Wednesday June 17, 2020

Greetings!
Question 

I have a horse who is a retired lesson horse who I adopted from my trainer. He turns 26 this month, I started the Dually Halter with him and my question is, will I be able to change some behaviors he has done like biting me when I mount him since he has been allowed to do this his whole life?

Answer 

While this sort of question comes through to me quite often, it must indicate that the world of ‘equine understanding’ must process the answer and adopt some of the practices, but not all. I must not be doing a very good job of getting my points across.

At 26, the behavioral patterns of any horse are well established. The behavior of biting humans is trained into the horse by homo sapiens. In the case of a retired lesson horse, just imagine the number of times that a child has brought a treat to give his favorite animal. Every book I've written and every lesson I've given has informed students that feeding from the hand causes biting. 

Attempting to change the behavior of this 26 year old is virtually impossible and frankly not very fair. You must accept the fact that you will have to protect yourself and attempt to learn ways to avoid serious injuries to yourself or others while choosing to escort this horse through his final years.

I could go through the chapters I've written on why horses bite, but let me ask you to read that chapter in my textbook, From My Hands to Yours, and attempt to be fair with a horse that has given his life to humans learning to ride.

Sincerely,
MONTY ROBERTS' ONLINE UNIVERSITY
THIS WEEK'S EPISODE
TEMPLE GRANDIN & MONTY TOGETHER IN JUNE
This weekend, we'll make it possible to NOT miss seeing Monty Roberts and Temple Grandin! On June 21-22-23, Sunday through Tuesday, you can watch, listen, learn and even ASK Temple, Monty or any of the nine presenters who are available to answer your questions. Engaging with these famous horse persons and amazing speakers has never been so easy! 

Ticket holders will be sent a private, secure link to log on. You only need a device with internet (including mobile, tablet, or desktop) to be LIVE at the best vantage point there is.

 
UPCOMING EVENTS    
USA
June 21 to 23, 2020: The Movement 2020 at Flag Is Up Farms in California
USA
September 11 to 13 , 2020 :  CHA Equine Facility Manager Certification  at Flag Is Up Farms
THE MONTY ROBERTS INTERNATIONAL LEARNING CENTER
July 6 to 17, 2020: Introductory Course of Horsemanship
July 11, 2020: Kids' Course
July 18, 2020: Horsemanship 101
July 24 to 26, 2020: Horse Sense and Healing moved to November 13-14-15
August 3 to 7, 2020: Monty’s Special Training (English)
August 8 to 10, 2020: Introductory Course Module 01: First Steps to Monty’s Methods
August 11 to 13, 2020: Introductory Course Module 02: Join-Up
August 14 to 16, 2020: Introductory Course Module 03: Long Lining
August 17 to 28, 2020: Gentling Wild Horses
ONLINE PRODUCT REVIEW
From Anne D., Verified Buyer

Monty's Dually Halter
I am very pleased with my new Dually Halter . My 18-year-old gelding is well-trained and well-behaved but I find with the Dually he backs up much quicker when asked and also backs up farther.  

I am also using it on my friend's gelding who is not so well-behaved. He is responding well. He does not stand well for grooming and tacking up. That will be the next video I need to watch as well as lunging.

 
As Director of Content for Horse & Country TV for over 10 years, Jonathan Rippon is responsible for all sport, training & learning, documentary and entertainment programming on H&C. As a surprise for us, Jonathan shares his musical talents too by allowing us to play his recently released, upbeat dance track called 'Feel the Fire'. And Juliet Getty stops in to share with us nutrition help for stress and our horse's overall health.

 
MONTY'S CHALLENGE

Test yourself each week as I challenge you to answer the question below. I mean this. Sit down and write an answer. Don't wait for my answer next week. If you have been reading my Weekly Questions and Answers for the last six months, you should be in a position to do this. Send your answer to my team at:  askmonty@montyroberts.com  
 
Why should you bother? Because it will help you focus. There is probably a comparable question in your life that needs answering... or will be. If you can gain insight into how to go about answering a practical question that is loosely related to your problem, this exercise will help you answer your nagging question. Then read my answer. I want all of my students to learn to be better trainers than me.That's good for you and good for horses! 
 
~ Monty 
  
NEXT WEEK'S QUESTION

Hi Monty! I'd love some advice to help more safely handle my 11-year-old Quarter Horse gelding. He is a former ranch horse who we believe was handled roughly; he can go from being relaxed, to spooky and reactive. He typically seems to be more reactive when in an enclosed space, and feels "trapped". I have worked hard over the past year to build up his trust.