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Many horse owners have had the same frustrating experience. You own a horse that’s quiet, obedient, and willing to do whatever you ask when you ride on your own property. You take the horse to a show or trail ride and suddenly you have an animal that rolls his eyes, spooks, balks, whinnies, jigs, and refuses to go into the ring, walk over the bridge, or approach a jump. What’s going on, and what can you do about this strange and unpleasant behavior? Think about what’s happening in the horse’s mind, and begin to fix the problem before you ever leave your own farm.

First, remember that while you may have years of showing or trail riding experience, every horse has a “first time” to encounter the larger world outside the home barn. Until traveling becomes routine, practically everything the horse sees is exciting (lots of other horses and people), threatening (unfamiliar footing, brightly decorated jumps), or both. Even things a horse may have seen at home, such as mules or small ponies, may be cause for a meltdown when they’re not in their familiar setting.

The best course of action is to realize your horse is nervous, be patient, and don’t get into a situation where things are likely to fall completely apart. Instead of immediately entering a big class where you’ll be cantering around the ring with many other horses, begin by walking your horse around for a half-hour or longer, either mounted or from the ground. If an older, familiar, quiet horse can go along for a while, that helps. Let your horse look all he wants to, but keep him moving forward when you ask. Your at-home training should have laid the groundwork for this; if you don’t know how to get this behavior, check with a trainer before showing. For extremely anxious or nervous horses, this walking may be all you do at your first show. A low-key outing will help your horse gain confidence that will make the next trip much easier.

Something else to work on at home is gradually introducing as many new experiences as usual. If you always work in a ring, do some riding outside the fence. If you usually work your horse alone, invite some friends to bring their horses for a practice session. If your barrels, jumps, or other pieces of equipment are familiar, use paint or tape to give these objects a different pattern of colors, shapes, and light/dark contrast. Place a tarp in the ring, fastening the corners down with rocks or poles, and encourage the horse to approach it and then walk over it. Build an introductory bridge out of a piece of heavy plywood secured to several 4×4 timbers. Put chairs or other objects in a line and guide the horse around and between them, first at a walk and then at faster gaits. When this is easy, put stuffed animals, flower pots, or crepe-paper streamers on the chairs. Move things around and put them in different patterns each day.

Use your imagination to simulate sights—flower boxes, water crossings, fallen trees—that your horse may experience away from home. If you’re planning a trip to a show or trail ride, think about what the horse might see (flags waving near the announcer’s stand, a small child with a handful of balloons), smell (cotton candy and popcorn from the county fair’s midway), and hear (the hollow sound when he walks across a bridge). Introduce this type of thing at home until it’s no longer a cause for alarm.

What you feed your horse can influence how he acts. Overfeeding grain gives some horses too much energy that comes out as nervous or jumpy behavior. Base the horse’s diet on forage, adding grain only if needed for the level of work he’s doing. Feed products that deliver energy through a higher fat content and lower inclusion of carbohydrate tend to keep some horses calmer. If the horse is at a good weight, and especially if he’s a bit overweight, consider cutting back or eliminating grain and using a balancer pellet to provide vitamins and minerals without loading the diet with unnecessary calories. Dietary adjustment goes only so far, however, and horses that are incompletely trained or have extremely nervous temperaments will not be cured by changing the feeding program.

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