[Picture caption: woman sits on chestnut horse who isn’t wearing any equipment]

I obtained a personal message from somebody asking my opinion on getting ready a horse to be ridden for the primary time utilizing constructive reinforcement (R+), with out the usage of any tack or gear. It is a topic on which I’ve had robust opinions for some time however have by no means shared publicly. This felt like a superb alternative to air a few of my considerations, within the hopes that by doing so it probably prevents each horses and other people from experiencing conditions which might end in bodily or behavioural accidents.

As a former teacher and horse coach, I’ve began (and restarted) horses below saddle utilizing what many would name horsemanship strategies:

•I’ve systematically ready horses via groundwork coaching and desensitization to tack/gear earlier than using

•I’ve taught them cues to maneuver their our bodies ahead and backwards or transfer one a part of their physique in isolation (hindquarters, forequarters and so forth.).

•I’ve taught them to yield their our bodies to the texture of sunshine pressures, from my bodily contact and gear corresponding to halters & leadrope, in addition to ‘instructed’ strain, from my physique or gear corresponding to flags.

In brief, earlier than I swing my leg over their backs for the primary time, I do my greatest to make sure that they’ve been taught to calmly settle for any course I may have to provide them as soon as I’m on them.

I do that as a result of I’ve each witnessed and personally skilled the facility – and fallout – of an ill-prepared horse being ridden. This usually ends in bodily and/or behavioural accidents to each horse and human. For instance, regardless of me considering I had adequately ready a horse (when clearly, I had not), one eventful trip resulted in me sustaining a fracture to my thoracic vertebrae and the horse growing a robust worry of individuals falling off when he bucked exhausting.

Regardless of splendid preparation, ‘life’ can nonetheless occur when a horse is initially ridden: the neighbour sparks up her chainsaw; a canine runs into the world via the outlet within the fence; or, as has occurred to me, a horse tied up exterior the world pulls again exhausting or somebody driving down the highway paintballs the facet of the world by which you might be using. In such moments, I’ve been grateful that I took the time to show my horse to calmly settle for gear that aids in me directing their physique in order that I might make use of instant response prevention.

Response prevention is ‘the process of altering the setting to stop undesirable behaviour from occurring’ (Likelihood, P. 2003). Response prevention will not be punishment, however it may be an efficient, low-stress different to stop undesirable behaviours occurring. In conditions corresponding to those described above, response prevention is used to stop a small startle response from changing into a extra catastrophic chain response of behaviour: the horse startles and spooks, the rider slips, the horse sees and feels this alteration of place and bolts, the rider falls off. The rider is bodily (and probably behaviourally) injured, and the horse has been subjected to a preventable scenario the place worry conditioning quickly happens.

Using gear on a horse for his or her first trip does not assure that bodily or behavioural accidents will not happen. However via response prevention, gear, very like the fence round an enviornment the place a horse is began, completely can decrease any hurt which will happen.

I perceive absolutely how new trainers might discover it a powerfully interesting image to see a horse being began below saddle utterly equipment-free. Nonetheless, as a medical animal behaviourist and IAABC licensed horse behaviour marketing consultant, I really feel strongly that such footage fail to think about the potential unintended, harmful ramifications for each horses and people. For folks and horses, some accidents cannot ever actually be healed. Bodily or behavioural scars might stay. Regardless of the usage of evidence-based, low-stress behaviour modification methods to assist horses overcome behavioural accidents, relapse of realized fears is unfortunately widespread. It is a actuality, it doesn’t matter what quadrant we might attempt to make use of when beginning a horse. Lots of my shoppers face this actuality after we work collectively to assist their horses overcome a variety of realized fears.

In abstract, I really feel strongly that we owe it to each the horses and the great era of latest, R+ horse trainers to color a unique image of low-stress coaching: one which additionally considers minimizing potential trauma via response prevention.