How to take the Spook out of your Horse

There is a response in most animals, known as the "fight or flight" response. This is what happens to your horse when it becomes spooked. It thinks to itself "do I fight, or do I run?". For most scared horses, the answer is "run". We call this "spooking" and it can be a problem because it often disrupts us from our ride, ruins a horseshow, or in some cases a scared horse will not even think about where it is going, and run into the person handling it. There are several ways of desensitizing a nervous equine, here are some of those methods.

A "bombproof" horse is trusted with a child, photo from Wikimedia

Sacking Out

This is typically done when a horse is young, but can be done at anytime. The equipment must be in top condition. A loose halter will come off, and all chance at success will be out the window if the horse runs away. The horse should be tied someplace secure. You can even use a halter that is made so the horse feels pressure when it pulls back.  Sacking out should not be attempted by a child or somebody unfamiliar with reading horse body language.

Start by showing the horse a scary object, such as a blanket, jacket, or plastic bag. Approach the horse almost head on, with the object held in a non-threatening way. Talk to the horse soothingly. Make sure he or she knows you also have treats. Say "whoa", or "easy" when you see the horse tense up. Offer treats, allow the horse to sniff the object, they are curious animals and if you offer something for them to look at on their own terms they usually will. Then move the object so it touches them on the neck or shoulder, rub it on their back.

Over a period of a few days repeat this process, but step up the scare factor gradually, sometimes shaking the object or throwing it on the ground. Being able to read your horse is critical. Knowing when to stop is important, always stop on a good note. Never punish a horse for being scared. Never reward it for being scared either.  Eventually you should be able to slap the object against the horse without so much as a flinch.

Desensitize by Repetition

In a round pen, or arena, you shoud get the horse used to sudden movements by having a friend help. One situation a horse might encounter is if they are being ridden at a show and a member of the audience suddenly gets up, or moves. Train a horse to expect the unexpected by getting somebody to do silly, random things, while you have control of the horse. This might begin while you are holding the horse, then graduate to while you are lunging the horse, then while you are riding the horse. Have them throw their arms in the air, stand up, sit down, cough, and so forth. By repeating this over and over eventually the horse learns that the persons actions do not impact them. Eventually the horse will not even flinch when passing by your silly friend, at that point end the lesson and reward the horse.

This will help the horse learn that it can relax and think about a situation rather than simply by running from something it "thinks" might be a threat. Getting a horse used to unfamiliar sights will help them in the arena or on the trails.

The Older Horse Pal

If you have a older, or otherwise bomb proof horse, this horse will lead by example. Have them in the arena together and introduce scary things in a non-threatening way. The spookier one will have its heard instinct to stay with the other horse, and if the other horse is not running away from the scary object, why should it?

Do Not Expect Spooking

A common story is of a trail horse who the owner always warned riders about, "he always spooks near the big tree". Sure enough the horse would always spook, until one day when the owner forgot to issue the warning, and the horse then did not spook. This is because the rider would anticipate the horse spooking and would shorten the reins and so forth, as such the horse would become wary and react in a way that resulted in a spook.

Be aware of potentially scary things and be ready to react to them but do not give your horse any indication that something might be scary or it will try to think of a way to get away from the danger. A nervous rider will make a nervous horse.