What Your Horse Wants You to Know

Gincy Self Bucklin

Description

Listen to and communicate with your horse-successfully

"This is a book for everyone who has ever looked at the constantly increasing list of methods and systems marketed as 'horsemanship' and wondered which of the many possible approaches would be most suitable for a particular behavior problem. Gincy Bucklin has distilled her many years of experience with horses and riders into a very useful, step-by-step, hands-on book. Bucklin's writing is smooth and easy to read, and no matter where you open this book, you'll find that her deep respect and affection for both equines and humans shines through."
-Dr. Jessica Jahiel, author of Riding for the Rest of Us

"Gincy Bucklin uses her decades-long experience with horses to answer that most frequently asked question: 'Why did my horse do that?' And she comes up with creative solutions that weave together traditional horse handling with the best of modern horse training, including my own personal favorite, clicker training."
-Alexandra Kurland, author of Clicker Training for Your Horse and The Click That Teaches video lesson series

It takes time for a horse to learn everything we want him to know. If we don't make our intentions clear to him in ways that he can understand, or if we don't listen to what he wants, problems may result. Featuring easy-to-follow, step-by-step advice, What Your Horse Wants You to Know reveals how to communicate effectively with your horse to create an atmosphere of mutual cooperation.

What Your Horse Wants You to Know focuses on improving your horse's behavior on the ground, so you can develop relationship and communications skills without the more challenging problems that arise once you're on his back.
* Use your entire body to communicate with your horse
* Show your horse that you respect his needs and feelings
* Be patient and consistent with your horse while having fun
* Understand your horse's fears and overcome them
* Respond appropriately to physiological or nutritional problems
* Use praise to make your horse feel confident and successful
Acknowledgments.

Preface.

Introduction: What You Need to Know to Help Your Horse.

Bathing: Afraid of the Hose.

Biting People.

Blankets: Fear of Blanketing.

Bridling: Fusses About His Ears.

Bridling: Raises or Throws Head When Removing.

Bridling: Won’t Open His Mouth.

Clipping, Resistance To.

Cold Weather Behavior.

Doctoring: Applying Eye Ointments.

Doctoring: Drenching.

Doctoring: Fear of Shots.

Doctoring: Soaking a Leg or a Foot.

Doctoring: Treating Wounds.

Ear-Shyness, Overcoming.

Feeding Problems: Bolting His Grain.

Feeding Problems: Making Noise While Waiting.

Feeding Problems: Picky Eater.

Feeding Problems: Throwing Grain Out of the Manger.

Feet, Refusing to Hold Up.

Feet, Refusing to Pick Up.

Feet: Refusing to Stand for the Farrier.

Gates, Problems With Arena.

Grazing in Hand Problems.

Grooming, Fussing or Fidgeting During.

Haltering, Resistance To.

Head-Shyness, Overcoming.

Kicking at Other Horses.

Kicking at People.

Leading, Breaking Away While.

Leading, Running Over Handler While.

Leading, Rushing Ahead While.

Leading, Spooking While.

Leading: Won’t Go When Asked.

Leg Wraps, Fussing About.

Longeing: Horse Won’t Start.

Longeing, Pulling Away While.

Longeing: Turning to Face You.

Mane Pulling, Resistance To.

Mounting, Moving During.

Nipping.

Panicking Against Crossties.

Panicking: Stepping on the Lead Rope or Reins.

Panicking When Caught in Something.

Panicking When Left Alone.

Pawing: Dangerous Striking.

Pawing for Treats.

Pawing From Nervousness.

Pawing: Mild Striking.

Personal Space: Bumping, Stepping on or Walking Into You.

Personal Space: Head Swinging.

Personal Space: Mugging for Treats.

Rearing as a Game.

Rearing When Being Led.

Saddling, Moving During.

Saddling: Problems While Being Cinched or Girthed Up.

Spooking at Familiar Objects.

Stall Problems: Breaking Out.

Stall Problems: Crowding.

Stall Problems: Fear of Doorways.

Stall Problems: Getting Cast.

Stall Problems: Kicking the Stall.

Stall Problems: Manure on the Wall, in the Manger or in the Water Bucket.

Stall Problems: Playing With the Water.

Stall Problems: Souring Ears or Charging the Bars.

Stall Problems: Turning the Tail to the Door.

Stall Problems: Walking and Weaving.

Stall Problems: Windsucking or Cribbing.

Trailering: Loading.

Trailering: Loading When You Can’t Do It Right.

Trailering: Pawing or Kicking While Underway.

Trailering: Scrambling.

Turnout, Breaking Away During.

Turnout: Bullying Other Horses.

Turnout: Charging.

Turnout: Chewing Wood.

Turnout: Refusing to Be Caught.

Tying: Chewing on the Rope.

Tying: Won’t Tie.

Afterword.

Appendix A: Resources.

Appendix B: Illustrated Glossary.

Index.

Sujets

• Animal Sports
• Sports
• Horse training
• Equestrian
• Recreation
• Sport équestre
• Sports équestres
• Sports équestres
• Sports équestres

Informations

• Publié par: Turner Publishing Company
• Date de parution: 21 avril 2008
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780470309384
• Langue: English

Extrait

W HAT Y OUR H ORSE W ANTS Y OU TO K NOW
W HAT Y OUR H ORSE W ANTS Y OU TO K NOW
WHAT HORSES
BAD BEHAVIOR MEANS, AND
HOW TO CORRECT IT
Gincy Self Bucklin
Copyright 2003 by Virginia Self Bucklin. All rights reserved.
Howell Book House
Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Hoboken, NJ
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except as permitted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, [phone], fax [phone]. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Legal Department, Wiley Publishing, Inc., 10475 Crosspoint Blvd., Indianapolis, IN 46256, [phone], fax [phone], E-mail: [e-mail].
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Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: While the publisher and author have used their best efforts in preparing this book, they make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this book and specifically disclaim any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales representatives or written sales materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for your situation. You should consult with a professional where appropriate. Neither the publisher nor author shall be liable for any loss of profit or any other commercial damages, including but not limited to special, incidental, consequential, or other damages.
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:
Bucklin, Gincy Self.
What your horse wants you to know : what horses bad behavior means, and how to correct it / Gincy Self Bucklin.
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN 978-0-7645-4085-1 (alk. paper)
1. Horses-Behavior. 2. Horses-Training. 3. Human-animal communication. I. Title.
SF281.B83 2003
636.1 0835-dc21
2003004634
Manufactured in the United States of America
14 13 12 11
All drawings by Heather Holloway
Book design by Melissa Auciello-Brogan
Cover design by Jose Almaguer
Book production by Wiley Publishing, Inc. Composition Services
To Harris Howard Bucklin Jr. Finest of horsemen, and best of husbands This book is lovingly dedicated
C ONTENTS
Acknowledgments
Preface
Introduction: What You Need to Know to Help Your Horse
Bathing: Afraid of the Hose
Biting People
Blankets: Fear of Blanketing
Bridling: Fusses About His Ears
Bridling: Raises or Throws Head When Removing
Bridling: Won t Open His Mouth
Clipping, Resistance To
Cold Weather Behavior
Doctoring: Applying Eye Ointments
Doctoring: Drenching
Doctoring: Fear of Shots
Doctoring: Soaking a Leg or a Foot
Doctoring: Treating Wounds
Ear-Shyness, Overcoming
Feeding Problems: Bolting His Grain
Feeding Problems: Making Noise While Waiting
Feeding Problems: Picky Eater
Feeding Problems: Throwing Grain Out of the Manger
Feet, Refusing to Hold Up
Feet, Refusing to Pick Up
Feet: Refusing to Stand for the Farrier
Gates, Problems With Arena
Grazing in Hand Problems
Grooming, Fussing or Fidgeting During
Haltering, Resistance To
Head-Shyness, Overcoming
Kicking at Other Horses
Kicking at People
Leading, Breaking Away While
Leading, Running Over Handler While
Leading, Rushing Ahead While
Leading, Spooking While
Leading: Won t Go When Asked
Leg Wraps, Fussing About
Longeing: Horse Won t Start
Longeing, Pulling Away While
Longeing: Turning to Face You
Mane Pulling, Resistance To
Mounting, Moving During
Nipping
Panicking Against Crossties
Panicking: Stepping on the Lead Rope or Reins
Panicking When Caught in Something
Panicking When Left Alone
Pawing: Dangerous Striking
Pawing for Treats
Pawing From Nervousness
Pawing: Mild Striking
Personal Space: Bumping, Stepping on or Walking Into You
Personal Space: Head Swinging
Personal Space: Mugging for Treats
Rearing as a Game
Rearing When Being Led
Saddling, Moving During
Saddling: Problems While Being Cinched or Girthed Up
Spooking at Familiar Objects
Stall Problems: Breaking Out
Stall Problems: Crowding
Stall Problems: Fear of Doorways
Stall Problems: Getting Cast
Stall Problems: Kicking the Stall
Stall Problems: Manure on the Wall, in the Manger or in the Water Bucket
Stall Problems: Playing With the Water
Stall Problems: Souring Ears or Charging the Bars
Stall Problems: Turning the Tail to the Door
Stall Problems: Walking and Weaving
Stall Problems: Windsucking or Cribbing
Trailering: Loading
Trailering: Loading When You Can t Do It Right
Trailering: Pawing or Kicking While Underway
Trailering: Scrambling
Turnout, Breaking Away During
Turnout: Bullying Other Horses
Turnout: Charging
Turnout: Chewing Wood
Turnout: Refusing to Be Caught
Tying: Chewing on the Rope
Tying: Won t Tie
Afterword
Appendix A: Resources
Appendix B: Illustrated Glossary
Index
A CKNOWLEDGMENTS
I have learned about horses and training from many sources during my life, the most outstanding of whom were my mother, Margaret Cabell Self, Mike and Ruth Miller of Sleepy Hollow in Tarrytown, New York, William Hillebrand and Sally Swift. And, like all of us, I learned the most from the horses themselves. It took me a long time to learn to listen to them, but they never gave up, and I m getting better at it.
I would also like to acknowledge the help and support for this book that I received from my daughter Karen Stoddard Hayes-the real writer in the family-and all the people on the Riding With Confidence and Horseman Off-Topic e-groups, who so generously gave of their thoughts and ideas when I was stumped.

Gincy Self Bucklin Narragansett, Rhode Island February 2003
P REFACE
A surprising number of horse owners are afraid of their horses! They aren t frightened all the time, but maybe they don t go on trails, or mounting is tricky, or they don t really like to canter. Other owners seem to spend a lot of time being angry with their horses, or disciplining them. When you think about the nature of the horse, you have to wonder what went wrong. Horses, as a group, are by nature somewhat lazy (they will sleep as much as 20 hours a day), gregarious (as herd animals, they enjoy interaction with their fellow creatures) and peaceful (as vegetarians, they don t have to fight with each other or attack other animals to get food). If horses are laid-back, friendly and nonviolent, what s to be afraid of or angry about?
Nearly all of the trouble is of our own making .
First, we don t communicate well! That is, we don t make clear to the horse, in ways that he can understand, what we want; and we don t listen, or don t try to understand, what he wants. The horse becomes confused and makes mistakes that are frequently perceived as deliberate: What s wrong with you? You know better than that! Both horse and handler have become frustrated and angry.
By focusing on communication, rather than simply training, we change our attitude toward the horse from insisting on obedience to creating an atmosphere of mutual cooperation. This gives the horse far more confidence and eliminates much of the tension that lies behind so many disobediences. The horse discovers that what we want is really the pleasantest and easiest thing for him to do in any situation, and we discover that making things easier for the horse leads to far more successful and satisfying training.
Second, we don t understand the best ways to teach the horse . We ride a young horse toward a jump. He approaches it somewhat tensely and unevenly balanced. Rather than risk a fall, he stops. We punish him for stopping! The next time, not only is he worried about his balance, he is also worried about being punished. If he does jump it will be an awkward leap, probably much higher than necessary to compensate for his insecurity. We tell all our friends what a big jump he has in him. He tells all his friends he hates jumping!
With the spread of knowledge through better worldwide communication- more books, Internet access, television, etc.-the understanding of how to deal with other species has undergone a revolution. Knowledgeable trainers have moved away from the belief that the horse is inferior in intelligence and incapable of learning except through punishment. Instead, they have studied how the horse perceives humans and how he learns. They understand the importance of good relationships and positive reinforcement-marking the good behavior rather than the bad. The result is that the horse himself becomes part of the solution rather than part of the problem. Instead of worrying frantically about how to avoid punishment, he looks for ways to earn rewards.
Third, we re in too much of a hurry . A horse is not born knowing all the things we want him to know. It takes time for him to learn them, and people are not always patient. They send a young horse to a trainer for a month and think he should be perfectly trained when he returns. The trainer may be under pressure to get the horse ready for competition, so he skips the tr