Post by Calaminty Jane on Jul 19, 2013 14:04:33 GMT -5
Problem Solving – Horses That Are Cinchy
-by Linda Parelli
My Horse is WAY too smart
Having trouble with girthing or cinching up horses is very common. Horses are claustrophobic, whereas, people are direct line and in a rush… it’s a recipe for things to go wrong. Happily, the solution is simple but you need to know why your horse is having trouble… is he resentful or afraid?
Is He Resentful?
This is usually the Left Brain horse and he’s quick to give you his unhappy opinion when you go about it too quickly or without enough preparation, or if the saddle hurts* him! Remember, horses do not react unless something you are doing is bothering them.
Typical Left Brain Cinchy Signs:
• won’t stand still • turning as if to bite
• tossing head • biting
• pinning ears • kicking
Solutions:
Slow down… way down, rub and pet him a lot throughout the process. The Parelli approach to saddling teaches you to girth up in stages rather than tighten it all the way up (see Safe Ride DVD from the Success Series or Level 1 program). Think of it from your horse’s point of view. How can you make it more pleasant?
Make sure he’s in the mood to be saddled. That’s what ground skills are for (playful use of the Seven Games), and to establish leadership. Some Left Brain horses don’t want you to groom them let alone saddle them. In fact, anything ‘done’ to them is unwelcome unless they see you as their trusted and esteemed alpha.
Do the opposite: instead of smacking him for trying to bite you, offer him a carrot or a cookie. It will blow his mind! Talk about the unexpected. Some people are worried that this will teach him to bite, but just you try to yell at someone after they give you a chocolate. The goal is to change his whole attitude toward cinching and you. It will become a pleasant activity rather than a dreaded one.
Do the unexpected: instead of putting the saddle pad on his back, put it on his neck or head or rump. This will send his mind into a spin of curiosity, effectively breaking the negative pattern. This horse knows what happens before, what happens, happens, and because people are creatures of habit the horse knows exactly what we are going to do and get annoyed right as we start the steps! Doing the first step or two completely differently than normal will change the pattern making it more interesting for him and less aggravating.
Many saddles are too narrow for the horse’s back or are placed too far forward so they pinch the shoulders. Some horses react to this feeling as soon as the saddle is placed on their back, while others will object as the girth or cinch is tightened because it increases the pressure and discomfort. For more information on this, go to parellisaddles.com.
Is He Afraid?
This is usually the Right Brain horse, and particularly the Right Brain Introvert. They are intensely claustrophobic, have a tendency to freeze when worried, pull back, or flip over. They also have a tendency to buck when you begin moving them after tightening the cinch.
Typical Right Brain Cinchy Signs:
Stands quietly to be saddled, but is tense. Head is up and eyes are glazed over/staring.
Holds breath in fear.
Freezes then explodes… pulls back, flips over or bucks uncontrollably. The bucking tends to be more vertical/in place and stiff-legged. Again, the eyes are glazed over with fear.
Solutions:
These horses are usually rushed into their first saddling as young horses. Their quiet obedience is totally misread as acceptance, but it’s only a matter of time before the bottled up fear erupts. This is literally a time bomb and the answer lies in patiently waiting for acceptance.
Preparation – preparation – preparation. Get your horse in the mood and make sure you can tell when he is calm and trusting of you. Then you need to be able to send him to the saddle and have him smell it, paw at it, push it around. Sorry, but you’ll need a saddle you’re willing to allow this with or he will not be able to totally get over the fear.
Simulation – simulation – simulation! Rather than putting the saddle on and cinching it up, simulate the girthing by joining a couple of Savvy Strings together and tying this around his girth, just loosely at first. Play with him on the ground allowing him to wear it and get accustomed to the fear. Each time, make it a little more snug, and you can use another one around his neck and connect the two to stop it from sliding back into the flank area. Another technique is to take the 22’ Line with the ring on it and thread the end through the ring like you would a girth/cinch. Now you can ease it up and drop it loose, increasing your horse’s tolerance and threshold. Pretty soon you’ll be able to snug it nice and firm without it bothering your horse.
Repetition – repetition – repetition! Not only do you need to calmly and slowly repeat everything you do for as long as it takes to gain your horse’s confidence, you also have to give it a number of days of repetition until it no longer bothers your horse. It can take 21 days to change a negative perception, so be thrilled when it takes anything less than that. We also recommend that you don’t ride until your horse is no longer reactive to the girthing process. That time bomb can go off with you in the saddle, so it’s worth taking the time it takes.
This is not about the cinch or girth. It’s all about trust and confidence. That should give you patience! Better still, it will affect everything else because your horse will see you in a whole different light.
Once your horse is confident, be careful not to slip into any impatient or rough habits because it won’t take much to remind your horse of the emotional scars you’ve worked so hard to overcome.