Tense situations.......

There are a lot of people that I have talked to and from "past experiences" that have inspired me to be different and to never become like that EVER! When you have a difficult horse that has a hard time understanding what you want the last thing that you want to do is slap the horse on the behind, be rough, and to desteam the situation try taking the time to listen to what your horse is telling you that way you know if something is bothering them. When your horse isn't doing something that you want it to or have in your mindset that you want to do, the last thing you want to do is "loose your temper" with the horse. The horse will "shut down" and not want to listen and in turn "walk away from the situation". A lot of people also play the tug-of-war game with their horses and fight and struggle with them. Also, a lot of horse people make themselves tough and then in turn empart some of that furious rage on the horses. (Which is a big-no-no) You can tell when your horse starts to get nervous and starts to become scared and worried. If you have ever heard someone say you can see the whites of the horses eye, well then this is what they mean. The horse is nervous scared or on the verge on not wanting to be with you.

The Grazing and Bonding must for any horse owner............

Everybody thinks that in order to bond with your horse you need to have them in a working mode in order to be in sync with them, but with me and Betty all it takes is one simple task.... Taking her out in a small field with her lead and halter and letting her "hand" graze while I sit and stay by her side. Laying down in the golden sunlight and requiring her to do no work what so ever we have in turn bonded.

Everybody thinks that humans need horses as companions and in some cases "yes" that is true but in some cases that is the complete opposite horses that are too afraid to be themselves around their owner is a big concern that I see with many horses and their so called "companions"! Horses need a "leader" they need somebody that they can count on to be there in a time of desperate need or desperate attention. Every horse has a different personality and sometimes need a human who can match that. That's where truly connecting with the horse comes into play. Instead of thinking that horses need to be in constant work and that you can really only enjoy them when you are riding with them is not the case.

Yes, groundwork is a excellent way to connect with your horse but sometimes even doing the simpliest things in the world is considered a form of connecting with them on a "deeper" level that what you think that you are capibable of. I have to admit that for a while I wasn't really paying that close of attention in taking the time to "bond" with my horse, which was really sad because I really wanted to but didn't have the time. Even taking five minutes out of my busy schedule to do the simplist task of taking them out in the field and running your hands through their mane brushing their tale and braiding flowers into it in considered a form of bonding.

Thank you for reading!