Articles of Interest

DOES YOUR HORSE TALK TO YOU?

by Mary Kay Adams, Equine Teacher

Since I began taking in horses at my own facility for full-time training, I have had, so far, four of them talk to me as I would dismount after a lesson. I find this to be very interesting and enlightening. The first horse, Sultan, an Arabian gelding who I started undersaddle, began giving me a soft niker every time I would dismount. This started some time later in his training although he was still far from being a finished horse. I call it very well greenbroke. He was very supple in his mouth and body and was moving well off my legs as he continued to master his gaits. I would put him through his paces and then find a good time to stop when I felt he had done a good job for the day. I tend to end right there on the arena or in the roundpen rather then ride the horses back to the barn (unless I have specific training reasons to ). This way I can bail right off the horse after it performs a great stop, or trots/jogs or canters very well for the level the horse is at, or lopes off well, does good rollback work or traveling in a straight line work and so-on. I do this to reward the young horse for a job well done. Well.... Sultan got so accustomed to my ways (and was kind of a smarty) that he started to predict my ending and changed his nicker from as I dismounted to before I dismounted and of course before the session was finished!

Next was Blackie, a paint filly. Actually, she was older than filly age but so very young in training having never been formally started under saddle and the issues showed. When I had her going fairly well in a working level, she also started with the nicker as I dismounted. This mare began with that "unobvious" head shyness issue which created her bucking across the roundpen with no warning when I first began mounting her and asking for forward motion. She ended her time with me riding quietly on the arena with a nice calm stance when the lesson was finished. And of course, the soft nicker as I stepped down.

Third was Gypsy a 7yo. mixed bred pretty paint colored mare. Gypsy did very well in breaking out being an older student. She had some energy but handled herself very well. She became a great trail riding prospect in just a short couple of months. Tackling water, flowing brooks, gravel pits with machinery and average wooded trails. She, too, learned leg cues, suppling, bit control and of course the excellent stop which led to the immediate dismount giving my approval of her good work and her soft nicker followed.

Last was Cody, a 3yo. gelding, who came to me last year as a spooky 2yo to be broke to ride. He returned this year for a couple of weeks for a refresher having not been ridden much since he left me last fall. As we advanced his abilities he too, picked up the nicker but only one or two times.

I have pondered this response from these horses and can only feel as though they are saying to me "thank you for teaching me and not pushing me too hard until I became sore, too tired or frightened."

A Maine Equine & Canine Training Facility

Articles of Interest

DOES YOUR HORSE TALK TO YOU?