At 22:15:49 on 02.03.10, HorseCrazy95 wrote:
Many people are afraid of riding horses since many are not well trained. They sometimes behave awkwardly and it usually is not safe to ride untrained horses. You should not ride these animals unless you are accompanied by an experienced trainer or have a little bit of knowledge when it comes to controlling your horse. There are 5 important things you can do to create a strong bond between you and your horse. 1)Have a good lead A Good lead means that when you walk ahead and to the left of your horse, your horse will follow just behind you with her head at your right shoulder. Your horse should not walk faster than you and she should not straggle behind. 2)Teach your horse to relaxBeing tense is natural for them since they have to keep a close eye on their environment to watch for threats. Teach your her to be comfortable and relaxed around you. When you get frustrated or upset with her, never raise your voice or hit her. Always be calm and collected when near your horse. 3)Use round-pen trainingRound-pen training will allow you to teach her to respond to your body language and voice. 4)Keep her paying attention to you During your training sessions make sure she is focused on you. You can see what your horse is paying attention to by watching her ears. If they are both pointed at you then she is focused on you. On the other had, if one or both ears are pointing anywhere but to you then your horse is scanning her surrounding for threats. 5)Do not just ride off into the sunsetIn other words, do not just jump onto a horse that does not know you and start riding around. Develop a relationship with the horse before you ride it. If you are just starting out, it will take a while to create a bond, but once you are experienced you can create a bond with some horses within a few minutes.