On Monday, January 17, 2005 12:50 PM, Nancy
Mitts wrote:
Subject: RE: [RC] [RC] Being the herd
leader
We had a broodmare that was next to impossible to catch, and wore
a halter for quite a long time. (PLEASE, no halter horror stories--i know the
risks.) When the time came it was no longer necessary, we took it
off. The horses who had never seen her without it snorted and blew and
pranced around, even her own baby. It was funny watching them get "aquainted"
all over again. The mare's sister, who had seen her without it in the
past, did a double take, but figured it out quickly. I would love to really
read a horses mind without imposing our human "take" on things.
Okay, I'm inspired to tell my horse reaction
story:
I was riding with some friends on the trail
around the golf course in Griffith Park one afternoon. We met up with a
group of boy scouts all trotting along with their arms over each others'
shoulders in rows some five or six across. My horse stopped, snorted and
kept moving his head up and down, trying to focus on what that odd monster
could be. I asked the boys to please stop and wait until the horses
passed because they were afraid. The boys then broke ranks and all went
running, jumping and generally whooping it up in all directions. My
horse instantly relaxed, as if he were saying to himself, "Oh,
boys."
As Nancy said, it would be so fun to know what
they're thinking.
