One topic that stands out in the world of equine-owner debates would be Problem solving with your horse. This is a never ending topic for many.
I am often told, "I wish my horse
would cross the river like yours does"; "My horse is too scared to go on
a bridge," or "My Horse is very bad on ice" etc. In my opinion, this is
simply how the rider is perceiving a horses behavior and a difficult
situation. Most of these tasks are ones we should be training and
developing our horses skills for in order to execute them in a safe and
comfortable manner.
Personally, I like the challenge
and I look for it in many ways; If my horse is afraid of a deer, I will
show him three hundred deer. I feel if I push my horse and myself, set
new limits and goals, then it will only make me a better horseman and
trainer. In a way I am always looking for my horse to out-perform my
expectations. As an example, If I have a horse that does not want to
leave the barn
with a rider, then my goal is to leave
the barn alone at a relaxed trot. By setting a minimalistic goal, I
usually get the results I am looking for. Horses are amazing animals and
they have a lot to offer us, we just have to know how to properly ask
for it. However, they have made it an art-form to trick us into thinking
they can not go here or there, this way or that way by increasing the
degree of
"Spookiness" that they display.
Unfortunately it is mostly a learned behavior that we have created,
usually without even knowing it.
I live in a northern country and
therefore I ride my horses about 6 months out of the year in snow and on
ice. Most people shut down and turn their horses out to pasture, but I
don't. My horses do not go into hibernation during the winter and they
run just as well then as they do in summer for the most part. Mind you,
these are my horses and I know them best. I want to be with my animals
every
day and I love riding but this is not
to say other people do not feel the same way. This is just how I
approach problem-solving with my horses.
In my opinion there are times when
people do not enjoy riding in the winter so they make up excuses for
their horses not to but where others are hesitant, I will find growth
and this pushes me to ride on ice and snow as an example. This applies
to many other horse related scenarios, I only use winter as a practical
example.
An interesting fact is that
Western North America was largely discovered and settled by fur
trappers. These men worked during the winter months and their means of
transportation was a horse. In fact, we don't even have to look that far
back; My dear old friend who is 93 years old tells me many stories
about how they rode their horse to school every day, summer, winter,
rain or shine. There was 3 kids on one horse without a saddle and
somehow they always made it and their horse was always there.
I train all my saddle horses to go
in just about any condition possible: Darkness at night, rain, snow,
rivers, rocks, wildlife, wild horses, town traffic and whatever I can
think of. I look at it as fun and a welcoming challenge.
In my opinion we should go out and
look for these challenges and train for them as much as we can instead
of avoiding or waiting for them when we least expect it on a trail ride
or our first endurance race. I am sometimes surprised how many people
set up rules on different rides instead of making sure they have horses
who are mentally and physically prepared for them. If we don't go out
and look for our next challenge prior to it happening, then we really
are not much more than just a passenger or perhaps even an irresponsible
owner/rider who puts their horse at risk.
John
Remember "go slow to go fast" ;-)