Training Tips

QUESTION: Hi. This August I bought a 16 -year-old Arabian. She is like a dream, she's beautiful and likes attention. She's a real doll, and was great to ride and fine on the ground (though flighty like most Arabians ). So we bought her. We got her home and gave her a few weeks to settle in. She acted perfect. Loved being taken out and brushed regularly. The previous owner told me this horse didn't like her ears being touched that much and not to take her halter off, but I thought that a bit harsh, so I eventually took it off while she was in her paddock. Well, the next day when I went to catch her, she became all shy on me with the halter. But she didn't run away from me or even try anything mean. When trying to put the halter on she just panicked, and wouldn't let me get the halter on past her nose. I thought maybe I moved too fast for her, but when I tried it again but slower, she still panicked. It took me a while to get her halter on and all throughout the summer I took it slow on her and now she puts it on perfectly. She just seemed like she had to get to trust me first, as if she thought I might do something to her ears... But now she lets anyone put her halter on and acts as if she's never had a problem. So weeks later, I tried putting her bridle on, but she just won't take to it whatsoever. I've tried moving slowly and not getting her worked up, but she just won't do it. She'll take the bit in her mouth like nothing... opens her mouth without a problem, but when I try to go past there she again panics. She is fine for everything else though. In the paddock she'll let me jump on her back and she actually enjoys it. She responds to leg movements and listens like an angel. I just do not understand why she will not put her bridle on. I've read over all the other bridle problems on your web site but nothing seems to help. I'm running out of solutions but still am not about to give up on her. This is something we've tried again and again but she just will not let me put it on her. I do not force her and when she truly gets scared I put the bridle down and she'll walk over to me and nuzzle me and I feel guilty! She's the love of my life, please help us!

REPLY: Hi. What you've got there is an ear shy problem. Read this link and work on desensitizing her ears better going the route I show here: http://www.naturalhorsetraining.com/TrainingTips14.html

There's a real fine art to desensitizing, though, which involves advance/retreat. Retreat before the horse retreats, getting your retreat timing very fast there and she'll progress. Don't be too forward progression focused; be retreat focused.

I myself wouldn't start with the bridle or halter, but would back up and work with her just accepting my hands there first. If you can't completely handle the ears with your hand, don't even go there with the bridle or halter. Get her past that first following proper natural horsemanship desensitizing techniques (study what I directed you to carefully, taking no shortcuts, but following it to the letter). Then once she handled that well, my hands stroking there, I would then step up to getting her to allow an ordinary wadded up plastic shopping bag rubbed over her ears, again following advance/retreat to accustom her to that, beginning with baby steps, the plastic crumpled in my hand imperceptibly at first, and only opening it up slowly. I can guarantee you in one session I would have your horse accepting that, and pretty quickly too, so, it's all about grasping HOW to desensitize using advance/retreat natural horsemanship methods.

After she can do all the above very well, then I would next use one of my training strings -- you can get one here: https://scotttechgroup.securelook.com/SylviaScott/VNHTCProducts.htm#TrainingString -- wadded up in my hand first, and rub that all over her ear, again using advance/retreat. As she accepted that, I'd then let the string open up a little, rub her ears with that. Open up a little more, rub her ears with that. As she accepts that, I'd then let the string open up completely to its full length, dangling, and rub her with that.

Incidentally, if she gets tense or stressed at any point throughout this lesson, which of course she will at first, I would instantly return to bonding with her, using some horse whispering relaxation techniques that trigger instant relaxation/calmness in her, particularly: my finger in the corner of her mouth to feather her tongue, which produces her working her mouth (causing instant relaxation in a horse) and asking for her head down (lowered head is a relaxed horse; high head is a tense horse. Where the head goes, the mind follows). I go into more in depth the how's and why's of these horse whispering relaxation/bonding techniques here -- they are a very crucial part of my program with every horse I work with: http://www.naturalhorsetraining.com/TrainingTips58.html

I will be doing that throughout the lesson to keep her on rational, accepting mode mentally and physically. Real important to show the horse you can help them relax, supportingly, nurturingly, even as you pose challenges for them to overcome.

I'd wad it up and rub all her favorite spots with it first and then head for working on her accepting that rubbed over her ears quickly at first, then more and more slowly, until she fully allows that halter wad rubbing at any place around her ears. Make it all pleasureful. Use your fingernails to scratch her soothingly as you work there with the ropes. I follow a training philosophy that is: if you're not getting your fingernails really dirty when training a horse, then you're not training correctly. Lots & lots of scratches and strokes (no patting) helps a horse to overcome fears.

After that, I'd let the halter/lead open up more/dangle more as I repeat the advance/retreat rubbing over the ears there. Quickly it's no big deal, when done right, like I'm showing you.

After that I would repeat the above exercise, but this time with the bridle/bit and by then she would well accept it.

You really have to break it all down into baby steps like that with ear shy horses. Gives them the opportunity to digest the expectation in baby step increments and get lots of releases, praise and reward for successful tries.

Incidentally...the most common cause of ear shyness like you're seeing there is a past (unenlightened) vet or handler using an old school method of grabbing and twisting a horse's ear to try to get control of them. It's immensely cruel, painful to the horse, and totally, utterly unnecessary. Never let a vet or farrier or handler or anyone do that to your horse, or you will have an ear shy horse as a result.

But study these links I've directed you to carefully, reading them more than once if necessary, because like I said, desensitizing is a real art that doesn't always come easily to humans at first, and it's all about timing in your pressure/release, advance/retreat. I teach how in every clinic I do (and in my DVD set, the Whispering Way 12-Step Total Training System. Usually it helps to see this natural horsemanship art taught visually, to really understand how it is all done. You can get that DVD set here: CLICK HERE); it's much harder to teach in words because it's a visual thing, and about gaining a sense of "feel."