Predator or prey?

Wednesday 23rd April

Today is an easy day for both us and the horses. In fact, the horses have gone to the very furthest boundary of their paddock, which is up a huge hill – I think they’re on to us. It’s like “catch me if you can”, although it doesn’t take much – guided by their stomachs, they always can always be tempted by a big handful of corn.

This morning Jillian gave us a Natural Horsemanship demonstration. This is kind of how it works… Did you know that horses, cows, antelopes, deer, sheep an any animal that has it’s eyes on the side of it’s head is considered a “prey animal”, meaning one who gets preyed upon. Any animal that has its eyes at the front of it’s head (like dogs, cats, lions and even humans) are considered to be predators. Eyes in the front of the head allow us depth perception, so we know how far away from us our prey is. Prey animals have eyes on the side so they can see any potential threats in their peripheral vision. It’s pretty interesting, I’d never thought about it before. When using natural horsemanship, you cease becoming a predator, and convince your horse that you are the “lead mare” in its herd. No, you don’t have to grow your eyes in the side of your head! Basically, you build trust between yourself and the horse, through a series of non-verbal communication. Horses respond best to body language and gentle commands, once they come to trust you. It’s an amazing thing to watch, and at the end of the demonstration, Jillian had a brand-new horse that she had never worked with before following her around, like she was leading it on an invisible piece of string. You have to see it to believe it. Actually it’s a technique called “join up” which as been devised (and trademarked!) by Monty Roberts, the original Horse Whisperer (see www.montyroberts.com) I am inspired! I google "The Horse Directory" for horses for sale ... hmmm... I wonder if the back yard is big enough? xx N