The feeling of frustration is not necessary one of the fun emotions we want to deal with - in ourselves OR our horses.

But there are going to be situations where it inevitably crops up. But why?!?!

In psychology, frustration is a common emotional response to opposition, related to anger, annoyance and disappointment. Frustration arises from the perceived resistance to the fulfillment of an individual's will or goal and is likely to increase when a will or goal is denied or blocked.

Therefore, a common example for ourselves becoming frustrated when working with our horse is we aren’t seeing the progression towards a goal. Maybe it’s practicing timing of a jump and being off consistently. Maybe it’s asking a simple task of our horse and it isn’t happening.

For our horses, who have much simpler desires, frustration tends to occur when we withhold something they want, such as a reward for getting the right answer, or movement when we ask for stand. Some horses are quicker to become frustrated than others, especially if they are in the Protector Personality Quadrant.

Managing frustration takes a combination of development of emotional agility and an understanding of shaping plans (did you know that the Holistic Horse Handling Program contains over 35 shaping plans alone?), so you both understand how to regulate the emotion when it appears.

Katie shared some of her experience managing her own frustrations in the latest First Do No Harm Podcast episode.

Share your own experience below!