Affinity Horsemanship North Wales

30/06/2025

If we took our car to the garage because the accelerator or throttle body was stuck open (too much fuel going in that makes the car keep speeding up) only for the mechanic to say “we just need to put stronger brakes on the front” instead of fixing the over-fuel problem, then not only would he be an idiot, he’d be a danger to the owner and the public and clearly isn’t qualified for the job.

So why is it when so called professionals in this industry suggest a harsher bit or noseband, people just say “yeh ok”. 🤯

Horses that bolt, take off, are ‘strong in the mouth’, get faster in trot or canter or ‘have no brakes’ have too much fuel! And i dont mean food. Its nervous system activation that keeps pumping adrenaline, noradrenaline, acetylcholine, and endorphins, that fuels the flight response. These chemicals are designed to release energy/prepare the body for emergency action in the presence of danger.

A horses primary emotion is FEAR. Stronger brakes is a ridiculous solution because it doesn’t change the amount of fuel going in, in fact a stronger bit that causes more pain will increase the amount of ‘fuel’ released by the nervous system, it is not the answer.

The question we should be asking is what is it about us riding them that makes the horse perceive they are in danger to begin with, it’s our conduct thats the problem, not the equipment.

If a ‘professional’ ever suggests stronger bits etc then they are simply proving their lack of basic knowledge, which means they are a danger to us, and our horses and shouldn’t be in the industry.

Helping our horses feel safe by going back to basics and doing it properly this time is the only resolution. Shortcuts don’t exist with animals and always increases the chances of an accident sooner or later.

27/06/2025

Keeping our hands to ourselves is THE hardest thing to do around our horses, but touching is for us, not them. Horses rarely touch each other. If they ask for interaction or scratchies then its mutual, but if we find the strength to resist all those times it’s for us, we become someone they want to hang out with.

26/06/2025

Great post and exactly why you cant teach a horse to be afraid by taking them back to the herd.

Napping or Baulking

Napping is an extremely common problem that can occur across a range of contexts from hacking out, in the school or field (Hausberger et al, 2009). Horses can show an array of behaviour responses when napping from a freeze response or refusal to go forwards, to spinning, rearing, backing up or bolting (Hausberger ,et al. 2009). This can be dangerous and create fear in horse and rider. Horses as highly social and gregarious animals understandably find separation from conspecifics stressful.Separation activates the PANIC system. The FEAR and PANIC systems share some similarities there are key differences. The FEAR system (Panksepp,et al,2011) or Threat system (Gilbert,2009) is associated with actual or perceived life threat including the actual or perceived threat of pain or injury whereas the PANIC system is associated with social loss ( Panksepp, et all 2011). Social panic, bonding and attachment are opioid-mediated, so separation and social isolation produces and analogous response to that of opioid withdrawal (MacMillan, 2016). In other words separation and isolation is comparable to actual physical pain in all mammals including horses and humans, separation and emotional pain hurts.

Some causes of napping may include:

🐴Separation anxiety/distress
🐴Fear
🐴Previous negative or traumatic experiences
🐴 Poor relationship or lack of trust in caregiver or rider
🐴Lack of experience
🐴Lack of training
🐴Loss of confidence (may be sudden in onset)
🐴Pain or discomfort
🐴Sudden change in the environment or even routine (sudden environmental contrast)
🐴Rarely sensory deficit such as loss or partial loss of vision or hearing

Forcing a horse past an object or further than they are able or comfortable to go may result in an escalation of the behaviour risking injury to horse and rider as well as bystanders.

A horses response is not indicative of how fearful they are. The horse who plants may be just as afraid as the one who bolts (Budzynska, 2014). Some horses are more active copers meaning they will take a more proactive approach such as spinning or bolting. In contrast a more reactive (passive) coper may simply plant (Ijichi et al, 2013). Addressing problems such as napping or separation anxiety is not a quick fix and require patience and time.

🐴🐶Provisional Clinical Animal Behaviourist supporting horses and dogs who are fearful, traumatised or complex needs
📍South East
WhatsApp 0776331746



References

Budzyńska, M. (2014). Stress reactivity and coping in horse adaptation to environment. J. Equine Vet. Sci. 8, 935–994. doi: 10.1016/j.jevs.2014.05.010
CrossRef Full Text (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jevs.2014.05.010)

Hausberger, M., Gautier, E., Biquand, V., Lunel, C., Jego, P., 2009. Could work be a source of behavioural disorders? A study in horses. PLoS ONE 4, 7625.

Ijichi, C., Collins, L. M. & Elwood, R. W. 2013. Harnessing the power of personality assessment: subjective assessment predicts behaviour in horses. Behavioural Processes, in press.

McMillan, F.D. The psychobiology of social pain: Evidence for a neurocognitive overlap with physical pain and welfare implications for social animals with special attention to the domestic dog (Canis familiaris). Physiol. Behav. 2016, 167, 154–171. [CrossRef] [PubMed]

Panksepp J, Fuchs T, Iacobucci P: The basic neuroscience of emotional experiences in mammals: the case of subcortical FEAR circuitry and implications for clinical anxiety. Appl Anim Behav Sci 2011; 129:1–17

©️Jessie Sams Paw Inspiring Equine and Animal Behaviour and Trauma Recovery Service

24/06/2025

What dressage should look like 👌

23/06/2025

When animals dont have/cant find the resources necessary to adequately raise those in their care/offspring, they go without or dont have them, because an inability to provide everything they need is a failed parent/isnt conducive to mental health necessary for survival.

When humans dont have the resources to provide those in their care with optimum health (i.e enough land for additional horses) they just dont care for anything but themselves, and get more anyway by simply building concrete prisons for them to live in instead.

22/06/2025

The answer to why a horses head naturally moves up and down as they move.

When we teach true carriage, we never restrict this natural movement, the horse must build the strength and balance in the body first before we can expect the head to remain ‘still/pretty’. This is essentially done on the buckle.

‘Wiggling those reins’ to ‘encourage’ their head down is garbage, its a painful tool for the sake of vanity, like wearing a corset thats two sizes too small to appear ‘prettier’ because we cant put down the fork. Its not the truth, its simply temporary. Horses drop their heads to avoid the discomfort from the wiggling, full stop. Holding their heads ‘on the bit’ ALWAYS causes lameness in the body because the body cannot build the strength in the right places when we restrict their balance from the outset. Its why so many horses have undiagnosed/idiopathic ‘lameness’.

True carriage comes from knowledge of what exercises to use to build strength/balance and has nothing to do with being ‘on the bit’.

20/06/2025

It is not ok to leave a (black) horse out in these temps all day with no shelter from the sun or flies.

20/06/2025

A typical life for so many ponies (and horses) is being treated like machines/commodities for kids to use for fun, and past from pillar to post for being outgrown, ‘naughty’, or a bad fit.

Moving home is one of the most mentally traumatic things a horse can go through. They grieve for their old friends and have no sense of safety in a new scary environment. They spend the first few weeks under the influence of their nervous system just by being in a new place. They’ll be on high alert, spooky, maybe bolt or have a meltdown. People think “we’ve bought the wrong pony”. Its callous. No one considers the horses experience or the fact they have feelings and need time to get to know and feel safe in their new environment. All they see is behaviour that doesn’t fit their ideals and the pony is labelled ‘bad’.

They’re then pushed further by being ridden regularly before they were given time to settle in, and told off for any ‘bad behaviour’ (aka FEAR responses). We just keep piling on and adding to their stress, sensitising their fears and increasing the likelihood of dangerous behaviour because we are impatient, selfish and put our wants over the horses needs.

By a year later they’re sold on again because they couldn’t be forced into calm, and their life of a circle of hell continues.

Theres no such thing as a horse or pony thats a bad fit. Its always the humans that are the bad fit. These horses need help not judgement and labels for not performing like the machines we see them as. Its time that humans started finding compassion.

Horses feelings aren’t an inconvenience anymore than ours are. They’re always valid.
A horses behaviour is a manifestation of their feelings. Its up to us to ensure they have their needs met, and this means giving up our wants until the horse feels safe so they they don’t feel afraid enough to ‘act up’ in the first place.

17/06/2025

Nature vs Nurture. Anyone heard of this? It’s the old behaviourists’ argument on the cause of animal behaviour.
There were those that believed that Nature was the the sole cause, everything they did was the result of their genes. We cannot change genes though so behaviour was essentially set in concrete/unmodifiable.

Others believed that Nurture was the cause... this means everything from the dam’s parenting skills, the environment in which they were raised, and learning history with humans being the sole cause of their behaviour.

Then there were those who knew that both played a vital part… There was no Nature ‘versus’ Nurture, it was simply, both.

Decades later, what we now know however, is that there’s a third.. and it’s just as important if not more-so, than the the first two… its Mental Wellbeing.

This is dependent on the environment in which they now live (confinement, punitive, stressful, boredom, loneliness, etc) their quality of life/unmet emotional needs, (lack of turn out, inability to carry out natural behaviours, lack of mental enrichment, no access to friends). It doesn’t matter how well bred, or how well they were raised if they now spend life alone, in confinement, unable to touch other horses, have no opportunities to carry out natural behaviours, or are stressed out from living with humans that use force or flooding to get them to do their bidding.

Designer lorries, expensive saddles, matchy matchy s**t, hot shower facilities, the most expensive rugs, equipment or facilities on site don’t have anything to do with a horses mental wellbeing. Just like daily grooming, bathing, monthly physio visits or expensive supplements do not determine what it is to take great care of a horse. None of these things are conducive to THEIR mental wellbeing. Bathing is actually the opposite for most horses.

What a horse wants and needs is ample freedom, forage and friends. If these aren’t the foundation of their living conditions, then none of the above list counts.

Our horses behaviour and character is the result of
genetics, learning history and the environment they now live in. This means 66% is down to how humans raised/trained them, how humans now treat them, and how humans now look after their needs, which means if our horses are having any problems, its because WE are doing something wrong.

If we want our horses to change, WE must change our ways first, and offer them the life they need, one thats conducive to mental wellbeing.

16/06/2025

Horses wouldnt pose a risk to us if they felt completely safe to begin with. The only time we are at risk from them is when they’re experiencing pain or fear that causes them to defend themselves, spook, or try to take flight.

They dont pose a risk to other horses when they’re content in their field surrounded by them (their security system) . Its our choice to invade their world not theirs, yet we impose force and control on them in the name of keeping US safe? Its hypocritical, its maladaptive.

If we prioritised their sense of safety from the outset, they are far less likely to experience the fear responses that pose a threat to us in the first place and by default we’d be safer with no need to control.

The idea is to help them learn to control themselves. Its done by building a relationship, and providing them with a sense of safety instead of only thinking about ourselves and what happens to us.