It’s been in there all along

I often work horses for people in lessons, where horses might display some less than desirable behaviors and forms of communication. My perspective is that I want to notice where the horse has sticky spots, then help the horse through them. In that process, people are often surprised that their horse does x, y, or, z. They say things like “my horse has never done that before!” The person may have noticed that their horse pushes into them, leans on the reins when they ride, and pulls back at the trailer, but they never have seen the horse try to pin their ears and bite when you ask the horse if you can be in their right eye. My response is usually the same - whatever came out when I started working the horse is what’s in there; it didn’t magically appear. I might have a way of seeing those spots, and in an effort to help the horse those things might come out, because they were already boiling right under the surface. Sometimes, the only way forward is through. 

I spent the last week riding with and hosting a clinic for my teacher Cal Middleton. This topic came up again and again. It’s easy for people to become overwhelmed when their horse does things that are scary, but avoiding those things doesn’t help your horse and it sure won’t make them go away. I would love to have a horse where big things like that weren’t hiding in there in the first place, but that’s not true even for me. My young mare can get stuck going forward, and it’s something I have spent the better part of eight months diligently helping her through with the guidance of my mentor Tressa, and I finally feel like we’ve begun to make our way to the other side. Most people might recognize that there’s a sticky spot in their horse, or something hiding below the surface, and they work hard to tip toe around the issue. I’ll say it again - when the horse already has those things right under the surface, the only way forward is through. Avoiding the sticky and the brace won’t make your horse safer. It’s a bit like the elephant in the room, just because you try to ignore it doesn’t mean the elephant isn’t there. There may be circumstances in which you might be stealing rides on your horse, rather than knowing you are swinging a leg over something reliable.

The skillset required to work through these things takes care and leadership, and it looks different depending on the person. When I originally set out to teach in 2017, I had a vision of helping people be better riders and coaching students at horse shows. That quickly gave way to realizing that people really needed guidance with helping their horses become truly safe and confident. Peace comes from helping guide our horses through these troubled spots to find the softness on the other side. I am grateful to have surrounded myself with skilled teachers and mentors to help me as I work to offer something to others.