TCJpart 17 Behaviour

GETTING THINGS DONE WITH HORSES:
...any time spent with my boys is emensley enjoyable, I don't have to be on their backs to appreciate the bond between us.

Tom and Henry have a relaxed attitude to their yard, everything important I've taught them to do, gets done here.

 

You will have noticed with your own horse, whether they're Trakehners or not, that they are very nosey.  Tom and Henry want to be part of everything we do.  If we're outside doing things, they both come over to watch.  When the man comes to deliver the hay, speeding around the driveway in his forklift, Tom and Henry are there, heads over the fence, keeping an eye on what's going on!

When Steve the farrier comes, they notice his van, and bring themselves in to be shod, why? Because they love being involved, and he wasn't there 5 minutes ago...something new!!  And Steve has never hurt them or scared them, so they enjoy being with him.

Once when John was in the field doing some repairs to the fencing, they both came over to watch.  Tom making certain John was doing a good job, and Henry grabbing the end of the piece of wood and holding it steady on the workmate so John could cut a straight piece!!  I kid you not, he had the rail in his teeth.  Once he was satisfied John had a grasp in the situation an no longer needed his active participation, he then took the hammer out of the toolkit and ran off with it!! From that day hence, it has now been called Henry's toolkit - it even has a hoofpick in it now and some treats!!! no one but horse-types would believe it!

Whether you have similar stories about your horse or not, you will have undoubtedly grasped that their curiosity is what makes them easy to train, their personalities mean they want to learn.

Work with this, and you'll find a whole new world opens up to you.

Tom is usually calm when I ride Henry, sometimes he even lays down for a nap, Henry of course is the opposite, he'll be charging up and down the fence!

Tom and Henry, like all horses, love to be part of what's going on, so long as it's not scary, but no one is going to ask their horse to try to learn something when he's scared, that would be stupid beyond measure.  I use this facet of their characters for everyday stuff, so every one's life is easier and we're all happy. 

When I shut gates to somewhere, even for a few minutes: to load feed into the feed room from the Landy into the yard, that now becomes the most interesting place to be, and they make it very clear that's the very place they most want to be.  When I'm done and open the gates, they charge in!  So when I want to change fields for example, I just open the gate to the field I want them in, and they can't wait to get there.  There's no headcollar action or leading them EVER from one place to another. I don't have to, they just behave like horses, and I take advantage of it.

I want them somewhere, I shut it up, and wait, they just can't resist!!

There are many opportunities to spend time with the boys here, and I absolutely take advantage of having them at home.

I have mentioned I don't tie Tom and Henry up at all.  When I ride, Henry is in the yard, I brush him, tack up and go.  When I get back, Tom comes over to say hello to his friend he thought he might never see again...well you know horses!! 

You'll notice Henry is just standing waiting for me to finish fiddling about, we are tacking up in this picture, they stand in a different spot to be untacked, and they are creatures of habit.

 
I open the yard gate (shut while I was out riding), and because Tom hadn't been able to come into the yard, that's the place he most wants to be now, and because Henry had been in the yard, being untacked, the field is now the place he wants to be more than life itself!  So, viola, what looks like a brilliantly choreographed swappage of Horses is really just them being them, they swap positions: Henry goes out, Tom comes in. I shut the yard gates and start my pre-ride routine with Tom!!  No leading, no catching, just understanding what horses are like. 

Henry, they love having their photos taken, and I now have several thousand of them....so John tells me!



Remember, the more you understand your horse, simple things like 'catching' become a lightbulb moment.  And I spend a lot of time with mine in the field, I don't just go out with an agenda, I often wander out just to scratch or feed them, so they never have any idea what I'm up to!

Give it a go yourself..you'll be amazed at the response you'll get for your horse, it'll be a 'finally she understands me' moment!!

I love those horses, and these simple things just make sense to me, perhaps because I am simple too! (no comments about this please, that means you Mum!)