Kicking, riding up behind etc.

["Robert Morris" <bobmorris@rmci.net>]

It has been very interesting reading the various thoughts on the above
referenced subjects. We had a fairly extensive analysis of these things a
short time ago also. 

I have been doing a lot of thinking and dissection of the postings and some
of the things behind each one. 

First I would like to point out several things that most people do not take
into consideration. One is the "nature of the beast" two is "how the beast
is kept" and the last is "how the beast is trained" You note I did not say
HORSE since I find many of the same traits in the riders as I do in the
horses. 

As a point of illustration person one spoke of their horse being kicked,
person two commented on one running into the horse in front so person one
immediately "kicked back" (because "they were run into"????). Do you see
any similarity??? I sure do. 

Perhaps I can allow a bit of insight into this situation. Horses, the
nature of the beast, are herd animals and depend on dominance to obtain
mates (sex) and food in times of shortage(survival) and social association.
These are the basic animal instincts, they prevail in the natural herd
situation. Now, we take that same horse and confine it to a stall and/or
paddock. Limited sex life, limited necessity for survival (you have taken
over the job)and limited social contact. You are in the process of changing
that horses mental processes. He is fully dependent on YOU for all
necessities. YOU are more than a herd boss you are the ultimate dictator in
the horses life!!!

What am I getting at???  Some of us were raised in the same manner, some of
us were "free ranging" and some of us were "confined" and our personalities
show it. But then all of a sudden some of us (not me though)  insist that
ALL HORSES must act as if they were ALL raised in the confined situation,
their behavior to be dominated not by instinct but by the desires of the
rider/owner. But what do we do? One owner is complacent and one owner is
overly strict!! What is acceptable to one is an abhorrence to the other.
Neither give a damn what the horse thinks!!!

Why do I write this?? Because I am in the middle of much of this
controversy. I raise and keep my horses in as close to feral conditions as
possible. In other words they LIVE LIKE HORSES . Their social life, their
food source (but not their sex life) is very close to that in the "wild".
Social interaction, the determination of the dominant social line is very
important. Which mare is to be fed first (usually one with a foal) which
one leads the string when they go to water or out to another part of the
pasture (usually the oldest) and if one gets out of line first comes a
"dirty look", then a "close but not connecting kick" and then if the fool
doesn't get in line a severe bite and or kick that connects. Seldom does
the connecting kick occur. Lots of lost hair on the young ones who very
often "push the envelope".

What I am saying is, do not deal in absolutes with these horses, respect
THEIR situation and try to measure it by HORSE parameters not human ones.
Realize that for ages, courtesy and common sense called for a "horse
length" between all animals. (This is how they travel when coming to
meals.)  There is no requirement that you crowd into one big pack
particularly at the start (you have 50 miles to go and you can't win in the
first mile). 

If you haven' t read The Language of the Horse: Habits and forms of
expression by Michael Schaefer do so,  he has excellent information about
horses living in a herd situation, life in a herd is totally different than
in a small confined area..   

Realize also, as many State Statutes on Equine Limited Liability say:

<<<	"Inherent risk or risks of an equine animal activity" means those
dangers which are an integral part of equine animal activity, which shall
include but need not be limited to: 

a. The propensity of an equine animal to behave in ways that result in
injury, harm, or death to nearby persons; 

b. The unpredictability of an equine animal's reaction to such phenomena as
sounds, sudden movement and unfamiliar objects, persons or other animals; 

c. Certain natural hazards, such as surface or subsurface ground
conditions; 

d. Collisions with other equine animals or with objects; and 

e. The potential of a participant to act in a negligent manner that may
contribute to injury to the participant or others, including but not
limited to failing to maintain control over the equine animal or not acting
within the participant's ability. >>>>

In other words "THINK BEFORE YOU ACT"

Bob Morris
Morris Endurance Enterprises
Boise, ID