Of all the problems I am called out for, lack of motivation is generally not one of them. But having a poorly motivated horse can certainly be an annoying problem. Their desire to work can be nonexistent, making them dull, listless, inattentive.
Of all the problems I am called out for, lack of motivation is generally not one of them. But having a poorly motivated horse can certainly be an annoying problem. Their desire to work can be nonexistent, making them dull, listless, inattentive.
Recently I was asked to write an article for the “Natural Feeding for Horses” Sept newsletter. There is a bit about me and what I do, how and why behaviour problems arise, and how the average horse owner can incorporate a bit of natural horsemamship into thier daily routine. Enjoy!
You may have heard the terms “left brain” or “right brain”, but what does this actually mean? If you have ever felt your horse had a double personality, you weren’t entirely incorrect.
I have not been able to resist the urge to work in my halfway built round pen. It’s certainly not ideal, but it is more then I have had for my own use since I stopped leasing facilities (years..). Today I had the most fun I have had in a very long time.
Toffee Pops is the newest member of our family. We bought him for our 4yr old daughter, but like most horses that come into my life, he has a few problems. When I look at Toffee, I don’t think of him as a “problem” horse, however I would not have advised any of my clients or students to buy him, which certainly puts him in the problem horse category!
Charlie is a 12yr old thoroughbred x gelding.
Problems are primarily napping and threatening to buck while hacking out as well as trailer issues. Owner suspects respect issues, as he can be bossy and difficult to manage. Attitude/behaviour is unpredictable as one day he is fine, and other days he is definitely not so fine.
Of all the problems presented to me, trailer loading (or unloading) is the most common. It’s the one problem that most owners can not work around.
Last year I wrote 3 articles about the process of de-spooking. Here are all the articles re-posted in their entirety.
Preparing to De-Spook
Several elements need to come together in order to be successful at this. For this reason, this will be split into two parts. Part one will focus on preparing to despook. So lets get started!
If you are a student of natural horsemanship, you will have heard the phrase “feel, timing and balance” on multiple occasions. If you are new to natural horsemanship, you will eventually come across this idea. In this article, I will explore what this idea mean to me, and hopefully explain it in a way anyone can understand.
Fear is something everyone in the equestrian world has felt at some point. Whether it was a brief sensation during a fall, a course of particularly large jumps, or on going, fear is something everyone faces (or doesn’t!) sooner or later. In this article I will discuss fear, and provide some strategies and insight into this sometimes debilitating emotion.
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