Horses never disappoint with their clear (some might say blunt…) advice that is always encouraging. Some how they can effortlessly give constructive advice without judgement – a skill my kids would say I need to polish up on!
First up was Bud – his owner was sick of being a chew toy and she wanted to know what he was trying to tell her with his biting. As he calmly and gently came into the session he replied with “She is rushing me, I take time to settle into things. Show me, explain to me and then gently do it”.
Emm, I know I’m guilty of this one…like a Rushers Anonymous meeting – “I’m Suze and it’s been 0 minutes since I last rushed”. He showed a little soreness, but it was feeling flustered that made him bite. Each horse has their natural rhythm and when we do things out of sync with that rhythm it can really throw a sensitive horse.
Next up was Dennis – his owner wanted to know about his training preferences – “Think about the human you enjoy interacting with the most, and who best helps you to learn/understand. How do they act around you?” Well Dennis was delighted to answer – he didn’t name names but he was very clear on what energy he enjoyed the most. His first two words were clarity & smile.
He showed a situation where he felt him and his human were really in the connection game together. The trainer was poised to let him know exactly when he did what he was asked and reinforce this with a big pat and celebrate how clever he was. He called this ‘Poised to Praise’ and said ‘it feels good when you are delighted’. He said he shows more of himself when the energy coming towards him has a ‘look at you gorgeous boy’ feel to it.