Ok its a slow night on here, lets get it rolling.

There appears to be 2 sides on here in reguards to this question.

I have always felt that respect comes from training and building a bond with your horse that way.

Then you have the other ones that believe you go out there with a bucket of treats, pet them, kiss them and build respect and trust that way.

How do you accomplish this and how many horses have you honestly owned (living breathing ones).

Are you trying to stir things up, young lady?
I don't do treats, I don't feed anything by hand and they have to make do with kind words and a pat. Horses are not always the smartest kids on the block but they sense and they know and they can smell BS coming a mile off.
We had a broodmare come in, 12 years old and she always wore a halter. Her owners sent a photographer over so I cleaned her up and swapped her halter for a fancy one. The owners had bred and raised her and said that her entire life, she had worn a halter and it could only be changed when she was in the chute and wanted to know how I did it (this was news to me). I just took the halter off and swapped it again while we were on the wash rack. The moral of the story is that she knew that she could lead them on a merry dance and she had been doing it all her life. I've had loads of broodmares like that which are supposed to be impossible to catch, load etc. I go about my business and treat them with respect and I get respect back from them. No secret code or horse whispering. 99% is in the way that you handle them, kind but firm and that's how I have always operated.
As far as owned, 4 ponies as a kid and 3 horses as a youth/adult. I have so many to deal with each day at work, I've never felt the need to get another but I'm actually in the process of adopting another OTTB and I'm like a kid waiting for Christmas!

Filed under: horses

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