This spring I was able to take on a client horse for some basic groundwork training and haltering. This was something I haven’t done in quite a few years (honestly, since having kids!).
A neighbour had asked for some help to get one of his yearling fillies haltered trained, leading, trailer loading, etc. as an older lady from Ontario had bought this filly and she would be leaving in 6 weeks. The first week was quite an experience for both myself and this filly. Her name was Sprint and she very much lives up to her name! She was very quick, loved to run, and because she had never left home before this left her in flight mode for the first little bit. I had to pull out all of the tricks that I had stored in my memory bank (as my senior horses are not like this at all haha). She loved a good scratch (as long as the halter was not in sight) so we started there.
That is where the Equine Sports Therapist side of me came out- I noticed she naturally would hold her head to the right. Her pole and the right side of her neck was super tight as well. When I would ask her to bring her nose to the left she would freak out and run away like I had hurt her. So…. I worked on the right side of her neck! She loved massage and myofascial release! She never offered to leave, just stood still, did some stretching, some yawning, and became my best friend! I did some mini neck sessions over the next few days and got to the point I could ask her to flex around to the left and right. I must say, this made having her accept the halter a lot easier!
After 20 years of being in practice as an Equine Sports Therapist, and not training horses for probably 12 years, this was a moment where what I do as a therapist and the rusty skills I had training horses really came together. One compliments the other so well, and for the sake of the horse. When we can make the first experiences with training low stress, and pain free it will make the next phase of training so much easier for both horse and rider/trainer.
Have a young horse starting training? Consider booking them a bodywork session! Lets check in with their body and be sure they are not hiding an issue that could become a training obstacle. This can make the trainers job a lot easier and successful.