Return to Freedom
Sep 8th, 2008 by Carolyn Resnick Method
This last weekend we just did some filming with wild horses at Return to Freedom, a non-profit wild horse sanctuary near Lompoc, CA. I want to suggest that everybody check out Return to Freedom because it is a fabulous place to visit and also you might like to donate some money because they really are doing a lot of good work for horses there.
Anyway, I was there working with a horse that was very shy. We were doing some filming because I wanted to show a horse that was really afraid of humans and this particular horse was definitely scared to death around people. I don’t know what his history was but despite whatever had happened to him, I was able to get him comfortable enough to eat out of a bucket that I was holding. However he was still very frightened because he was grabbing a mouthful and then jumping back, almost knocking the bucket out of my hand.
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You just taught me something about my horse I did not know but has had me wondering. My Gelding had the usual mouthy fixation some geldings have . He had it for a long time. It actually became a problem because he would get mad and bite if you did not let him be mouthy. Which of course you would not let him do because he would bite. Kind of a visiouse circle. I had read that if you rub the nose really hard, not hard enough to hurt but hard enough to anoy them they get the idea that this is not so comfortable and stop trying to mouth you or bite. Well to say the least this did not work with my horse this made it worse he actually liked it. Sometimes I just rub his upper lip just below his nostrils and he just rolls his eyes back in his head and grins the same way a horse does when you scratch the right itchy spot. Until today I just thought he was odd. To make a long story short some where along the way I finally got the biteing stopped. But even now when he cant figure out what to do or gets frustrated he tries to be mouthy, he will grab anything he can get in his mouth, not to bite but to satisfy that need for nurturing. Which I did not understand until i read this post. I doubt his momma allowed him to bite but he got the comfort he needed when he nuzzled her so he did not have to bite her. I knew the mare and she was a good mare but I think she was kind of like the Mom that does all the right things to take care of the kid but never hugs the kid. Efficient but distant. Either that or I missed something, anyway, that is a whole other area of horse phsycology, that might explain some other things he does.
You just never know what you will learn
Dear Katie,
They love nurturning it give them a sense of community. The horses know that all my shaping of their behavior is a form of affection. I have many horses that would prefer that I feed them from my hand rather than eating out of a pan. They would prefer that I hold the pan rather than put it down. They love the attention.
Thank you for your nice comment,
Carolyn
It’s nice to know that when a horse nurses it’s nose touches it’s mother’s belly. I will use this more often when I am trying to show my horses I really love them.