08/01/2025
A lot of folks treat holes in their horse's training the same way the State of Indiana treats potholes.
They see it, slap a patch on it and continue on.
A patch can take many forms, a tie down, a bigger bit, avoidance, or working on the intermediate stage of the problem without fixing the basics.
What happens to those Indiana potholes that have been patched?
They open back up again, in the exact same spot, every dang time.
You're driving along, listening to your music, sipping on your iced coffee and THUD, a chuck hole the size of your washed up hopes and dreams.
Iced coffee goes flying, you say bad words, and there goes the vibe for the morning.
Same thing with your horse, you'll be cruising along for a while and THUD, your horse will grab the bit or fart off and embarras you in front of your cowboy friends.
This is because a patch is not a long term solution.
You know what works better than a patch?
Repaving the whole dang road.
Expensive? Yes. Time consuming? Yes. Does it keep you from seeing Jesus in an unpleasant manner on your way to work? Yes.
Same thing with your horse, restarting horses is a real thing and it's time consuming and can be expensive to pay somebody to do it right. Going back to the root of the behavior is crucial for long term results.
The root of the problem could very well be physical. Also expensive I know, injections, body work, and proper fitting equipment isn't cheap. However, you can't expect your horse to work through it's discomfort and perform at the same level as the horses receiving proper care.
You know what works even better than repaving the road?
You guessed it, doing it right the first time.
This is why a good trainer is worth every penny. When your horse learns something the correct way the first time, you can stack those good experiences on top of each other to create a broke horse. Doing it right isn't cheap either, it can be slow, meticulous, and frankly, boring. It's no race, no horse continues to the next step before showing mastery at the current step.
They do bodywork from day one so they don't learn bad habits due to discomfort. They provide days off for recovery and they don't put human timelines onto their horses. Yes, they have a goal in mind however it's not something the horse should ever be aware of. As far as the horse is concerned, you have all the time in the world.
This post was brought to you by the pothole on Murphy Rd and Hendrix St in Brazil, IN. If you know, you know.
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