Our barn has a sump pump, and the discharge comes out through a black corrugated pipe that runs out of the back of the barn onto a grassy area. Drifter and I have been hand grazing in the general area, but he's never gotten too close to the black "snake". Today, he was edging closer - lots of snorting - Drifter is a big snorter when he's exploring/worried about something.
Then the pump ran and water ran out of the pipe - big spook - but one thing I noted that was important - he never ran to the end of the lead and didn't pull on me at all, and settled down right afterwards. He grazed up to a couple of feet of the pipe. I walked over the pipe and gently asked him to follow - and he did! He did clunk his back feet - I see walking over poles in our future. We did it a couple more times in between grazing periods. I was very pleased that he trusted me enough to walk over the scary "snake" when asked.
Good Drifter!
Friday, April 1, 2011
8 comments:
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Good stuff. There's no way we can ever stop a horse from being afraid. However, we can teach them to trust us enough to 'spook in place.'
ReplyDeleteDan
I love how you expect your horses to be good - and they are. Good Drifter, good Pie, good Dawn, good Kate.
ReplyDeleteGood man!
ReplyDeleteThe 'snake' sounds like a very scary object. Good boy Drifter for having the courage to get closer for a look. He seems very sensible.
ReplyDeleteSo nice that he didn't pull on you. He obviously trusts you alot too. Very nice.
ReplyDeleteA step in the right direction! *G*
ReplyDeleteWell done, Drifter. I like how his mind works things out.
I like how he didn't put pressure on the lead. It's such a big deal when they get to that place.
ReplyDeleteGood Drifter! I love it when they trust you in scary situations.
ReplyDelete