The Ultimate Gift

By Elaine Cornell

The best gift you can possibly give to your horse is to educate yourself.  As a good horse owner you should strive to learn continually, and if you ever begin to think you know it all, you will cease to learn.  There are so many aspects to horse ownership that a lifetime can be spent learning – it never gets boring!  There are several ways to learn; reading, personal teaching, and listening to your horse.

Reading

  There are hundreds of books out there to learn from; new books, old classics, books by famous people, and by those you’ve never heard of.  Some are definitely better than others, and being a famous rider doesn’t always guarantee that you can write a great book.  Be picky.  Ground yourself in books by the old masters, but also learn from people who are adding new knowledge to the old.  Beware of anyone whose ideas contradict hundreds of years of proven experience.  The final criterion for choosing a book is if the author truly places the best interest of the horse first.  For more visual learners videos can be a great addition to books.

Personal teaching

  Of course formal lessons from a good instructor are an ideal way to learn.  An instructor can help you put what you read into practice, and provide personalized feedback and encouragement.  However if lessons aren’t in your budget or you can’t find the ideal teacher, friends who are ahead of you in their journey may be able to help.  You can learn something from almost anyone, even if it’s what not to do!  Clinics are another way to learn, but they have their limits.  It works best if your teacher gets to know you and your horse.  If a clinician isn’t coming on a regular basis you may end up spending a lot of money to learn a small thing or two.  Often you can learn as much auditing as you can from riding, for a lot less money.  Beware of “clinic hopping”. People who continually go from one clinician to another have no continuity and can find themselves going in circles instead of progressing.  Big name riders aren’t necessarily good teachers, so it is good practice to watch a clinician teach before you decide whether or not to ride with him.  Again, a huge priority for selecting an instructor should be whether or not they place the well-being of the horse first.

Listening to your horse

  Your horse is the final authority in matters of riding.  If he tells you it’s working, it is.  In C. S. Lewis’ book The Horse and His Boy, from the Chronicles of Narnia, the talking horse Bree tells his boy “No one teaches riding as well as a horse.”  How true!!  My best teachers have been my horses.  I read, I listen to instructors, and then I go out and experiment.  My horse will always tell me the truth.  The key is learning how to listen.  Occasionally a horse will just say not to something, but most often if he doesn’t do what you ask he is telling you that he doesn’t understand, or it hurts, or he isn’t strong or balanced enough or something is keeping his body from going there.  It is a lifelong endeavor to learn to understand what our horse is telling you. The more you learn the more you will wonder why your horses have put up with you all these years!

The following are just some of the things a committed horseman needs to learn about.

Veterinary medicine – Ask your vet questions.  Learn about preventing problems, and when you have them learn from the experience.  When I was in school I drove a series of ancient cars.  Each time something broke down I learned about another part.  By the time I graduated I was familiar with how an entire car worked!  I’ve learned about nearly every health problem a horse can have that way.  I’m pretty sure reading and asking questions is a less expensive way to learn.

Biomechanics (of both horse and rider) - Learn about anatomy, the skeleton and muscle system. Learn how the horse uses his body and how you must use yours to avoid messing him up, and later to influence him in a positive way.  Learn about conditioning for both of you.  The rider must be as much of an athlete as the horse.

Chiropractic and Equine massage – far, far more important than most people realize.  If the skeleton and muscles aren’t fully functioning, all the good training in the world won’t get you far.  Have a massage therapist show you how you can help our horse between his/her visits.  As for chiropractic, don’t try this at home – rely on a certified professional.

Hoof care – Annoy your farrier.  Ask him so many questions that he’ll want to stuff a sock in your mouth.  Develop an eye for hoof balance – it is the foundation for the rest of the body.  Then to avoid that sock, schedule regular visits so your farrier knows you are doing your part for your horse, as well as making his job easier.

Saddle fit – A horse can’t perform if he is hurting or restricted by a poorly fitting saddle.  Read about fitting a saddle, and if possible have a saddler check the fit of your saddle.  Attend clinics on the subject of possible.

Nutrition – absolutely critical, especially for young, growing horses and older ones.  Your vet is a good educational source, and most feed manufacturers offer free consultations with an equine nutritionist of you ask.  The National Research Council has recently come out with updated recommendations for feeding horses, and that information should be available on a CD soon.  Other good books regarding equine nutrition are available, and it is important that you read the labels on your feed sacks.  You also need to learn about supplements, especially joint supplements and probiotics.  Every horse will need them at some point in his life.

Horse psychology – to have a healthy relationship with your horse, you need to know how he thinks.  The relative intelligence of a horse is not the most relevant issue; it’s whether or not we are smart enough to learn to think like a horse!  Read, observe experienced horsemen, and observe your horse, especially in herd situations.

Horse training – Ah, yes.  So you only want to ride, not train.  That isn’t an option!  Every time you interact with your horse you are training him.  You are reinforcing something good, or teaching him something bad.  And if you are riding a trained horse, you’d better have some understanding of how he got there, or you’ll never be able to trouble shoot if something goes wrong.  So, even if you only ride older trained horses, learn about the training of young ones.  I promise it is knowledge you will put to use.

If you are constantly working to educate yourself in all areas of horsemanship, you will have a richer, deeper relationship with your horse, and be more successful.  Your horse will thank you!