Your Horse Doesn't Know What You know

Not every ride goes as planned. And that's ok. That's what will happen when you're working with live creatures.

I got Flora tacked up about a week ago for our daily ride. Rehabbing her suspensory injury meant daily rides to get her better. I noticed she was a bit skittish while tacking up. But I tacked her up anyway.

I rode down the driveway lined with corn stalks. About halfway down, she either caught a scent of something or didn't like how the wind was moving the corn. Either way, she decided she was not going to go forward. It became apparent quickly that this was not going to go well. So, I hopped off.

Instead of starting a fight over something she was clearly scared of, I hopped off and walked alongside her. She was still prancing, but was clearly more comfortable that I was next to her instead of on top of her. We walked to the end of the driveway, then turned around and walked home, and that was our training session.

It wasn't quitting or "letting her win." She didn't know what my riding goals were that day. She only knew there was something scary in the corn. If I had just turned towards home, she would have been harder to get past that the next time I rode. She was still hesitant the next day, but I was able to ride her past it. So instead of turning home and instead of putting myself in danger with pushing her, I chose to walk with her. We still made it past the scary thing, but she was more confident having me next to her. And I was safer than being on the back of a 1,000 pound animal getting ready to bolt.

Riding is about finding balance. I love it because every day is different. You have to work with what you're given, and every day is different from the last. But changing your plan is never giving up.