Being the herd leader

I was talking to a client who owns a dominant mare that she is considering selling, for several reasons. One of which is the fact she is so dominant over her herd of 1 that he is constantly getting bitten. When I visited the farm I watched and waited. Sure enough it was not long before the nipping started. So, I took on the role of the herd leader, ousting the mare. I walked over to her in a very stern way and told her to move with my body. I did not speak a word. Horses are very quiet animals. We need not speak to communicate clearly. She was quite puzzled and it appeared she had never been treated like this by a human. She questioned me, and I reinforced to her, "Yes, I said move NOW." So, with pinned ears, back she went. Since she pinned her ears and that is slightly aggressive on her part, I decided to keep moving her for another few moments. And these really were just moments. For the rest of the time I was visiting she did NOT tell her herd mate to move-at all.

The owner's comment was, "Oh, I just yell at her." We talked about this for a while. If you have not been exposed to this type of training it may not be obvious. Once you understand it though, it will always be the best answer. I 'spoke' to the horse in her language. She was the boss and proved that by moving the other. I was the boss and proved that by moving her. In a herd, the one who controls the movement is the leader. Let's say that again, the one who controls the movement is the leader. You will find many behavior issues can be dealt with once you are aware of how the herd interacts, and how they perceive your actions.

Loretta


clear communication/visible results