When dealing with a horse, it is of vital importance to remember that the uppermost thing in a horse’s mind is survival. Whenever a horse comes into contact with another horse or a human, the first question in their mind is not so much who is boss, as it is who is the protector and who is the protected. This was made clear to me at a Ray Hunt clinic I audited. Early in the morning, pandemonium reigned as over twenty young horses in the Colt Starting Class galloped at liberty around the indoor arena in a state of anxiety and chaos. They were wearing Western saddles, but no bridles or halters. The turbulence was maintained by horses being added to the mix at random intervals as their owners arrived at the grounds. 

As my eye adjusted to all the commotion, I began to notice that the horses were pairing up. One horse would select another, and if the chosen horse accepted the offer, they would break off from the confusion, and seek a spot near the rail. The chosen horse would stand next to the wall and relax.  The horse who did the choosing would stand between the chosen one and the chaos, protecting them from harm. Once a spot was staked out, the swirling herd would avoid the pair, unless another horse challenged for that territory. In that situation, the protector defended their place. The protected horse stayed very still unless told to move by their protector, and then obedience was instant. The horses on the rail gave their total focus to the defending horses on the inside. They would relax and lose the fear posture of high head and tense back. Their attention, trust, and obedience were now freely given to this one horse. They acted instantly when directed by their companion because they felt that their survival was at stake. It was not because this other horse had forced them into submission. I saw several horses refuse offers. I also saw one bossy mare whose overtures were aggressive, and she was constantly refused. If she captured a timid horse, then that horse would always sneak away when her attention was diverted. 

              Eventually, most of the horses sorted themselves into these stationery pairs in safe places, and only a few were left milling around in the middle of the arena.  The bossy mare was one of the unchosen. When their owners finally came in to halter the horses, it was interesting to see which horses transferred their trust and allegiance to their humans, and which struggled to stay with their equine partners.

              In the horse’s mind, it is an automatic agreement that the individual in the protector role becomes the leader.  The obedience, trust, and focus are freely and gratefully given. The leader becomes responsible for keeping a safety watch, and the protected relaxes.  Domesticated horses live in our  world.  It is up to us to explain the rules of survival within that context to them in terms they can understand. Every living being wants the peace and contentment that comes from knowing their place and function in the world. Every creature thrives when they are given positive feedback to acknowledge a task well done. Every being welcomes the security that comes from knowing that when they are frightened or anxious, their emotion will be acknowledged, the source will be sought, and steps will be taken to bring about a peaceful resolution of the situation. Understanding creates confidence. Confusion creates anxiety. Horses need to know that if you are putting yourself in the leadership role, you will be alert to potential dangers. That you will reassure the horse who does not understand when a situation is not a threat. Horses who are punished for reacting with fear to something they don’t comprehend will only learn to distrust you and the world even more.

Respect comes from trust. Trust is a result of consistent actions.  To form a true partnership, this respect and trust must be mutual. We must honor the dignity inherent in every being. Each side must be able to trust that the other is doing the very best they can in any given situation.

Every single time we interact with a horse, we are teaching him. We are either teaching him that he can trust us, or that he cannot. That we will be consistent in our actions, or that we will not. That we will listen to his side of the story, or that the relationship will be only one sided. He does not see any masks that we may put on for other people. Instead, he zeros in on our true intentions and our actions.  He responds to reality, not illusions.

             Horses can be amazingly patient with us if they know we are sincerely trying to do our best. On the other hand, if we learn a kinder way to do something and then decide to go back to the old way, they can be very clear in letting us know that that old way will no longer be accepted.

             Like humans, horses have varying degrees of intelligence, enthusiasm, and retention of lessons learned. They also have different learning styles. No one method will work with all horses. It is vitally important to understand the why behind techniques you may be studying so that you can adapt the “how” to any circumstance.  The first horse you taught a particular skill may have needed five repetitions to grasp the concept. The next horse might “get it” on the first explanation, and highly resent further drilling. He might form the opinion that you aren’t smart enough to recognize when he understands, and then he might start thinking that it’s more fun to outsmart you than to cooperate with you.

             Constant awareness is of the utmost importance!  Horses do try to communicate with us. It is up to us to understand them. We are supposed to have the larger brain—why should we expect them to learn “human” while we refuse to learn “horse”? Two way communication is essential to any good and functional relationship. Oneness cannot be achieved without it.

             I have a student named Deb who purchased a warmblood horse, Allie, whose dressage training had been rushed and forced. She didn’t have a lot of money to spend, and this horse came cheaply since he had learned to intimidate his owner. His sensitive nature had been overwhelmed by his insensitive training, and he had reverted to the survival techniques of flight or fight when faced with any new situation. He was alternately sullen or terrified. 

             Eventually, Deb, too, became intimidated by Allie.  She couldn’t take him off the property without him plunging and bolting. She couldn’t ask him to do anything other than simple walk and trot without him pinning his ears and refusing to move forward. Deb considered selling Allie at this point, but then made the decision to give him a few more months of effort on her part.  She was determined to break through the patterns of dysfunctional relationship she and Allie had created.  Deb’s first step was to learn how not to take her horse’s actions personally. Next, she had to realize that she had to override her own emotional response to his actions. His fear or anger tended to bring out the same reactions in her. She was mirroring him, thus making him the leader and protector, and he was resentful of this responsibility.

             Once she understood this concept, she began practicing staying calm no matter what was happening. No mean feat, obviously! However, the horse’s actions began to get less extreme as he learned that Deb would stay stable in any circumstance. In addition, she began using positive reinforcement techniques, in this case, clicker training. It is possible to reward positive behavior with stroking and quiet praise, but in Allie’s case, this didn’t work, and he needed more concrete “pay” in the form of horse cookies to make changing his habits worth his while. Using a noise maker, she first trained him not to beg or be pushy for treats; she created the understanding that he had to earn his treats. She would only click and reward when he made an effort to do as she asked. In riding, her first goal was to get him going forward; on the ground, it was standing quietly. As Allie began experiencing positive rewards for positive actions, he began to respond to new situations as an opportunity to learn and get rewarded, rather than simply reacting with his old emotions and protective patterns.  By giving him treats when he would go forward in scary situations, she put the focus on her rather than whatever was frightening him. By lowering and turning his head around to get the cookie, he was turning off the adrenaline producing posture of the alert high head. By getting him to chew the treat, she was further switching off the need to produce adrenaline. Now she was dealing with Allie’s mind, rather than his body chemistry.

 It has been my experience that when horses encounter continued positive reinforcement, they learn that when they hear the clicker (or your praise) in a new situation, it means that they are safe, and their leader will show them how to cope in a quiet, mindful way. The fear and anxiety instantly leave their bodies, and they become focused instead on figuring out what it is that you want.  Eventually, when the trust is firmly established, they no longer need the stimulus of the clicker. A word that is used consistently will give them the same message.

             These days, when Allie sees something scary, instead of wheeling and bolting, he stops, looks, checks in with Deb to get her feedback, and advances step by step to investigate. He has become proud of his bravery, and loves opportunities to show it off. Deb has learned to listen to Allie, as well, and he has become a wonderful teacher for her.  He has his own system of positive rewards, and has helped her learn ever more subtle signals to direct the dance they do. He is also helping her work through some deep and lifelong emotional traumas of her own.  Their trust in each other now runs deep and is beautiful to see. In fact, now Allie can buck from a spirit of joy, and Deb laughs at his antics, no longer a victim of her fear and judgement.

             Remember that often what we see as resistant behavior in horses is simply their only way of asking us questions. They often ask in difficult situations whether or not we will react with consistent, constructive help, or will we abandon them.  Here are some examples of questions horses are frequently asking when they “act up”: 

             Can you show me how to balance my body when I am not in control of it?

             Can you help me find calmness when I am emotionally out of control?

             Can I trust you to be aware of me and all that is going on around us even when someone else is talking to you or you are otherwise distracted?

             Will you be consistent in your demands of me, or will you randomly decide to be lax or extra demanding?

             Will you give me the time and space to think through a lesson and show you I can retain the information, or will you mindlessly drill me into boredom?

             Will you be as focused and calm around me as you require me to be around you?

             Keep in mind that your horse can be a very willing partner. Remember your early days in school, when it was sometimes very difficult to understand why you needed to learn certain information? Then one day it suddenly became clear why and how those skills could be useful? Your horse also needs to know why he should, for example, learn to move one step at a time in any direction, or to cross his legs and move forward, which doesn’t make any sense to him at all in terms of survival and being able to run quickly. Take him out on a trail and show him how a new skill helps to negotiate obstacles, or create those situations in your ring with poles, etc.  Always put lessons in perspective for him, and he will do anything you ask. The limitations come only in your own imagination—your creative ability to be able to communicate what you desire to each horse, and to reward their every effort in the right direction. Enjoy the process!

~ Kim Walnes
April 2000
amended Oct 2002