Move politely out of your way when asked with a light pressure or vocal command.Stand quietly to be handled and saddled.When a horse trusts you, there will be telltale signs to show they are comfortable around you and are eager to please you and obey your requests. 7.What Are the Signs That a Horse Trusts You? Make sure to be patient and give the horse the time, space, and understanding that he needs to adjust to his new life. Just like the kids at school, some horses are more shy and take longer to adjust. If it takes two or three or even more rides for you to feel that way, so be it. Make sure you and the horse can work together safely at every gait before you take him/her out of the arena. Once you feel confident that you know what the horse responds to and that you are in control, step it up. There’s no hurry, what you need to do now is get to know the horse, the aids he responds to, what he likes/dislikes, and let him get to know you, your riding habits, and your seat on his back. Once on his back, just walk for a few minutes. Having a person he barely knows swinging onto his back like Tarzan on a vine isn’t going to help if something unsettles the horse. Mount the horse slowly and with caution – horses are easier to spook in new places and you never know when something might run out from a bush or behind a car. If possible, have someone hold the horse for mounting. Ride the horse in a confined area at first, and make sure someone knows where you are and what your plans are for the ride. When riding your new horse for the first time continue to follow the take it slow rule. Once the horse realizes that being saddled by you is the same as being saddled by anyone else, and wearing your tack doesn’t really feel different from wearing the tack he is used to, he will most likely pass another milestone in accepting his new situation by becoming familiar with yet another new thing. Make sure all of your movements are slow, planned out, and deliberate. Allow them to smell whatever it is you have in your hands – be it a saddle, bridle, or blanket. Approach the horse slowly, making sure he/she knows well your location. Remember, horses are animals that respond well to routine and changing owners is a big disruption to that routine. While the horse has almost certainly been through this same routine hundreds of times, he still may be frightened about something or other having to do with his recent change of not only location, but entire lifestyle. When saddling, bridling, and riding your new horse for the first time, take it slow is the primary rule. It may take the horse a few days, weeks, or months to settle in to his new environment, new people, and new life. When a horse is sold, it is like your first day of school, without ever getting to go back home to your parents. Going to horse shows, trail rides, and moving to a new barn presents the horse with a new situation to deal with, but he is with the same people he knows from his regular environment. You can draw parallel lines between these situations and the ones we put our horses through. And, lucky for you, after the first dreadful day of school, you get to go back home to the same people you know, love, and trust. School is the first real test you have at being on your own. You’d been many places away from home already – to the park, the store, your relatives’ – but each time you were with people you knew, loved, and trusted. Remember your first day of school? Some kids were lucky enough to feel right at home, but others were quite devastated. The first and cardinal rule with horses to remember is that they are, of course, horses! What this means is that they have a personality, a functioning brain, and a body system that is similar in many ways to ours.
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