What to do when the horse says NO!

At some point in our journey, we will come across a situation in which our horse says No to what we are asking him to do.   Without addressing each individual situation, here are some ideas to help you work through this with your horse.

First, we need to make a decision as to WHY we think the horse is saying no;

Does he understand what we are asking ?

Sometimes the horse truly doesn't 'get' what it is we are asking - which could be because we are asking the wrong way (our body position is telling him to do something else), or simply because he hasn't been asked to do it before, or if he is fairly new at a task.  I see it in things like lunging, moving the hind, backing up pretty often - the handler thinks they are asking the horse to lunge, but their body is pulling the horse on top of them.

If you think the horse doesn't understand, you need to go ahead and teach him what the correct response is to what you are asking, by asking, and then releasing when he makes a move towards what it is that we want.  **Note - more pressure is NOT the answer in this situation.  Patience and waiting is.

Is he worried ?

Sometimes our horses say No!  when they are worried about something.  Float loading, crossing a creek, even cantering can all be an issue that can cause worry in your horse.  It is important to look at the horse and see if there are any signs that he is worried - worry lines, tightness in the jaw or lips - you must look at his body language to determine if he is worried.  If he is worried you will need to build trust between him and you, so he feels that he can do something he may not want to, because he trusts you that he is not going to get hurt from doing it.  Use your skills to build trust between you and your horse, so he feels empowered to do what you are asking.  ***Note - Adding more Pressure here is NOT the answer.

That brings us to - If you feel that he does understand, and he is not worried.  He is just saying no.  

Does he believe you ?

The simple answer is no - if he does understand what you are asking, and he isn't worried - it means that the question (or the ask) is not important enough to act on, (when it comes from you).  So what that means is, you must establish enough respect, so the horse does believe you.  You may think that the horse has respect for you, and he might in certain circumstances.  What we need to establish is enough respect so he is happy to do things you are asking in any circumstance.  Respect is established by us being consistent, and following through with our requests.

I must stress here - you may think that your horse is not worried but he is worried - I see it all the time on a trail ride - the horse stops at a certain point and the rider will say "oh he just doesn't want to leave his paddock, he is being naughty"  NO, he doesn't want to leave the security and safety of his paddock and his herd, and he doesn't trust you enough to lead him away from them.  This is just one example.

We need to think like horses, so we can understand what motivates their decision making process'.

Here are the top 5 things that I see regularly, which compromises your relationship;

1.  Allowing your horse to rub on you.
2.  Allowing your horse to 'take' 'his' feed from you (for example his head in the bucket as you walk along to put it in his paddock).
3.  Allowing your horse to lead you - (for example you are going somewhere and your horse wants to go that way - he leads in front).
4.  Allowing your horse to graze in hand, and following him around as he moves to new grass (he is leading you).
5.  Allowing your horse to move your feet (for example, you stop to talk to your friend, your horse moves close into your space, you move away as you are claustrophobic).

This is an in depth topic and a small article - I hope you get some ideas.  Im sure a lot of you will have your own set of ground and ridden exercises to help you build trust, respect and confidence in both parties (rider and horse).  If not the TKH philosophy and principles are an effective yet simple way to help you and your horse understand each other better.

Happy trails

Tanja