> > > I think horses are very good at discerning our intent, and putting our > actions into context...and are very good at forgiving. > > > Karen Thomas, NC >
i very rarely whack a horse but when i do, man he deserves it. Usually just full of beans and acting arrogant and snotty. but its always interesting to me how I can whack a horse for acting up and they react. but i can whack a horse accidentally and they know it! how do they know... i read somewhere that the horse is the most perceptive of all mammals. I think it was in national geographic. and when I think how perceptive I am, and then try to imagine if i was like ten times or twenty times more perceptive... i can hardly imagine it, it would be like mind reading. my horses when young, they try to get over on me and think its funny. but as they age, they gain respect and appreciation for my generosity and yes, forgiveness and affection. But I can be trying to catch nasi or something and he will flip me off and do something rude and I will just start getting firm and he will still flip me off but the INSTANT i actually get mad he becomes totally submissive. Even contrite. He almost killed me recently. WHile leading him up to a locked gate, while I was trying to unlock it, he got playful with curly ray, dancing and butt shoving him until curly ray did the donkey dominance thing and mounted him and bit him in the nape without letting go, and caused nasi to surge ahead, pinning me into the fence. By the time I got done yelling as loud as I could and kicking his shins and whacking both of them with the lead rope they were little angels with halos and I did not do anything to them that would actually even cause a bruise. But they were good for a whole week or two which for those two is nearly impossible. and teev, if he ever thought you were unfair he would act like the biggest sour apple you ever saw. but one time I accidently whacked him hard with a hard clunk right in the face with a long handle of a crab net I was carrying to keep the turkeys off me and he just winced. And he is a horse that threw himself sideways and ran backwards when a stranger on the trail grabbed his face to pet him when he wasnt expecting it. They know things. They do know intent. I have been walking out into the pasture with the lead rope and on my way to get Jas or stonewall, I stop and pet Trausti, holding the lead rope in my hand, and then go on my way, just letting him know when he sees me coming with a lead rope it doesnt always mean work. he always acts like "just keep eating and she'll move on" haha. Janice -- even good horses have bad days sometimes.
