We love to be told that we’ve done a good job, especially to be singled out and told that we’ve done a good job. Even better if we get rewarded for it, a pat on the back, smiley face, gold watch! Horses on the other hand are motivated by a different set of values. When was the last time your horse wagged his tail when you told him he was a good boy?
To horses as prey animals, praise and recognition mean very little. What motivates them is to feel safe, to be comfortable and to play. Have you ever seen someone trying unsuccessfully to entice a horse with yummy carrots?
I once was asked to help someone with a float-loading problem. I went to see the horse and it certainly had a lot of fear. Although you could catch it, and the owner did ride it, to me it seemed a nervous wreck, very touchy, never relaxed and ready to flee in an instant. I played with it for a while to establish some communication on the ground and throughout the course of the morning offered it a carrot. The owner told me that there was no point as the horse didn’t like carrots and had never eaten them. Sure enough, it wouldn’t take the carrot.
After an hour or so we had made good progress. The horse eventually began overcoming its fears and then it’s curiosity started to come up. By the time I put the horse onto the float, it was starting to look confident, it had trust in me and not only did it no longer see the float as a scary thing, it now found it a great place to find comfort.
I put the horse on and off the float a few times and then just let him stand there. After he had stood on the float for 10 minutes or so I asked the owner to pass me a carrot. The owner looked very sceptical but did it anyway. Sure enough, the horse happily munched away on the carrot quite contentedly. The owner was amazed. He had owned the horse for a number of years and it had never taken a carrot or apple from his hand. I guess the horse had never felt safe or comfortable in all that time!
As incredible as it may seem, this type of story is far more common than you may think. Many, many horses live their lives feeling neither truly safe nor comfortable, let alone safe enough to want to play. Countless times I have been very fortunate to witness a horse’s natural curiosity, enthusiasm, play drive and personality unfold, as their owner gained more savvy and understanding and built rapport with their horse.
Horses Learn By Comfort, Not By Discomfort.
In other words, it’s not so much when or how you apply pressure that causes your horse to learn, but when you release the pressure. Horses love to be comfortable and will go out of their way to avoid discomfort if possible. The only over-riding factor will be if the horse feels unsafe. Then comfort becomes secondary and horses will do whatever it takes to be safe again.
Horses learn by release, or when comfort is offered. If you can show your horse where the comfort is, release the pressure as often as possible, he’ll go looking for it every time. This is why little girls are just as successful with horses (maybe more so) than big burly blokes. Try having an open hand on your rope or reins as often as you can. See if your horse choses to be with you when given the option or if he would rather be somewhere else. If he sees that when he’s with you he finds comfort, he’ll choose the former. If he doesn’t, he’ll choose the latter.
Success with horses is not about muscling them around and making them do what we want, it’s about understanding them, communicating with them and letting them know when they are right by giving them comfort.
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- By Meredith Ransley, Quantum Savvy.