So many “trainers” could do well to read this article~! https://thehorse.com/179955/the-slippery-slope-to-learned-helplessness-in-horses/?fbclid=IwAR08-3fpTFwb2ggMGN2rJXUQ70kDhjz4zfTPbtqlQqzTLy8_B0FvK9e7T1w
Thanks for sharing this article. What a topic. In my lifetime with horses and growing up around QH people and men and the idea of force and at times violence. If the horse didn’t get in the trailer you got the whip out instead of considering what might be wrong with the trailer or training or… right?
I took on a rehab case some 6 years ago and this mare was shutdown and not even in her body. She wouldn’t even graze. Once she started feeling better she became angry and would charge at me in the pasture etc. Try to always leave if I ground tied her. She didn’t want anything to do with being handled.
In time, she’s come around and feels better mentally and physically and no longer wants to leave. All I want for my horses is they have choice and they are happy and want to be with me. I didn’t grow up thinking those thoughts and happy that is where my head is some 50 years later.
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I found that article very interesting. I suspect that learned helplessness explains why some of the lesson horses become lazy or won’t respond to a rider’s aids . They know how to transition to canter, for example, but if the rider doesn’t know the standard cues the horse may keep on trotting and picking up speed until one more slam of the legs gets the transition.
When I bought my horse 20 years ago one of my barn buddies took me on a tack store tour. We walked into a store with a magazine rack. She picked up a copy of The Horse, handed it to me and said “read this magazine.” I’m still reading it. They have information you won’t find elsewhere. They have a choice of free newsletters with links to articles on their website. They keep up with all the latest healthcare and performance topics. I always find something of interest.
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It’s both sad and understandable that this kind of thing happens to Quarter Horses. Folks bred a sane, tractable mind into those horses… and then exploited that further.
If you did to a TB what you did to many of these Quarter Horses, someone would be dead.
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Funny you mention The Horse. Could’t agree more. Always read it cover to cover. Saw just last week a lecture on Leaky Gut and remember 20 years ago when it wasn’t taken seriously.
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That article always makes me sad and a little paranoid to ride my horse.
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Interesting to think about what breeds don’t tolerate the pressure. I had a big paradigm shift after seeing Cavalia (Frederic Pignon and Magali Delgado’s show) and then getting their book and their training concepts including choice and never ever using anger or force. That was new for me 20 years ago. And then seeing people all around me not care if their horse was happy to do what they wanted OR pain their horse was experiencing. So far as to have people want to say behavior was training versus considering pain. Or just that you’re expecting this animal to just go around in small circles in training gear to “lift their back.”
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OMG, me too. How do I know if I am pushing past the line of simple, “But mom, I’d rather be eating grass” and going into mentally abusing a smart, sensitive, but normally very very willing horse?
Warwick Schiller is doing alot in how to connect with your horse vs. dominate your horse. I seem to be realizing, only after the fact, times when I am dominating my horse vs. giving my horse alittle more time. I hope I can learn to get ahead of the curve…
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I really like Warwick Schiller. I have to admit I found his earlier work easier for me to follow, but I didn’t do much with the new stuff before I had to cancel my subscription.
Sometimes stepping back and waiting is the hardest thing but it sounds so simple. 
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When my husband and I first got together he was (and still is in a small way) a very “my way or the highway” type of rider. Until I made him think about what the horse is thinking and feeling. It really made him step back and re-evaluate his handling. If a horse is unsure or lacking confidence about what is being asked, instead of forcing, he takes time to give the horse a pat and talk him through it. It was like light bulb went off.
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I see this all the time in donkeys. I hate seeing donkeys that appear dull or uninterested. There is much more going on than appears. Many people don’t take the time to train them properly or take them seriously. They think force is necessary because “donkeys are stubborn”. Most people are surprised when they meet our donkeys who are expressive, bright, and free to express their personality. When training, I do everything I can to not overwhelm them or they will shut down. I think donkey shut down is akin to learned helplessness. Just because they are cooperating doesn’t mean they understand or want to do what you’re asking. You can probably force a donkey once, but if he resists the next time, it’s because you didn’t take the time to train him.
I really dislike the round pen wonder trainers who take a green horse and saddle him in one day. That animal is being bulldozed and overwhelmed. At some point, you’ll need to go back and actually train that horse.
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@rubygirl1968 and Fandango - I think JUST having the awareness and consideration of your horse and making time for what they might enjoy (hacking out - grazing them while daped over their back bareback) is enough. That’s been my experience w my horses. If you are kind and thoughtful and spend your horse time doing half what you want and half what they enjoy they will give you their ALL. And that was my experience visiting the Cavalia folks - they ride their horses but they also PLAY with them . Their horses were happy and wanted to be with them.
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The dead eyes I see on some horses make me cringe, and their owner/riders think that that means they are “broke”. I think it means that they are broken, defeated, and sad. I want my horses engaged mentally, thinking, participating, and suggesting their opinions to me as we progress in what we are doing together. I’m interested in their input, and rely on it at times, because it can be better than what I have to offer to solve a problem. I like to respect a horse as an individual, and as a very equal partner in what I want us both to do together. To me, that is what is fun about horses and riding horse, and competing with horses, working together with them, not the “total domination and subjugation” that one sees in some instances. I explain the “game” to them, and we play it together. Some people are the reincarnation of Hitler, and take it out on their horses.
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My first mare had every bad habit in the book. I had to learn how to get her past barnsourness. Patience, patience, and more patience finally helped. There were people that suggested a variety of violent options. I just decided I had one rule and that was she had to walk home on a loose rein. I wasn’t going to seesaw her mouth (I had ditched the nasty bit she came with for a snaffle) or hold her back all the way home. It took a lot of squeezing and patience to get her away from the barn, and then, she tried to whip back around and bolt. So, I asked her to turn around quietly. If she got too fast, we turned back around for a few steps further away from the barn before trying again. It took about a month with tiny improvements every day, but she learned she could get home faster if she just walked.
I was new to horses, but I thought that the other methods offered to me would create a deadhead horse.
To improve her attitude abut trail riding, I brought apples on the trail with me and when we reached the furthest point, where my horse started to get antsy about turning around, I would stop her, we would enjoy apples for a few moments. Within weeks, she was eager and happy to leave and walked quietly home. I think we negotiated how to solve the issue and keep us both safe, rather than having me dictate it to her. She was a loyal and brave trail buddy for many, many years.
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^^^
You did a good job there. Your horse is lucky to find you.
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Wow, thanks!
