Can you make a horse brave? Experiences please

[Switchthehorse]

Hi All

I have been told my mare (now 11) is fundamentally not brave.. and whilst i can help her with confidence she will never be properly brave. For example, show jumping she is scared of fillers, it doesnt matter how many times you jump a filler, she is still very spooky of it, and if you jump in 2 separate rounds you are likely to get stops the second round (even after she has been over it in the previous round).

Hacking on her own she is nervous, spooky, plants, reverses a lot etc. She has got better but you never know what will scare her (dock leaf last weekend - had to get off).

I was told recently by an international show jumper recently that I will never make her brave.. so I need to resign myself to this fact.

I have my own opinion (which i won't share) but to put into context I have had her since she was 3 and have been trying these things since then - without much success.

Just wondered whether you all think you can make a horse brave or whether some, like people, are fundamentally more scared than others...

Thanks

 

[SpringArising]

In short, yes, I think you can. Without meaning to be rude, could you be the problem? Horses are definitely pros at sniffing out fear.

 

[Exploding Chestnuts]

Do you have the eyes checked by a specialist?

 

[Shay]

It sounds more complex than simple bravery. As Springarising said I agree that there was a variety of ways to encourage more boldness in the horse but they are going to depend on what the issue - or issues! - are in the first place.

You've had this mare a good while - she should trust you as her leader and yet clearly doesn't. Bonkers2 has a good point about checking her eyesight which is clearly relevant - but if her lack of bravery has been present from the start that doesn't seem to offer a complete solution, although it would convincingly explain a previously bold horse turning spooky.

Forums are always difficult places to give - or get - advice. Is there any way you would work with a professional who would be supportive of both you and her? Boldness comes as much from confidence in the rider / handler as from the horse.

 

[nato]

I don't believe you can 'make' a horse brave. However, you CAN make a horse CONFIDENT. This comes from trust in the rider and consistency - your horse needs to know it's safe to jump the fence, or go past the scary wheelie bin, or go into the water, and that you will ask them to do this in the same way, every time, and that the experience for them will be consistent (for the most part) each time. My horse is naturally not confident - the first time we jump a fence, it's all over the place, then we go again and it's a bit better, and the third and fourth times, it improves again.

I need to be persistent with her - she MUST go into the water when I ask her to. When she does go in (it can take a while) or jumps the fence, I make a big fuss and we go again. And again. And again. Until she gets the idea that it's not scary and she's going to have to do it when I ask her, and I will reward her for it. This consistency and trust creates confidence within her to do it the next time - even if it's not the same fence or the same place, she knows my ask is consistent and that her only option is to do it.

If you are inconsistent in your responses (sometimes being persistent and making her go over the jump, sometimes letting her away with it) or don't foster trust in you (catching her in the mouth, landing heavily on her back) or even give the slightest inkling that you might not want to do it (my horse is a divil for picking up on my nerves!), they will be inconsistent too.

I would work with a good instructor to establish confidence for both you and your horse. It is totally possible to make you both confident. I'd remove the word 'brave' from the vocabulary for now and focus on confidence - which comes from consistency and trust!

 

[OWLIE185]

My experience is based on getting horses to ride through central London by themselves (Not in company).
I firmly believe that a horse has either got it or not. In other words they will either have the temperament to be ridden by themselves through London or they don't
The ones that have got it don't get bothered about anything.
The ones that don't have it - never will I am afraid.
This is based on 40 years of experience.

 

[PorkChop]

Nato's post is excellent

Horses gain confidence from us - is she spooky with fillers etc because she is super careful and doesn't want to touch them?

 

[Illusion100]

Not imo.

However you can often get positive results by accepting the horse for who they are and instead of trying to make them something else, work with what you have.

 

[Barnacle]

I'm with nato in general.

What I will say though is bravery is doing something in spite of fear. This is not the same as confidence - which is not fearing in the first place. Studies show over and over that how scared a horse is is not clearly determined by a person watching their behaviour. You may actually have a horse that is totally confident that will act as though it is scared... Or you'll have a horse that is freaking out inside but will do what you ask regardless. Identifying which you have can go a long way to deciding how best to approach the situation.

For a genuinely fearful horse, you need to get that horse to either stop being fearful through repetition and consistency. Or you need to motivate it to act in spite of its fear - for that you need a horse that will trust you and respect you and you. Studies show that pushing a horse 'through' its fear quickly is better than letting the horse dwell on it and take its time. So if your horse spooks at something, just move on past. If it's a filler, make the horse jump it. Don't make it hang around getting used to the object... It actually makes them learn that the object is harmless less quickly. This may seem counter-intuitive to us but actually makes sense in a flighty species that is regularly frightened as it needs to be able to rapidly get over fears if they are not worth it - otherwise you expend loads of energy constantly running from everything!

If your horse is not really fearful but is demonstrating fearful behaviour, it may need to be shown that it cannot simply get away with that behaviour. Repeating and consistency will go a long way but respect is important too. The difference is that while with the first scenario you may need to do the same one thing over and over. In this latter scenario, working on other things the horse doesn't love doing may also help establish what your relationship is and who gets to determine what happens. It may also pay more if this is the case to reward your horse for the desired behaviour profusely so that it is really motivated to do what you want.

 

[nato]

+1 to your post Barnacle!

 

[PollyP99]

The above posts are really interesting. I have a woose of a Welsh section d, however, she is improving with consistency, last weekend we went out on a 2.5 hour hack on our own and had various obstacles to cope with. I have decided I am the brave one and I don't let my fears come through, this is a recent change of attitude post a confidence course and so far it's working.

We jumped today and I laughed at her kookiness in the school and where once my head was saying go body saying no, I'm a woose jumping and was apparently blocking her by not committing , I went for it and so did she, so for my case I think my attitude has changed life for both of us.