Ok - so first let me preface this with:

we don’t like the terminology “bomb proof”.

Often when I see horses described as bomb proof, they are malnourished or shut down.

Even when we are working with the truly quiet horses, I believe the term bomb proof puts us in a false sense of security that increases risk of accidents happening.

My experience has been active in training horses to be beginner riding school horses, so we need to get them as quiet as we can. For me it is important to have our horses in peak mental, emotional and physical health as well as a clear understanding of what is expected of them and their cues to be considered “quiet”.

School horses are truly special horses as they need to look after riders that are unbalanced and can unintentionally hurt them when they lose their balance, don’t understand complex aids (the horse knows they can get out of work at any stage) and aren’t strong enough to “bully” them into submission.

In my experience, the quiet “bomb proof” horse isn’t created by sacking them out and desensitising them.

They are created by proving ourselves as competent and trust worthy leaders, building our horses confidence and their understanding. This can make any breed and any temperament of horse “bomb proof” - as long as we rule out other considerations such as pain, medical conditions, ill fitting gear and the like.

Outside of pain or discomfort, the reason a horse might NOT be classified as “bomb proof” include:

• The horse not understanding what is needed of them

• The horse can’t do what we are asking of them

• The horse does not have the confidence in themselves (or their rider) that they are safe/will be kept safe, and this can include any past traumatic experiences.

• The horse does not understand how pressure is being used as a tool of communication. (This often starts with the rider/trainer not understanding the timing of pressure/release for the horse to understand it)

• The horse doesn’t feel understood. (This is the most common issue I see. Our horses try to communicate with us what they need and we often miss the subtle cues and the horse ends up overreacting and being considered dangerous)

• The rider/trainer not knowing when to back off and when to push for more, or expecting too much of the horse

These principles are our guiding factors in establishing the training that Equestrian Movement offers in our online courses:

• First do no harm. Ensure that any of the training you are doing moving forward is of no detriment to the horse.

• Create a safe and stable learning and living environment.

• Create a relationship with our horse where they trust us that not only will we not hurt them but we also won’t put them in a situation where they could be hurt.

• Teach them how to learn and understand what we want.

• Teach them how to process their emotions and think rather than react.

• Teach them confidence

• Make learning fun

• Make moving fun

• Make being ridden fun

Curious to know how we do this? We cover all these in our course Training Trainability.