DEAR DANA: My horse is scared of other horses in the show ring and will often pin his ears or try to go to the middle of the ring if one gets too close. How do I break him of this habit?
–Arika of Lyons, KS

DEAR ARIKA: Every once in a while I come across a horse that has a problem with other horses. This horse has probably lacked socialization with other horses. You said that he is scared, but you also said that he pins his ears — when a horse pins his ears, he is communicating anger! Such a reaction may be “fear-based”, and he is genuinely afraid, or it may be that he’s showing aggression to say “Get away from me!”

In the wild, if a horse pins his ears, it is often a warning — the next step would be a bite or kick to the other horse. I would assume that your horse is warning the other horses, but you should be very cautious. Be watchful that your horse doesn’t kick or bite at you or at other horses while you are working with him.

If I had this horse, I would start by ponying him off of an older, broke horse. Keep your lead short enough so that he can’t swing his hip around and kick at you or the horse you are riding. Most horses after a while will relax as they start to accept another horse being that close. You are re-programming a natural response, and this may take time. Give him positive experiences around other horses, using a safe, good-minded horse that will help instill confidence in your horse. Pony your horse at the walk, and if he becomes totally relaxed, you can trot and lope him. But don’t rush it! We want to build positive experiences.

Also, you might condition him to the arena. I would tie my horse in the arena and ride around him until he relaxes, being careful around his hindquarters. After he starts to accept a horse close to him, I’d go back to riding in the arena with a few friends riding around me. I’d start at the walk and have someone alongside until he relaxes, then I’d have my friends jog and lope around me — but I’d remain at a walk. Many horses learn to track with or try to follow a horse that goes around him, so it’s important to teach him to be patient and just walk. If you’ve shown very much, I’m sure you’ve had a horse come thundering up behind you. This can scare your horse as well as program him to go, so I would work on desensitizing him to the horses all around him. Teach him that he needs to wait for your cues. Your horse may have become aggressive to other horses because a horse ran into him or scared him. Be patient and spend a lot of time practicing this.

Your goal is for your horse to trust you, wait for your cue, and ignore the other horses. This will take maintenance. If horses are all around you and he starts pinning his ears again, pick up on him firmly, but don’t scare him. You don’t want him to be mentally rattled and associate the experience with the other horses. Good luck to you!

Dana

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Every competitor has the same challenge! You’ve got to keep focused, keep motivated, and do not let the nerves take over. Once nerves are allowed to take over, they can distort a competitor’s thoughts…which can affect performance. Here is a very important concept for us to remember: Our thoughts control our actions. I realize that when our nerves are roaring like a lion, it can be difficult to control our thoughts. But it is possible to keep control, and I have a few tips that can help you!

1. Keep your perspective.
First, realize that however big the event is, it still is just a horse show. Have your next goal already set before you by keeping your thoughts on to the next big show, or even another important goal or event in your life.

2. Practice makes perfect.
Get to know your horse! The more you can be a “team” with your horse, the more confidence you will have. Work on your weak points, but also magnify your strengths. Do exercises with your horse that will help you to redirect your nerves by focusing on a specific maneuver. This also will perfect you and your horse.

3. Learn the art of breathing.
When we are nervous, we take short, shallow breaths that actually change the way our body sits on the horse’s back. Short breaths also cause us to be tense, and we become more abrupt and sharp in our cues. Proper breathing is wonderful! It helps to position our pelvis correctly on the horse and allows us to feel our horse and engage more effectively. Take a full, deep breath — in through the nose and out through the mouth — breathing deeply through your diaphragm. Try it! It’ll help you to refocus and ride more effectively.

4. Visualize a positive outcome.
Visualizing and thinking on what you want, rather than what you don’t want, is wonderful. Visualize a winning go until you feel the excitement deep within you! If you feel yourself getting nervous, redirect your thoughts to what you want, your goal, and stay in that place until you feel yourself relax.

Best wishes to you… I hope these tips will improve your outcome!