So, as often the case I was reading in a blog and I came across a post that was talking about blaming the horse. I got some inspiration to write, so this is my opinion on the topic. Which more than likely you have all heard before. But, who doesn't like a good reminder.
The best question to ask when your horse is doing something bad or incorrect is.. da da daa!
"Why?"
So simple.
Now story time.
In the years that I have been riding, few as they may be, I have learned something. Usually it's my fault.
I fell off my barrel horse cause he went one way and I went the other. I didn't choose the direction so he did... then I choose the direction.
One of the fillies starts bucking when I hit her rump with the end of my rein while riding. The first time I did it I went from really soft to hard way too quickly.
Flicka is lazy and bossy. Through my inexperience I let her become that way.
A friend's horse I rode cuts in over the jump. I wasn't giving him the direction and the stability he needed.
Santana bucks me off when I urged him into a canter. I hadn't ridden in a while, I was flapping all over, and we were in the big field.
Now that you have a bunch of examples of when it's been my fault here are examples of when it isn't.
Santana bucks when I won't let him go back into the paddock. He's telling me to bug off.
Misstack is so distracted with everything going on around her she doesn't know I'm there and keeps invading my space.
Ana is hyper, and has ceaseless energy. She's a Saddlebred/Arabian cross.
Though if I thought about these problems I could probably trace them back to something I did or something someone else did... or didn't do.
Santana doesn't respect my authority.
Misstack doesn't either.
With Ana I really don't know. I can guess. Nobody ever worked on stopping with her. It was all about the all important GO. Or it really could be her breeding. It can still be fixed though.
Horses work off of instinct. All animals do. That is why we are the leaders and why we must take responsibility for their actions.
Sincerely our fault :)
Lydia Johnson
Information. That's what this is about. Where to find it, and what I have learned. I can not claim to be an expert in the area of training horses, but I will try my best to be helpful.
I have a very important rule about horses: it is ALWAYS MY FAULT!! and even when it isn't; it is ALWAYS MY PROBLEM!!
ReplyDeleteBy that I mean, most times I am in the way, asking wrong, not being clear, not being strong enough, etc etc, but even when it is Pippi's "fault" I am still the one who has to find a way to correct it, so it is still my problem.
Truer words were never spoken.
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