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Attention is the cognitive process of selectively concentrating on one aspect 72 www.EliteEquestrian.us �������������������������������������������� EE Attention in Horsemanship T here are different ways for horses to pay attention, and not all of them are what human beings seek to obtain when relating with a horse on the ground and in the saddle. I have found it very interesting that it is possible to earn the horse’s attention in a way that he willfully choses to give it to us, and that it is in the same way he always pay attention to a lead horse. This is actually the natural state of mind for a horse. The lead horse achieves his status just by playing its role in the herd, where he guides the horses to food, water and safety. Because of his role, the lead horse can also have the attention of the herd members at any other time. Human beings, when behaving in a social manner with horses, could be part of the so-called “herd”, but instead, very often fall in the category of what the horse perceives as worth keeping at a distance. Everyone knows that having a carrot in your hands can get you a horse’s complete attention, but this is not the kind of attention that riders seek. While observing our domestic horses, we can easily see how they are always aware. Their senses continuously patrol the surroundings while they eat, play, groom, and rest, ready to focus on whatever alarms them. When something alarms a horse, he looks and directs the ears in the direction of the stimuli. By acting in such a way, a horse alerts the rest of the individuals around him and prepares for making the distance between him and the source of concern larger, should that be needed. This attention related instance is another kind of moment riders do not seek, but it is something they should always be able to deal with. Another type of attention that riders do not seek is when there is a surprising event, and horses tend to react by moving more quickly, and changing their direction, which is known as “spooking”. Usually it is caused by a moving object in the horse’s field of vision, or a sudden sound in the area close by, other times can be a different smell or taste, and something touching them, as light as a fly. Individual personality ranges from dominant to submissive, with an ideal point of “balanced” in the middle. This plays a role in a horse’s ability to pay attention, and in its response to the situation. Some horses are more balanced and confident, which makes them less prone to spooking, others are less confident, and tend to spook often. Being in a group makes horses likely to behave in a similar manner, often conforming to how the highest-ranking horse behaves. If they do not perceive the presence of a leader, horses choose to be such. Another important consideration is that a leader will never push another individual towards something they are afraid of, unless they are willing to approach it consciously. When something concerns him, the horse keeps a certain distance from it, and if we insist in pushing him to it, we lose our leadership status, that is what gives us the ability to ask the horse for attention. while ignoring other things. It is a focal point in horsemanship. Very often the horse is asked to “handle” its focus per our request. Attention is so sought for that some resort to conditioning the horse with coercive methods, which can result in frightening him with their very presence. ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������ ���������������������������������������������������������������������� �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������ ����������������������������������


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