Zen Horse

Training Tip of the Week

By Clinton Anderson

Approach and Retreat Easy Reminders

Approach your horse with the object.

Approach and Retreat is a method used to desensitize your horse to scary objects. Approach your horse with the object he is worried about and don't retreat (take the object away) until he does two things: 1) stops moving his feet and 2) shows a sign of relaxing.
Horses have two sides to their brain: the thinking side and the reactive side. The thinking side is calm, rational, safe, attentive, confident, etc. In other words, it's the side we want our horses to use. The reactive side is what Mother Nature tells the horse to use - "Run first and think later." When a horse uses the reactive side of his brain he's full of energy, unpredictable, jumpy, fearful, etc.
Teach the horse to use the thinking side of his brain by making him move his feet forwards, backwards, left and right and always rewarding the slightest try.
Always find a starting point, a level of pressure that your horse can tolerate and is comfortable with, and then gradually increase the pressure to reach your end goal.
Keep a steady and constant rhythm.
Don't retreat (take the object away) until the horse stands still and relaxes. When a horse relaxes, he'll do one of six things: lick his lips, lower his head and neck, blink his eyes, cock a hind leg, take a big breath, or stand still for 15 seconds.
Keep a steady and consistent rhythm when desensitizing the horse.
Consistency is your greatest ally. Inconsistency is your greatest enemy.
Horses have a left side and a right side to their brain and each side needs to be trained separately. I spend 2/3 of my time training a horse's bad side, and 1/3 of my time training his good side.

Thanks Clinton I have a good side and a bad side too I try to spend 2/3 of my time on the good side. Check out Clinton's Website www.outbackhorsemanship.com