Helping the Horse: Equine Training Tips

 Empathy + Horses 🚫= Weakness

There is constant human imposition upon each other and horses... 

Unrealistic ego-based demands without having accountability as to how a person's clarity of thoughts and intention, quality of communication, adaptability in energy, accuracy of timing, and everyday mindless interactions, are constantly "teaching" horses unwanted responses that people then criticize and chastise the equine for.

Common complaints:

The horse is "still" responding in an x, y, z unwanted manner.

The horse is getting more amped up and anticipative sooner in the ride.

Things the horse used to do "fine", he now resists.

Every time he passes x spot on the property, he always_______.

Instead of criticizing the unwanted horse behavior...

What if we had empathy to  recognize that the horse's dramatic, resistant, or unwanted responses were reflecting his mental and emotional state? 

Or that we learn to acknowledge that our past "training" had not giving him the skills to think through, or physically work through whatever was being asked of him.

The behaviors reflect the need to slow down to assess and address all of the equine's initial (honest) indicators displaying his defensiveness towards our communication, which increases his anticipation, and then creates his physical tension and resistance.

Photo Credit: Cassandra Kendall