Spooky mare
Today, we have another horse training question from Ellie. She writes: My question is… My 6 year old mare Misty is always so alert when we are at horse shows. She reared the last one and knocked all the jumps over. I’m really worried that if this dosen’t stop I might have to sell her. Help me figure out whats going on so I dont have to sell her? HELP!!!!!!!!!
Hi Ellie, good to hear from you again. I’m sorry you are still having problems with Misty. It sounds to me like the root of the problem is the same as with her being afraid of water. She needs to gain confidence in all kinds of situations. If she is rearing at horse shows, I would do some work with her at home before taking her out again. I don’t want you to get hurt! I would use the same training exercise that we talked about when she is scared of the water. Pick one thing, in this case it would be something you can do while riding, like trotting serpentines, and practice it an environment where she feels safe. Then when you get to the river, or the horse show, or anywhere that is making her uncomfortable, you can go back to that exercise to re-assure her that things are ok. Another thing that’s important when dealing with a spooky horse is that you keep your focus on them, not on the scary things around. Your horse is looking to you as the leader of their herd, and if you are looking all over at things they will be too. One thing that is very important in a situation where your horse is nervous is that you keep your breathing slow and deep. They will feel if your breathing gets shallow and quick and you are nervous too, and that will only make things worse. Try these things, and if you can I would also try to get a riding instructor or trainer you trust to give you a lesson on Misty. Someone standing and talking to you about what they see can be very helpful when you are having a hard time. Please let me know if you have any more questions and keep me posted on how things are going.
