10/11/2026
When a horse experiences something for the first time, the emotions present during that experience can become linked to the activity itself. If the person handling the horse is fearful, stressed or absent minded, the horse can pick up on that, and it can become part of the association.
This is why a different person, approaching the same situation without fear, distraction, or fixed ideas on what outcome they want may get a very different response from the horse, particularly if the fear pattern isn’t too deeply established.
For example, the hindquarters of a wild or unhandled horse are an extremely vulnerable area. A horse will naturally prefer to have you in front of them, where they can see you, rather than allowing you to approach from behind or touch this area. If you do get behind them, they may be very weary or ready to kick. This is a natural protective response.
When fear is present, there is a safety issue and often some relearning to be done.
I believe the starting point is recognising the exact moment the horse becomes uncomfortable, rather than starting at the place we ultimately want to get to.
For example, if a horse hasn’t had positive experiences with hands or movement behind the girth, this can become a potentially dangerous situation. Rather than pushing through the discomfort, recognise where the change in the horse’s comfort is…from the horse feeling calm, safe and comfortable to it feeling fear, stress or defensive.
From there, we gradually introduce the area that makes them unsure. The important thing is to stay within that slightly uncomfortable space, but not push so far that we trigger a big reaction. We allow the horse time to process what is happening and realise that they are okay.
When we see that moment of understanding, that little shift where the horse recognises there is no threat and begins to relax and understand what is happening, we return to their very happy, comfortable place. This is showing our recognition, to the horse that we understand a way of communicating with them: I see you, I recognise what you’ve just worked through, and we are doing a fantastic job together!
We then repeat the process, gradually increasing what we ask of them as their confidence, comfort and ability allow.
The important part is not how quickly we get to our end goal, but recognising where the horse is emotionally at each moment and allowing that to determine our next step. This builds a safe and solid foundation that we can build and grow things out of.
The pony in the picture was not like what I have described, she was well handled from a young age and it was a natural progression to ride her, she was happy to be ridden she is an inquisitive and brave pony.
