Showing posts with label Sam Harvey. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sam Harvey. Show all posts

Time and the illusion of multi-tasking

For people who are new to my teaching and training theories, there are many questions and frequently a great deal of pondering and brooding as folks start to question “the way they’ve always done things” with their horses.

An introspective assessment, rather than seeking “answers” by imitating others, frequently leads people to an uncomfortable stage, of not so “pretty” revelations about themselves, behaviors and patterns in their interaction with their horses.
Unfortunately in our western society we are often praised for how much we can multi-task, seemingly “accomplishing” more tasks in a very limited time.

It may appear that individuals are achieving multiple tasks, but when it comes down to quality, clarity and intention when completing those responsibilities, they often are lacking those traits. The difficulty arises when we take a highly sensitive animal like the horse who will “feed” off of our energy, and we head out to the barn carrying chaos, distraction and tension.

Since we no longer rely on horses for survival, most people want to ride or be with their horse and use the experience as an emotional outlet.  The problem is horses are highly emotional and sensitive creatures.  They also are mirrors to those around them, and reflect what people “bring” to the experience. If folks are rushed, distracted, and stressed from “life” and unintentionally carry “baggage” from the daily demands of job, family, life, etc. to our equine partners, it makes for a less than desirable experience for both participants.
So the next time you are THINKING about riding, stop for a moment.  Take 10 (I’m not kidding) deep breaths, mentally scanning your body for rigidity, distraction, or tightness.  With each breath, feel that you can let go of “reality” for an hour or two while you head out to the barn.  

It may sound a bit “touchy/feely” but horses are not machines sitting and waiting to “serve” their human’s purpose.  The horse within seconds of your arrival has assessed where your brain and emotions are.  If you aren’t present, neither will he be, leading to a less than quality experience. They can be fantastic partners, but only if offered fair and respectful communication. Why not spend quality time, rather than “dutiful” time with him?


And trust me, all those “urgent” problems will still be waiting for you when you’re done spending time with your horse. So, leave reality at the door, and literally give yourself permission to slow down and enjoy the ride!

Sam

Researching the “equine professional”

In the last week I received three different phone calls from potential clients around the country.  Although each had a varying equine experience, each had the same underlying root cause with their horse’s current dangerous, insecure, and dramatic behavior.  Each person had sent their horse to a “reputable” trainer; once their horse returned home they each were surprised to find their horse an emotional wreck and physically dangerous.  The owners are at a loss and are trying to do damage control and figure out how to cope with their now unrecognizable horses.

Gratitude


Today is a day of celebration here in the USA, and it is fitting that I have had an ongoing “theme” in my head that keeps becoming more apparent in everything I do.

In my lifestyle every time I check one thing off of the “to do” list, I always seem to add four more things.  There is never enough time nor enough hours in the day.

But I’ve come to accept that it is not selfish to make time for myself to mentally, emotionally and physically re-center; this of course affects everything that I do.  So after a 10 year gap, I have finally prioritized taking the time to restart practicing yoga.  For me it isn’t about physically contorting myself into what feels most unnatural and difficult positons.  It is about allowing me the opportunity to mentally, emotionally and physically learn to be “still” and to regroup.

One of the many things taught in yoga is gratitude.  This concept has been running through my head for a while over the last few weeks, but as I was mowing in the blazing heat today (my time-to-think) urgency came over me, that I should write a blog about it, so here it goes. 

This will be more of a rambling of thoughts to put out there into the universe.  Perhaps you’ll be able to relate to some of my thoughts, laugh at some or they may be something for you to consider in your own life and time spent with the horses.

I am grateful that during the past 20 years of working with horses I have learned to listen more and more to that little “voice” in my head that has steered me through many “forks in the road.”

I am grateful to all the horses that have taught me much more than I will ever teach them.

I am grateful to have “been there” in the last moments of a horse’s life, and to watch the moment they have accepted “letting go” and peacefully passed.

I am grateful of the moments when I have been overwhelmed and emotionally hurt, and having a horse walk up and gently rest his head near mine, breathing softly down my neck, as if he were attempting to comfort me in my moment of pain.

I am grateful for the opportunity to participate in the on-going journey in both horse and human lives.

I am grateful for all of the clients who have put their faith and trust in my words and teachings and have felt the benefit of it, not just within the partnership with their horse, but also the trickle down affects it has on the rest of their lives.

I am grateful for all the kids in pigtails on resistant ponies who I have watched grow, evolve and mature into quality human beings now leading fulfilling lives of their own.

I am grateful for the resistant, difficult and troubled horses that force me to be the best version of myself in order for me to be able to help them.

I am grateful for clients’ kind words that give me energy, reinvigorate and feed my desire to continue helping those who are truly committed to learning.

I am grateful that in all the ups and downs and inconsistencies in the horse world that I found enough resolve within myself to not “change” the quality of what I offered in lieu of making more money.

I am grateful to everyday be mentally present enough to slow down and watch a butterfly land on a flower or a mama deer teach her newborn fawn how to cross the big infield, as I sit on a horse learning how to just “stand and wait.”

I am grateful for the hours of sweat, labor and dirt that goes into running The Equestrian Center and am proud that when people and horses arrive, they immediately respond to the “stillness” and sanctuary the facility often provides.

I am grateful for all the quality horsemen who opened their ranches and shared their knowledge with someone who didn’t “come from their world”.  Their stories of the vanishing west, their innate understanding of the animals and their profound respect for nature still continues to have a daily impact on my life.

I am grateful to have witnessed “behind closed doors” the drugging, politics and abuse of the animals that during the initial years was the only way I knew about “doing horses.”  The opportunity to have to make a choice, go against the “grain,” stand on my own and make a moral and ethical choice at a major fork in the road were the first steps leading to the journey I continue, even to this today.

I am grateful for small local groups to nationally recognized organizations that have taken a risk by inviting me to share my “alternative” perspectives and teachings with their groups.

I am grateful for the varying folks from all walks of life who have allowed me the opportunity to share my world and spend a few weeks to a few months here on the farm.  Their initial goals of learning about horses tend to evolve into life lessons and seem to have lasting effects.

I am grateful to the challenges nature and her weather has served me over the years; from extreme down pours, freezing temperatures to scathing heat and 80 mph windstorms with severe damage; it is always humbling to remember just how little “we are” in the grand scheme of things. 

I am grateful for having to learn how to do things that don’t come naturally, running and fixing equipment, building and mending fence… Learning how to manage pastures, grow gardens and develop sustainable farm practices.

I am grateful for learning how to back the 42’ horse trailer for the times I’m in a jam and have to “squeeze in” to some inconceivable spot while traveling on the road.

I’m grateful for the always seemingly happy tow truck drivers who have repaired and assisted in 2am snowstorms all the while maintaining a smile on their face.

I’m grateful for the random folks who have arrived at the facility during their own personal growth journey and quickly realize the shared connection we have in living a proactive life.

I am grateful for all the times I’ve proved to myself I could do things I’d never imagined doing years before, and that years before choices I’d made had prepared me for the moment I was at.

I am grateful to have found a calm and inner peace that allows me perspective on anything that seems initially overwhelming, and as I’ve learned, a few minutes, a few hours or a few days later, it just doesn’t seem that bad anymore!

I am grateful for the hilarious antics I’ve witnessed the horses get in to over the years.  To watch initially shut-down, unavailable horses re-emerge as curious creatures is an amazing experience.  The brightness in their eyes, the lightness in their movements, it is breath taking.

I am grateful at the end of a long, hard day, to watch the wild animals and horses comfortably graze in the fields with not a care in the world. As I always say, a field just isn’t the same without a horse in it.

My list goes on and on… but I just thought it was appropriate to share on this day.

May you carry gratitude with you in all that you do…

Sam

Gratitude


Today is a day of celebration here in the USA, and it is fitting that I have had an ongoing “theme” in my head that keeps becoming more apparent in everything I do.

In my lifestyle every time I check one thing off of the “to do” list, I always seem to add four more things.  There is never enough time nor enough hours in the day.

But I’ve come to accept that it is not selfish to make time for myself to mentally, emotionally and physically re-center; this of course affects everything that I do.  So after a 10 year gap, I have finally prioritized taking the time to restart practicing yoga.  For me it isn’t about physically contorting myself into what feels most unnatural and difficult positons.  It is about allowing me the opportunity to mentally, emotionally and physically learn to be “still” and to regroup.

One of the many things taught in yoga is gratitude.  This concept has been running through my head for a while over the last few weeks, but as I was mowing in the blazing heat today (my time-to-think) urgency came over me, that I should write a blog about it, so here it goes. 

This will be more of a rambling of thoughts to put out there into the universe.  Perhaps you’ll be able to relate to some of my thoughts, laugh at some or they may be something for you to consider in your own life and time spent with the horses.

I am grateful that during the past 20 years of working with horses I have learned to listen more and more to that little “voice” in my head that has steered me through many “forks in the road.”

I am grateful to all the horses that have taught me much more than I will ever teach them.

I am grateful to have “been there” in the last moments of a horse’s life, and to watch the moment they have accepted “letting go” and peacefully passed.

I am grateful of the moments when I have been overwhelmed and emotionally hurt, and having a horse walk up and gently rest his head near mine, breathing softly down my neck, as if he were attempting to comfort me in my moment of pain.

I am grateful for the opportunity to participate in the on-going journey in both horse and human lives.

I am grateful for all of the clients who have put their faith and trust in my words and teachings and have felt the benefit of it, not just within the partnership with their horse, but also the trickle down affects it has on the rest of their lives.

I am grateful for all the kids in pigtails on resistant ponies who I have watched grow, evolve and mature into quality human beings now leading fulfilling lives of their own.

I am grateful for the resistant, difficult and troubled horses that force me to be the best version of myself in order for me to be able to help them.

I am grateful for clients’ kind words that give me energy, reinvigorate and feed my desire to continue helping those who are truly committed to learning.

I am grateful that in all the ups and downs and inconsistencies in the horse world that I found enough resolve within myself to not “change” the quality of what I offered in lieu of making more money.

I am grateful to everyday be mentally present enough to slow down and watch a butterfly land on a flower or a mama deer teach her newborn fawn how to cross the big infield, as I sit on a horse learning how to just “stand and wait.”

I am grateful for the hours of sweat, labor and dirt that goes into running The Equestrian Center and am proud that when people and horses arrive, they immediately respond to the “stillness” and sanctuary the facility often provides.

I am grateful for all the quality horsemen who opened their ranches and shared their knowledge with someone who didn’t “come from their world”.  Their stories of the vanishing west, their innate understanding of the animals and their profound respect for nature still continues to have a daily impact on my life.

I am grateful to have witnessed “behind closed doors” the drugging, politics and abuse of the animals that during the initial years was the only way I knew about “doing horses.”  The opportunity to have to make a choice, go against the “grain,” stand on my own and make a moral and ethical choice at a major fork in the road were the first steps leading to the journey I continue, even to this today.

I am grateful for small local groups to nationally recognized organizations that have taken a risk by inviting me to share my “alternative” perspectives and teachings with their groups.

I am grateful for the varying folks from all walks of life who have allowed me the opportunity to share my world and spend a few weeks to a few months here on the farm.  Their initial goals of learning about horses tend to evolve into life lessons and seem to have lasting effects.

I am grateful to the challenges nature and her weather has served me over the years; from extreme down pours, freezing temperatures to scathing heat and 80 mph windstorms with severe damage; it is always humbling to remember just how little “we are” in the grand scheme of things. 

I am grateful for having to learn how to do things that don’t come naturally, running and fixing equipment, building and mending fence… Learning how to manage pastures, grow gardens and develop sustainable farm practices.

I am grateful for learning how to back the 42’ horse trailer for the times I’m in a jam and have to “squeeze in” to some inconceivable spot while traveling on the road.

I’m grateful for the always seemingly happy tow truck drivers who have repaired and assisted in 2am snowstorms all the while maintaining a smile on their face.

I’m grateful for the random folks who have arrived at the facility during their own personal growth journey and quickly realize the shared connection we have in living a proactive life.

I am grateful for all the times I’ve proved to myself I could do things I’d never imagined doing years before, and that years before choices I’d made had prepared me for the moment I was at.

I am grateful to have found a calm and inner peace that allows me perspective on anything that seems initially overwhelming, and as I’ve learned, a few minutes, a few hours or a few days later, it just doesn’t seem that bad anymore!

I am grateful for the hilarious antics I’ve witnessed the horses get in to over the years.  To watch initially shut-down, unavailable horses re-emerge as curious creatures is an amazing experience.  The brightness in their eyes, the lightness in their movements, it is breath taking.

I am grateful at the end of a long, hard day, to watch the wild animals and horses comfortably graze in the fields with not a care in the world. As I always say, a field just isn’t the same without a horse in it.

My list goes on and on… but I just thought it was appropriate to share on this day.

May you carry gratitude with you in all that you do…

Sam

Behind the scenes… A trainer’s perspective on what is really entailed when a horse arrives for training.

When I get a call from an owner about a potential horse to participate in training, a lot runs through my mind during the conversation.  First I always try to really listen to what the owner is (or in many cases isn’t) saying.  Often by the time people find me, if the depth of my website ( learnhorses.com ) hasn’t scared them off, they’ve usually been to several mainstream trainers and have experienced a bit of “what they don’t want,” and now are realizing they have to become more picky about what they do want. Sadly (for the horse’s sake,) anyone can (and will) hang a sign out that says they are a horse trainer.  The horses are the ones who wind up “paying” the real price in the long run.  Often there is a set program or training style that is rigid and unforgiving to the horse that doesn’t comply.  The consequences and outcome for those horses tend to be fearful, insecure, and a reinforced distrust towards humans. At that point, the owner realizes the horse they sent to the “professional” has now come home with more issues than when they originally sent them.  And that is where trainers like me come into the picture. Even the term “horse trainer” makes me feel a bit uncomfortable and isn’t appropriate, though I still use it to help communicate what I do.  I think “horse helper” might be more accurate.  But back to the typical phone conversations of potential clients.  I am a realist, which often leads me to see a less than “pretty” picture when I start hearing the details of what someone tells me…  Let me explain. Common Conversations/My Interpretation: Owner comment (OC): “I’m not completely comfortable riding him.   He’s never done anything wrong so far, and he’d never buck or do anything bad, but he doesn’t seem relaxed.”  My Interpretation: He is a ticking bomb that is tolerating whatever has been asked of him and it is not a matter of “if” but rather when, he is going to explode if someone doesn’t help him. OC: “He was really easy to catch and start riding in the beginning of last season, but this year I’m having a much more difficult time with him.” My Interpretation: Whatever you “did” with the horse last year did not make him feel confident, this year therefor he is attempting to prevent that discomfort through being difficult to “catch” or resistant when you work with him. OC: “He’s very sweet and loves me, he is always rubbing on me, but he can get a bit strong when I ride.” My Interpretation: Starting from the ground the horse is defending himself by spatially dominating your personal space by physically rubbing on you. Hr continues with his taking over when you’re in the saddle, hence you feeling him heavy on the bit.  His “leaning on the bit” also means he has no concept of softening to pressure, and my guess is starting when you lead him with a lead rope he is heavy, disrespectful, and pushy because he’s never been told otherwise. OC: “He’s a bit fussy about saddling and mounting but after that he’s fine.” My Interpretation: Anticipation.  Defensiveness.  Usually, unless there are pain issues- which often there are- saddling and mounting “issues” are the symptom, not the issue.  The horse is anticipative about the upcoming experience and so his mental and emotional concern is reflected through his excessive physical movement.   Putting it into people terms, if you’re worried and stress do you sit still, relaxed or are physically agitated?  Same for the horse.  When he is confident, comfortable, and clear, he’ll stand quiet and relaxed. So you get the idea.  But I also know that most owners have limited experience and exposure whether with horses in general or their own animals.  So it is my job to have some honest conversations with the horse. For a person to hear what the horse is offering, they must be “clear” and available to honestly see what is going on.  If they are not a 110% present for their horse, a lot will be missed when interacting with him. Many people live in the grey area.  They frequently have difficulty making decisions and lack confidence in establishing boundaries in general, which is reflected in the interactions with their horse. So when working with a herd animal who is instinctively searching for support from a leader,, if you add an inexperienced/unconfident/unaware human to the “herd,” it isn’t long before that horse takes over.  Not motivated through dominance, but rather by survival instincts. The longer the relationship continues with the horse “taking” the human, rather than vice versa, the more uncomfortable the human will become as they ask more of their horse.  Eventually there will come a point where the person gets scared.  Then they finally ask for help. Being the leader to the horse has NOTHING to do with dominating or physically constraining him, though often that is how people interpret being a leader to a 1,000lb animal. In fact just as with other people, it all comes down to how we communicate with one another.  If someone were to just keep screaming at another person all the time, eventually their loudness gets “tuned out.”  The same goes with the horses.  People are overactive, “busy,” distracted, rough, and clumsy, etc. and eventually the horse just learns to tune them out. Fork in the road But what if we came back to the standard that if a horse can feel a fly land on him and twitch in response, how lightly, softly and clearly can we HUMANS communicate with the horse? And this is where owners arrive at the fork in the road.  Initially it may have appeared that “it” was about bringing your horse for training.  And yes often horses need more than what the amateur rider can offer education wise to their horse.  Even more important than that, it really is about PEOPLE “training,” and I don’t mean the traditional biomechanical lessons or the “do’s and don’ts” of horse management. What I’m referring to, and I wrote more about this in another post, The Mirror.  People often have to set aside their own emotions towards their horse, and get honest with themselves in order to get quality, long lasting changes in their relationship with their horse. I know, I know, there are plenty of folks who just want to hop on, get “away” from life, enjoy their horse and go home.  Which is fine.  IF you have a confident, experienced, and curious horse.  IF you don’t, you find out rather quickly that the “ride” isn’t JUST about you, but rather you and your horse.  And if you don’t start working with your horse and address HIS needs first, you’re going to get into trouble pretty fast.  But again, most folks don’t believe it’ll go wrong as fast, as big or as dramatic as it does, until the day it actually happens.   “All of a sudden,” is not really a statement I agree with.  My thoughts are that the root cause of the “all of a sudden” moment may have started six months, six weeks or six minutes ago.  And if the person did nothing to address the initial signs of a problem, the problem will just increase until an unwanted outcome occurs. I write this based on personal experience of working with hundreds of horses over the last three decades.  I write this out of a moral obligation that SOMEONE needs to educate horse folks because so many dramatic events for humans and horses, miscommunication, and emotional stress could/can be prevented. 

Difficulties with our horses...


I have to ability to review visitor “stats” on my blog entries.  In the last few years I’ve had over 2,000 hits on my “My horse won’t lead,” topic, and the most common search words folks have entered on the blog are “horse will not lead, resistant horse, stubborn horse, how to get a horse to move forward.”  Visitors have mostly been from Australia, New Zealand, the UK, Canada and the USA.

In the first “half” of my riding career, the horse’s brain, emotions or just plain considering the horse wasn’t ever mentioned.  What always amazes me is how much I was STILL able to physically “accomplish” with horses, even if I was completely unaware/ignorant of just how troubled my horse(s) were.  I was taught to focus on the “end results” not prioritizing quality relationships with my equine partners.   I often wonder how many dangerous scenarios could have been avoided if I’d been taught a different approach; in those days it was almost a bit of a “brag fest” about what you survived.

Fast forward to my current training theories and philosophies and the underlining concept of everything I teach is that the goal be to have a mentally available horse.  I sometimes feel a sense of guilt that a problem so many folks and horses struggle with worldwide, in my mind seems like such an obvious “case” of connecting the dots. 

Most horses with human handling experience typically offer what I call a “teenager” mentality in response towards people.   They offer a “Why should I?” attitude which to me is a defensive and resistant mind set.  But what if instead we were able to influence our horse to start with a “What would you like?” mind set so that as we presented tasks, “jobs,” etc. the horse had an interest in participating, rather than being tolerant and “prodded” through what we asked of them.

If you have a horse that from the moment you attempt to “catch” him (rather than having him approach and present himself in a respectful manner to be haltered,) shows resistance, such as running away, turning his hindquarters to you, hiding behind other horses/objects in the pasture, turns his head away from you as you attempt to halter, sticks his head straight up in the air if you try to halter, what do you think he will be like when you finally manage to lead him?  Basically you’ll feel that you are “towing” 1,000lbs of horse flesh.  Have you ever had a horse that either “drags” on the lead rope, rushes past you out the gate, hovers/crowds your personal space, follows you “fine” as long as you don’t ask him to speed up/slow down his energy or stop when he doesn’t expect it, etc.?

If you start with a horse that is resistant to being caught, resistant to being led/takes over when led, has no concept of following the pressure of the lead rope and respect towards your personal space, ask yourself, is this horse going to be the one who “stands quietly” while tied, groomed, tacked and mounted?  No.  And often people will tell me the horse has “bridling issues, saddling issues, problems when they attempt to mount, etc.” in my mind – if all possibilities of any pain issues have been ruled out- the horse's approach seems to be that the "best defensive is a good offense." 

If everything you’re doing is making the horse uncomfortable, and his behavior shows signs from the start that he is having a problem, unsure, lacking confidence and mentally unavailable, if you keep asking ‘more’ of him, what do you think he will do?  You are forcing him to act more resistant and increasingly dramatic in his response towards you every time you ask something else of him.  You are setting him up to fail.

If you continue to ignore his pleas for help (yes, that really is what his actions are saying when he is fidgeting, looking around at everything except where he is going/what he is doing, crowding you, etc.) and attempt to have a “relaxing trail ride,”  or successful “schooling session” and you’re starting with a horse that is in “survival mode.”  He is defensive about how uncomfortable you may (unintentionally) make him by what you might ask next.   How much quality will your ride have if you keep asking more and more and more until one day the horse can no longer reasonably “handle” what you’re presenting?

There are only so many ways a horse can ask for help.  Often “shut down” horses give the illusion that they are “fine” because they are physically dull and slow and classified as “stubborn.”  Other horses that wear their emotions on their sleeve and leave no question as to when they are having a problem are categorized as “crazy” or “bad” because they don’t “comply” with someone’s training style that are unable/unwilling to attempt to learn how to work with the horse.

Bear with me for a moment while I use the analogy of a wildfire.  Let’s say there is a severe drought.  There hasn’t been rain for a long, long time.  You are walking through a field of dry grass that has no moisture due to months of no rain.  For some reason you see a spark in the grass.  A little red spark the size of a pea.  And as the wind gently blows, you realize that ember is growing into a larger red dot on the ground.   Knowing that you are standing in thousands of acres of dried grass, do you A.) Wait and see what is going to happen, B.) Attempt to “stomp out” the spark, but don’t check when you’re done stomping to see if it the ember is actually out, or C.) use a pile of dirt to cover and completely obliterate any signs of heat.  The last option requiring you to divert from your originally planned path you  had intended on taking.

With horses, all too often when there is the initial spark of a problem, people are often “hopeful” (whether due to lack of understanding, lack of “effective tools to communicate” or are oblivious) and respond with option A of the wildfire scenario.  Then, they act completely surprised when the “fire” erupts from their horse.

Others who may recognize the behavior but perhaps are not able/willing to follow through until they get a mental and emotional change in their horse, so they go through the motions of “correcting” the horse (option B of the wildfire example) but never check to see if they are influencing a QUALITY change in their horse, or if they are perhaps just temporarily delaying the unwanted behavior by addressing the symptoms and not the root cause.

But what if we all approached our “horse sessions” being open minded.  Even if we had a specific intention when we went out to work with our horse, what if we were present enough to HEAR, SEE and RESPECT what our horse was trying to tell us.  What if we had the capacity to forget about our original goal for the session and do what was best for our horse?  How many times of showing the horse that you were available to address, clearly communicate and then help him through his worries, fears, defensive, insecurity and other issues do you think it would take before he started to trust you?  Before he started to realize that if he tried to do what you asked, he, the horse, would feel better afterward?  How long would it be before your horse would start to take an interest in what you were presenting rather than always being defensive towards it?  How long would it be before he displayed a curiosity about “life” and your time together that would make the sessions really rewarding for both of you? How soon before your horse would offer more effort and "try" without you having to ask as much or get into an "argument?"

So the list below all share one thing in common- the root cause is a mentally unavailable horse, which makes him unable to “hear” what you are communicating, unclear of your intention, defensive towards your aids, resistant to “changing” what he thought was being asked of him and usually leading to physically dramatic and dangerous scenarios in the long run.

My horse won’t be caught

My horse won’t lead

My horse won’t stand still

My horse only has one speed

My horse is heavy on the bit

My horse is herd bound

My horse won’t cross water/pass the tarp/walk on the bridge/etc.

My horse won’t load into a trailer

My horse has to walk in the ____________ of a group on a trail ride

My horse always has to ______________

My horse bucks when I ____________

My horse doesn’t like to leave ____________

My horse is spooky all the time

My horse has to be worked (“lunged”) for 20 minutes before I ride

My horse is good after the first ________ min/miles when I ride out

You can only use this “method” to get a response from my horse

You get the idea.  It is all connected like the string on the grain bag.  You start pulling at one end and the whole thing quickly unravels.  Yet somehow people are hopeful when working with their horses.  They don’t believe how big and fast things can go wrong.  I can’t tell you how many folks have voiced their shock when their scared horse went straight down the cliff, or when their “baby” turned around and bit them in the shoulder/chest/etc., or when their "stubborn" horse who never liked to go forward “suddenly” had a bucking/bolting fit.

Was the moment the horse started acting in a way that could no longer be ignored the true cause of the unwanted behavior?  Not at all.  The resistance may have started last week, last month or last year.  The point is not “if” but “when” the consequences from not addressing our horse’s brains will appear. And yet people are hopeful that “it” will solve itself on its own.  A horse only has so many ways of telling you he is having a problem, and whether you think it is appropriate or not, you MUST believe what he is telling you.

You really do have the ability to influence a long term, quality change in your horse.  But people have a hard time getting out of their own way-  it is on YOU to realize “people problems” forced upon the horse are only adding fuel to fire.  Things such as:

Not having enough time and rushing how, what and why you are asking your horse to do something

Being distracted by work/family/stress/others at the barn leaving you not mentally present when working with your horse

Having unrealistic and inappropriate goals for both you and the horse

Getting distracted by the end goal that you are unable to see what is happening in front of you

Focusing on quantity rather than quality

Challenging the horse to “get it right” rather than helping him be successful

So the next time you experience a bit of resistance from a horse, perhaps re-evaluate how you’re interpreting what you think your horse is doing.  Remember, his physical behavior is a reflection of his mental and emotional state.  If you could change how he feels on the inside bout what you’re presenting, what sort of physical change might follow and imagine what you might be able to accomplish with quality in the long run!

 Sam

Samantha Harvey & Rick Lamb Interview

This is an interview about Sam's equine background and how she got to where she is at today!