Alternative Horsemanship™ Horse behavior help, equine communication, groundwork and rider mindset. Understand the horse and develop quality horse skills to address sources vs symptoms of unwanted equine behavior.
For those following Cinder's Journey... or those curious about what "it" could look like, when we start by considering the once defensive, fearful, reactive, abused horse... You can subscribe to the Alternative Horsemanship YouTube Channel for weekly videos and teachings. #alternativehorsemanship#remotehorsecoach#horses#horsemanship#rescuehorse
Dear Sam: Horse Help Horsemanship Series
*Chaos, Horses & Help
Alternative Horsemanship with Samantha Harvey the Remote Horse Coach shares about recognizing the horse's chaos and common approaches used that often make things worse for the overwhelmed equine and add to the human's insecurity.
In this brief glimpse into a session, Alternative Horsemanship with Samantha Harvey shares her perspective on ponying the young horse and breaks down the communication happening between the horse and rider.
Meet Moose I did a lesson recently with Nora and Moose and thought it would be good to share. Much of what comes up in his "coping mechanisms" is very common with horses that are bigger in size.
Dear Sam: Horse Help Horsemanship Series
*The Resistant Horse
Alternative Horsemanship with Samantha Harvey the Remote Horse Coach shares her perspective on what creates the resistant horses and contributors to "all of a sudden" behaviors.
Subscribe to the Alternative Horsemanship YouTube channel or search #alternativehorsemanship#remotehorsecoach#dearsamhorseseries for all videos.
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This is Cinder a two-year-old horse that was rescued from a life of abuse. When she arrived she was fearful and defensive, wanted nothing to do with humans, and would try and climb over anything to get away from the human.
The journey of reawakening her Curiosity, which will replace her fear, allows her to physically offer reasonable behavior.
It is not one that you can make happen. It is about creating 2-way Communication, believing the horse's feet back, addressing their concern, and then allowing them the time to mentally process their new human experiences.
This isn't about getting a halter on a horse, it is about setting the horse up for success for the rest of her life in the human world.
Far too many people are rushing trying to accomplish a goal, rather than seeking the quality. Certainly, in the case of horses who have a history of abuse, there is nothing you will sneak past them. So the mental shift we need them to make must be 100%, otherwise, their old survival and behaviors re-emerge if humans attempt to contain them or make them comply, which will trigger the dangerous behavior.
This is a two-year-old Andalusian who I just started working with recently. He reflects so many horses that I meet that are often deemed "bad, aggressive, stubborn, resistant," and all these other human-based emotional judgments, which have nothing to do with what the horse is experiencing or why his behavior is as it is.
This is a great visual example of the "strings" I often talk about throughout the horse's body. The trickle-down effect of how one body part influences another, even if literally at the other end of the horse's body.
What if we allowed the horse and ourselves the Opportunities of creating Quality Conversations without society-based "have tos..." What might the interaction look like then?
Observing the Horse: Starting with the fearful and abused horse... by Alternative Horsemanship the Remote Horse Coach
She's 2 years old and came out of a very bad situation. She's had about 6 months off to just be a horse and gain weight. Her current owner has been unsuccessful in perking the mare's curiosity to participate to any degree with the human.
I see far too many scenarios where a horse already is fearful and reactive, and people are continuously adding pressure in a manner that is challenging to the horse.
These are the type of horses who will climb the fence and are seemingly unable to literally see what is in front of them when extreme flight emotions are triggered. If I approach working with her in a "have to" or "make her" manner, there will be no success and I will reinforce what she's already experienced about the human.
The goal is not about getting her close to me but rather reawakening her curiosity which will replace her fear, which then diminishes the flee and instead she can offer thoughtful, reasonable behavior.
I will be filming much of our sessions together and creating a course on my Remote Horse Coach video catalog site for those interested in this aspect of horsemanship.
Considering the Horse: Movement
(Sound on)
The pinto is 25 and semi-retired. The roan is nearing 20 and had a history of physical trauma.
Different horses have different requirements and as they age the interaction needs to be adapted.
Replay the video a few times to practice "seeing"- balance using the head and neck, engagement of hindquarters, lifting in of spine, pressure, and absorption in fetlock area, etc.
The more you understand about the horse's movement, the better you can't recognize and decipher root causes vs symptoms of unwanted physical maneuvers.