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The 'Pain-Free' Horse

Inspired By The Candid Quarter Bug's '12 lessons in 12 months'

Below I have pasted 12 lessons of 2016 from an anonymous horsemanship blogger and owner of two quarterhorses. I think she raises some great points about our expectations of our equine companions and touches on the importance of independence as a horse man or woman to avoid negative and often conflicting opinions of others in the horseworld. While I agree with most points in general, number twelve is something I can particularly relate to. Frequently, I hear people say 'He would let me know if he was in pain' as a common misconception that horses would always manifest their discomfort by throwing us off or refusing to perform. However, horses have proven to be very tolerant and have indicated a low expression of pain on numerous occasions in scientific research. That's not to say that some horses, like humans, are less tolerant and therefore will demonstrate their discomfort in throwing us off, however, it should not be assumed that a well mannered horse is pain-free. In particular, I find this in my work with regard to saddles and saddle fitting.

Too frequently, unknown to the owner, saddles are pinching and restricting movement of the supraspinous muscles, consequently causing spasms and tissue disruption across the back. This is an easily resolvable ailment with regular saddle-fit and bodywork but can require much longer treatment, rehabilitation and rest if sustained over time. This is something I am discovering myself with my own back while recovering from a bad fall. Despite occurring over two months ago, inaccurate diagnosis and continued physical activity has delayed my recovery and created compensations elsewhere. This is no different to the horse if back pain is left unnoticed for several months and highlights the importance of regular maintenance. Make it your aim for 2017 to ensure your horse sees a health specialist at regular intervals to eliminate any pain that could be underlying and have a read of the following 12 lessons to help re-focus your goals for you and your horse.

12 Lessons I learned in 12 Months

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''Horsemanship is not about being brave; it's about being meticulous''- The Candid Quarter Bug

12. Never underestimate how much horses value their self preservation. "If he was in pain/didn't enjoy it he'd buck me off!" No. These animals are hard wired not to give away any clues that they're ailing- that does tend to happen after thousands of years evolving to escape predators that make mountain lions look like care bears.

11. Never under estimate how sensitive a horse is. A hard mouth, a cold back- it's all the same, it's all wishy washy names that avoid pin pointing a problem and in doing so protect the human ego. The back part of this year I've worked with a horse with limited vision. He can disengage his hind quarters on his left side if you just cock your head; he doesn't have an eye on his left side.

10. If you built a palace directly on the mud of a flood plain and you started crying when bits of your palace crumbled over time, people would call you an idiot. For some reason, when folks try to ride a horse without putting a foundation down first, they proudly stick it all over youtube and people call them an inspiration. The mind boggles.

9. There are trainers out there who are better than you and there are trainers out there who 'think' they're better than you. Do yourself a favour and learn to stop crying over the opinions of the latter.

8. Do what you do. You might not be everyone's cup of tea, but there are horses and people out there that need your mocha. Let 'em find you, give 'em a hand, help someone, be useful. It will pay off one day and until it does you'll get your dose of feel good kicks for day.

7. Don't take everything so damn personally. Life's not all about you. If your horse is biting when you saddle him, he's biting because you're saddling him, not because he's "taking the piss" out of you. Better yourself, learn something and find out why he's giving you the information that he's not comfortable being saddled. Just because YOU don't know a solution doesn't mean there isn't one.

6. Positive reinforcement isn't crazy cat lady exclusive and negative reinforcement isn't macho cowboy exclusive. Have a try at being the middle man, be the crazy cowboy cat.

5. Horses aren't aware there are such things as English, western, jumping, reining, dressage, polo or barrel racing. Horses know that riding is only ever two things: good or bad. Before you go defending something just because it's familiar to you or bagging on something just because it's alien to you, think which category it falls into. Similarly...

4. Don't drill a tired horse. Your horse doesn't know you've paid £20 to book the school for an hour and you've arrived 20 minutes early to insure you can use every last second to work up a sweat and crack those flying changes. He only knows when he's given all he can and is either too mentally drained to absorb anymore or not yet physically strong enough to perform that next step that you're determined to do on this specific day at this specific school within this specific hour.

3. Hang out with people who are better than you. It's good to keep the ego in check and insures you get a regular dose of inspiration.

2. Hang out with people aren't yet as good as you. It makes you reaffirm what you already know and insures you keep questioning yourself.

1. No horse crazy kid ever grew up dreaming of riding a stressy horse strapped down in bondage gear then throwing it in a stable for the next 24 hours. Don't lose sight of why you got a horse in the first place. Don't let growing up cloud the visions you had as a child of galloping bareback and bridleless like that kid in "The Black Stallion". You grew up in awe and respect of these animals. Keep that shit up.

TheCardiffQuarterBug

https://thecardiffquarterbug.wordpress.com/