The Horse as Equine Teacher

(This blog was originally posted on April 23, 2011)

Photo by Rick Hustead

 

        No matter how long we have been riding or handling horses, each one has something to teach us. For many people, the first horse they ever ride is an old hand on the ranch. Whether he is a veteran trail horse—one of many in a riding string at camp—or a “schoolmaster” at a riding academy, he has been around. He knows his “stuff,” and his handlers expect him to give their clients a safe ride. The obstreperous pony that “ran away” with you is probably the one that taught you how to ride. He gave you the confidence to know that even a fast horse eventually stops—and sometimes it’s fun to ride fast. Many retired show horses have carried Grand Prix and Olympian riders over their first, small cross-rail.

        When I started riding (again) in 2003, I had not been on a horse for more than nineteen years. I took lessons on—and then bought—a schooling horse. Geeves was being used in jumping lessons; in fact, a friend recently told me that he was the horse that taught her “the finer points of jumping.” When he became my horse, we trained in dressage. This discipline was new to both of us, but he was a true professor when it came to teaching me how to ride. If I applied an aid incorrectly, my horse would not change his gait until I asked the right question. In the eight years or so that we were together, Geeves taught me a lot about caring for, handling, and riding a horse. He helped me to gain self-confidence and to become more assertive; he taught me to be a better rider and a more sensitive horsewoman.

        Horses teach people how to interact with them. For example, in his book, The Man Who Listens to Horses, Monty Roberts describes the long hours he spent observing wild horses in their natural environment. From these observations, he developed the Join-Up program, with which he has used to communicate, gentle and train thousands of horses.

        They have a lot to teach veterinarians, too. When champion race horse Barbaro broke down during the Preakness Stakes in 2006, Dr. Dean Richardson and his veterinary team at New Bolton Center worked hard to save the Kentucky Derby 132 champion. Ultimately, Barbaro developed laminitis in two of his hoofs and he was humanely euthanized. However, the time that the veterinary team spent treating his injuries and trying to rehabilitate the colt has provided new insights and knowledge about how to treat laminitis.

        All over the country, horses are being used in therapeutic settings to help children and adults with mental, physical, or emotional disabilities to gain self-confidence, increase motivation, and improve mobility. They are also employed to help injured military veterans overcome post-traumatic stress disorder. Without even “saying” a word, these majestic animals—often ten to twenty times bigger than their human partners—have something to teach us.

 

 

Sara R. Fogan, C.Ht. is a certified hypnotherapist based in Southern California. She graduated with honors from the Hypnosis Motivation Institute in 2005. For more information about Calminsense Hypnotherapy® and to set up an appointment, please visit http://www.calminsensehypnotherapy.com/.

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