| |
This article on horse sense, deals with safety while working around horses. Horses are very social creatures. They are also very curious. (If you don't believe me, try sitting out on the pasture fence or in the pasture itself. Once they notice you, they'll all be coming over to see what you are doing). Horses are also very big, but timid creatures. Most accidents are caused by improper handling of horses, or by scaring or spooking the horse. This is ususally well-intentioned individuals who love horses, but do not understand the nature of the beast.
When you approach a horse for the first time, care should be taken to approach from the side, and you should always talk to them as you approach, just in case they are dozing. If you startle a horse by the silent approach, you are just as likely to be kicked, as not. Another fact about horses is that they have a suspensory ligament system, which allows them to sleep while standing up. So, to make sure he's awake before approaching, talking is best. If you can't think of anything else to say, speak his name and say 'whoa'.
Hooves are hard. Horses have an average kick space of about 5-6 feet out behind. When moving around a horse's rear end, as you do when you are grooming, leave your hand on his butt, and walk in close, with confidence. If you walk 3 to 5 feet away from the back end, and the horse startles at something, you're toast. You get the full brunt (impact) of the kick. Not being a scientist myself, I could only guess what the psi would be, but you'd likely break a bone or two, if not your skull. (They are also able to kick quite high). When you stay in close, he can't get you in range, and with your hand on his butt, he knows you're there, so you're less likely to startle him. Also, if you stay in close, and the horse does kick, you might get bruised and annoyed, but you won't be killed.
My horse, Justin, is very trusting of me, and won't kick at me. I can walk underneath his belly, and he just stands, looking at me. To be fair, though, I never do it in fly season, just in case he kicks at his own belly to get at a fly, and kicks me. If that happened, not only would he feel badly, but I would have to smack him for kicking, which just wouldn't be fair. Justin is also trained that if something spooks him while I'm on one side of him grooming him, he'll jump TOWARDS the frightening object, rather than jump on me. If I'm working on one side of him in fly season, and he wants to kick at a fly, he never, ever kicks on the side that I'm on. He is aware that he is allowed to do this, only if he doesn't kick at me. It only takes once or twice to train your horse to act this way. If he jumps on you, or steps on you (inadvertently or not), kick him in the belly with the side of your boot. Most horses get the message without resorting to further force or more harsh disciplinary measures.
Another safety point, especially from the horse's aspect, concerns where and how high to tie a horse. Ideally, the horse should be tied to a post set deep in the ground, at eye or wither height. This way, if , for some reason, the horse pulls back against the rope, he won't 'pull his neck down', which is a catastrophic injury and usually requires that the horse be euthanized. If a post is not available, tie him on the outside of an inside fence rail. This way, if he pulls, he won't likely pull the fence apart. We use a rubber tube on a fence post to train our horses to stand tied. The tube gives when they pull, but does put some pressure on them, and releases when they stop pulling. It usually doesn't take long for the horse to learn that pulling gets him nowhere, and not pulling is quite comfortable.
Biting is something that can be quite painful, and a horse that bites or even threatens to bite is dangerous to have around. If a horse threatens to bite you, or nips at you, you have three (3) seconds to make that horse think that you are going to kill him. (This is the Three-second rule that John Lyons, and other horse trainers talk about). You let that horse know, in no uncertain terms that biting is not only not acceptable, but the punishment for it is swift and painful. You must create quite a fuss and let that horse think that you're trying to kill him. He likely won't try biting again, if you get it right the first time.
One thing that encourages nipping, biting, and pushiness, is hand feeding treats to horses. At LB Ranch, we discourage (strongly) hand-feeding, even in our boarder's horses. After all, we're responsible for the day-to-day care of these horses, and we don't want to be bitten or pushed around. Our boarders are quite a good group of people, and most honor our rule. They actually are grateful for the discipline, as it makes their horses all the better behaved when they come out to ride.
I am unable to cover all safety issues in one article, so, I will probably be writing another article on safety in the future, unless anyone has any specific questions that they would like my opinion on. If so, please comment in talkback or email me with your question, and I'll be happy to tell you what I know, offer an opinion or research the topic, and get back to you in the column, or, if you so choose, by email. Thanks for reading. Please comment. Happy Trails! - Bunny
|
Help Us Stop Plagiarism -
Nearly all works at PnP are original. However a few people choose to plagiarize.
To check, choose a phrase from the work, then either drag and drop to the search box or copy and paste.
click on search and works at Google will be shown which match. Just to be sure, please do this before
you recommend or rate the work highly...
|
 |
|
|
|
Select a Random Work
from Stories
|
|
Welcome !
