Managing a Resistant Horse: The Right Mixture of Sweetness and Strength

1. Introduction

This presentation addresses the issues of unpredictabilities in horses which can make them dangerous as the inherent risk law supports. As veterinarians, we need to respect this because all horses should be considered potentially dangerous regardless of the package. This is true whether they appear bold and rude or quiet and docile. However, as we become more sensitive to them and grow in our own personal awareness, the horse becomes more predictable and we find more options for our safety. My lifelong study of recognizing the behavioral characteristics of the horse motivates me to share with you how to remain safe and manage your environment. As practicing veterinarians, we know many horses show a negative connotation towards us that may not be present for the owner. This is true whether it is in a clinical setting or in the field. Our approach to manage the behavior of the horse with finesse not only keeps us safe, but allows us to maintain clientele, despite their horses’ attitude towards us.

Multiple factors may trigger this negativity. Whether it is the sound of our truck, the scent we bring in, or the fact that we are outsiders, the responsibility of managing this negative behavior becomes incumbent upon us. In many cases it is not the horse trainer or the owner’s responsibility to change the viewpoint of the horse. We must recognize this responsibility as we take ownership in building this interaction with the horse. It is not to be taken personally but responsibly. If we can get the horse to behave for us, then chances are the horse will be cooperative with follow up treatments, which will encourage the owner to be more compliant. This results in the better health of the horse. 

Patience is an important element to the horse’s healthy recovery as well as our safety as veterinarians. We must recognize when to work and when to wait. The horse needs to know when we need them to move and when we need them to be still. If the horse is being resistant during a procedure, then we need to use our intelligence as humans and manage their sensitivity. This begins with learning how to best manage the environment that will enable the horse to accept and trust us. This is accomplished by our increasing insight of how the horse lines up for or against us. An example of this negative response would be an energy pushing against us or blocking and shutting us out. Our efforts can be more productive by redirecting the negative behaviors rather than trying to use ineffective brute force. Reward the smallest change and the slightest try from the horse. Reach out to them in a calm and passive manner to see if they will reach back with a change of expression. This gives them more reason to seek out a more preferred response which is the foundation of how they start to fill in for us.

Filling in is the dance, the closing of the gap between our efforts and the horse’s in our mutual interaction. There will always be a constant balance between us and the horse: the yin and yang of our interaction. I have observed veterinarians that have the ability to perform procedures on horses without raising their stress level or anxiety when the horse appeared to be non-compliant. These natural abilities to fill in for the horse come from experience and being less abrasive; however, these skills can also be learned. When performing a procedure, if the horse is willing to accept it, then they are willing to accept the balance between us. If they show a resistance, it is our responsibility to help them. They should be allowed to work through things they view as troublesome. As they identify what is non-productive for them, they will pause and weigh the outcome. The desired outcome is a horse with a non-defensive posture towards us or the procedure. The sensitivity of the horse allows them to find their non-defensive posture when we use a rhythm, through an observation, and through perseverance on our part. We need to block the movement we want to discourage and encourage the movement we do want, which is a non-defensive movement. As this is achieved, the horse is neither lined up to leave nor pushes against us.

There are two common defensive movements in creating a body position for the horse: one is the inside hind leg not reaching up under their belly. The other is the inside front leg being pushed from the outside hock and loin through the front leg into us. We need to encourage the inside hind leg to reach further up under their belly by asking the outside front leg to move more lateral than forward. This is effective because the outside front leg draws the inside hind leg. The other defensive movement would be countered by encouraging the inside front leg to step back up under their girth. This will naturally break the push from the opposite hind leg because the backup is a two-beat diagonal gate. Once this is executed, it is critical to give the horse a chance to digest what was just presented. They will develop a respect toward us and start to reach out. They will understand their boundaries more clearly.

Boundaries are important as we proceed and advance behind their eye. This is a vulnerable place for them and where the support becomes so crucial. Once we obtain acceptance to go past their eye, it is important that we do not challenge them. If getting past the eye becomes an issue for them, then we need to address it. Once we have acceptance of advancing behind the eye, it is now an appropriate time to withdraw. We know how we positioned them the first time so we can achieve this again.

Taking an opportunity to change sides will balance the horse’s mental capacity and increase our safety by continuing the balance on both sides of the horse. If they attempt to block us again, we reinitiate the inside hind leg stepping up and forward under their belly. Then the outside front leg will step out in a forward motion around us. This shows that they have allowed us in behind their eye and now it is appropriate to change sides again. If the horse accepts this, then they are neither lined up to leave nor lined up to push. True feel, timing, and balance is critical to understand when we need to change our angle, have good rhythm, and movement. Be confident but relaxed and always ready to leave. If the trouble is too great, then we need to eliminate it. This is true even if we are the cause of the trouble. This will keep us safe and the horse more predictable.

To continue the horse’s predictable behavior, something as simple as how we use the coordination of our upper and lower body movement can assure the horse that they are safe to be still. The coordination of this movement can facilitate a quality response so the horse can regain its balance or maintain a non-defensive posture. It is important to the horse’s state of mind that they remain confident that it is alright to move or stay. The horse needs to recognize there is a need to move only when both our upper and lower body is engaged in the request for movement. Otherwise, there is no need for the horse to move as we advance toward our position for the procedure as long as either our upper body is moving while the lower body is quiet and always ready to withdraw, or the upper body is quiet and ready to withdraw while our lower body is advancing. How we regulate the quality of our touch is as vital as this understanding.

If the horse is unsure of a touch to a new area, this touch needs to be very quiet with your lower joints ready to withdraw, but the contact attempts to remain. Once the horse accepts the contact, the veterinarian builds from a quiet touch to a more direct touch that includes movement. We would first move their skin with this touch, then move this contact over their skin, proceeding on to a new spot and then repeat. This is a preparation to the position for the transition. This approach can be applied to all aspects of veterinary procedures.

Managing our safety includes educating our horse handlers to the proper way of taking over control of the horse. Those helping are critical to our success as we transition that role to them and move into the task of completing the medical procedure. Their energy needs to be sympathetic to our needs as well as that of the horse and aware of their concerns, keeping us safe while we do our job. We need to coordinate with them and make sure they know what to do when the horse objects to a procedure that causes them discomfort. We are dealing with a shifting energy within the horse stimulated by the procedure. Our horse handlers need to direct that energy by maintaining a non-defensive posture. [...]