“We have to expect the horse to do what is “natural” and educate the horse to do what we want.” — Cindy Branham
It was interesting this morning on CBS they were highlighting an “opinion” from an expert who has studied mass murderers such as the Sandy school shooter. One of his comments made me think about humans and horses and how they correlate. He said, “playing extreme hours of violent video games does not influence a person to become violent, unless they already have strong tendencies towards being violent.” He talked how such violent stimuli can desensitise anyone to violence, but does not “make” someone become violent. As a mom of teens who love war video games, that helped me a little with my my tendency to NOT let them play them. But the truth is what is in our hearts and minds is what influences our actions and our ability to control our thoughts and actions when it comes to right and wrong. What we are taught helps us discern the behavior we are going to emulate.
As I work with so many different breeds and personalities of horses I have found that the same method of training may work for one horse, but not the other. I also find that people have a tendency when working with their horses, they don’t look to the heart and mind of the horse, but only the actions of the horse. Many times the horses actions are a direct influence of our behavior; and what we reward or release on.
If we approach a spooky/scared horse with slow holding our breath movements they will respond to our hesitation and mirror our actions. If we approach the horse with to fast or quick movement then the horse will mirror that. However, if we look at how the horse is behaving and how they respond to their fear we can approach the horse with an understanding that the horse will mirror what we want them to. Say what???? You say…..
It is so important to reward the behavior we want. That behavior is not just actions, it is what is going on in the horses mind to. When I am working to “desensitise” a horse I am wanting the horse to mentally and physically accept the stimuli that they are unsure of. So that means I keep the pressure on the horse, whether a plastic bag or even me, whatever is making the horse unsure/afraid until the horse relaxes something. At first it might just be the horses feet stay still instead of moving, as I continue working this method eventually I am not just releasing the horse when the feet are still but when the horses head drops down and the eye softens and relaxes. I never keep accelerating the pressure if the horse is getting more scared. The idea is to keep steady pressure that causes the horse to be aware and yet doesn’t overwhelm the horse. Then I look for a part of the horse to relax and take the stimuli away. This will influence the horse’s calming idea of thought and desensitise his “fear reaction” to the stimuli. I do not try to erase the horses instinct. I create a mirror of relax and quiet and re-program the horses instinct reflecting the behavior I want.
When working with a horse that is rather quiet and not afraid of stimuli, then this lesson will not take very long and is quite easy. However, a horse that is prone to being more spooky/fearful and in tune to his flight instinct, then this can be a longer process that needs to be addressed with anything that spooks the horse. If the person just tries to “desensitise” without focusing on the horses mind set, then you can get the horse to not move his feet, but continue to be afraid and create a more spooky horse. I find that people try to either overstimulate fearful horses or run the fear out of them. With the horse that is easily overstimulated this creates more anxiety and worse flight reactions.
So, if you have a fearful horse be sure to create a mirror that gives you the reflection you want. This will lead to a more confident and quiet horse that can be a wonderful partner. Every horse wants to have a quiet spirit, we just have to help them to find it when working with us.
Take for instance a scared wild mustang compared to a domesticated spooky hot horse. Both horses have the same instincts of flight yet one is fearful because it knows it could get eaten by humans; the other has had its instincts polluted and is afraid of humans or stimuli but doesn’t know why. The first horse is much easier to reflect the behavior we want; the second is harder, but can be taught to reflect the calm and quiet horse we all long for. It is all a matter of the heart. Theirs and ours.
Psalm 51:10 10 Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Check out this video of the Hutchison Correctional Wild Mustang Demo that Tucker the Mustang and I were able to participate in at Equifest of Kansas. These wild horses are a great example of a “renewed and steadfast heart” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1jhcRQzBCSE
Cindy Branham and her mustangs sponsored by:
Tucker Trail Saddles www.tuckersaddles.com
Cavallo Horse and Rider Inc. www.cavallo-inc.com
