| Trust By Lalita Creighton |
One great way to develop trust in each other is to take your horse through an obstacle
course.
The most important thing is to make sure your obstacles are safe and that you or your horse
cannot get hung up in them or injured by them. The sky’s the limit as to the sorts of
obstacles you can create: bridges, tarp crossings, large barrels, taking raincoats off a post
and putting them back, large beach balls, pool noodles, long whips, ropes, cavalletti, you
name it. Google “horse obstacle course” or some variation and you’ll find all sorts of ideas.
You can also start your horse off by leading him through objects instead of riding him. For
some horses, seeing their leader (that’s YOU!) go through it unscathed can go a long way
to help them go through the obstacle calmly. Don’t forget, the idea isn’t to force your horse
to do something, or see how quickly he’ll do it, but how calmly. You want to develop a
partnership with your horse so the day you’re on the trail and your horse has to get through
something tricky, he’ll trust you enough to go through it when you ask. And, you’ll trust him
to carry you through it safely!
Another way to develop trust in your relationship is to find a seasoned buddy to ride with
and head out to the trail, facing things as they come along. You have to decide when your
horse is ready to go on the trail, and what level of trail he can handle. Balancing on steep
hills with a rider takes strength and balance, and your horse will need to learn it. He will
need to learn that rocks can be slippery, especially if shod. As you take your horse through
more and more difficult terrain and situations, you learn to trust him to carry you safely.
You learn to trust him not to try to turn tail and leave the county when he sees a mountain
bike headed his way. He learns that when you ask him to go up and down these hills, cross
these rocks, and face these bikes he’s not going to get hurt or eaten. Riding with that
seasoned buddy can help you learn what level of trail is appropriate for you and your horse
and help you prepare to face more difficult trails later. It’s also much safer to ride with
someone than by yourself.
Keep in mind when riding in a group that you may be called upon to make a decision that
will affect other rider’s and horse’s safety. People and horses are individuals and have
different skills and weaknesses, and you have to trust yourself when you decide how to
handle any given situation. You must take into account the skill levels of everyone with you
and decide if they and their mounts are up to facing any obstacles you come across.
(Obviously, other riders have a responsibility for themselves but if you honestly feel
someone you’re riding with won’t be able to handle that steep hill, for instance, you really
need to speak up tactfully. You can’t make them not go on that hill, but you can suggest the
group go another way.)
In addition to trusting your ability to know what obstacles out on the trail are safe to
negotiate, and the best way to do so, you need to trust yourself in other non-horse-specific
ways.
Pay attention to that “little voice” in your head that warns you if the trail looks familiar. You
might find you’ve taken a wrong turn and you’re circling back out the direction you went
earlier. If you keep going your ride might be a lot longer than you originally planned. If you
“know” the trail shouldn’t be headed down a hill, but rather should be staying level, and you
find yourself headed down that hill, take care. Perhaps you missed a turn, or took one that
wasn’t marked on the map. I’ve even had two pieces of conflicting knowledge making it
difficult to navigate because I knew there should be a spur trail off to the right, but also that I
shouldn’t be going so far down the side of the ridge that the trail straight ahead was taking
me. Turns out what I thought was an old road to the left at that first junction was really the
trail. (Thankfully the combination of my map, GPS, and other trail markers helped me figure
out where I was and how to get to where I wanted to be.) Being prepared with the right
gear is also important but a subject for another article.
If you get a funny feeling about not going on a certain trail, or staying away from a group of
people you come across, or whatever, consider following that inner voice. It may not
always be right but better safe than sorry. It’s also good to develop some good weather
sense and trust yourself if you think the weather is starting to turn for the worse.
Basically, all of these scenarios boil down to paying attention to your surroundings and not
dismissing your observations. Little voices, funny feelings, inner voices, are all ways that our
unconscious mind helps our conscious mind deal with potential dangers and threats.
So get out there and start building a stronger, more trusting relationship with your horse.
You’ll both be glad you did!
course.
The most important thing is to make sure your obstacles are safe and that you or your horse
cannot get hung up in them or injured by them. The sky’s the limit as to the sorts of
obstacles you can create: bridges, tarp crossings, large barrels, taking raincoats off a post
and putting them back, large beach balls, pool noodles, long whips, ropes, cavalletti, you
name it. Google “horse obstacle course” or some variation and you’ll find all sorts of ideas.
You can also start your horse off by leading him through objects instead of riding him. For
some horses, seeing their leader (that’s YOU!) go through it unscathed can go a long way
to help them go through the obstacle calmly. Don’t forget, the idea isn’t to force your horse
to do something, or see how quickly he’ll do it, but how calmly. You want to develop a
partnership with your horse so the day you’re on the trail and your horse has to get through
something tricky, he’ll trust you enough to go through it when you ask. And, you’ll trust him
to carry you through it safely!
Another way to develop trust in your relationship is to find a seasoned buddy to ride with
and head out to the trail, facing things as they come along. You have to decide when your
horse is ready to go on the trail, and what level of trail he can handle. Balancing on steep
hills with a rider takes strength and balance, and your horse will need to learn it. He will
need to learn that rocks can be slippery, especially if shod. As you take your horse through
more and more difficult terrain and situations, you learn to trust him to carry you safely.
You learn to trust him not to try to turn tail and leave the county when he sees a mountain
bike headed his way. He learns that when you ask him to go up and down these hills, cross
these rocks, and face these bikes he’s not going to get hurt or eaten. Riding with that
seasoned buddy can help you learn what level of trail is appropriate for you and your horse
and help you prepare to face more difficult trails later. It’s also much safer to ride with
someone than by yourself.
Keep in mind when riding in a group that you may be called upon to make a decision that
will affect other rider’s and horse’s safety. People and horses are individuals and have
different skills and weaknesses, and you have to trust yourself when you decide how to
handle any given situation. You must take into account the skill levels of everyone with you
and decide if they and their mounts are up to facing any obstacles you come across.
(Obviously, other riders have a responsibility for themselves but if you honestly feel
someone you’re riding with won’t be able to handle that steep hill, for instance, you really
need to speak up tactfully. You can’t make them not go on that hill, but you can suggest the
group go another way.)
In addition to trusting your ability to know what obstacles out on the trail are safe to
negotiate, and the best way to do so, you need to trust yourself in other non-horse-specific
ways.
Pay attention to that “little voice” in your head that warns you if the trail looks familiar. You
might find you’ve taken a wrong turn and you’re circling back out the direction you went
earlier. If you keep going your ride might be a lot longer than you originally planned. If you
“know” the trail shouldn’t be headed down a hill, but rather should be staying level, and you
find yourself headed down that hill, take care. Perhaps you missed a turn, or took one that
wasn’t marked on the map. I’ve even had two pieces of conflicting knowledge making it
difficult to navigate because I knew there should be a spur trail off to the right, but also that I
shouldn’t be going so far down the side of the ridge that the trail straight ahead was taking
me. Turns out what I thought was an old road to the left at that first junction was really the
trail. (Thankfully the combination of my map, GPS, and other trail markers helped me figure
out where I was and how to get to where I wanted to be.) Being prepared with the right
gear is also important but a subject for another article.
If you get a funny feeling about not going on a certain trail, or staying away from a group of
people you come across, or whatever, consider following that inner voice. It may not
always be right but better safe than sorry. It’s also good to develop some good weather
sense and trust yourself if you think the weather is starting to turn for the worse.
Basically, all of these scenarios boil down to paying attention to your surroundings and not
dismissing your observations. Little voices, funny feelings, inner voices, are all ways that our
unconscious mind helps our conscious mind deal with potential dangers and threats.
So get out there and start building a stronger, more trusting relationship with your horse.
You’ll both be glad you did!
| Copyright 2006-2007 Missouri Trailblazing.com. All Rights Reserved |
Safe and fun trail riding depends on three kinds of trust: trust in yourself, trust in your horse, and
your horse’s trust in you. Without any one of these, your possibility of being frightened, injured
or worse increases. Even if nothing bad really happens, it can take all the joy out of your ride if
there is a lack of trust—and joyless riding is a bad thing all of it’s very own.
your horse’s trust in you. Without any one of these, your possibility of being frightened, injured
or worse increases. Even if nothing bad really happens, it can take all the joy out of your ride if
there is a lack of trust—and joyless riding is a bad thing all of it’s very own.
Unfortunately, most of us end up riding without
one or more of these kinds of trust out of
necessity. Ideally, we’d all learn to ride on an
older, “dead-broke” horse that could be
depended on to keep us safe from ourselves and
the world around us. Even if you have this
opportunity, it’s likely the day will come you’ll
start riding a new (to you, or a greenie) horse.
He may not trust you and you may not trust
him. You can develop mutual trust in many
ways. A lot of people use groundwork as a tool
to bond with and develop trust and a relationship
with their horses. Other people are more
comfortable developing that relationship under
saddle, like myself.
one or more of these kinds of trust out of
necessity. Ideally, we’d all learn to ride on an
older, “dead-broke” horse that could be
depended on to keep us safe from ourselves and
the world around us. Even if you have this
opportunity, it’s likely the day will come you’ll
start riding a new (to you, or a greenie) horse.
He may not trust you and you may not trust
him. You can develop mutual trust in many
ways. A lot of people use groundwork as a tool
to bond with and develop trust and a relationship
with their horses. Other people are more
comfortable developing that relationship under
saddle, like myself.
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