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Re: [RC] [RC] [Guest] NEVER resort to a violent...? - Jim HollandThis is an interesting thread. I was gonna stay out of this...but just can help putting in my two cents worth. I'm picky about horses that I buy....disposition is everything. Don't take on "fixing horses that other people have screwed up", don't buy "reclamation projects", etc. I just value my body and health too much. I had ONE horse in 50 years of riding that reared. Half Quarter/Half Thoroughbred mare and very opinionated. Her name was "Red Dixie Dot" and she was the fastest Western Game horse in 6 counties. We lived on a loop around a golf course and when you rode by the driveway to the barn, she would try to turn in, then rear if you asked her to go on. I rapped her firmly between the ears with a piece of closet rod cut for the purpose just as she started to come up. Didn't try to leave a bump between her ears, didn't do it in malice, and timed it carefully, anticipating the rear. She NEVER tried it again. Never, not once...couldn't GET her up. The intent was not to injure, but to make staying on the ground and walking on MUCH more pleasant than rearing. From then on, when we approached the driveway, Dixie would drop her head, slow down, and "carefully" walk by the driveway without looking at the barn! In fact, you had to REIN her into the driveway...wouldn't turn on her own! :) She got the message! My two horses are big dogs...they get the best of care, scratched in the right places when they itch, numerous treats, fans in their stalls, groomed daily, deep green pastures ...etc...every conceivable luxury a horse could ask for. However, in return I expect them to be gentlemen at all times. ANY indiscretion will be IMMEDIATELY and FIRMLY corrected. 99% of the time, that's an aggressive body posture. Exceptions are kicking, biting, or rearing. That will get the horse 3 seconds of "I'm gonna KILL you" with whatever I have in my hand...just NO contact in front of the withers. My horses would never CONSIDER an aggressive attitude toward me or any human. They ALWAYS show up with their "hat in their hand". Guess I'm in the "Whack 'em" category when it comes to dangerous behavior. Horses NEED to know the rules. It's part of their herd instinct...and it's important to make it easy to do the right thing and HARD to do the wrong thing. With some horses, it requires a "light touch". With others, you need to be aggressive. Like people, all horses are different. There ARE no constants....what works with one horse, may not work at all with another. Just MHO... Jim, Sun of Dimanche+ and Mahada Magic A rearing horse has to have immediate and forceful correction for this behaviour. I do prefer a plastic baseball bat (the kind sold in toy stores for hitting wiffle balls). It is safer (for the horse), and really scares them into finding other ways to express their displeasure. Contrary to much modern thought, there is a place for pain in training animals and humans. Deliberate defiance, and certain extreme dangerous behaviour are the places. Ed =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= http://www.endurance.net/ads/seabiscuit.html Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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