Enhancing your relationship starts on the ground

Does this describe you? You love your horse, and spending time with him. You enjoy riding, but feel something is missing. And you're not quite sure what it is? Maybe it's a feeling that something else could be going on. An awareness there is more, but you're just not sure how to go about it?

Try starting here:

• Go BE with your horse. By this I mean, be in the moment. NOW. Horses don't process future events the way we do. Stop thinking about future things, and just BE with your horse. Smell him, touch him, speak quietly to him.
  
• Get him, groom him, and take her into an enclosed paddock, or ring. Something smaller than a pasture. Tell him what your intentions are. Then let him go, and just sit there, or lean against the fence. (Maybe bring a chair and a book.) Notice if he gives any subtle notices to your being there. After about 10 minutes, stand up, walk toward him (with your shoulder in front), and stop about 20 feet away. Notice how he reacts. Does he look directly at you or does he completely ignore the fact you are there. If he looks up directly at you, (more than just a fleeting glance), or turns to face you, tell him he’s a good boy, and go away. Sit back down for another 10 minutes.
  
• Go toward him again. This time, you want him to give you more. Remember, you didn’t ask him to the first time. If he does nothing, say his name. If you still get nothing, slap your thigh. If you still get nothing say his name while making an arc toward her haunches. If you still get nothing, then ask him to move forward. You are now acting like the lead mare. Circle your arm, whatever it takes, until he STOPS moving AND TURNS to face you. Immediately stop the pressure, and praise him. Then leave again. Do this for as long as time allows.

The goal: For him to TURN and face you just because you are there. When you walk into the middle of the ring, no matter where he is, when he truly sees you as his leader, he will stop what he is doing and turn and face you. You will then be able to bend your body toward his haunches, walk in an arc, and have him keep turning to face you. He’ll almost be doing a turn on the forehand. This is advanced, don’t expect him to do this now, just wanted you to keep in mind the end result.

Eventually you will be able to walk into the pasture when he is grazing, and he'll turn and face you. Probably even walk up to you. When we stand there doing nothing, not expecting anything, it puzzles the horse. Not to mention it is very UNpredator-like. It causes the horse to be curious, to begin thinking about you in a different way.

• This is an exercise, for lack of a better word, that can and should be done regularly. It is not something you are ever finished with. It's not that once you achieve that goal you can stop and never do it again. It is continuous, it develops your relationship with your horse, as two individual beings. Note I did not say as horse and rider. Truly, the relationship has nothing to do with riding. Riding is simply a (fun) by product of the end result.
  

Loretta

20/20 Horsemanship