This particular day I was riding Tucker, an 'I'm the boss, Applesauce' paint horse who was trained, in part, as a cow pony. He thinks, at times, that he's a border collie and likes to herd the cows on the ranch. He also, like many other horses, likes his personal space. I was bringing up the rear on a trail ride let by Kathleen when we stopped in one of many gorgeous areas of the ranch so that Collin, Kathleen's son, could take pictures of the other riders. At one point Tucker and I were a bit close to one of the other horses and, Tucker being Tucker, pinned his ears back to let the horse know he was too close, move over etc. A modecum of dicipline, a little poke in the neck and me saying 'quit' stopped him - once or twice.
As a human I understand the concept of personal space - I have my own and only allow certain people to invade it, people I'm comfortable and familiar with. I had no idea until I started riding at the ranch that horses are the same way. It makes me wonder if Tucker has certain horses that he's comfortable being in close proximity to and others he's not so comfortable with (obviously). My next thought is, there I go again, comparing horses to humans. We humans seems to do that with so many things in nature that we come in contact with.
One day I was riding Rocky, a sweet and steady girl that most anyone can ride. At one point I was trying to get her to turn around and she just kept backing up until finally I managed to get her going in the other direction. My first thought was, "What is wrong with this horse, SHE JUST WON'T LISTEN AND DO WHAT I ASK." Later that day when I was reliving that wonderful ride it suddenly hit me - maybe I wasn't ASKING HER CORRECTLY! I assumed she was the foolish one when all along, had I been giving her the right signals, ones she could understand, she would have done precisely what I wanted. I also assumed that if I did the same things with Rocky that I had done with Tucker she would respond the same way. What narrow thinking on my part, as if every horse is the same or will react the same way as others. I'm not given to being narrow-minded about people and I'll no longer do it with this great, graceful, gifts of Nature called the horse.
I have plenty to learn about these amazing animals that I have such a passion for and I have no doubt that it will take some time for me to figure out what they need in order to, occasionally, give me what I need when I want to ride them. That's the joy of it, however, as in my own life - I watch, listen, and learn.
