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It Only Takes a Whisper

© Gwenyth Browning Jones Santagate

The following is an excerpt from a discussion on "Alpha" ...

--- (Comment) I think there is a big problem with the 'alpha' mindset, which is very common - not just with horses, but with other animals and sometimes eachother. The problems I see mainly are the expectations and assumptions of being alpha and the behaviour indulged in because of these assumptions, such as heavy handedness, beleiving horses are deserving of punishment, etc.

--- (My Reply) Yep. I don't remember whose quote this is (and I'm sure I've quoted it wrongly as I usually mess things up!!! but the meaning's the same) -- "Use as little (pressure) as you need but as much as it takes." (Dorrance???)

I've found, over the years, that most riders (myself included many times!!) are SHOUTING at our horses when we really only need to use our soft voice/hand. I've also discovered over the years just how important our ***eyes*** are when riding and even working on the ground. As the horse is our mirror and hopefully visa versa, if we merely look to the direction in which we wish to go, the horse will feel the change in our bodies and know what to expect, where to go. Simply looking in a certain direction affects the entire rest of our body i.e. muscle tenseness, weight, etc. The horse is fully able to feel these changes even through a heavy saddle.

Working with a horse on the ground, our body will open or close the doors for our horses. A horse only understands voice/language AFTER its associated the word(s) with a certain behavior. I always use the 'quiet' verbal cues **with** my body, even when training, so the horse will learn to associate a certain sound with a specific behavior. Initially, however, the body language, OUR body cues are what primarily communicate our wishes to the horse.

If a horse can be run off with a simple "look" and tiny ear flicker from another horse - I'd say that's pretty quiet communication yet that almost indiscernible movement can SHOUT -- horse to horse.

It is when we, the human, begin to feel the frustration of our horse not "doing" (understanding) what we are asking it to do that we resoundly SHOUT at the horse. We may not be actually shouting but a heavy hand, a hard leg, a tense seat -- all these are roars in the horse's ear. What we have to realize is that when we feel the need to "shout" (or we shout without realizing) we are trying to exert "control" over our horses and that, in itself, is negative. If we "ask" with our bodies, our eyes, our soft cues then we are far more likely to have a horse which will quietly respond in the appropriate manner but ONLY if the horse is understanding.

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