This is not the kind of behaviour deemed polite in human society and yet everyday we tolerate it from horses.
If another human being came up and leant on you, got into your space so that you had to move, shoved you out of the way so they could sit down, rubbed their itches or wiped their nose on you, you may consider that disrespectful! Guess what? In the horse world things are no different. Have a look at your horses and see how often they try these tricks with Alpha Horse. It just won’t happen because they have more respect for him or her. And look out if they ever do try it!
Remember how important a good leader is to horses. If they perceive any holes or weakness’ in your leadership, they’ll play a little game with you to test you out. Then they get together at night time to see who scored the most human points that day!
Many of these challenges start quite simply, with us not defending our personal space. Every living creature has a personal space, be it large or small. To the horse, if we allow them to come into our personal space, we are telling them that we are submissive and that we are prepared to be dominated. The more we allow them in, the pushier they will become. Before long the behaviour escalates to things like pushing us around when they are being led, nudging us with their heads, knocking hats off and treading on toes; something they can only do if they are in our space.
If a horse is allowed to disrespect the personal space of a human, pretty soon he’ll see all people as marshmallows and under pressure, when he takes fright and goes into flight, he may not be too concerned about running over a human or two to get to safety. Is your horse safe for little children, pregnant women and old people to be around?
This doesn’t mean that you can’t rub on your horse or give him a hug. Quite the opposite! By all means do this, just be sure it was your idea, not his. Go to your horse (rather than let him come to you) and give him a nice scratch. You may find he grooms you in return, just as horses do with each other. Just watch out for those teeth. Horses will not mean to hurt you, however they can get quite boisterous with their grooming.
If you are tempted to allow your horse to rub on you, just compare yourself to some of the other things they rub on … trees, fence posts, the corner of their stall. How would you prefer your horse to perceive you; as another friend to groom or as important as a fence post?
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Lesson 2, Chapter 5:
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- By Meredith Ransley, Quantum Savvy.