet to protect her head in case of negatives occurring), and is was also evident that this owner/rider did not have any kind of solid, correct foundation in riding at all. Without this correct, solid foundation, anything that is built at that point will be faulty, and when this trainer is no longer around after one or two lessons, this person will be just as lost as before, with the horse probably establishing their position as the leader again, or not knowing how to behave because the human in the equation doesn't know how to behave or what to do themselves.

With some negatives in the equation (such as that horse having bucked her off and now she's afraid) often the best thing to do is to go back to the ground level and try to establish, or regain, mutual trust and respect before you go back to riding. I often do see people who don't have a shred of that at the ground level, but then fully expect it will be there when they ride. When it's not, they usually blame the horse and get frustrated, mad, scared or all of these things combined, and the relationship with their horse sours. When that happens, how can anyone think their relationship with their horse will be anything but combative or negative? If people would just slow down and not be in such a hurry to ride, if they would just take the time to get to really know their horse, understand how their mind works, just hang-out with their horse without expectations, and also learn to be a true leader in the herd-of-two, there would be alot more happy horses and humans out there enjoying one another as the individuals that they are and with their herd hierarchy firmly established to everyone's satisfaction.

Following is something I wrote a while back regarding the interaction at the ground level first that delves a bit deeper into the psychology of interaction with our horses that will make the training for riding that much easier and positive for everyone involved:

Its interesting how often I hear the question "How does ground level interaction and training connect to riding training?" When around horses, I feel that we need to begin at the beginning. The beginning for me is establishing a mutually respectful and trusting relationship with my horse at the ground level. For me personally, it is also a meshing-of-our-spirits. Have you ever fallen asleep in your horse's feeder with them peacefully munching their hay around you? Have you ever been lying down with your horse in their corral with your head on their belly looking up at the stars? Have you ever sat quietly in the darkness of a summer evening and listened to the peacefulness of horses' munching their evening hay? Odd as it sounds, have you ever "hung-out" with your horse in the rain, or the snow, or the wind, when not another human is out because the weather has chased them inside, but you were out with your horse sharing the elements? If your answer is "yes" to any of these questions, then you have experienced a meshing-of-spirits. It's a peaceful togetherness, a total serenity of "just being" with your horse where there is no need for words or sounds other then our own breathing or the sound of the wind and the rain. All of this is beginning at the beginning. Like being your own little herd-of-two. It's a very deep trust and respect that is shared.
Sometimes the best thing you can do with any horse, but especially horses that have negative histories of abuse or neglect, is to not ask anything of them. Shift once again to the total serenity of "just being". Tincture of time will help heal the mental wounds, and by just being your horses friend and them knowing that you are there without expecting anything, it will go a long way toward continuing the development of the trust and friendship bond between you two. Sometimes when you get to a point where you feel you're at a standstill with your horse, maybe a horse that acts impossible to love, you're actually only encountering "speedbumps" to slow you down the littlest bit. Its also sometimes a reactive test by the horse of acting out and seeing if the negative experiences start all over again. Are you a human that can be trusted or are you like the evil-ones that they have met before? Its at these times that the patience of a saint must come into play and you love that horse for all you're worth Without putting myself in a position of jeopardy, I will show that horse that I can be trusted to not hurt them. Horses that have suffered at the hands of humans have their own unique rhythm of regaining trust. Its amazing how many horses will try so hard to be "friends" if given half-a-chance. By not "pushing" a horse and by applying tincture-of-time, many horses will not feel the need to be combative, evasive or reactive and they will relax and learn to enjoy the journey of interaction with you. Your horse will know that when they attempt something that is really scary, you are their safety net, ready to catch them if they fall. The need for hyper-sensitivity will become less-and-less, their comfort zone will get larger and larger and your horse will get their confidence from you, built on their trust that you won't let anything hurt them either mentally or physically. When trust is established, there is no need to desensitize the horse to all kinds of different objects or situations.
They will follow where you lead. Now your bond is strong and solid.