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Writer's pictureLouise Stobbs

Using movement as punishment (and why you shouldn't do it if you value your relationship with your horse)

The idea behind most training we’re exposed to with horses is “make it unpleasant for the horse to do the wrong thing”. Very rarely do people use the word punishment to describe what they’re doing, in fact they often use words and phrases like connection, kind, communication, teaching respect, speaking the horse’s language, making it their idea, but nevertheless what they’re doing to the horse is perceived as punishment by the horse.


When you’re encountering a training issue, instead of thinking of the why, it is usually simplified to “here’s how to make the horse do what you want”, with no thought as to why its happening and what the horse might be trying to communicate. Horses are always trying to communicate with us, to ignore that, make a horse move their feet and only let them rest when they do what you want, is going to destroy our relationship with them.


Please bear in mind that most behavioural issues have some level of physical discomfort behind them so forcing a horse to work hard when they don’t comply is going to give them really negative associations with us and the training scenario.


I’m going to talk about a few scenarios that I have seen recently.


1) The horse won’t load into the trailer, so you present the horse at the ramp and if he doesn’t come forward you take him away and work him hard on a circle for a few minutes. You then represent to the ramp, you teach the horse that the only place he gets to rest is facing the trailer. Does this get compliance? Sure. But when you have a horse who is scared of loading, potentially travelling aggravates hidden physical issues and they already clearly have really negative associations with the trailer. How do you think punishing them for their fear response is going to make them feel? Not good. Calling this sort of training “confidence-building” is ridiculous.


2) The horse pulls a face or nips when you go to groom him, you immediately back him up harshly by jerking the rope clip up into his face all the way across the yard. You then lead him back and attempt to groom him again, if he pulls a face you repeat the punishment. Eventually the horse shuts down and stops communicating his discomfort. He is still really uncomfortable with being groomed but he is scared of being punished again and he has learned you won’t listen.


3) The horse will not stand still when you are riding, you cannot get a halt without the horse swinging all over the place, so you ask for halt, as soon as the horse moves you go up into canter and canter a few laps. You then ask for halt again, rinse and repeat until the horse is so tired they give up and stand still. This is probably the stupidest one I’ve heard. If your horse can’t stand still under saddle they’re anxious at best, if not sore/painful and we have a lot of work to do down-regulating their nervous system and teaching them more positive associations with being ridden. Cantering a probably sore, but definitely dysfunctional horse around for laps and laps to teach them to halt is counter-productive.


Behavioural issues are rarely stand-alone problems to be fixed, it is always more nuanced than that. There are always emotions behind these behaviours, usually coupled with physical discomfort. All you’re teaching them is if you don’t comply I will punish you and I don’t care how you feel about it, this shuts down any communication the horse tries to offer. This is how you create a shut down horse, not a good relationship.


If we want to develop good relationships with our horses, have horses who enjoy working with us and can find joy in movement, we have to learn to look at the whole picture and stop trying to “fix” behaviours like they’re not attached to a whole sentient being.🐴


Photo showing lovely Abbie doing some positive reinforcement training to change her negative and anxious associations with the mounting block ❤️



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