Month: September 2019

Zum makes me feel so happy!

I am so proud of Zum! He bravely approaches the umbrella wherever I hold it. I praise him often for every little bit of bravery and good work. With my encouragement and praise, I know more good work will follow.

Zum has never seen an umbrella. He is fascinated by how it swells open! He wants to reach as high as he can to touch it with his mouth!

All horses repeat rewarded performance. So when Zum is doing what I want, he is rewarded with fun! Zum’s idea of fun is going on a trail ride with his best buddy, Kamar!

Teaching Zum that he has to stand still is the best tool I have. I provide him with a safe place to stand. Zum looks forward to his times of rest as relaxation is also his reward for doing a good job!

With careful repetition of each little success, I can turn an alarming experience for Zum into a consistent habit. Now, Zum has no worries even if I put the raincoat on his back!

I am handling Zum with kindness and understanding so I don’t confuse him into rebellion! My kindness teaches Zum he has nothing to fear, not even a scary raincoat!

When I swirl the raincoat, he is curious. Now his apprehension is less than his inquisitiveness.

Often, when I am riding my horses on the trail, it begins to rain. I carry a raincoat in my saddle bag or tied to the back of my saddle. Zum needs to see a raincoat ahead of the time I have to put one on so that he isn’t afraid of raincoats. Zum has never seen a raincoat before.

Horse trainers cannot bludgeon a horse into obedience to get good results. I have seen horse trainers do this and it doesn’t work. Instead, I put Zum in a position where he will respond mentally and physically with the desired response. Then I reward Zum for responding correctly. If Zum isn’t responding correctly, I need to listen to him so I can figure out how to vary my request so he understands me.