So I am sure we have all been there, we are off for a little ride, enjoying the sights and sounds when BAM your horse spooks, bolts or becomes a fire eating dragon over nothing! Hopefully you manage to stay on and then have to deal with any left over consequences – being taking full speed home or sitting on the dragon and deciding what to do next.
1. If you can, work out why your horse is in a heightened state – eliminate any external factors (e.g. a noise or wild animal)
Is there a reason why your horse spooked or bolted, or were they just reluctant to go out? If there isn’t an obvious cause, then it is probably the later. We can end up missing the small signals our horses are telling us when we are looking forward to our ride and we may convince ourselves that our horses are always happy to accompany us on our adventures. However sometimes this isn’t the case and our horses are giving us signals along the way, trying to communicate to us – but a lot of the time we are not listening, until something ‘naughty’ happens.
2. Signs that you may have missed
1. Reluctance to go out
2. Walking slowly
3. Zig zagging down the road/track
4. Looking behind them all the time
5. Feeling a disconnect between you and them
6. Poor steering
7. Fixating on things going forward
8. Increased breath rate
9. High head carriage
My first question to you is did you know that the above could be signs of your horse reluctance to leave the yard and go for a ride? My second is, do you think you may have missed a subtle sign from your horse? Be honest with yourself, this isn’t a blame game, it is the beginning of you reading and communicating with your horse to build a better relationship.
3. The not so easy bit
Noticing the above signs and listening to your horse when you are riding. We always have our own plans at the forefront of our minds and don’t always think of our horses as being allowed to have an opinion as we bought them and pay for them. However if you want to have a good relationship and partnership with your horse then you need to start thinking about your horse as being allowed to voice its opinion. That is the start to an equal partnership.
Most people think their horse will get over it and push them forward ‘through the problem’, you might get away with this a couple of times, but eventually it will probably result in a plant, spook, rear, bolt etc… The signs start small and grow, they may start by looking behind them, then they zig zag down the road, then they shy at something silly, then the spook or bolt as they get further away from home and they anxiety levels are increasing as they do not want to go out and you are pressing them to continue forward.
4. What to do when you notice one of these signals?
If you notice these indications when you are leaving the yard
LISTEN to your horse, even the smallest signal (you will help yourself in the long road). For example, you may steer them out the gate and they are trying to turn in the other direction.