By nature, the horse is gregarious, naturally independent, curious and rambunctious. In the wild, horses generally live in bands of mares with one stallion, or in bachelor bands. In “mixed” society, the herd leader is always a mare, which is what makes mares generally more difficult for us to deal with, sometimes even more so than stallions.

The pecking order within any group is based upon mental strength, each individual finding and keeping its place within the hierarchy. This is essential for the very survival of the group who, through a process of elimination, select the individual who is strongest mentally to be their leader – and then follow her, unquestioning.

However, to ensure that leadership does remain strong, the upper echelons within the pecking order remain ever vigilant for any show of weakness in the leader, ever ready to assume the “responsibility” of that leadership. In this manner, continuity and the preservation of the safety of the group is assured; very rarely is there any actual fighting, but rather much posturing and threatening occurs; actual fighting will only take place on those rare occasions when neither individual will back down.

Man is by nature a predator, a carnivore; the horse is a creature of flight, an herbivore. A high energy animal, born unfettered and free, the horse’s instincts are totally counter to ours.

From their earliest age, we impose our values upon them. We take away their liberty and quell their natural energies, restrict their movement with the use of various types of physical restraint (halters, x-ties, tie-downs, hobbles etc); we expect them to live alone without other horse companionship; to behave as we see fit, when we see fit, for as long as we see fit; to carry themselves in play mode when they are not in play mode; to subjugate themselves to our rules, all too frequently not understood because counter to their own instincts and perceptions.

Man is all too often guilty of ignoring the very nature of the horse to gain his own ends, often rendering them into psychological wrecks before they are even weaned!

Any apprehension or fear is detrimental to the mental and physical well being of the horse, rendering him unpredictable, sometimes even dangerous, with risk of locomotion problems, more often than not, resistances and unwanted behaviours being unfortunately learned from us!

Generous by nature, horses are more than willing to do what we want when they fully understand us. Once they sense the trainer’s understanding, they are easier to educate because they understand, thus remain calm, give willingly, learn quickly, are more than happy to work with us, and last but not least – remain sound.

No matter what the type of equestrian activity that we practice, how much we might like to think that we “own” a horse, how much we paid for him/her, how well we feed, house, or tend to their needs, a horse is never really “ours” until we have been acknowledged by them… as would be the herd leader. Only then do they let us know that we have any right to their unquestioning acceptance, respect and trust, and only then will our horses be prepared to follow us… and learn

Apart from observing our horses in their own environment (for example, out in the field with their family and friends), the next best place to begin to obtain herd leader status is through judicious use of Ground School … which begins with the foal, right from the start… starting with knowledgeable “Work in Hand”…