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Explaining Spooky Horse Training Tips
In this article I will explain actually the major importance of using spooky horse training tips to make your horse riding safer and more enjoyable.
Bottom line is should be prepared and know how to deal with a spooky horse.
If you look at a horse and a rider, you soon will realize that there is a need for great communication between them.
Know What Your Horse Responds To
You must learn to use the languages that a horse responds to. A horse has very sensitive and mobile ears. Sounds are picked up quickly and easily. [toc]
You must always remember that the nature of a horse is either flight or fight. Your horse will act naturally, according to its natural instincts.
Flight can abruptly happen. Many things can trigger the flight response. Don’t let this happen to you as it could be very dangerous for you.
If you don’t want this to happen, then you need to be in-tune with your ride. You and your horse are a team.
Here are a few facts you should know about your horse. Knowing these will help you be able to read your horse better.
- A horse sees only in two dimensions. So the horse can be scared or spooked very easily with sudden movements or when faced with different things than the horse has ever experienced.
- The horse will have trouble identifying what’s going on or knowing physical things well, just by its sight. Be aware of its other sensors being put to use.
- Items that appear suddenly could be something blowing in the wind. Or maybe a motorized car that makes noise appearing suddenly in the horse’s view. A motocross bike would be another great example of something you come across suddenly that causes it to be scared.
Top 5 Spooky Horse Training Tips
So I have been talking about great teamwork. You and the horse are in sync. But how do you get there?
- Learn the horse’s language. Concentrate on its use of ear placement, and realize just how flexible a horse’s ear is. Ear placement can be, frontward, backward, or one ear in each direction. All of these have special meanings to you as they are being signaled from your horse.
- Use the horse’s night vision to your advantage. Be aware it can see things you can’t. Trust it and its sudden response of being unsettled.
- Be able to spot a swishing tail. This means the horse is restless or angry about something that may be going on in sight, or physically happening to the horse.
- The rider learns to control the horse’s calmness by using their voice control. The tone and calmness of the voice can make all the difference in the world. You should have a series of horse calmers for spooky horses in your repertoire. You will experience safer riding if you do have this knowledge and awareness.
You might be wondering what makes the horse calm. It could it be the tone of the owner’s voice or maybe it’s the words being used? The answer is both. Please remember a calm lower toned, clear voice will ease the horse into a calm state. Usually repeating a calming word phrase will be helpful to the horse. It knows everything is all right. Nothing to run from, Just Calmness. That’s where you want to be. - Feeding the horse a snack that it really enjoys. Such as always having a supply of hay nearby can help you avoid further irritation with your horse. The use of hay, feeding it small hand fulls at a time with a calm conversation will work wonders. Again settling the horse into familiar situations is a calming effect for a spooky horse.
2 BONUS CONCEPTS
Two of the techniques used by some horse trainers are called the 300-Peck Pigeon Method and the head down method. Horses are known to be ones who lift up their head, the more in the air the more upset they are getting.
Getting used to the fact that the more the head is lifted up, probably the more upset the horse is. Then you can use the 300 Peck Pigeon Method and the head down method to full effect to keep your horse calm.
Clicker Training for Your Horse
I would like to share a podcast by Equoisity the goes into detail about using the 300 peck pigeon training method to calm down your spooky horse, a great spooky horse training tip you can use on your horse.
Equiosity Episode 49: “300-Peck Pigeon” Horses This podcast is done by Alexandra Kurland.
Might I suggest an excellent training book on the Clicker Training Method by Alexandra? It is featured on Amazon.com. ⏩⏩⏩⏩
You may take a look at it as a great resource to help you out with clicker training if you are curious about this form of calmness training for horses.
As a horse trainer, you should not panic. You should be calm in order to calm your horse.
You need to know how to deal with a spooky horse. When you look at your horse try to wear a smile of contentment, not a frown. The horse will feed off your demeanor.
Keep your posture non-threatening always try to avoid abrupt movements. This shows your horse that you’re not bothered by his movements of being unsettled.
You can tell your horse to lower its head or you can rub the neck and withers. No one can refuse a great relaxing rubdown, not even your horse.
If You Learn Better From Pictures
The Click That Teaches: A Step-By-Step Guide in Pictures
In researching Alexandra for this post, I discovered what I know would be a great companion for the above mentioned Clicker Training For Your Horse.
Ms. Kurland has also published the same training, but this time it is expressed in a book with over 600 photos.
In The Click That Teaches: A Step-By-Step Guide in Pictures by Alexandra Kurland, you will be guided by pictures to the exact moments to click for the most effective results in training your horse.
The book takes you from the basics up through the most comprehensive and complete training for your horse. The Clicker method has never been explained completely and thoroughly. I don’t think you can get lost in this exact training guide.
So if you learn better through pictures as I do, this is a great tool to have in your training library.
Where To Get A Clicker
EcoCity Upgrade Version Dog Training Clicker with Wrist Strap, 4-Pack
You may also find it helpful to include a clicker in your tools. I found this most sought after Dog Clicker which will work very well for your horse clicker training.
With this product on Amazon, you will get a 4 pack of these dog clickers.
They are multicolored and are very highly rated for satisfaction by customers and purchasers of the clickers.
You will also receive each clicker on an elastic wrist band for easy peace of mind keeping.
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