Why is my horse naughty?

Nipping, kicking, refusing to move, refusing to follow, ears back, running over or simply running away.

Yep, I’ve seen them all from horses I have worked with over the years. But what is the best way to work with a “naughty” horse?

Showing your horse “who’s the boss” is the least effective way to work with your horse so that it does what you ask, especially if you are an amateur or green rider. If you’ve been told to show your horse whos boss, make them do it and push them through it, you’re likely experiencing problems like:

• Your horse refusing to move

• Your horse walking or running away from you in the paddock when you go to catch them.

• Your horse nipping, biting or kicking at you when you do things with them on the ground

• Your horse randomly spooks and bolts seemingly out of nowhere

• Your horse doesn’t stand calmly at the mounting block but fusses and fidgets and moves away.

You may even be starting to feel nervous around your horse, questioning whether you are good enough for your horse and finding excuses for why you can’t ride today or work with your horse because you really can’t bring yourself to the dealing with the inevitable argument and difficult behaviour.

What you want to ask yourself is why would your horse agree to what you are asking of them? Just meeting their basics need for food and care is not a strong enough motivation for them to expend large amounts of energy in a high pressure/high stress environment AND look after you and stay calm and confident.

To get your horse to want to look after you and work with you as a team you need to ask:

• Does your horse feel safe to relax? Do they see you as a threat? How do you know they feel safe to relax? Do you know what your horses relaxation cues look like?

• Are you comfortable giving your horse direction? Does you horse comfortably take direction from you? Do they seek direction and support from you?

• Does your horse understand what you are asking of them? Do they know how to seek the release of pressure? Are you confidently marking and motivating your horse and getting your timing right?

• Is your horse having an emotional reaction to what you are asking them to do? Are they reacting with frustration, anxiety, stress, becoming stubborn or escalating in behaviours you don’t want? Do you know how to bring them back to a state of relaxation and shift them in to a more positive experience of what you are asking?

This is what our confident and connected equestrians are learning inside the Holistic Horse Handling Program BEFORE they go to work with their horse. How you horse is interpreting your cue emotionally and intellectually is first and foremost what we want to address to develop a confident horse that knows how to look after their rider, enjoys learning and movement feels good.

If you are aware of one or more of these gaps in your training make sure you register for the holistic horse handling waitlist to get access to when it is next open.