Post by Calaminty Jane on Aug 10, 2013 15:26:47 GMT -5
Confidence in Narrow Spaces
-by Linda Parelli
Being prey animals, horses are naturally claustrophobic. This means they avoid confined spaces and if they feel trapped or ‘squeezed’ it can lead to downright panic.
The Squeeze Game (#7 of the Seven Games) is all about teaching horses how to become more confident in narrow spaces such as…
» Trailers
» Ramps
» Jumps
» Starting Gates
» Bridges
» Stalls
» Narrow trails
» Ditches
…and much more including being ridden. When a rider sits on the horse, he is squeezed between their legs!
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INSTRUCTIONS FOR: The Squeeze Game – Game #7.
What to do
The Squeeze Game is a pattern: Send – Allow – Stop – Turn – Face – Wait.
The whole idea is to teach a horse to wait for further instruction once he’s done the squeeze over, through or under whatever obstacle you choose to play with. It builds confidence, respect and security.
Pretty soon the horse learns this pattern and can tell when he should turn face and wait or continue on a circle such as in the Circling Game #5.
The Send (or invite…)
Different from sending your horse on a circle, the ‘send’ for the squeeze Game is more like an invitation to go over / through / under the obstacle. This means you need to be standing with your shoulders in line with the obstacle and asking your horse to come past your shoulder (without running over you!) and tackle it. So when you send your horse you are actually facing him, but you direct him past your shoulder in a straight line.
This is different from sending your horse on the circle because in that case you will direct him to go out and around you rather than pass straight by your shoulder. The TV clip will illustrate this for you visually.
When you understand the concept of this your horse will know when you are asking for a Squeeze vs a Circle simply by the way you direct him.
The Allow
After you’ve directed / invited him to come past your shoulder through a narrow space (and tackle the obstacle if there’s one there), it is important for you to wait for him to do it.
If he doesn’t do it, simply start again with the Send.
The worst thing you can do is irritate him or punish him if he fails to make it or stalls. Pet him and start again. The reason he didn’t do it is either because he doesn’t understand or he got afraid. So the best thing to do is reassure him and start again.
Repeat this as often as necessary until he understands and makes it.
If he stalls half way through, rub him until he relaxes and then send him the rest of the way.
Stop, Turn, Face, Wait.
The idea is to allow the whole horse to go by you, then ask him to stop, turn, face and wait.
You’ll stop him by bending over and looking at his hindquarters to disengage them, then wiggling or shaking your rope vertically, minimally at first and getting progressively firmer until you are effective.
Your goal is to barely shake the rope at all and be able to disengage his hindquarters by looking at the such as in the Driving Game (#3), reinforcing by shaking the line only if necessary.
In some cases your horse will blast through and have a lot of trouble stopping and facing up. If that’s the case, don’t press the issue. Allow him to find a place to stop (most likely before he comes through the narrow space again!) and then bring him to you, pet him and start all over again. The repetition will be calming.
Teach your horse to wait for further instruction – to squeeze back through or come to you. If he wants to blast back through, encourage him to do that and see if he can wait on the other side. If not, keep encouraging him to go through again until finally he can stand still. Trying to stop it will only lead to a very upset and more claustrophobic horse! When a horse does this it is usually a sign of fear, so helping him feel right is the best option. Every time you turn him he will get calmer.
What if he stalls before the obstacle?
Back him off and send him again.
The worst thing you can do is make him step forwards because…
» If he is a Right Brain fearful horse, it will cause him to fear you more because it feels like force and he’s already not confident. And…
» If he is a Left Brain dominant horse, it will cause him to shut down on you and refuse to move.
Horses don’t need to be smacked and punished. They need to ‘want’ to do this for you because they trust and understand you and therefore are willing to do what you ask. This is an important process to learn so rather than asking the horse to do something, think about asking if he is ready to do it.
The Squeeze Game, firstly without an obstacle, teaches your horse the principle of the game and lets you know whether he is confident and ready enough to go there.
What to use
Parelli Ropes and SticksHalter & 12 ft and/or 22ft Line.
(Ropes and Sticks)
A horseman’s halter made of soft, ½ inch yachting braid. You don’t want something thick that he can lean on, nor something that’s too thin and hurts him.
Use a 12’ line at first, then progress to a 22’ line and teach your horse the Squeeze Game from further away.
Carrot Stick & Savvy String
This is a four foot long stick with a loop on one end to which you can attach a 6 ft Savvy String; it has a comfortable grip at the other end