Partnering Your Horse E-Book

Susan McBane

• Herausgeber: Kenilworth Press
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 262

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023

Beschreibung

Partnering Your Horse is a guide to horse-appropriate training techniques and the development of mutual trust between horse and rider. The book imparts effective, humane training and conditioning in handling and riding, and combines newer, scientifically proven methods plus long-established 'kinder' techniques. Horses are an enigma. Big, strong, fast prey animals, they are sensitive, lightning reactors to danger. If they connect that danger to us, they can lose their faith in us forever. Despite this, they are 'trainable', capable of forming strong bonds with humans they trust, and welcoming us into their society as associates and even friends, although not as bosses or masters as previously believed, a concept alien to them. However, we need to work at maintaining their welcome and the best way of doing that is to be partners who persuade them to do things with us, and who do not hurt, frighten or confuse them. So much common horse sense has been lost over the years that many people don't realise that certain methods advocated in today's horse world have created an increase in behaviour problems. In Partnering Your Horse, author, Classical Riding Club trainer and Gold Award holder Susan McBane offers a proven way of riding and horse management, of restoring horses' faith and trust in us – and of producing one of the best friends we'll ever have. The book benefits from appealing and instructive illustrations by eminent equestrian artist, Maggie Raynor.

Leseprobe

First published 2023

Kenilworth Press An imprint of Quiller Publishing The Hill, Stroud Gloucestershire, GL5 4EP

www.quillerpublishing.com

Copyright © Susan McBane, 2023

The right of Susan McBane to be identified as the Author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

ISBN 9781910016466 (HARDBACK) ISBN 9781910016473 (eBOOK)

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without the permission in writing from the Publishers.

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data. A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

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Typesetting by SJmagic DESIGN SERVICES, India. Printed in the UK.

The front-cover photograph by Paul Whitmore shows Lauren Whitmore, Dip OSSM, Dip ICAT, ESMI, with her horse, Flash.

The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. All recommendations are made without any guarantee on the part of the publisher and author, who also disclaim any liability incurred in connection with the use of this data or specific details. The opinions expressed by the author in this book are her own views and may or may not be those of others.

CONTENTS

Before you Start...

Acknowledgements

Author Biography

1Knowing Horses

The Kind of Animal Evolution has Produced

2What is Your Horse Telling You?

Body Language and Recognising Well-being

3Care and Management Really Matter

Feeding, Housing, Bedding, Turnout and General Care

4Tack, Clothing and Protective Items

There is More to it than you Think

5How Horses Move Naturally

Why we Should Let Them

6Co-operation, not Domination

Riding With Your Horse, not Against Him

7How Horses Learn

And so, How to Train Them

8Handling and Groundwork

Good Companions

9Flatwork

From Going Backwards to Galloping

10Jumping

Forward to the Past

Epilogue

Books to Trust

Help and Information

Before you Start...

I’d like to tell you what this book is about – why I felt it was necessary and how real partnership can be applied in practice to our association with horses.

The book is as much about attitudes and viewpoints as about horse-friendly techniques and principles. Many people, when talking about their relationship with their horse, often described as a partnership, are rather still thinking in terms of a boss/servant arrangement rather than an actual partnership. Much depends on how we have been brought up with horses and taught to think about them. We often think that we are providing the best of everything for our horse or horses, that they are living in luxury and have everything they need and want. But many of us look at things from a human perspective rather than an equine one: in other words, we don’t really look at what horses want and need from their point of view but from ours – and this applies to not only their work for us but also their care and management.

The verb ‘to partner’ means to associate with or work together. So far as equestrianism is concerned, a horse and rider clearly do both those things. We sometimes come across the description of a horse-and-rider pair as being ‘a true partnership’ which gives the impression of there being equal status for both members in that partnership. Most people would feel that there has to be an upper hand on our part for safety reasons: horses are living and working in a man-made world. Some aspects involve being ridden/exercised on busy roads or being confined to a stable for many hours of the day with limited turnout, if any. There can still be a real partnership and we can secure this through horse-appropriate training and management techniques and the development of mutual trust.

There are also critical situations when a horse we are riding has taken charge and saved us both from a potentially disastrous outcome. It doesn’t take much experience of horses, or even small ponies, for us to realise that equines are cleverer and more knowing than we have thought. They are very heavy, extremely strong, lightning reactors to anything they perceive as dangerous and, if really panicked, they can become uncontrollable to the peril of themselves and any person or animal nearby.

Can this really be the same horse or pony who nuzzles us for attention, gently mugs our pockets for food or just tags along with us as we poo-pick the paddock because he or she likes us and feels safe in our company? It’s even more of a compliment when he leaves his friends and comes over to us, knowing very well that we don’t carry treats in our pockets. How can such a big softy possibly turn into a potential, if unintentional, killer in a split second?

An ideal fit

The answer lies in the type of animals horses are. They are perfect examples of prey animals, food for others, and their almost instantaneous reactions to danger are what kept them and their predecessors alive and thriving for millions of years, before we domesticated them about 6,000 or 7,000 years ago. That is nothing like long enough to water down horses’ evolved characteristics, which suit them perfectly to living in the open, in groups, grazing and browsing, and galloping away from danger.

Horses’ long legs, long necks and heads, with eyes set high on the sides of the head, give a nearly all-round view. Their highly sensitive hearing along with the ability to rest and sleep lightly standing up enable them to spot and gallop away from predators in an instant. The predators may run as fast as or faster than their prey, but another priceless feature – horses’ instinct to herd – means that only one kill satisfies a whole family of canine or feline hunters, leaving the rest of the herd to carry on life as normal. The herd members also rarely lie down all at the same time, there usually being one or two individuals left standing on watch to warn those lying down: it takes a sleeping horse about three or four seconds to wake, get up and start galloping.

The horse’s brain does not immediately differentiate between a metal bucket dropped on the yard behind him, a bird flying into his face or a plastic bag about to grab his precious legs. It signals immediate danger! The horse’s body floods instantly with ‘alert’ hormones while he mindlessly resorts to his first reaction – getting away. The flight-or-fight response is very familiar to horse people. Most horses only fight in defence when they can’t escape something frightening but, because of their weight and great strength, this is their characteristic that is the most dangerous to us and we have to accept it.

(A few horses hide, if they can, or freeze when terrified. This is believed to be a remnant from the days when their early ancestors were forest-living, running away was barely possible and there was plenty of shrubbery and other greenery in which to hide.)

Working with what we’ve got

What has this to do with partnership? It means, firstly, that for both parties to be reasonably safe we have to damp down this instinct and control the horse’s actions and reactions, as much as possible by means of effective, humane training and conditioning in our handling and riding. Secondly, it is obvious that rough, tough methods of dealing with horses will bring out the worst in many of them because they will be constantly on the defensive in our presence – not good or safe for either of us.

A situation has gradually developed over the past few decades in which a domineering and often harsh form of riding has become prevalent. At the same time, unsurprisingly, more horses are, I believe, put down for behavioural problems than ever before. Also, the general public, ‘horsey’ or not, is becoming increasingly ready publicly to object to and formally complain about perceived mistreatment. So far as partnership is concerned, horses do not respond favourably to a bossy, hard attitude. Modern rigorous research and studies have shown that they do not have overall ‘herd bosses’ of either gender to which the others must kowtow. Although individuals may have pushy or more laid-back characters, human-type hierarchies are not part of horses’ social lives, as will be explained in this book.

There have always been bad horse people – rough riders and users, and also ‘weak’ ones who frighten some horses with their inconsistency, irrationality and lack of self-confidence but allow others to walk all over them. Conversely, there have always been special people who seem to have remarkably close relationships with horses, as though they understand them naturally, think like them and, using patience and gentleness (which is not the same as weakness) work wonders with them. This book will help its readers to work along the same lines.

Changing dynamics, economics and regulation

Until a couple of decades ago, research had been mainly in veterinary medicine but now there is much more rigorous work done on equine psychology and behaviour. This has revealed new knowledge of how horses really operate, think and learn, and has identified the most humane and effective ways in which to train and manage them, to the benefit and safety of our horses and ourselves.

Horses have varying personalities, like us, but one thing is known for certain now – they ‘do’ better for people who genuinely understand them, know what they are doing and do it with gentleness and confidence. The hard attitude that has grown in parts of the horse world in the past half-century or so is clearly misplaced and there seem to be several reasons for its worrying hold on equestrianism. One is the need of some humans to compete with others and show their superiority, using horses as their vehicles. Another is the changing economics of the work environment leading to the closure of many good riding schools that taught an older, kinder form of horsemanship.

Lack of basic knowledge and experience born of practical work has brought to the fore the natural, common human response to difficult situations, such as a horse seen as unmanageable or unwilling – and that is to get tough. Not knowing what to do with such a horse, particularly when the chips are down in a competition or stressful situation, many people resort to forceful, even brutal methods, which may create a violent reaction in a horse or, conversely, achieve short-term success of a sort but at the cost of the horse-human relationship and the horse’s well-being. If it doesn’t and happens again, the horse may well be on the road to the knacker’s yard.

Worse is that this hard, ‘big boss’ attitude is almost the norm in much equestrianism today, even when the horse is not ‘unmanageable’ or ‘unwilling’, apparently employed all the time as a preventative measure. This is not horsemanship – it is bullying. Thank goodness it is not universal within our milieu, but I feel it necessary to get to the bottom of its development and pervasiveness in the horse world. I think the main reasons, apart from an excessive ‘will to win’, are the lack of good, general horse knowledge since the closure, usually for economic reasons, of many excellent riding schools and training centres large and small and the consequent lack of knowledge in people riding and associating with horses which leaves them unable to handle, manage and care for them appropriately. In desperation, they resort to harsh, desperate measures – and this does not only apply to relatively novice horse people. Those who want to make a career out of horses grow up and may be trained in these methods because former principles are often no longer understood. Teachers then often pass on this travesty to their clients who, not unnaturally, trust them and act accordingly.

Newer, scientifically proven methods plus the older, more empathetic ones based on long experience and the often daily association with horses enjoyed by previous generations can solve and prevent these problems – for ‘ordinary’ riders as well as household names. Learning how horses really think and learn, learning how their minds and bodies really work, and putting what they need and want on a par with what we want – that is the path to forming a true partnership with horses.

Susan McBane

June 2022

Acknowledgements

I want firstly to thank the publisher of this book, Kenilworth Press, for taking on its publication. This particular book, as stated earlier, is different from most educational or training-type books because it concentrates, at the root of everything, on our attitude to horses and the privilege of being able to own our own horse or horses or ride someone else’s, either at a riding school or college, or in connection with our work if we work with them. Horses have been used by humans for thousands of years for food, sport, transport and any other activity in which their speed and/or strength could be of use to us. This inevitably led to their being regarded as tools or vehicles and generally being regarded as disposable.

Today, that attitude is no longer being tolerated by much of the general public worldwide. The UK government has only within recent years brought into law the fact that horses are sentient animals but that has brought to the fore the will to examine more closely how we treat them. We are hearing a lot now about our social licence to operate, or gain ‘permission’ from the public, to continue to avail ourselves of everything horses have to offer us.

Most books are enhanced by good, appropriate illustrations and I have had the good fortune to have several of my books graced by one of the best-known equestrian artists in the UK, known internationally, indeed – Maggie Raynor. It is a great relief to any author to know that their illustrations are in the hands of a supreme professional who also knows the subject inside out. As a classical rider and a horse owner herself with an excellent knowledge of equine biomechanics and psychology, she really knows her stuff, and I am grateful to be corrected by her when I get something wrong. I purposely chose to have this book illustrated only by her drawings instead of including photographs as well because you can show exactly what you want in a drawing whereas it can be extremely difficult to do so with photographs. I was delighted that she agreed to complement yet another of my books, so my most sincere thanks, Maggie, for partnering me in this endeavour to promote truly horse-friendly knowledge, attitudes and practices in all our dealings with a most remarkable animal – the horse.

Author Biography

Susan McBane is known worldwide as a long-established author, having written forty-six books, contributed to, edited and revised several others for publishers and written hundreds of magazine articles. She has an HNC in Equine Science and Management, is a Classical Riding Club listed trainer and Gold Award holder, and an Associate Member of the International Society for Equitation Science. (For information on both organisations, see Help and Information at the end of this book.)

In 1978, with Dr Moyra Williams, herself an author, clinical psychologist, sport-horse breeder and intrepid horsewoman, Susan founded the Equine Behaviour Study Circle, later re-named the Equine Behaviour Forum, editing its members’ journal, Equine Behaviour, for thirty years.

Susan has edited two commercial magazines, self-publishing one of them – EQUI – and is currently Publishing Editor of Tracking-up, a voluntary, non-profit quarterly which she produces with three friends. She taught classical riding for twenty years, for most of that time combining it with equitation science, and has found the two schools of thought together to be the most effective and humane method of equine care and management, training and riding. She has also acted as an expert witness, consultant, peer reviewer, judge and speaker on equestrian topics.

1

Knowing Horses

The Kind of Animal Evolution has Produced

In this chapter:

Horses are probably the most useful animals to man that ever evolved.

Brief history of equine development.

How the changing planet and climate produced today’s horses and ponies, from forests to plains, and how this has formed them in mind and body.

Why they do not all have the same characteristics.

Can you think of any other animal that has the same qualities as a horse and has been as useful to humans for thousands of years? In general, horses are strong, they are fast, they can jump and they are trainable: also, they are sociable with other species, they have excellent memories, they are adaptable within limits and they are intelligent, the gauge of intelligence being how well an animal survives in its natural environment.

There are downsides to the horse’s complement of natural characteristics – they are very sensitive and, because they evolved as vegetarian prey animals, they are lightning reactors to anything that startles or frightens them, acting first and thinking later when alarmed. This latter quality plus their size and great strength makes them potentially dangerous. There is no getting away from it. There is no other creature which quite fits this description so well as a horse. They also have one prime concern in common with most other animals including humans – survival.

Evolution

The overall picture of the evolution of the horse family is a familiar one. It has taken about 50 million years for the horse we know so well to develop, in all its varieties, most of which were created very late in that time by man, intentionally and otherwise.

From a dog-sized, multi-toed creature living in forests and swamps, the horse’s ancestors adapted by means of genetic mutations to the earth’s changing climatic variations and environments. Some believe that creatures of all kinds can unconsciously place the stresses of living in a given lifestyle on their genes to change along with local requirements. Others prefer the theory that genes change or mutate, and are inherited, randomly, so if genes happen to mutate in a way that produces features which enable their possessors to cope with the changing environment, they will physically and behaviourally adapt to it. If they don’t, extinction can result because their inherent qualities cannot cope with the new surroundings.

Whatever the method of mutation, the modern horse’s ancestors did change to fit the environment on the different parts of the planet in which they found themselves. By the time recognisably different species had developed, the early ‘primordial soup’, as it is known, of around four billion years ago was long gone. The planet had developed different climates on different parts of it, as today, weather and seasons evolved and creatures of myriad different kinds thrived in the air, on land and in water, salty and fresh. The niche of the horse’s ancestors was on land but in different parts of the planet with different climates, so those horses, if we yet can call them that, developed different characteristics to suit where they were – or, according to the other theory, those whose genes happened to have mutated in such a way as to fit the horse to survive in one particular weather/climate band did so and thrived.

All this means that, over the thousands and millions of years, the forested and swampy regions diminished and other environments appeared as well – plains, deserts, steppes, hot temperatures, cold temperatures, rains, snows, winds, earth movements and so on, and all points in between, which necessitated, one way or another, wide-ranging, different physical and mental characteristics to enable their possessors to live in those areas, survive, thrive, breed and become populous. (Today, there are 40 million donkeys in the world.)

Figure 1.1: The horse’s conformation and biomechanics are ideally equipped for a prey animal that needs to gallop away from predators. The fastest gallop stride extends so that each foot travels and lands separately, so lengthening the stride. The stride is also lengthened by horses having no collar bone and shoulder joint as such, so the forelegs are free to extend further, creating a longer stride.

The fact that our horse’s ancestors gradually experienced a diminishing number of toes until they are now down to one hard but sensitive hoof on the end of each leg, is slightly controversial. Some experts have said that this enables them to run faster but, considering that the fastest land animal on earth that may well have preyed on equines (and does on zebras, I believe) is the cheetah which has a full complement of toes on each soft foot, this doesn’t seem to hold water. The single toe, or hoof, of equids represents the end of our middle finger or toe, the chestnut on the insides of the legs is probably a remnant of another toe and the ergot, that little horny projection on the lower, back of the fetlock, is likely another (as are the splint bones on legs), but there is apparently no evidence on the skeleton of this being the case. In both cases, they continue to grow and need trimming.

As well as changing feet, horse ancestors grew taller and developed longer bodies, legs, necks and heads, as well as long strands of hair for their manes and tails. Initially, ancient horses were forest and swamp animals and could easily find food all around. While multi-toed feet are an advantage in swampy ground, hooves as we know them are not, but as forests developed the fewer toes were not a disadvantage. It is postulated that horses developed the habit of hiding from predators among the dense shrubbery in forests rather than running away from them – difficult in a forest – and also that this could be where the skill of jumping (over fallen tree trunks) came from.

A change of diet, a change of features

Longer heads and necks helped to compensate for longer legs while grazing a new food that appeared – the grasses. Those legs were the key to the horses’ survival while being hunted, enabling their speed to increase alongside that of the also-changing feline and canine hunters that were an ever-present danger. It was now that horses’ instincts to flee rather than stand and fight, if possible, developed and became their strongest instinct, the one we humans need to be most aware of in dealing with them. To assist in this, horses developed large hearts for their body size, super-efficient lungs and excellent air (chemical) exchange in their circulatory systems.

In a herd, it is very rare that all its members lie down to sleep or even rest at the same time. There is always a lookout or two remaining standing to warn the others of approaching danger, so that they can be up, on their feet and galloping away within a few seconds. To experience the most restorative kind of sleep they need to lie flat out but they can sleep lightly and doze heavily while lying balanced on their breastbones. Even standing up, they can doze and be off in a flash. While grazing, their long, thin legs are not much obstruction to large eyes set on the sides of the head near the top. This gives horses the facility of being able, with a small turn of the head, to see all around them to watch for danger yet feed at the same time, while their long necks also enable them to reach up and browse leaves from trees and shrubbery.

Horses’ different types of hair also developed, either because of or incidental to the type of climate they were living in. The nearest we can get today to a truly wild horse is the Przewalski, native to Eastern Russia, Mongolia and similar regions. Like many equines, whether we would call them horses or ponies, that developed in cold, harsh climates, they have stocky bodies that hold the heat better than ‘finer’ equids, their manes and tails are of densely grown, coarse hair which also help in heat retention, and the fetlocks of horses living in similar areas are also covered in hairs, sometimes up to halfway up the legs. Horses naturally shelter from wind, and any rain or snow it might be bringing with it, by turning their hindquarters to it, so that their thin-skinned, sensitive areas between the buttocks are shielded from the weather. Some of these heavy or stocky types have manes that fall down both sides of their necks to retain the warmth in a relatively thin area of the body, while their rounded bodies can keep heat centralised within.

Figure 1.2: In a natural equine family, consisting of a stallion, one or more adult mares and young stock, friendships between horses are close, particularly between mares and daughters. Young males are often sent away by the stallion when they become mature enough to mate – a natural way of avoiding inbreeding.

Compare the similar but different physical features of animals that evolved in hot areas of the planet. The typical hot-blood is what we call the Arabian but there is also the Akhal-Teke (a Russian breed) and the Karabakh, and other similar breeds. In recent decades it has been discovered, via genetics, that there is a good deal of, particularly, Akhal-Teke and Arabian blood in the most famous breed in the world, the Thoroughbred. The resemblance between some Thoroughbreds and, particularly, the Akhal-Teke, is unmissable. I had a wonderful Thoroughbred mare who looked like the full sister of an Akhal-Teke in an old book I had.

Horses evolved in hot climates invariably have thinner skin, thinner shorter coats, finer mane and tail hair, longer legs in relation to their bodies and, temperament-wise, are often ‘hotter’ or more easily aroused emotionally. The physical features are easy to account for. The thinner skin allows them to sweat more readily and lose heat that way, and to lose more body heat more quickly by means of simply radiating it out from their bodies. Their finer coats do protect their skin but barely obstruct heat loss from the body, although such horses can often grow surprisingly long winter coats, particularly if they are out a good deal. Not only, therefore, has evolution shaped them but also so can short-term environmental changes.

As for the psychological, mental development of horses, they developed as pure vegetarians and happened to develop, whether large or small animals, relatively chunky, meaty bodies which made them popular prey for carnivores. One equine carcase can feed a family of feline or canine hunters for days.

From our point of view, we need to recognise that this historic tendency is still very strong in domesticated horses and ponies today. It may seem unlikely to us, because they are not preyed on conventionally in domestic life, but anything that is unfamiliar, makes weird noises, moves quickly, particularly at ground level whether a dog or a plastic bag, or smells unfamiliar can instantly awaken the flight-or-fight instinct in equines. The quietest little pony to the most highly strung Thoroughbred can, without thinking, spin and gallop away, if possible, to preserve itself. If that is not possible, if the horse or pony is tied up, in an enclosed area such as a stable or small pen or (unusual in the UK) hobbled, it will fight with all its tremendous strength to get free. There is no thinking process in this. It is pure instinct and many an injury, to horse and human, has resulted from such incidents in a stable or other enclosed space.

If we are riding such an animal, and it can happen to any of us even if the chance is very low, we have to depend on the security of our seat in the saddle, on the possibility of our aids getting through to the horse and on the hope of bringing him or her under control as soon as may be. It has to be admitted that this may be difficult!

Applying evolution to management

This section is a brief rundown on dealing with what nature has given us, and will be dealt with in more detail mainly in Chapter 3 but also throughout the rest of the book.

The one thing horses and ponies do most of is eat. They evolved to eat for roughly sixteen out of twenty-four hours every day. They cannot help needing to do this but it is something most domestic horses don’t get the chance to do unless they are on pasture. Yet this is an essential feature of their make-up and well-being and really has to be catered for if you want to be a friend and partner to your horse. Lack of this facility can cause a good deal of discomfort, distress and actual illness and pain in the form of ulcers in the stomach and elsewhere in the digestive system. I am sure it is a significant contributing factor to the development of stereotypical behaviours (formerly called ‘stable vices’) in mainly stabled horses.

There has long been the understandable belief that athletically working horses must be kept on restricted fibre (hay, haylage, grass) in their diet because they cannot gallop and jump with such bulky, roughage-type food passing through their guts most of the time. As well as adversely affecting their work, it would cause digestive problems with all that weight and fibrous mass in their digestive systems – a not unreasonable supposition. There are ways of compromising, however, without putting your horse at that kind of risk.

Figure 1.3: Horses spend most of their waking hours grazing but they still have to watch out for danger. Their eyes are set high on the sides of their heads, they have long, very flexible necks and their legs are thin and hardly obstruct their view, so they can still easily spot trouble all around.

As humans, we tend to try to give our horses what we would regard as a comfortable home, as in a well-equipped and supplied stable, yet we know very well that a stable is far from a natural home for a horse and does not supply two of his three most necessary needs, and often not even the third one, either. Those needs are (1) tactile, social contact, (2) space and movement, and (3) enough appropriate food to keep him satisfied and occupied.

It seems that, because stabling has been the most common method of housing horses or keeping them under convenient control, for certainly hundreds and maybe even thousands of years, we now naturally believe that that is the right way to keep them. Just considering the basic evolution described above shows us that stabling, at least too much of it, is, in fact, a pretty poor way to keep horses.

Tactile, social contact: