[QUOTE=uphill;7340361]
concepts perhaps not exact techniques
although I actually have seen laying a horse down done by Parelli in person for the very same reason as the alpha roll. It was a last resort measure. I cringed when he explained what he was going to do and why. It did work, was extremely carefully done. Many people walked out. Fortunately it worked and served its’ purpose. Could this horse have been handled differently? Who knows, but time constraints of a clinic and perhaps a bit of showmanship? It wasn’t done like the old cowboy rope 'em and throw them. I wouldn’t recommend this because if not done right, you can injure the horse or self and if the horse “wins” the battle, you have made more problems![/QUOTE]
TBH, I think the concept of laying down being an “alpha roll” for a horse is a bit dodgy. For dogs, the position is associated with submissiveness and so forcing the animal into that posture causes it to assume a submissive mindset too - or so the theory goes. The same isn’t true for horses - the dominant doesn’t throw the subordinate horse on to the ground and restrain her there. A predator might, but that’s a totally different scenario. So how does it work (or ‘work’)? As a punisher, perhaps, or simply a demonstration that resistance is futile. Could the horse have been handled differently but still successfully? Almost certainly, from a starting point of avoiding into a fight in the first place.
