Moods

         "They are not machines,"  I warn my students.  Every horse or pony is different, and they all have moods.  I know I have days when I feel frisky, and days when I am a little blue - especially as I get older.  Okay, I am old.  Anyway, horses are the same as people.  They have moods.  They are sometimes happy,  they are usually content, but they do have days when they are angry or depressed.

    I am not sure why the concept that horses have feelings is hard to grasp, but it sure is true.  If they have personalities, it stands to reason that they will have moods.

    I have met many horse people who protest that they wouldn't own a mare.  "Too moody," they proclaim.  Well, I'm fond of mares, and most of my horses are female.  I've had geldings, of course, and we have even had a few stallions, but mares seem to come my way.  Have I found that mares are moody?  I'm not sure.  I do think they have a lot of personality, but perhaps I am biased.  I'm a female myself.  I have noticed by geldings are characters.  The stallions we have had have been delightful.  All the horses have more good days than bad.

    But, bad days happen.

    Take Rain, a pinto mare, who is usually the most complacent and loving of animals.  She is the one I place with beginners.  She is a lets-get-along type.  However, notice the word 'usually.'  I do remember the lesson where she was suddenly explosive (fortunately before she had a rider).  She bucked and pulled at the end of a rope.  Controlling her was the same as a youngster with a temper tantrum.  Why was she suddenly misbehaving?  To this day I don't really have a clear idea.  I think I made an excuse that she was probably in heat, but since that has never happened before, or since, I can only chalk her behavior to a random mood. 

    Spice is a gelding.  I used to claim that he dumps 50 percent of his riders 50 percent of the time.  He has mellowed a little with age, and that statistic no longer stands.  His behavior is not malicious, just mischievous. Spice is a jokester.  Like most comedians, he has a high IQ.  He likes to outsmart his riders.  This is not necessarily a mood thing.  He is always thinking.  Having said that, I have seen him lose his temper.  Spice is a firm believer that a rider is a partner, and as in any good partnership, both parties have a say in the relationship.  I had on rider who decided she was the boss.  Period.  For a lesson and a half Spice put up with her.  Finally, he lost his patience.  He bucked until she was on the ground.  (Bucking, other than a little crow hop, is not in Spice's normal repertoire.  He likes to fishtail, testing a rider's balance.)  Normally, when he loses a rider, he returns to the fallen human to check on them, to encourage them to get back on him.  In fact, after he has made the point that he can lose them, he becomes a more mellow fellow.  This rider was different, though.  He dumped her, and retreated to a corner of the arena as far from her as possible.  He stayed there until I had dusted off my student, made sure only her pride was hurt, and informed her she wasn't a good match for Spice.  Pushed too far, it is apparent Spice has a temper.

    Spice is not the only equine sensitive to his rider.  I am not the first person to notice that horses will often reflect our own moods. Many years ago, when Friendly Horse Acres was not yet a nonprofit, we hired a wonderful young trainer.  She became a dear friend.  As well as working for us, she showed her own horse in her final years of high school.  She was active in 4-H.

    She appeared very depressed on one particular occasion, and I inquired, "What's going on?"

    "My horse just isn't cooperating.  He behaves perfectly at home, but as soon as we get in the show ring, he loses focus and forgets everything."

    I thought, then asked, "Do you like showing?"

    "I did a few years ago, but now it's just a lot of pressure."

    I think I grinned.  "So you don't enjoy it anymore, and neither does your horse.  Is that a surprise?" 

    She understood at once.  Her horse was reflecting her own mood.  That is something horses do, too.

    They also have squabbles with each other. I've seen horses that groom and play with each other decide they have had enough of the other animal.  Using horse body language, they say, "Give me some space."  Woe to the pasture mate who is not paying attention.  Later, they will be buddies again.

    As a horse caretaker, it is important that I am aware of my horses' moods.  A horse that becomes exceptionally quiet, contrary to their normal nature, may be sick.  I actually appreciate a horse who lets me know they are not feeling well.  Since quines are prey animals they may try to hide an illness.   The sick animal in the wild herd is the one to get eaten.  Buddy had cancer and a heart condition.  He did his best to hide it until he was too ill to be saved.  Bay, on the other hand, has mastered the sad puppy eye.  She comes for help and looks pathetic.  Fortunately most of my horses are like Bay, just not as dramatic.

                                                                     Bay

    On the other hand, a frisky horse is a happy horse.  I especially remember waking on a cold winter morning to hear, and then see, the horses playing in the new snow.  they were obviously enjoying themselves.  Later, as the winter progressed, they became less enamored of the cold, but that first snowfall was greeted with delight. 

    Horses have their emotional ups and downs.  They are thinking, feeling creatures, very similar emotionally to humans.  When we form a relationship with a horse we need to be sensitive to the animal's moods.  Some horses are more consistent that others, but even the most reliable of equines is going to have a bad day, or a silly day, or a blue day.

    So, to the people who expect a horse to be exactly the same everyday, I can only say: Get a bicycle, or take up motocross.