If you have not had the opportunity to study horse training, it can be a challenging subject. Even more of a puzzle is a horse with a behavioral problem.This causes the owner to be frustrated and stressed. Many people don’t understand that the problem usually lies with the trainer not the horse.
Firstly we must try to unscramble the horse’s behaviour. Most riders will have experienced at some point or another a horse becoming spooked. This means that the horse is agitated and nervous and frightened that something is going to “get him”. When the horse and rider go for a ride it is not a pleasant experience for either of them.
So then let’s pressume the rider is causing the horse to spook we must discover how the rider is able to do this. The rider may be completely unaware that he is sitting tensely in the saddle. He also may be stiff as a board and has white-knuckles from gripping the reins so tightly. The horse can sense these things and will feel the same tension the rider is feeling. A horse is able to get into the habit of feeling this way. This will make the horse’s spookiness also the rider’s spookiness because the rider and the horse are intensifying each other’s fears to the point where their anxieties will grow by leaps and bounds.
The rider is human and has the capability of reasoning, so it is the rider to stop this irrational behavior first in him and then in the horse. You must try and loosen up in the saddle. By simply relaxing and having a bit of fun the horse will signal to the rider that he notices a change. Then you need to talk to him to give him confidence. The horse’s behaviour will quickly change resulting in a more relaxed and enjoyable horse to ride.
It is important to note that the rider is training the horse simply by riding it. Remember every time you interact with your horse you are training him. The horse will react to the encouragement he gets. If the praise is consistent, the horse’s reaction will become a habit. If the stimulus is tense, it causes fear and results in a spooky horse.
This a typical exapmle of how the you the rider can be the reason for the horse’s behaviour. This is not always the case but is remains a good place to start. In most cases it is where the problem began.
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