interesting... you thoughts please...

[2 bays & a grey:D]

Since I have been having my lessons (which by the way are going brilliantly) myself and Becky have been discussing spookiness in horses. As we know Nancy was a very spooky horse (at one end of the school) when she had the ulcers.. pain related.. we were discussing that actually, it is coming to light that spookiness doesn't come from environment per se but circumstance.
For example... my first lesson I rode in a) saddle, but Nancy more often than not was tense and spooky. The following day I rode in B) saddle, completely different horse, settled, listening to me and when she spooked it was so irrelevant I didn't even notice... Becky has had a couple of instances recently whilst finding out about the Schleese Saddles (she witnessed spooky horse no longer becomes spooky horse when in this saddle)
However, my question is not 'why' they spook, as most on here know the reason... but why do they usually spook in one area and one area only? Something that may never be fathomed but an interesting thought all the same... when Nancy had the ulcers Myself & LizP (by her own admission) didn't think it could have been pain as she worked well at one end of the school but not in another... this had been consistent with Nancy in which ever school she had been in...

So... brainy folk... your thoughts if you will ;D

[mandal]

I'm sure there are many reasons but I do think worry about anything can cause varying levels of stress which will tend to cause horses to be more reactive. This worry (stress) imo can be from pain,discomfort,fear, a general low level stress from environment etc. etc. Hence the frequent problem in pinpointing causes of a behaviour. This reinforces for me the importance of looking at all aspects of the horses life and improving everything we can.

[2 bays & a grey:D]

Jan 6, 2012 14:24:45 GMT 1 mandal said:

I'm sure there are many reasons but I do think worry about anything can cause varying levels of stress which will tend to cause horses to be more reactive. This stress imo can be from pain,discomfort,fear, a general low level stress from environment etc. etc. Hence the frequent problem in pinpointing causes of a behaviour. This reinforces for me the importance of looking at all aspects of the horses life and improving everything we can.

Good point & couldn't agree more . The more I learn the more i become interested in making the environment, me etc less stressful for the horse, also trying to understand what might be causing the high re-activeness- something I think more people should take the time to understand & learn

[mandal]

I think the high level stress reactions are results of pain or fear basically. I do think these can be heightened by low level stress generally and previous experience.
I'll be interested in other replies as I do see things quite simply.

[Deleted]

Jan 6, 2012 14:33:13 GMT 1 mandal said:

I think the high level stress reactions are results of pain or fear basically. I do think these can be heightened by low level stress generally

Agree 100%. Before Talin had Henry he was spooky and highly reactive most of the time, Henry moved in and over night Talin became easier, because his background level of stress had reduced.

Re. one end of the school being spooky, well I think that's pretty simple in a lot of cases - there's usually a pile of jumps/ a tree/ shed/ flappy plastic/ footpath they can hear but not see etc. Whether they react to it could depend on their background level of stress, amount of energy, confidence of the rider etc. I know horses who'll always spook in the school with their owner and not with other riders, because the owner has inadvertantly taught the horse to do it by anticipating it.

Incidentally I don't want to rain on your parade but I wouldn't take 1 day of spooking vs 1 day of not spooking as evidence that saddle number 1 is causing pain or discomfort, I'd be swapping back and forth for a lot more rides before drawing any conclusions.

[2 bays & a grey:D]

Not one day... And yes thats a plan.. That said i feel more secure in the other saddle. (could be another factor At this moment you couldnt rain on my parade... Im expecting blips but right now feel extremely positive with both mine & nancys progress in such a small length of time.. And yes i do think the saddle was a contributuary factor

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[Deleted]

Jan 6, 2012 15:08:51 GMT 1 2 bays & a grey:D said:

At this moment you couldnt rain on my parade...

Good I'm glad you're making good progress and having fun

[2 bays & a grey:D]

Thankyou :-). In fact that excited i get butterflies... How sad is that :-D

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[donnalex]

Smetimes a horse can obsess about one end of the school when they had a fright there once.
Alex was loony in my neighbours menage for months because the first time we were in it the the chickens were roosting in the bush at the corner plus there was a chair and some equipment in the same corner to goggle at.
Whether he thought the stuff made the rustling or nt I will never know but six months later he was still peeping going past that corner. At first I handled it wrongly and made him work in the corner more which wound him up then after some thought I worked him down the opposite end until he was tired then used the spooky end to wind down a bit. After quite some time he forgot.
He only ever peeped and went past the corner crooked, never used his foible as an aversion so definitely in no way naughty just very annoying to work beautifully around then spoil it all at one end

[jen1]

toward and away from gate or sour spot duno i think they can obsess about things sometimes, or it may well be us giving them a cue,