Holding A Horse Accountable For What They Know

It is a common understanding that no two horses are the same. As the rider, you have to be able to adapt and understand the horse as you work with it. Something I have been working on a lot is understanding what the horse knows and that it needs to be held accountable for. I have to focus on this a lot when working with horses because I know what the horse is trained to do, but sometimes forgot what stage in its training the horse is at. What I mean by this is, sometimes, when working a finished horse that has been being used for lessons, I get a bit too harsh with my hands. If I ask the horse to stop and it's not quick to respond or is sloppy I might pull too hard on its face or reach too fast. This is because I know that this horse, in the prime of his career, would have stopped on a dime with no questions asked. Yet, I have forgotten this horse is now a retired lesson horse that is used to getting away with being lazy due to immature riders. I have to constantly remember what I can hold the horse accountable for.

Lauren and Whisper

By watching and being observant with how the rider and their horse works together, I can understand the horse’s behavior and needs before applying my own understanding of the horse as I work with it. I have done this many times with Lauren’s mare, Whisper. There were many hours I spent leaning against the round pen watching Lauren work with her. I observed how she asked the mare to do maneuvers and I watched how the mare reacted. This allowed me to see how she normally is handled and gave me a good idea on how I could help the horse improve. Then, when I got on Whisper, I could ride and ask her to do different things, just like Lauren had. This let me feel how she normally would move and, from there, I was able to help the mare improve. After awhile, Whisper learned how to listen to the commands I give. That allowed Lauren and I to compare how Whisper reacted and figured out what method worked better for her horse.

Lauren and Whisper

The trick of this is that I had to watch for what the mare was being held accountable. Was she allowed to run around at the speed she wished? Was she reprimanded when naughty? Was she allowed to pick were they went or the things they did? Then when she was corrected and asked to perform different maneuvers, was she asked in a passive or assertive way? By watching, I then knew what I could hold the mare accountable for when I eventually got on her.

The most important thing I did was talk to Lauren about her training methods she had tried or didn’t want me to use. I also listening to the background of the horse and learn as much as I could about the mare. By knowing her history I was able to understand and feel more comfortable with who Whisper now it.

Lauren and Whisper (left) and Jaksen and Sally (right)

What exactly did I hold Whisper accountable for? I knew I was able to dictate the speed she moved at and the direction she went, just by watching Lauren work with the mare. I also knew I could hold a harder hand on her if needed and the mare would not act out, but instead would fold in and accept my guiding hand.

By watching and understanding what Whisper was used to when Lauren rode her, I can then apply my own knowledge and use it to help the horse improve. In the same breath, by knowing what the horse is normally held accountable for, I can know how stern I can be when it steps out of line. Being an equestrian is a combination of knowing the horse’s way of learning and understanding what the horse needs be held accountable for in order to improve itself.

-Jaksen