Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

All of us learn not to do things when something horrible or at least 
distasteful happens as a result.  Running through the kitchen (like mom 
always tells us not to do), we skid, do a sliding stop into the 
refrigerator and end up with a chicken lip, as my kids called them. You 
learn not to run in the kitchen.  Most of us prefer to arrange our 
horses' training so that they don't need or want to do something 
stupid/dangerous, but if they do it's a good idea to be able to arrange 
the universe so that retribution is swift and recognisable.  I have an 
Arab mare that used to do the "Arab head thing" of tossing it back when 
she was  asked to go at a walk, but wanted to move faster. After a 
couple of near misses (and I'd already had 12 stitches in my lower lip 
from a previous accident years ago when I was lucky enough to have an 
excellent plastic surgeon's office right next to the stable), I decided 
that I'd have a hard time finding a plastic surgeon of any standard in 
the desert near Abu Sir so I'd better call a stop to this quickly.

I didn't hit her....really I didn't.  But I did hold my left hand with 
the knuckles down in exactly the spot that she tossed her head to.  She 
hit herself....a few times since it wasn't loud or even all that 
painful, just unpleasant.... and she stopped. You don't actually have 
to hit the horse....just arrange the universe that something, 
preferably loud and nonlethal, is going to be occupying the same spot 
as the offending body part at the beginning of the offending accident.  
Let them whack themselves....that's what it really boils down to.   
Forces and immovable noisy objects, right Truman?

Maryanne

On Tuesday, Aug 19, 2003, at 04:25 Africa/Cairo, Jonni Jewell wrote:

> You know, each horse is different, and each training issue and 
> situation is
> different. If I had a horse that had never, ever before reared, and 
> one day,
> decided to try it, I very well, might whack him a good one between the 
> ears.
> I think habits form and develop by how much they have gotten away with 
> in
> the past. if they rear that first time, and in their little pea 
> brains, get
> away with it, then it becomes a whole different situation to deal 
> with, as
> it is habitual. The original post, was about a horse that sounds like 
> it has
> developed rearing as a habit. Smacking it now, very well might not 
> work, and
> indeed cause more, different kinds of problems to deal with.


=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

http://www.endurance.net/ads/seabiscuit.html

Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net.
Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp
Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp

Ride Long and Ride Safe!!

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=