The Kind Of Training That Can Make Your Horse Spook-Proof. Mounted Policemen Swear By It.
Crowd control is one of a police officer’s most challenging missions. So to even the playing field, police turn to horses to give them better visibility and a stronger command presence. However, since we know that a horse’s natural instinct is to flee from possible danger, you would think horses wouldn’t be suitable for this line of work. But they are…if you give them this training…
Can You Really Make A Horse “Bomb Proof?”
People often ask me how to make your horse “bomb-proof.” If you’ve never heard that term before, it means your horse is so calm, cool, and collected that he wouldn’t spook even if a bomb exploded within earshot of him.
Now, I’m not sure how realistic that is (the bomb part, I mean). But you can train a horse to the point where he regards an otherwise-scary event as a real ho-hummer.
This type of training is called desensitization training and most every mounted police officer swears by it.
During this training, the horse is exposed to all kinds of noisy items that he might encounter while in a big, disorganized (probably drunken) crowd. Things like fireworks, aluminum cans, plastic tarps, flares, gunfire, noise makers, horns, flashing lights…you name it.
The idea is the more the horse is exposed to these things and realizes nothing bad will happen to him, he’ll disregard them once he’s out on the job. Works great for policemen. But it can also work for you as well.
Professional Desensitization Training
Several stables around the country provide desensitization clinics. Take Grasslands Bed & Barn in Houston, TX, for example. Here, you can take your horse to their 2-day clinic which is taught by a Houston Mounted Police Officer.
They’ll teach both you and your horse to respond the right way to spooky objects - so he’ll never spook at them again. Here’s an excerpt from their promo page…
The Desensitization clinic is designed to help you better read, communicate and build trust with your horse as you and your horse progress through varying degrees of obstacles that may be visual, motion and/or auditory in nature. The goal is for you to learn techniques that you may use in any situation where you find you and/or your horse fearful.
desensitization training: moving through obstacles
In future posts, I’ll talk more about specific things you can use to desensitize your horse on your own. So keep your feed reader pointed here at Horse IQ.
But if you feel like you can’t adequately desensitize your horse on your own, I wouldn’t hesitate to find an outfit like Grasslands who can do it for you. And try to find one taught by a mounted police officer. Few people know as much as they do about this special kind of training.
If you’re going to take your horse to a crowded place like a parade or other public outing where you can’t control the environment, desensitization training is essential. If done right, you, your horse, and the crowd will have nothing to worry about.
Yours For Better Horse Training,
Sierra Lynch
desensitization horse horse trainingTags: Horse Training
Great post. Horse people I know tend to “protect” their horses from things that might scare them, not realizing that they’re making things harder by doing so. I think the more you can expose them to the better.
This was a great post. Good information!