Post by Calaminty Jane on Oct 5, 2012 19:08:33 GMT -5
I‘m often asked: “What should I do when my horse spooks on the trail?” I look the person in the eye and say, “Maybe the question should be reworded a little differently — What can I do to better prepare myself and my horse so he doesn’t spook on the trail?”
Most people get either annoyed or scared by their horse’s spooky behavior, especially when it is compounded by prancing and pulling. I’ve heard a number of theories about why horses behave like this, and most of them come from a lack of knowledge about the prey animal psyche. “He’s competitive, he likes to lead, he just loves to run, he’s just stupid,” are some of the explanations I hear. If we are truly going to help our horses, the first step is to understand the horse’s perspective.
THE PREY ANIMAL PERSPECTIVE
Horses are prey animals, and much of their focus is making sure they are not going to be eaten. They are highly perceptive and are always alert. The farther they get from home, the less secure they feel, and spooking on the trail is a great example of how a prey animal acts when he senses danger. His senses become incredibly heightened; he can hear, smell and see things that you are totally oblivious to. Relying on those senses is how horses have survived for thousands of years!
It’s interesting to note that dominant, sensitive horses are more likely to have trouble on the trail. They are accustomed to making the decisions for the herd — decisions primarily based on keeping the herd safe. Once under the control of their rider, they now find themselves in a position that doesn’t allow them to influence the herd. If they do not respect the rider as their alpha, they become emotionally upset and their behavior gets more and more uncontrollable. They may actually be trying to lead the herd to safety. If this isn’t possible, then the horse will try to get to the middle of the herd where it is safest.
However, this doesn’t mean it’s only alpha horses that have trouble on the trail — it can be any horse. But if a horse is sensitive, high-strung, fearful or dominant, there is a greater chance he or she will exhibit this insecure behavior.
WHAT WOULD HE DO IF YOU GOT OFF?
I’ve conducted experiments where I’ve had the rider dismount their spooking, prancing horse and turn him loose. The first thing the horse does is head out front and try to get the other horses to follow. When they don’t, he runs back and tries again. This usually happens a few times before the horse finally realizes that he’s not in charge. Then he’ll calm down, settle in behind the lead horse (or horses), drop his head and walk along quite relaxed — no more spooking or prancing! This tells you a lot about the prey animal and herd mentality. As long as they can depend on an alpha, they’ll settle right down.
Now, here’s the secret: You have to become his alpha. Then he’ll never feel alone and afraid on the trail. If you are calm, he’ll be calm.
Horses play dominance games with each other every single day to maintain their “pecking order.” This is something you need to do whenever you are with your horse. Horses vote every day for their leader. Every day! If your leadership is not firmly established before you go out on the trail, you will lose the vote very easily that day. You can’t force your horse to accept you as his alpha — you have to earn it. You earn it by playing the Seven Games.
PRIOR AND PROPER PREPARATION
How can you and your horse be better prepared before you go out on the trail?
Don’t go out the gate until your horse is “left brain.” That means he is thinking and calm.
Play the Seven Games until your horse is left brain and accepting your alpha position. Think of it as your pre-ride check, much like the pre-flight check pilots perform before they take the plane off the ground. You can use a lot of “spooky” simulation situations, teaching your horse to get braver through desensitization.
Then practice these simulations from his back. If he spooks, turn him to face the danger, allowing him to back up but not turn away. Practice approach and retreat. Smile, yawn and relax during the whole exercise. Then just carry on as though nothing happened. This may be something you start working on today, so that in a week or two you’ll have a different horse. You can’t just do this exercise once and think the problem is fixed! This is not a motorbike! Your horse is a living, thinking, breathing, emotional animal; the responsibility for his well-being is in your hands.
Make sure you can walk, trot and canter on a loose rein, and can easily bend your horse to a stop. If you or your horse is out of sorts that day and you can’t ride on a loose rein, don’t go out on the trail.
Perform an emotional assessment of yourself: No matter how scared your horse got, could you remain totally cool, calm and collected? Most people “spook” worse than their horse — suddenly grabbing with their legs and hands, and getting tighter and tighter. This not only makes your horse spook worse, he continues to spook because he now doubts your confidence and leadership.
It’s critical to put your safety first. Being safe will help build your confidence. So if you think you should get off your horse, GET OFF! If you try to stay on (no promises that you WILL stay on!) you will most likely become scared stiff and have a bad experience, which will definitely make you lose confidence. If you lose the connection with your horse in the middle of a trail ride, don’t be too embarrassed to get off.
If you DO get off, get your horse left-brained on the ground (Seven Games, especially sideways and backward). When playing the Seven Games in this situation, be provocative — bring up the energy in your horse until you can’t bother him. Use lots of obstacles when playing the Seven Games on the trail; don’t just play the Seven Games the same way you do at home. Don’t play them on the flat ground — play them over logs, around rocks, up and down hills, around trees. Don’t let your horse predict what you’re going to do — be unpredictable like the trail is unpredictable. Teach your horse to handle unpredictable things, and stay on the ground until you reach your goal. Then it will be safe to get back on.
Some people have said to me that they’re worried their friends will get impatient and mad if they had to take time on the ground to get their horse left-brained. My answer to that is: Ride with people who will support you in practicing good horsemanship and who are willing to assist you in being successful with your horse.
And last, but certainly not least, we recommend that you don’t trail ride until you’re past Level 1 and well into Level 2, depending upon how challenging or excitable your horse is.
Happy trails!
About Parelli
Pat Parelli, coiner of the term “natural horsemanship”, founded his program based on a foundation of love, language and leadership. Parelli Natural Horsemanship allows horse owners at all levels of experience to achieve success. Together with his wife Linda, Pat has spread PNH across the globe with campuses in the United States, United Kingdom and Australia.
Most people get either annoyed or scared by their horse’s spooky behavior, especially when it is compounded by prancing and pulling. I’ve heard a number of theories about why horses behave like this, and most of them come from a lack of knowledge about the prey animal psyche. “He’s competitive, he likes to lead, he just loves to run, he’s just stupid,” are some of the explanations I hear. If we are truly going to help our horses, the first step is to understand the horse’s perspective.
THE PREY ANIMAL PERSPECTIVE
Horses are prey animals, and much of their focus is making sure they are not going to be eaten. They are highly perceptive and are always alert. The farther they get from home, the less secure they feel, and spooking on the trail is a great example of how a prey animal acts when he senses danger. His senses become incredibly heightened; he can hear, smell and see things that you are totally oblivious to. Relying on those senses is how horses have survived for thousands of years!
It’s interesting to note that dominant, sensitive horses are more likely to have trouble on the trail. They are accustomed to making the decisions for the herd — decisions primarily based on keeping the herd safe. Once under the control of their rider, they now find themselves in a position that doesn’t allow them to influence the herd. If they do not respect the rider as their alpha, they become emotionally upset and their behavior gets more and more uncontrollable. They may actually be trying to lead the herd to safety. If this isn’t possible, then the horse will try to get to the middle of the herd where it is safest.
However, this doesn’t mean it’s only alpha horses that have trouble on the trail — it can be any horse. But if a horse is sensitive, high-strung, fearful or dominant, there is a greater chance he or she will exhibit this insecure behavior.
WHAT WOULD HE DO IF YOU GOT OFF?
I’ve conducted experiments where I’ve had the rider dismount their spooking, prancing horse and turn him loose. The first thing the horse does is head out front and try to get the other horses to follow. When they don’t, he runs back and tries again. This usually happens a few times before the horse finally realizes that he’s not in charge. Then he’ll calm down, settle in behind the lead horse (or horses), drop his head and walk along quite relaxed — no more spooking or prancing! This tells you a lot about the prey animal and herd mentality. As long as they can depend on an alpha, they’ll settle right down.
Now, here’s the secret: You have to become his alpha. Then he’ll never feel alone and afraid on the trail. If you are calm, he’ll be calm.
Horses play dominance games with each other every single day to maintain their “pecking order.” This is something you need to do whenever you are with your horse. Horses vote every day for their leader. Every day! If your leadership is not firmly established before you go out on the trail, you will lose the vote very easily that day. You can’t force your horse to accept you as his alpha — you have to earn it. You earn it by playing the Seven Games.
PRIOR AND PROPER PREPARATION
How can you and your horse be better prepared before you go out on the trail?
Don’t go out the gate until your horse is “left brain.” That means he is thinking and calm.
Play the Seven Games until your horse is left brain and accepting your alpha position. Think of it as your pre-ride check, much like the pre-flight check pilots perform before they take the plane off the ground. You can use a lot of “spooky” simulation situations, teaching your horse to get braver through desensitization.
Then practice these simulations from his back. If he spooks, turn him to face the danger, allowing him to back up but not turn away. Practice approach and retreat. Smile, yawn and relax during the whole exercise. Then just carry on as though nothing happened. This may be something you start working on today, so that in a week or two you’ll have a different horse. You can’t just do this exercise once and think the problem is fixed! This is not a motorbike! Your horse is a living, thinking, breathing, emotional animal; the responsibility for his well-being is in your hands.
Make sure you can walk, trot and canter on a loose rein, and can easily bend your horse to a stop. If you or your horse is out of sorts that day and you can’t ride on a loose rein, don’t go out on the trail.
Perform an emotional assessment of yourself: No matter how scared your horse got, could you remain totally cool, calm and collected? Most people “spook” worse than their horse — suddenly grabbing with their legs and hands, and getting tighter and tighter. This not only makes your horse spook worse, he continues to spook because he now doubts your confidence and leadership.
It’s critical to put your safety first. Being safe will help build your confidence. So if you think you should get off your horse, GET OFF! If you try to stay on (no promises that you WILL stay on!) you will most likely become scared stiff and have a bad experience, which will definitely make you lose confidence. If you lose the connection with your horse in the middle of a trail ride, don’t be too embarrassed to get off.
If you DO get off, get your horse left-brained on the ground (Seven Games, especially sideways and backward). When playing the Seven Games in this situation, be provocative — bring up the energy in your horse until you can’t bother him. Use lots of obstacles when playing the Seven Games on the trail; don’t just play the Seven Games the same way you do at home. Don’t play them on the flat ground — play them over logs, around rocks, up and down hills, around trees. Don’t let your horse predict what you’re going to do — be unpredictable like the trail is unpredictable. Teach your horse to handle unpredictable things, and stay on the ground until you reach your goal. Then it will be safe to get back on.
Some people have said to me that they’re worried their friends will get impatient and mad if they had to take time on the ground to get their horse left-brained. My answer to that is: Ride with people who will support you in practicing good horsemanship and who are willing to assist you in being successful with your horse.
And last, but certainly not least, we recommend that you don’t trail ride until you’re past Level 1 and well into Level 2, depending upon how challenging or excitable your horse is.
Happy trails!
About Parelli
Pat Parelli, coiner of the term “natural horsemanship”, founded his program based on a foundation of love, language and leadership. Parelli Natural Horsemanship allows horse owners at all levels of experience to achieve success. Together with his wife Linda, Pat has spread PNH across the globe with campuses in the United States, United Kingdom and Australia.