While certainly there are some breakers and trainers out there who do a good job with their charges, just by the very nature of the name given to the occupation a certain mind set is suggested.
During the course of history, horses have been used in many facets of daily life by humans; in working the land; as transport for people, goods and communication; carrying men to battle and exploring and opening up new lands. We came to rely on the horse as a consistent and reliable partner in many fields.
In times gone by, horses were used in great numbers, particularly for warfare and considered on the most part as a beast of burden with a job to perform. In modern times, horses became valuable work partners on the larger ranches and stations in countries like the United States of America, Australia and Argentina. An idle horse was little use and costly to keep, so they were saddled, ridden and useful at as-young-an-age as possible. Large quantities of horses were needed to get the job done, and to be viable they needed to be working as quickly as possible. One of the biggest hurdles faced was getting the horses suitable for riding. As we now realise, horses being prey animals have their own opinion in regards to allowing predators on their backs and many of them expressed that opinion!
Traditional horse handlers became known as ‘breakers’, as it was deemed necessary to break the horses spirit or resistance down and force him to submit to the will of the human. Taking the time to consider the horse’s needs was regarded unnecessary and a waste of time ... the horse had a job to do and the sooner he got to it the better. Methods that were cruel and inhumane were often employed, all in the name of getting the job done. Direct line thinking at its finest. These methods were reflective of the way in which Western man dealt with many situations that he felt the need to control.
There were those of course who did consider the horse, who worked with him and encouraged his opinion and self-expression. These horsemen were often ridiculed for their methods for being different and soft. Many of these men were horsemen and not teachers and found it difficult to explain to others what it was that they did and why. They worked secretly and quietly with horses, when no one was looking or behind closed doors. Their methods were so secretive they came to be known as Horse Whisperers.
These days we’d like to think that the human race has progressed beyond using traditional and sometimes inhumane methods to train horses and has some understanding of the necessity of working with the horse and not against him. Life is far easier and safer when working with the horse, plus the fact that horses will perform so much better with heart and desire. However, we still hear on a regular basis of horses being tied to a tree or post or inside the horse-float for hours, even days on end. Or horses having their heads tied to their tails, or being dropped on the ground with their feet tied together and a tarp thrown over them and left like that until they submit. Being lunged for hours in side-reins and tie downs, hooked to a walker and forced to trot, bricks being tied to bridles to teach them to lower their heads and endless other ‘training’ techniques.
In the Quantum Savvy Programme, when we begin the ridden career of a young horse, or even restart an older horse, we consider that we are starting a new relationship and developing a partnership, one that we will both enjoy for years to come. Many people think that natural horsemanship is the gentle method. For the most part this is true; however, consider that we are relating to horses as they would relate to each other. We are as gently as possible and never more firm than another horse would be. And always, the horse has options. He is never forced to do something that he cannot say ‘no’ to.
What kind of beginning would you prefer for your horse, to have him ‘broken’ and submitting or developed and progressed?
Read More Road To Horsemanship articles.
- By Meredith Ransley, Quantum Savvy.