Three Famous Horse Films

One well-known movie horse didn’t actually exist! ‘ A horse! A horse! My kingdom for a horse!’ is Richard III’s cry when he desperately needs a horse to escape from those who would kill him on Bosworth Field.The very positive horses portrayed in these films are completely different from Shakespeare’s evil Richard and the horse he cried out for. Everyday life in Richard’s time was sufficiently dangerous that things like horse insurancewould have come at an incredibly high price!

The Black Stallion
This award winning film was produced in 1979 - some 400 years after Shakespeare.How Alec and a high-spirited Arabian stallion interact provide the narrative of this film. It includes a shipwreck, the rescue of the drowning Alec by the horse, and a period of slowly developing mutual trust on a desert island. This trust becomes total and the two become inseparable. The deep attachment that’s possible between a human and a horse is beautifully portrayed. I don’t want to spoil the movie for you if you haven’t yet seen it. Suffice it to say that it was described as possibly ‘ the greatest children’s movie ever made.But adults too can find much to relish in the film.

Black Beauty
What! Another black horse!. Would you be excited at the title ‘Piebald Beauty’?. Anyway, whereas we see the Black Stallion from the outside as observers, Black Beauty is herself the narrator in this 1994 production. The trouble - or one of them - is that the voice is so obviously human. This isn’t to say that it doesn’t make the sort of horsey sounds that would rapidly empty any cinema. No, it’s what the horse says and how it’s said that grates. Regrettably the horse comes over as an especially priggish and self-righteous human. However hard you try, you cannot fail to find Black Beauty’s human attitudes and voice clumsy and ineffective. Although there’s a lot of cringing sentimentality, there’s also some magnificent photography especially of Black Beauty strutting her stuff.

The Horse Whisperer
This film was issued 4 years later, in 1998. It tells us how a young girl, Grace, and her beloved horse, Pilgrim, recover from a traumatic accident. Following this accident, Grace’s mother, Annie, takes daughter and horse to the wide open spaces of Montana to seek the help of a man, Tom, who’s renowned for his ability to empathize with troubled horses. Tom’s powers of empathizing are equally as effective with disturbed women as with disturbed horses. Pilgrim and Annie are soon committed admirers. The contrast between Annie’s previous sophisticated city life and that of the country is a theme that is developed alongside the story of Grace and Pilgrim’s recovery and the growing love between Annie and Tom. Annie must choose between her high-flying sophisticated lawyer husband and the more down-to-earth and homely horse whisperer. Guess which choice she makes!

There’s a lot of trotting, cantering, and galloping movement in these films as well as movement of the emotional kind. Some of the scenes are truly idyllic and beautiful ; some of the ‘moving’ moments might make you laugh or weep. Metaphors as well as riders are on the backs of these horses. Only you can decide the nature of the message and whether or not it’s a help or a hindrance to the story of the horse. To form your own opinion you’ll have to get in touch with your local DVD store!

This article has been published for the millions of horse enthusiasts all over the world by Animal Friends Equine Insurance - the UK’s only not-for-profit horse insurance provider. Horse rider insurance can be bought today online or by phone, and all net profits go to benefit troubled animals all over the world. You can read more about the many charities helped by Animal Friends on the charity support pages of their ethical pet insurance website.

Horses In Folklore Throughout History

Fossil records show that horses have been around at least since the last ice age. Horses are beautiful animals and seem to have a spiritual presence. Their ability to pick up on our emotions and their sensitivity to our moods imbues them with something of a mysticism. Perhaps this is why horses throughout the ages have been a focal point of many myths and legends.

The Magical Unicorn.

One of the most well known mythical horses is the Unicorn, which has long captured the heart of the young and the old. There are different names and legends ascribed to the unicorn across many different cultures. The story of the origin of the Chinese written language involves a unicorn by the name of Ki Lin who showed it to Emperor Fu His over five thousand years ago. The legend states that the Emperor traced into the dirt on the ground the symbols in which the unicorn was covered. The story goes that this is how the written Chinese language originated.

The Karkadaan is the name by which the unicorn is referred to in Arabia. This particular version of the unicorn is of a fierce and war-like creature which can manifest itself in different appearances. The first written accounts of a unicorn were in India in 416 BC. White in colour, this creature had dark blue eyes and a long horn atop a dark red head.

The European unicorn - according to folk legend - is like a horse, but smaller in statue, around three feet tall and weighs about 100 pounds. In Northern Europe the unicorn is described as being white or creamy in colour. In Southern Europe they are described as being nearly black to a golden colour. Their horn is said to have magical healing powers.

Today’s unicorns are depicted as being more closely looking like a horse and a little larger than older descriptions of the European unicorn. Unicorns are commonly depicted as being identical to a horse, with the exception of a long horn on his forehead. It is usually depicted as being pure white, however it has even been described as being colours like pink, purple and blue.

The modern mythical images of unicorns even today remain a popular fascination with young and old in Western cultures. Many books, films, stories and even kids’ toys feature a mythical beast which we call the unicorn. The unicorn may be only an imaginary being, but it is still an enduring myth and one which continues to be popular even in this modern world.

The Magical Flying Horse.

Another horse type creature that has been written about in mythology and other stories is Pegasus. Pegasus - offspring of Posiedon and Medusa in Greek mythology - was a magnificent white winged horse that was ridden by Bellerophon and had mystic powers. Honoured by the Greek god Zeus, Pegasus was given the special job of carrying Zeus’s thunderbolts. Pegasus mated with Euippe and produced Celeris and Melanippe. Zeus bestowed honour upon Pegasus by transforming him into a constellation, so the mythology states.

A Good Luck Symbol.

In many countries and to many people the horseshoe is a symbol of good luck. How exactly this came to be is unclear, yet it is one of the most famous superstitions relating to horses. The crescent shape of the horse shoe is symbolic of protection, and some say that this is the source of the luck. Another belief states that it is lucky by virtue of having been worn by a horse which embues it with such. Blacksmiths were once believed to have supernatural powers; magicians to be able to work with iron, whch was said to have magical powers of its own. For this reason you could hang an iron horseshoe above your do to keep witches and demons away.

Another lucky aspect of the horseshoe is the fact there are seven nail holes in each one. In some cultures the number seven is considered a lucky number. An ancient belief states that if a horse’s shoes were made from the iron of a sword which had killed someone, then that horse would forever be as swift as lightening and never grow fatigued.

Many superstitions and old wives’ tales have surrounded horses and donkeys throughout the ages. Some of the strangest and most interesting superstitions surrounding horses are listed below.

•  A horse would become crippled if it stepped in a wolf paw print.
•  Bad luck will befall you if you change a horse’s name.
•  Inhaling a horse’s breath was said to be a cure for whooping cough.
•  Both toothache and snakebites can apparently be cured by riding backwards on a donkey.
•  If you break a mirror, you can reverse the associated bad luck if you walk through your house with a horse.
•  By carrying a rowan wood whip you could prevent a witch from casting a spell on your horse.
•  To cure warts you would circle them with horse hair.
•  To protect yourself from witches you take the tail hair from a black stallion and wear it on your wrist.
•  If you put pennies in your water tank this can prevent a mare becoming irritable or grumpy.
•  To improve the tone of a piano a horse’s skull was put underneath the floor where the piano was.

Horses are amazing animals and do seem to have an elusive air of mystical presence. Most people who spend time around horses talk of their special awe-inspiring qualities. Their important place in the history and development of so many cultures and civilisations is down at least in part to this amazing ability to awe and inspire. As such an integral part of our folklore and legend, horses have and always will be part of the stories we tell our children.

This article has been published for the millions of horse enthusiasts all over the world by Animal Friends Equine Insurance - the UK’s only not-for-profit horse insurance provider. You can buy horse rider insurance today online or by phone, and all net profits go towards helping animals in crisis around the globe.

How Horses Are already Employed in Distinct Regions in the Globe.

Horses thrived and survived in several regions and climates. Every single area developed distinct breeds with qualities that used to be vital towards the people of that region. In many ways, horses altered the lives from the individuals they served.  Desert Nomads and Horses

Inside the desert and grasslands, camels are additional useful because they can survive lengthy periods without having foods and water, unlike horses. Because of this few correct desert bred horses exist currently, so they’re rarely witnessed in present rings, remaining mostly for breeding. Other desert variety horses evolved, but none have been ever deemed through the Bedouins for their Arabians.

The nomadic folks were the first to domesticate horses. They encouraged each pacing and other flying gaits which could carry their tribes extended distances without tiring the horses. The critical climate expected the nomads to share meals and water, and often even their tents with their horses.

In addition, while using nomadic nature on the Gypsy peoples, their horses needed to be adaptable to various climates, terrains and living conditions. The result of this culling has led towards Gypsy Vanner Horse staying 1 on the most docile horses within the planet.

Icelandic Horses

Centuries of isolation in Iceland has made an particularly certain footed horse who’s agile on tough terrain and exhibits fantastic reserves of stamina. The Icelandic Horse continues to be in a position to maintain it is due for the purity on the breed, becoming the only breed in Iceland. With the most fascinationg element in the Icelandic horse is it is extreme genetic purity. The hardships they survived have provided a horse that may be not afraid to face the planet. The two horse and individuals have needed to deal with cold and starvation on more than an individual occasion in Iceland. The horse carried it is owners more than the tough terrain of Iceland which consists of lava fields, mountains, and many rivers. It’s absolutely not an perfect setting to the horse.

Vikings and Horses

The Vikings recognized the worth and political strength of their horses and gave them a position of wonderful honor in their history and culture. To them, the horse was a lot more than a war horse or perhaps a suggests of travel. So, when the 1st Vikings set sail to explore Northern oceans, along with them went the powerful tiny horses.

American Indians and Horses

Indians of that era had by no means seen horses and to them the horse and rider team used to be a godlike getting. A lot of religious ceremonies have been dependant on the horse and its contribution for the life from the Indian. To attempt and hold this belief, it was illegal for some many years for an Indian to ride a horse considerably a reduced amount of very own a single. The acquisition of the horse completely changed the Plains Indian’s way of living, transforming them from plodding pedestrians to nomadic hunters and warriors.

Some Indicators of Equine Colic

People that select to own a pet should be well alert with the responsibilities in having care from the animal. That is since a horse just like any other creature is susceptible to various diseases. This might be caused by parasites or from your meals that is certainly presented and the sole method to make it get much better is usually to get suitable treatment.

One trouble that just isn’t a laughing matter is equine colic. It is mainly because a horse can die if remedy just isn’t presented. The indicators of this disease are usually not that challenging to notice and below are some with the points horse proprietors ought to watch out for.

1. If the horse feels restless or begins acting crazy, this could previously be an indication. The person need to stay somewhat more time in making an assessment since additionally it is feasible that the copain was spooked by a thing.

Two. Some horses will either stand or lie down and begin to kick its own belly. That is really related to how people maintain on to 1 element on the physique when it can be in agony. Those need to transfer the ami to some additional open place so that it doesn’t bring about more harm for the stable or to itself.

Three. Often, seeing a horse lying lower around the ground is standard given that that is how it sleeps. If you’ll find no modifications since the last time the horse was observed, this is yet another indicator that there is a problem.

4. A horse standing up in very good posture does not imply there is absolutely nothing completely wrong. This can be the explanation that owners verify its teeth and one other physical features since there may next to nothing drastically wrong outside when it can be truly happening within.

The four indicators just described may perhaps occur 1 after the other or simultaneously. This genuinely relies upon for the horse but when it transpires, the manager need to promptly call the vet for correct medication.

Whilst waiting, the person need to stay while using horse and look at it vitals. This means the heart rate and the entire body temperature. No food need to be offered at the moment till a diagnosis has been carried out and also a recommendation is granted.

It can be an effective matter that you’ll find prescription drugs offered, which can be utilized to treat equine colic. Some physicians even encourage using herbs that ought to mixed first prior to it is granted towards the ami.

Is there just one therapy to remedy a horse which has equine colic? The response is no. This genuinely relies upon on how serious the issue is and how nicely the animal will respond for the remedy.

A horse that suffers from Equine colic may possibly reside as a result of that event. Unfortunately, this could take place once again if some precautions aren’t yet used.

Such measures contain giving the horse multivitamins, allotting time to clean the stables, offering it a bath each and every so generally and cleaning its teeth, a appropriate healthy eating plan with no gaseous substances, water,  normal exercising and rest.  

A horse breeder or manager can go through up for the signs and symptoms of equine colic along with other illnesses to be properly informed on the dangers. Becoming proficient about it may conserve the existence in the chien as an alternative of hearing the health practitioner say that practically nothing could be accomplished and the only factor to do are going to be to set it to sleep.

How to Keep Horses Healthy

It is vital for your horse’s health that the two of you have a close and loving relationship. Your companionship actually plays a huge role in your horse’s health! With proper care you can achieve a special relationship with a happy and healthy horse who will be a loyal companion for a lifetime.

Treat Your Horse like He’s Family.

A well-cared for horse is treated as a family member would be - given a good diet and plenty of exercise, is well-groomed, and given attention and love. Owning and riding horses is a fantastic experience whether for sport, show or leisure as they are simply so beautiful and capable of infinite love and affection. A horse can provide a rewarding experience for those involved in caring for it.

Caring For Your Horse – The Right Way.

The specific breed of horse will to some extent determine the level of care, maintenance and exercise needed. They may be easy-going and loving animals, but like any other pet animal, there are certain essentials you will need to provide to ensure their health and happiness. Below are important things you need to include in your horse’s life if you plan to have a happy and healthy horse.

• Horses are large animals that require constant care and upkeep.
• Horses are very sociable animals that need love and lots of attention.
• You’ll need to visit them daily and care for them as part of your family.
• A horse needs an activity to engage in every day which will stave away boredom.
• You must provide horses with a nice sized stall for them to live and sleep in.
• You must provide a healthy horse diet.
• You must provide the horse with lots of water daily.
• Horses require certain vaccinations yearly.
• Regular health checks which include dental care and worming treatments.
• Foot care (hoof maintenance).
• Obedience training.
• Horses must have a large area in which to exercise that will have to be cleaned often.

A horse will often misbehave if he thinks he is not getting enough attention. For example, they may try to break out of the stall to roam nearby fields to find things to do. You may also begin to notice their general behaviour beginning to change. They can behave in a similar fashion to children, and will disobey or act naughtily to try to gain attention from you!

Owning a horse - more so than just about any other pet - is a huge commitment, so you need to be prepared for this. It also costs a lot of money, especially if the horse gets sick and needs medical attention from a veterinarian. This is just one of many reasons for which you will need to ensure you have good horse insurance.

A Healthy Horse Needs Plenty of Exercise.

Like us, horses like to have a bit of fun. Perform regular exercises to keep your horse healthy and happy. You should not exercise your horse all day. Horses should rest too. Remember also that it’s important to include a variety of different work and exercises for your horse as otherwise he will get bored quickly. Change the activities or work tasks regularly to maintain your horse’s interest.

Exercises to Help Maintain the Health and Strength of your Horse.

• Riding in circles/Bending exercises: using circles in a figure of eight movement. Perform this movement alternately on the left and right rein so as to maintain balance and even suppleness on both sides.
• Lateral work: Lateral work is similar to gymnastics. First you need to do groundwork exercises with your horse. You will notice that the horse’s obedience, strength and flexibility will improve over time.
• Pacing: these exercises help train your horse to control his movements while walking with you. Focus on training your horse to increase or decrease their speed in a mannerly fashion. An example is walking to trotting.
• Maintaining control/Training techniques for discipline: dressage, jumping, and endurance riding are techniques for discipline. Dressage training focuses on improving lateral work and pacing techniques. The purpose of endurance riding, is to focus on improving the horses stamina.

You can exercise your horse virtually anywhere that space and safety allows. Only exercise your horse in a secure area that he cannot escape from. Also make sure the area is safe, so that neither you or the horse gets hurt. You can buy horse insurance to cover you if you are riding someone else’s horse; so be safe rather than sorry, as accidents can and do happen even to the most cautious of riders. 

Horse exercise works well when executed in an area where the horse can concentrate. Areas that work well are either an indoor or outdoor arena, or a specific area in a field or on a farm.

Riders as well as Horses will Benefit from Horse Exercises.

Horse exercises are beneficial to the rider of the horse as well as the horse because it encourages the rider to develop a balanced and secure position on the horse. The rider’s skills can improve dramatically over a short period. The goal for a horse rider is to develop good “contact”. “Contact” is the feeling of togetherness through your hands to the horse’s mouth and through your upper body to the horses back. Your level of “contact” is determined by how well your horse has been trained and how much the horse has retained. The horse will have the ability to work through his back and hindquarters if he has been well-trained. You will know when you have established a good contact when you feel the reins soften as your horse arches it’s neck in front of you and rises it’s back under you, you will also notice that your horse will use its hindquarters to thrust itself forward, rather than pulling onward from the forehand.

When good contact has been achieved, you can then begin to work together to improve the health and happiness of your horse by performing exercises with your new best friend.

Your horse may be exercised well, yet this alone cannot guarantee good health for a lifetime. It would be nice if a happy horse was always a healthy horse. Sadly there are plenty of ailments and illnesses from which horses can suffer, which is why it is important to also have good horse insurance to cover the cost of unexpected vet’s fees.

Siena, Italy – Ancient Daily life and Horse Racing

Italy has numerous well-known travel destinations these kinds of as Rome. Much less publicized destinations these kinds of as Siena are even greater.

Sienna

Located roughly an hour outside of Florence, Siena is one of my preferred spots in Italy. When you imagine gothic architecture and medieval town, you feel of Siena. Designed to be a fortified city behind great, thick walls over a tiny mountain, Siena oozes historical past. Vehicles are barred from substantially on the city, which means you can meander down ancient brick alleyways under towering wall-to-wall residences.

In Siena, you’ll discover a relaxed way of daily life, two music colleges and just a general experience of what Italy need to are already like previously. Head towards the Piazza del Campo in the heart from the city limits and grab a seat in the café. As you gaze throughout the town, you are able to view the Duomo Cathedral that towers above the town. Unlike other cities, the cathedral does not contrast while using the buildings close to it. All of Siena retains the gothic medieval architectural type and you’ll be challenging pressed to locate a greater gothic example in Europe.

The most beneficial approach to experience Siena is to merely remain there. Like wine, Siena improves the longer you stay. Every day explorations lead to amazing bit of shops, incredibly friendly folks including a general feeling of peace.

Il Palio

In case you favor a little action in your trip, Siena has an event that rivals any in Europe. The Il Palio bareback horse race close to the Piazza del Campo is often a sight to get viewed. The fun starts nicely just before the race when numerous neighborhoods challenge each other. The concern arrives during the form of bands jogging by way of “enemy” neighborhoods within the middle with the night and producing an unholy racket. Sooner or later, every single community creates a horse and rider for the day from the race. Bareback, the riders race for neighborhood delight among an absolutely screaming crowd of persons. The working with the bulls has nothing on this event.

If you ever check out Florence although in Italy, take the time to spend a couple nights in Siena. In point, blow previous Florence and go immediately to Siena.

Below is really a Beneficial Cure for Equine Colic

Animals are susceptible to various conditions. Some of those may well leave long term destruction whilst others are fatal. 1 example, which could go either way, is equine colic.  This happens when the horse experiences discomfort during the abdomen and points can get worse if medical consideration isn’t administered  quickly.

If the medical doctor has not arrived however, the person can do specified factors, which might help inside the treatment. This includes having the temperature and monitoring the heart rate, recalling what type of foods was granted the past handful of nights as well since the water consumption and  checking out the color in the gums.

The veterinarian may be on call elsewhere so till assist arrives, no food has to be presented for the horse. It will also be an excellent thought to walk the animal so it’s going to not believe in regards to the discomfort. If the creature won’t need to get up nevertheless it nevertheless continues to roll within the ground, every person will need to aid out and transfer the horse elsewhere so it doesn’t inflict any deterioration to itself or other people.

The physician will usually give the horse some antibiotics. This will likely help ease the soreness also it is a wait and see game immediately after that to determine if you will find any advancements. Some horses recover rapidly even though you can find those that really do not so this actually is dependent on the animal.

You will find other specialists who’ve a  natural therapy formulation to handle equine colic. As an alternative of utilizing prescription drugs, herbs are used as a substitute. Some examples of those are cape aloe leaf, ginger root, fennel, wild yam root and cayenne powder. This is mixed collectively with water or some alcoholic formula after which it offered towards the horse.

Prevention needless to say is still the best way against any disease. This is because the cost of medicine and also the professional fees of the health practitioner are very pricey. In this article are a number of factors that horse owners will need to do to reduce equine colic.

1. Earliest, the person must enjoy the meals being served towards the horse. Processed grains from a reliable supplier are suitable when raising this type of magnificent animal. Some folks believe that hay is ok nevertheless it may have bugs or other foreign objects, which could cause issues. This ought to be checked previous to that is offered.

2. Besides checking out for foreign objects during the hay, the individual will need to also have a very parasite control routine. This tends to be sure the stable is clear whatsoever periods even if this is washed completely many periods a week.

Three. Horses have to have a lot of activity to remain fit. A short ride or merely jogging with it to get a several minutes day-to-day might help strengthen its immune procedure. It is going to also will need adequate rest. There should be time offered towards horse to just roam all-around or just lie still in the stable.

Four. All multivitamins or drugs that will likely be offered on the horse have to first be examined by the vet. This can be simply because some may well make the animal sick specially if it has a sensitive digestive program.

Five. Those need to also ensure the horse practices right hygiene. This means providing it a bath and brushing its teeth considering that deposits may soon become infections that could get worse if nothing is performed to treat it.

Some Basic Groundwork for You and Your Horse

Below is a description of some basic hand-on exercises which may be used when training your horse. These exercises will allow you and the horse to become familiar with each other and build trust. It is the groundwork that will pave the way for future training. The importance of safety and maintaining your personal space bubble should not be taken lightly.

Patience, persistence and positive reinforcement will be necessary if you hope to be successful in training your horse. These three P’s can be applied to all current and future levels of horse training.

1. Groom your horse. Grooming represents more than just a perfect first exercise for you and your horse. Your horse will get to know you during this quality time together, and vice verse. Standing beside your horse, brush his back and neck. It is not unusual for the horse to bring his teeth around to you for a little love bite. While horses do this to each other all the time, naturally they cannot do it to humans. Discourage this by simply waving a hand, or by pushing his head back straight. It must be made clear from the beginning that this is not acceptable - particularly as a horse’s teeth are so big. Use patience and keep calm. It will not take long for him to cooperate once he gets the idea. It’s pointless to shout, smack or get panicky with your horse. This will only destroy the fragile trust you are still building.

2. Lead your horse. Walk on the left side of your horse, holding the lead rope just below his chin in your right hand. Walk forward with a slow step. He should remain at your right side and never try to go ahead of you. You should walk around to you left in a circle if he does try. You may need to do this a few times to get the point across. Show persistence. By circling to your left you will stay just ahead of him as it should be. Should your horse not want to walk with you then stand slightly behind him, at his shoulder, facing the same direction. While holding the rope close to his chin, push forward gently. Once he takes a step, praise him and use your positive reinforcement skills. When he starts to walk willingly, take your place slightly ahead of him and walk on. For your safety, never wrap the lead rope around any part of you. If the horse decides to bolt you’ll be going along and it will not be pretty.

3. Lunge your horse.A great many horse owners and all horse trainers I have come across use this great exercise with their equines. It will help you to get closer to saddle work by teaching the horse many of the skills, cues and commands he will need.

In a large open area (an arena works, too, if you don’t have a round enclosure) clip your horse to a lunge lead specifically for lunging. This will be 30 ft long (approximately 10m), much longer than the short lead rope you use for the lead exercise. Clip the lead to the horse’s left halter side and hold the lead in your left hand. Start by facing the horse’s left side while holding the lunge line. Use a lunge whip to guide the horse along, held in your right hand. Now step to your right sideways toward the rear of the horse while holding the whip out behind him. The horse should step forward as a natural reaction. Make a kissing sound as you let out the lunge lead and follow him just behind and to the left. He’ll begin to associate that sound with “move forward”. Just hold the whip slightly behind the horse’s hindquarters as you are turning and the horse is moving in a circle around you. You do not use the whip for hitting. Simply by waving it about a little the horse should pay attention to you.

Now that he’s moving forward, you’ll move slowly backwards to the centre of the virtual circle. Stand in the middle and turn in a circle with the lunge line fully extended and the horse walking around you in a good circle. Watch your horse’s hip area as he’s going round.

This is where “whoa” should be taught. Say the word “whoooaaa” in a low and calm voice. At the same time, step toward your horse’s head and repeat the word. Remember to give him lots of praise along with a bit of a neck rub when he stops. You will help him remember what to do through this positive reinforcement.

Change your position now so that you are lunging in an anti-clockwise direction. This is done simply by swapping the lead over to be clipped onto the right of the halter, and holding the lunge whip in your left hand.

These are just a few basic exercises for you to get started with hands-on horse training. Bear in mind that a horse is a huge and powerful creature. This alone should be enough to remind you to have adequate horse insurance in place should either you or your equine be injured. Safety and trust is crucial to your success in training ventures and in all future activities. As well as a loyal friend, your horse is also an investment, so remember to protect that investment against theft, accident or misadventure by making sure you compare horse insurance policies to ensure you are getting the best level of cover for both of your needs.

How to Correctly Lead Your Horse

The ultimate goal if you wish to ride is to achieve success in saddle training; however, it is necessary to do the groundwork first. You will first need to lead your horse from the trailer, for example, to the tack area in order to tack-up and then ride. There would be little point in teaching saddle training without first learning how to get to that point. The two of you can only act as a team if your horse cooperates with you. This cooperation begins with your ability to approach, catch, and halter him first. Then you’ll need to lead your horse about with a halter and a lead rope.

Safety for both you and your horse is the primary objective in teaching acceptable behaviour. He will need to be taught that his natural tendency to pull against the lead rope, for example, is not allowed. It’s important that your horse knows not to invade the personal space of the person holding the lead rope. Accidents can easily occur if proper consideration to teaching basic safety manners to your horse is not given before moving on to more advanced training. Whilst a good equine insurance policy may cover you for accidents that happen in training, it’s obviously far more preferable not to have to find this out!

Lead training requires the use of patience, persistence and positive reinforcement - the essential three Ps of horse training. You have probably already discovered the 3Ps to be effective if you have accomplished haltering.

The best time to begin with lead training is when your horse is still a foal. Basic ground manners should be taught from an early age, before the horse is old enough to worry about saddles and riding. The youngster will still need to cooperate for the vet, the farrier, and for various operatives moving about.

Having the dam - the foal’s mother - on site can help dramatically when beginning training as the younger horse will naturally copy her behaviours. Don’t worry if the dam is not present, as it works as well with any horse which the foal spends time with. A young horse will naturally learn from his elders. For example, you don’t need to teach a horse in the pasture how to graze or go to the water and drink. They learn by watching the others. If your student is older, you can still use another horse’s example by haltering and leading the other horse first. As you do this you will notice your student watching and paying attention to these events occurring around him.

Begin by leading a more experienced horse or dam along with your young student horse, walking side by side with you in the middle leading both at once. Stay to the left of your student’s shoulder area as it is the safest spot for you, with the older horse to the left of you. Never wrap the lead rope around your hand or anywhere else, just in case your student bolts or otherwise kicks up a fuss. The last thing you need at this stage is complicating the process with an injury for which you may need to claim on your horse insurance.

Another method you could use, if you have a calm horse that you are comfortable riding and that the foal will follow, is the pony method. This is done by simply towing the student horse behind using a longer lead rope. This is actually a logical method for teaching the lead, as it’s natural for the young to follow the elders behaviour.

With no other horses nearby, you will need to rely solely on your patience, persistence, and positive reinforcement skills. Use these three Ps of horse training when trying to get the horse to understand what it is you would like him to do.

After satisfactory progress, it’s time to try it alone. Again, standing to the left of your young horse’s shoulder and with both of you looking straight ahead, gently walk forward and as you step out, tug very gently forward, then release any pressure on the rope as soon as the horse makes any motion to go forward. Understanding that release is a reward to your horse is a valuable tip used by professional trainers. It tells your horse he’s doing something right.

When he can successfully walk with you in straight lines, try a slight left turn whist maintaining the space bubble. If he crowds you, use your right hand to push him out away from you and hold your arm out to the appropriate distance. Then try turning to the right with the same safety distance between the two of you, still using your right hand to guide him into the correct zone. Remember to release the lead rope pressure by way of reward each time he steps in the right direction.

Lead training calls for large amounts of patience. Big improvements will soon be made if you can just stick with it. Do a little work every day if you can and this will put you closer to the day you can finally saddle up for a ride.

Tips and Advice When Teaching Your Horse Manners

This is basic ground manners explained. Simply put, your horse should do what you ask. The horse’s movements should be performed safely no matter how simple or routine the task may be. Your horse needs to know that to push, step on or endanger you in any way - either intentionally or not - is unacceptable. What may only seem like a slight annoyance often has the potential for somebody to get hurt. Since horses outweigh you by a ton, literally, a misplaced hoof can break your foot. Better not to find out the hard way whether your equine insurance will cover you for this! The best way to avoid this is to establish, and then maintain, a personal space bubble.

A nuzzle into your pocket to search for a tasty treat could leave you with a nasty - if well-meaning - nibble. Affectionate nibbles from teeth of these size will feel substantially more than nibbles to you. Horses in a herd treat each other differently than they must treat us. Horses are somewhat more robust and durable than humans and it’s OK to them if they sometimes nip, bite or crowd each other.

The space bubble lesson is one that many horse owners and trainers have learned the hard way. My first, and subsequently the last, experience with the concept of crowding occurred when I bought my first horse years ago. My wonderful new four-legged friend liked to “help” me with the paddock cleaning. As I shovelled and filled the manure cart, he would come and put his nose into it. Then one day he actually lifted his front hoof and put it into the cart when I put a rake full of manure in. He knocked the cart over, which spooked him, which in turn spooked the other three horses in the paddock. Hooves and tails were flying around all over, with me stuck in the middle. Thankfully I was not hurt, but this could have been a mild or even a serious disaster – and may have even necessitated a claim on my horse insurance.

This occurred during the learning curve time period of our relationship. I was so amused at his trying to help me with my chores that I didn’t think about the potential consequences. That was the day on which I learned hoe important it is to teach a horse basic manners. It was then that I realised the importance of teaching him how to respect my space when I was in the paddock attending to chores. He had plenty of time to be cute and interact with me when we were training and learning cues together.

Basic safety manners can be taught by utilising the three Ps of horse training. The relationship which you have with any horse - be it your own or one you are training for someone else - is largely dependant on the use of patience, persistence and positive reinforcement.

Patience. Your horse doesn’t instinctively know what you want. Your patience in showing him and letting him try until he gets it will go a long way in building trust between you and your equine. Your mind needs to be free of stresses and anxiety before you begin any training session. Take a deep breath and relax. It is part of the natural learning process for your horse to test the waters. He needs to check and see if what he thinks you want is correct. This can occur several times before the horse has confirmed his correct assessment of the task.

Persistence. Don’t simply give up when things don’t happen quickly. It is difficult to communicate at first. You will both need to learn how to speak the same language! Stay with it and be consistent in your cues. Horses are very perceptive to even the slightest cue. It will not usually take long for a horse to learn what a cue means - then you will have cooperation.

Positive reinforcement. Give your horse the signal when he’s done something correctly. You don’t have to give your horse an edible reward. Horse love to be released when they have done a job correctly. Imagine the “whoa!” or “stop” cue. This is a pull on the bit within his mouth. When the horse exhibits the signs that he understands that you want him to stop, release the bit immediately. That will let him know that he’s doing things correctly.

Horses need to know their limits. How close can he stand to you before you feel crowded? Can he pull on the lead rope if he doesn’t want to go the way you are leading him? Can he refuse to pick up his foot if he doesn’t feel like it? These issues may seem like common sense to us, but for a horse they go against what comes naturally to them. A correctly and carefully trained horse will forever be both a most pleasing companion and could also represent a lower liability when it comes to renewing your horse insurance policy.