From Prey Animal to Partner

When working with horses we do well to work with 2 basic instincts that have developed over the centuries to help the horse survive in the wilds. While there are few natural predators to horses in this country the horse needs to act as if there might be, so their survival instincts remain active in the right side of their brain.

The first instinct to be aware of is the flight fight instinct the horse uses to escape or fight danger. The horse may run very fast in an instant to flee danger, or they may kick or bite or push at something that is perceived as a threat. It so happens that people smell and look like a predator to the horse. It isn't their fault, but sometimes they get triggered into protecting themselves in these two ways against us if we behave in a predatory way around our horse. Most of the time people get in to trouble around horses because the horse is protecting themselves from people or the horse is above the person in the pecking order-see below.

So the first skill to learn is to be non predatory, and act more like a partner to our horse. All our movements need to be round, rhythmical and smooth, like horses movements are. We mustn't scream or cling or run up to or near by our horse or do anything that makes us appear like a predator to the horse if they were in the wild. So we need to be non predatory around the horse.

The second instinct to be aware of is the herd instinct. This is also developed in the right brain in the horse, and it is the horse’s need to remain in a cohesive group, which has a distinct pecking order, and the leadership of a boss horse. This cohesion, and understanding between the horses in a group is vital for the protection of the whole herd against predators. When we are around our horse the horse feels secure and relaxed if we behave as a leader towards the horse as they do among themselves. This will give the horse the notion that we know how to keep them protected against danger. It builds trust, and encourages the horse to engage his/her left brain functioning where all the reasoning, thinking and listening develops for the horse. This enables our horse to be able to be a partner towards us as opposed to a prey animal towards us. The more partnership we can encourage with our horse the more connection, and communication we can achieve. Then we have more fun more safely. The best skill to develop to help the horse perceive us as a leader is to present all our instructions with 4 phases of intensity, just like they do with each other. So we start with a touch or a look, (phase 1) then we build the stimulus up to phase 2, phase 3, then phase 4 is a smack. As soon as the horse responds to the stimuli, as it increases in intensity, and does what we are asking, we stop straight away to give the horse comfort. In the comfortable space the horse can experience reward, and he/she will figure out how to make that reward space occur when the ask comes along again. Hopefully your horse will respond quicker, and with a lesser ask than before. The use of the 4 phases enables us to appear as a non predatory leader to the horse. Being a non predatory leader is the best way to help your horse into their left brain and want to be your partner.

Horses listen to your body energy, your emotions, your body movements, and your body language. Most of their own communication occurring between each other is done in these ways. Therefore the more we use these ways of communicating with our horse the better able he/she is to hear us, and become our partner.

For example if we are asking our horse to walk through a gateway, we increase the energy in our body, look towards the gate, squeeze our ankles together until the horse moves forward towards the gateway. We steer with our legs and reins. As soon as the horse moves where we are asking we stop asking and move with the horse. Rubbing, not patting the horse is a good way of rewarding and soothing the horse. They rub each other, and so they recognise us rubbing them as a friendly, and familiar gesture. We play games with horses in the same way they do with each other to help them engage their left brain, and To orientate to us as partners.

Therefore understanding how horses communicate, and finding out how they think helps us to use their own language for developing a partnership with them. This is based on being a non predatory leader with the horse. This is what we mean at Mt Lyford Horse Treks when we say partner-up with your horse.

Kate Tapley

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