Desensitizing a driving horse

[Country Lady]

Hello,

I was wondering different things that others did to desensitize there driving horses, I have a little mare that is green broke and is spooked by things that she would NEVER be spooked by if she was not in harness, however she quickly adapts and calms down. I have gotten her over coughing, and I would smack the seat next to me loudly. Any other suggestions, and is this normal for her to spook easier in harness??

Also (I have another very broke horse) how do you go about driving on the road for the first time (my first time, not him)? I live on a country road with little traffic, he is not bothered by vehicles driving by him (tried that in the driveway) however you loose control over the enviroment when venturing done roads. For example most of my nieghboors have dogs that run loose, all of which have been around livestock, and he is not bothered by dogs, BUT what if, so are horses able to hear dog whistles?? Can I use one to ward off unwanted attention? I think I am still limited to roadway use, as a farm up the road has horses (standard), the stallion is very territorial, my dog and I have walked past him, and he runs the fence snorting and stomping until we are out of his area, just avoid him? My horse is a stallion, will this make him angrier? I want to ensure that my horse is save however would like to extend his horizons- so to speak. He knows the area and already knows which way to go before I give him directions. He is VERY experinced, beyond me for sure. So I was wondering what others did to desensitize and keep there horses safe from things like dogs?? Thanks!!!

 

[ssshowhorses]

Sacking out is a must for any of my driving horses. I also clank metal around them, either using a cart or cans in a bag. Many horses will spook at the sound of a cart when they have thier blinders on if they have not been exposed to that before. The sounds of rocks crunching, I have had horses that were hooked to a cart and when we went to drive them along the driveway they did not like the sound of the tires crunching along the rocks. Anything that they may be exposed to when you start driving is a good thing for them to get used to before you drive them. You may also want to expose her to sounds with her blinders on if you are not already doing so because sounds are 20x more scary when the horses cant see where they are coming from.

 

[RhineStone]

I have a little mare that is green broke and is spooked by things that she would NEVER be spooked by if she was not in harness, however she quickly adapts and calms down.

Sounds to me like you need to go back a step or two. If she is not used to the idea of blinders, having things "banging" and "crashing" behind her won't go over well. Did you line drive her with the blinder bridle? Open bridle?

SOME horses seem to accept the cart better when they can see it (and other "following" training devices) in an open bridle. SOME have personalities that won't allow them to handle the cart without the blinders. A good trainer can tell the difference in the horse, and I would have a hard time describing each style of horse. A really good article about this was in the Nov./Dec. 09 issue of Driving Digest http://www.drivingdigest.com/

Myrna

 

[Marsha Cassada]

Could you ground drive out on the road and expose the horse to the dogs and new scenery?

I use my whip on dogs that get too close. If they get "that" look in their eye they get popped. A normal dog only needs it once. After that an uplifted whip and stern voice are enough.

I'm not sure it is possible to desensitize against everything. I've had deer bolt across the road in front of us, quail burst out of the ditch, rattlesnakes in the road, huge farm equipment that roars and rattles. The one I am working with now sort of leaps a step to the side, then stands and checks out whatever startled him. I can deal with that!

 

[hobbyhorse23]

As far as the roadwork, yes, I'd avoid the stallion completely, pop any dog who looks aggressive (maybe carry some bear spray?) and try it all ground-driving first. Learn to look for escape routes for your horse and carriage. With a riding horse you can jump a ditch to get away from an oncoming disaster but not so much with a driving horse so it's important to always keep mental track of driveways, parking lots, hollows, shallow places in the ditch, fields, anywhere you could dodge to get away if necessary. I have permission from several of my neighbors to come up their driveways if I need to and it has saved me a couple of times. Drive defensively! Carry a cellphone on your person (not on the cart itself) and put a small dog tag with your cell number on the horse's bridle so if you get separated someone who finds him can call you. Wear reflective gear as well and put a road triangle on your cart.

On the subject of desensitization I'm assuming by "in harness" you mean "with blinkers on?" If so, yes, most horses spook more at first. They can't see what's making the noise and a prey animal's first reaction to an unseen noise is going to be to jump. Leaping away when something rattled the bushes has saved their ancestors for millions of years!

This is sound principle for an equine. What you need to do is get her used to all these things without the blinkers and build her trust in you, then go through all the same steps again, slowly, with the blinkers on. Teach her to trust you and believe that you won't let anything hurt her. In the course of training a harness horse should get used to pompoms, umbrellas, dogs, traffic sirens, balloons (both floating and being popped), rattling bags of cans, a rope being thrown softly around their feet, bells, having each foot lifted by a soft rope without struggling, the whip, party noisemakers, fireworks, walking on tarps, walking through an arch of streamers, anything and everything you can think of. As long as it is taken at the horse's own speed and they aren't overwhelmed you really can't do too much! Teach her to stand and watch these things, then stand while they move around her and/or follow her, and reward, reward, reward for bravery! If she moves to touch a scary object on her own, treat her like the most outstanding horse in the world. Let her play with the scary thing if she wants to and again, laugh and praise her!

Once she understands she gets a lot of praise for being calm and brave you've laid the groundwork. It should become a game to her, a non-event, and once she's so used to listening while something follows her it will be easier to get her to accept that noise behind her when she can't see it.

Leia

 

[wingnut]

Thanks for asking these questions! I'm in the very, very early stages of training and the information put out here has already given me some *great* ideas. I live in a similar area as you and was wondering how I would manage similar issues!

 

[Country Lady]

Thanks so much to all of you, your ideas have been most helpful!