I can not take my mare out to ride by herself.

by Bethany Raby
(Minford, OH)

I have a four year old Racking Horse mare. I have tried to take her out by herself just for a simple joyride but she does not want to leave the other horse in the pasture field. Do you have any advice on how I can make her feel more safe and comfortable to go out by herself?

Answer:

Horses in nature will innately follow other horses, often without questioning the ‘why” or “where” are we going. (Just look at a baby horse, they will follow their mothers right onto a trailer without questioning!) The most important reasons for horses is survival, safety in numbers and the horse’s maturity level along with good experiences when and if they have left the herd. You have addressed the one thing that is of most concern for her (and every horse), which is the safety part. We need to ask ourselves, “Do I display consistently the behavior that is required for any horse to willfully follow us under all circumstances?“ If the horse “believes” we are a safe good leader then they will follow us, and allow us to lead them to where ever it is we suggest.

So the how part becomes from several circumstances and experience. First I must set up trust, respect and loyalty from a place a horse is most comfortable. Usually this is where the horse I am working with can see the other horses and thus feels safe. Then once I set up ground games from a safe place, I would conduct these exact games from a little farther from the other horses than before. In my case it can be closing the arena doors so that the horse is in the same environment that they have become accustom to but now the doors are closed and they cannot see the other horses, but they would still know they are there. From here we would go to behind the arena experience the same games but now the horse needs me as a guide. From here a further back pasture. I would back up a step whenever the horse displays more attention for the other horses than for me. This would indicate my leadership is not solid.


Think of this situation like a kindergarten child who would be very emotionally upset if we just take them away from their friends or mother without explanation.

I always suggest to the horse that the answer should be, “We are doing the same thing, just in a different environment”. Now your horse is also very young and before I go too far from another horse I would have the youngster experience (especially a highly new adventure) with a mature horse who can support our leadership qualities. But only in the beginning that way I could set it up for a good experience for the new horse. By setting up a good experience for the horse will create stronger learning.

You mention the words “simple joyride”. Hmmmm, for whom? Do our horses know or think that because we would like to go for a ride that it’s fun for them too? It is beneficial for us to see with the eyes of a horse that their perspective and ours regarding what we like to do with them is not what they understand is fun. We explain this fully in our Secret Lives of Horses ebook to help clarify what our horses need from us, how to identify our horse’s characteristics and then know what to apply.

Elaine Polny
Horses by Nature