01/10/2026
Re-establishing a healthy relationship with contact.
I see a lot of horses who have a pretty defensive relationship to contact. Starts with the halter, usually carries over to the bit/bridle. At some point, they've likely just been pulled on and generated forward movement accordingly. But how can they generate healthy movement if the first thing they're doing is bracing?
The solution isn't to pull harder. In the before video with this mare, she's quite stuck. She couldn't take a step without me applying more pressure than I wanted. Instead, I took a look at her limbs and realized she was already disorganized standing there. Her left front/right hind diagonal pair of legs didn't match - she was preparing to brace against that lead rope with both front legs. I stepped in, helped reset her diagonal pairs and she was able to bring that exact pair forward. The first few steps are staggering. She doesn't trust that I'm not going to pull. But then, she settles into more rhythm and opens up a bit. The "after" video is a bit later in the same session. With consistency and awareness, she opens up in a more fluid walk.
Evaluating details like this can tell us so much about how our horses use their bodies, how they understand our aids, and how our work is impacting them.
