A quiet walk with Besol.

When you work with a horse who is learning to take an empowered place with humans, you have to watch for the smallest of invitations to interact instead of forcing yourself on them. By no legal body in the US would Besol be considered to have been an abused horse. He was healthy, for the most part, well fed and had not been subject to overt physical abuse. He lived the life that most domestic horses do and in fact, much better than many. If we overlook the ill-fitting saddle and cruel bit, what Besol lacked was a herd. He was mostly in isolation other than when he was being ridden in a hunting party, and his relationships with humans never included social time.

Besol has been here over a year now and we are slowly seeing the defensive layers fall away from him. He must be approached quietly and gently in order to not arm his distrust and stimulate laid back ears and a grimacing face. I often go and stand near him without offers of touch or interaction, just giving him my company in a passive way. In return, he has begun to look for us and come in for company. His offers of touch are mixed with the familiar threatening and turned away face; but if you are patient and don't react to the implied threat, the ears will come forward and he will reach out to touch you again.

I'm still having a great deal of difficulty with my back right now and while we were waiting for the horses to finish their breakfast yesterday morning, I had sat down on the rubber mat next to Griton's feeder to wait. Besol finished first and as he usually does, he headed towards the water trough for a drink. More often than not, he takes the long way around the orchard so that he doesn't have to pass behind Griton and risk a chase. This particular morning he felt safe enough, with me sitting there next to Griton, to take the short cut.

As he walked around behind Griton, who made several ugly faces at him but continued eating, Besol stopped at the head of the trail to the trough. He stood there quietly and looked back over his shoulder at me twice. Because I had been waiting for such an invitation from him I recognized it for what it was, a request to come with him to water.

I quietly stood up and with my hands clasped behind my back and my head lowered in a casual posture that I know doesn't threaten him, I walked past Besol and took my place on the trail ahead of him and began walking towards the water trough. Besol immediately fell in behind me and I had an enormous smile on my face when he began lipping my fingers and back as we walked along. I stood guard for him while he drank and then we turned and walked companionably back to the hay together. Just a small portion of the day given to a horse who is learning to trust.

Not once did I touch him or force him to yield to me. Besol has already had enough of that kind of round pen mentality. What we have consistantly given him is choices to be with us or not, and we have ignored his defensive threats instead of punishing him for them. Yesterday he made a choice to be with me and because I was looking for it, I saw his invitation and accepted it. He has come a long way, this sun kissed horse of ours.