Bits give us an advantage over the horse. We all know that’s why we use them. It’s not that I’m particularly against bits, but I am against people with bad hands being allowed to pull on a piece of metal causing pain or serious discomfort to the horse so they can get their way. Particularly when they haven’t invested the time and training to know how to do this right.

Think of something you have that you’re proud of. Something you do well. Something that is precious to you. Then, say an acquaintance comes to your house, assumes they can do what ever they want with your ‘stuff’ and... breaks it. Happy? I think not. I also think you’d take precautions so that that didn’t happen. And would you break your own stuff?

One of the reasons that we “say/believe” we need bits to control the horse is because they out-weigh us. While true, there are a lot of people out there that out-weigh us and we don’t use metal to control them... Except we do. Handcuffs? Chains/manacles? But, generally, we try to use our heads, true or true? So use your head with your horse, too!

Because we want this advantage over the horse, it’s important to fully acknowledge and be responsible for the potential ab-use. We tend to underestimate how much it could or does hurt the horse when we yank on their head. Many times people have no idea what their hands are even doing. But, ignorance is not an excuse and it doesn’t help the horse out at all. We listen to bit-makers that tell us this bit is gentle or other such crap.

Bits cause the very trouble we want the advantage for. Our control of the horse is lost because pain and trying to escape the pain and frequently anger, over-rides what we want the movement of the horse to be.

Sometimes when I’m out riding in the desert bridle-less, I’ll run into someone, who upon noticing I don’t have a bridle on, proceeds to tell me how dangerous that is. Really? Depending on my initial impression of the person, my response may be “Have a nice day,” and I ride on. But, I’ll also chat sometimes and ask the person if they’ve seen a horse run away with someone before. They reply, “Of course,” And I ask, “And did they have a bridle on?” And “Is my horse running away with me?” While I don't always ride bridle-less, wouldn't you say that the people who do, don't do it on horses that aren't willing to 'be' with their person and handle themselves appropriately? It's much more likely that if you see a horse running away with a person, it's going to be wearing a bridle.

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"The Artist" silent movie

Have you seen "The Artist"? I was amazed at how much was conveyed without words. Only on a few occasions were written sentences used to help. However, we should probably be much more cognizant then, of our capabilities with horses. In a lesson the other day, I had a student sending her horse over a jump at liberty. When the horse was taking off, the woman said "Jump" in a loud voice. With difficulty, I managed to keep my mouth shut the first two times and then asked, "Are you trying to teach your horse to jump on your voice command?" "No," was the reply. "Well, then why are you saying that?"

So, a couple of concept thoughts here. 1) Is your horse too stupid to realize the need to jump the obstacle? 2) Is your timing so good that you say "Jump" at just the right moment to indicate the need to your horse? 3) Are you MAYBE micro-managing something that isn't YOUR responsibility? 4) maybe be quiet and alllow the horse to learn, or in this case, you learn, because the horse jumps just fine without you.

I'll add more, but I've gotta run and crab at a lesson .

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Love Your Horse?

This is the first part of one of the books I'm working on.

There is a romance to horses. Throughout recorded time, on all continents, save those two icy ones, horses have been admired, loved, written about, drawn, painted, ridden, bred. Galloping horses with manes flying, bareback and bridle-less pounding along sandy beaches at the foamy water’s edge. What teenage girls dreams are made of. And a lot of adults.

We have a love affair with horses. Would anyone argue with that sentence? Yet, if we dissect it…

We have a love affair “with” horses. With. Preposition – a long word for many of the shortest words in our vocabulary. Yet, what strong words they are. Since horses are creatures and not inanimate objects such as, for instance, tables, we tend to say ‘love affair with’ horses. We don’t have love affairs with tables. Even if it’s a really great looking table. But the word ‘with’ implies reciprocation. Something that goes both ways. Which then begs the question: Do horses love us? Do they or can they have a ‘love affair with’ us? How do they show this, if so? Why do we so desperately want to believe our horse loves us? And what, pray tell, do we do to deserve their love?

If we love horses so much, how do we explain the stalls, cross-ties, spurs, whips and chains over the nose, just to name a few? If we love horses so much, why the general consensus by ‘top trainers’ in the world that horses are merely reactionary, don’t think and must be treated like a young child because they don’t understand much? Why is this thought process accepted instead of questioned? Says who? Someone who hasn’t watched horses closely, I’d say. Someone who maybe accepted those statements from their trainer and never questioned them.

Most horse people say they love their horse. What the devil does that mean? I love looking at my horse? I love telling people I have a horse? I love telling people I ride? I love saying I’m a trainer? When you love something, do you do what’s best for it or what’s most convenient for you?

A while back, a trainer started bringing her horses to me. Her personal horses, clients’ horses she had in training and Mustangs she was preparing for the challenges. She wanted me to teach the horses how to come to her at liberty amongst other things. She didn’t particularly want to learn how to get the horses to come; she wanted me to do it because it only takes me 15 minutes or so. I still tried to teach her; dragging her all over from behind to get her in the right position and basically operating her like a puppet, but…

As she brought each horse, I noticed recurring symptoms.

Solving People’s Horse Problems and Horse’s People Problems

LAUREN WOODARD Scottsdale, AZ 480.951.1546
lauren@exceptionalhorsemanship.com

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"Drop everything right now and order this book! It will do MORE for you in LESS time than any other tool I know of. My mustangs made huge changes. It's as if Lauren was right there next to you whispering in your ear what to do next. Imagine all the possibilities and better results you will gain by simply using this one skill! It’s a blast. Lauren has a way of breaking an issue down and explaining it in a very clear and fun way. Do yourself a favor and get it now!"

WW, two-time winner of the Extreme Mustang Makeover Challenge.

Click here to order it today!!!

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