Ep 121: How to Avoid Micromanaging Your Horse’s Movements
One of our biggest faults as human beings is that we don’t like to fail. It comes as no surprise that when we are introducing a new concept to our horses, we have the tendency to micromanage. When we micromanage their every move, we think we are preventing them from failing; however, we are only getting in the way of their understanding.
Horses naturally want to please. They are constantly reading your body language trying to figure out what move they should make next. So, if you’re not getting the results you want from your horse, that’s a trainer issue–not a horse issue. When you are getting undesirable results from your horse, it’s time to take a look at how you are communicating with that animal.
There was a point in my training career where I was the biggest micro-manager you’d ever met. At the time, we were living paycheck to paycheck, and in my mind, I couldn’t afford to fail. So, I fell into the spiral of micromanaging my horses’ every movement. I tried to prevent my horses from doing things wrong instead of allowing them to fail, then giving them the opportunity to understand. All this did was create an insecure, confused animal beneath me.
Over the years, I’ve learned that the easiest way to help your horse understand is to slow things down and give them the space to find the right answer. Send the signal with your body first, and your hands second. Give that horse an indicator to expect a change in speed or direction soon. When your horse is able to understand that signal with your body language, it will be ready to be receptive to the signals that follow from your hands.
One thing that is important to remember is that you can send signals to your horse even when you are not on its back. Your attitude and energy stepping into the pen to catch the horse can dictate the trajectory of your training session that day. Even something as simple as the pace at which you put the horse’s halter on can leave an impression on that animal.
Today, before you begin training, ask yourself:
How can I set my horse up for success today?
What can I do to boost their confidence in me?
How can I present things in a way that is easy for them to understand?
When you slow your mind down, your horse’s mind slows down. When your cues slow down, the horse’s understanding speeds up.
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