The material and attendant photo illustrations found on this website are copyrighted © 2004 by R. J. Sagely. The reprinting or distribution of the whole or any part without express permission of the author is prohibited. This notice supercedes any other copyright notices and dates found herein.

"The Problem with a Horse…"

An essay by R J Sagely

… is that it is so dead set on being a horse. That should never be thought of as a bad thing and it is certainly something that should surprise us very little. It can mean so many things, too, things often misunderstood or simply overlooked in our desire to have the horse be other things for us than simply itself.

In my efforts through the years to help people and horses I have found that many folks are surprised to hear me say this and it takes awhile for me to communicate what I mean when I say it. They are equally surprised to learn how simple adjustments in their mindset as they do things with a horse can net huge changes in the horse and then... no problem horse. These are changes that will accommodate our needs and desires and help the horse understand those needs and desires of ours. When the horse can understand, the problem horse just isn't. He really never was either... the problem horse is a figment of our desire.

For a long time I tried to change people's minds about this by refusing to call a horse a "problem" horse. In my own mind and in my own way, I still don't accept the label that too many good horses get tagged with. Though I now advertise occasionally to help with "problem" horses I do so because that little give on my part gets me in the door more often than trying to convince people ahead of any changes in their horse that the horse is not the problem. It seems like folks have to see some changes first before they can start believing that believing in the horse is a key to solving the real problem.

I don't blame the folks for being this way, it is often all they have known and until they can see their horse be different from this kind of mindset shift it is difficult for them to know how changing themselves can affect the horse so obviously, thoroughly and quickly. Not some new nifty halter or bit that will give you "control" over the horse, not some magical horse-whispering / secret training regimen, just a simple belief that the horse has it in him to cooperate if he can just understand what he is cooperating with. Without that understanding he has his only other closest ally for getting along in the world, a natural fear that will get him gone until he is far enough away to stop and consider another shot at understanding what was confusing/scaring him.

There is a huge responsibility that we should take on when we take a horse into our world. We do take this on when we accept that the horse is going to be alright if we can help him understand and will be scared if we do not. We take this on when we begin to see that his way of reacting and dealing with things is enhanced or hindered by how we offer it to him. This is true not just the first time we introduce new things. It is in every time we come to him and do something old hat too. And we turn away from this responsibility when we think of the horse as a problem and grab the twitch when he has trouble standing for the shoer... when we tranquilize him to get him into a trailer for a horse show... when we grab a bigger bit cause he can't (won't) stop when we would like.

The fact that these things "work", in a manner of speaking, allows us to go ahead and leave that responsibility to become a better horseperson for the horse's sake out of our mindset. It lets us just go ahead and take what little these devices and mindsets get us and blame the horse when we become dissatisfied with how little that really is, when these effects don't last or don't result in real and meaningful changes. It gets whatever job it does get done with fear instead of cooperation, it is a stopgap and a shortcut. It drains the willingness and the life out of a horse to do things this way... and it just does not need be this way...

So what can we offer the horse instead of the handle "problem" horse and instead of resorting to fear, pain and force? For me, it is a mindset we can offer that says the horse is alright and can do any reasonable thing I ask of him, from the simple to the complex. So when he isn't, we need to adjust what we are bringing to a manner he can understand. Not by excuse making or letting him dictate totally how things will be but at the same time realizing what the reluctance, balkiness, nervousness or other behaviors are telling us about how well the understanding is developing. When he understands what is going on these things just drain out of the picture.

This is true no matter how tough it has become for him in the past to get along with a human. The only caveat to us getting anywhere together is that I have to establish a foundation of trust and confidence as a first stepping stone. I have to set it up so he can stop and think and get a good feel of what I am offering and asking. He needs his natural curiosity to stay at the surface, available to tap into as he learns to cope and perform. He cannot do that if it hurts. He cannot do that if I am too quick or too rough or too hard. He cannot do that if he does not understand. He can do that if I can do my part to help him. Calling him a problem won't help him and it won't help me help him. So I don't... I encourage you to try and think the same...

*Disclaimer*
Horsemanship is an inherently dangerous practice and horses are inherently unpredictable animals. The person attempting to follow any suggestion or instruction from Bob Sagely or Sage Horsemanship is to do so at their own risk and assumes full responsibility for themselves, their horse and any others in the vicinity. The success or safety for human or horse in utilizing any of the practices or strategies for horsemanship suggested or promoted on this site or by Bob Sagely or Sage Horsemanship directly or indirectly through any other media is neither implied nor guaranteed. Be smart, be careful and seek personal supervision when trying to learn new things or apply these principles or techniques.

The material and attendant photo illustrations found on this website are copyrighted © 2004 by R. J. Sagely. The reprinting or distribution of the whole or any part without express permission of the author is prohibited. This notice supercedes any other copyright notices and dates found herein.