So what is desensitisation with horses? Well the opposite of sensitisation! And that’s the tricky bit, we must be very clear of what we’re doing as we might accidentally do the opposite of what we want and sensitise our horse! To desensitiseour horse to a stimulus means to reduce their response. Horses are flight animals and can be very reactive to things in the environment. This is necessary when they’re roaming around in the wild, but can cause problems if we happen to be sitting on them when they have a massive response to a plastic bag flying past! We can desensitise them to common objects they will encounter, such as plastic bags, loud noises, whips etc.
In all our desensitisation training we’re teaching the horse to stand still when something scares them, and this is the opposite of what they would do in the wild. But after a while this becomes their response to any scary stimulus as they develop a trust that we will look after them and be calm and steady ourselves. Then a totally new scary object that we’ve never trained them to accept can appear while you’re riding and they will stand still. Magic! That’s what we all want.
So if we’re working away at desensitisation and our horse becomes fearful, that is, increasing their response, STOP, that is not the goal. At no point should our horse feel fear. Our job is to be checking our horse all the time looking for signs of worry – the ears back, tail swishing, eyes bulging/black/fearful, frowning, lifting the head, bracing the neck etc. The moment we see signs of worry we back off and repeat the previous step until our horse is happy before progressing again. Our job is to not push the horse over the line into fear, if we do they will no longer learn as they can’t think when they’re afraid, plus that’s where we can actually sensitise them instead of desensitising, and that’s not what we want. This is a great exercise in itself, as it really trains us to feel and see what’s happening for the horse.
Every horse is different so we need to know how our own horse expresses worry. One horse I work with always has a calm eye but his tail starts swishing like mad if he’s worried, so I’m always looking there when introducing something new to him. But for the majority, it’s the eye that shows how the horse is feeling, so start there.
Some ground rules – never tie horses up when introducing a scary object, we hold the lead rope so we can move with them if need be. If they do cross into fear and pull back and we've tied them, they'll feel trapped, increasing their anxiety levels. Let them smell, lick and explore the scary object with their mouth. Touch the place where you’re going to start with your hand first, giving it a rub and a few pats, this will make it less sensitive. With most horses I find the shoulder the best place to start but this can vary. Then calmly but confidently touch with the scary object and remove it before the horse shows fear. If we watch your horses’ signs we should be able to see this. We gradually extend the time we stay there, then start moving it over other parts of the body.
So, let’s say we’ve introduced an object and didn’t notice the signs and the horse starts moving, it's going to happen at some point. Safety first, so if it’s dangerous we should get out of there. If it’s safe we try and stay with the horse while they move, that’s why we’re holding the lead rope. Keep them walking in a small circle around you, holding the objectstill touching them until they stop moving and then immediately remove it. Sometimes we may need to show them the solution to the problem with a little stop pressure on the halter. Repeat, repeat, repeat and we’ll find after a while we can touch them with the object and they’ll stand still. What we want to show them is that the scary object goes away when they stand still, NOT when they’re moving.
Once we’ve learnt these principles with an easy object, we can apply them to other situations. Hosing, spray bottles, plastic bags, tarps, plastic bags and umbrellas are some things we can use but it’s really only limited by our imagination. Have fun, get creative and playful and reap the rewards of a confident fearless horse.
Suzy Maloney B.Eq.Sc.
Happy Horses Bitless
Lismore, NSW, Australia
Ph: 0401 249 263
Email: happyhorsesbitless@gmail.com
Web: www.happyhorsesbitless.com
Facebook: Happy Horses Bitless Bridles
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