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[RC] crossing water on green arab(or any breed of any color) - Ed Kilpatrickhi all, i liked what angie said best about her experience, the horse would cross water just fine on the way back to the barn! might help to let them think it is their idea! and about the arabs! desert bred, right? they cross sand just fine! :-)
i have had inexperienced riders on experienced horses, horses who had crossed water many times with no problems. what happens sometimes, and i have seen it, the inexperienced rider gets tense about crossing water, the horse senses that and thinks something is wrong, so the horse refuses to move! i would have to tell the rider, "relax, get your knees out of his ribs, quit scaring my horse and he will cross the water!" so, in a sense, the parelli thing is valid to a point. if the rider is relaxed and confident, doesnt cue any fear into the horse, then the horse in turn is more likely to do what is asked. now, i wouldnt go so far as to say that you can form a spiritual, mental union with the opposite creek bank and telepathically signal your horse to cross it! :-)
another good technique to get a horse to cross water, when the horse balks, flex the horse laterally, work them in a circle and then get them moving forward again. it seems to relax them, and gets their mind off the water, kind of reduces the fear factor. good luck with it. it just takes time, patience, practice and repitition. ed
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