12/19/2023
“No Big Deal”
There are all kinds of horse training traps that create tension and argument, and one of the most common is for the human to make too big a deal out of some perceived resistance or lack of responsiveness or, worse, some “disobedience” on the part of the horse.
This can take many forms. The horse seems a bit stuck about moving off the leg. Or he moves a step or two at the halt. Or the upward or downward transition isn’t smooth. Or he misses picking up the correct lead a couple of times. Or or or or, whatever.
The calm trainers, those who tend not to get triggered, will maybe make a couple of attempts at correction, but they won’t get obsessed to the point that they amp up the heat. They know, consciously or unconsciously, that changes happen over long periods of time, and that taking a horse to, and then beyond, its anxiety threshold is counter productive.
The good trainers have a sort of “no big deal” attitude about the litany of daily situations that are less than ideal. They are OK about it because they know that there are ALWAYS situations that are less than ideal, and that if they pick up on some of them and drill to fix them, instead of making it better, it will make the horse tight, nervous, and more resistant.
Having a “no big deal” reaction can be a learned response. And, sure, even the good trainers will sometimes step briefly across the line, but not often, not for long, and they will be quick to apologize to the horse by dialing the pressure down.
This doesn't mean that they will not readdress the problem at some later time, but they will sort of sneak up on it, get maybe a glimmer of improvement, then go on to something else.
