What About Horses' Emotions

Howdy Folks,
 

I'm often asked about how I feel about horses' emotions. Surely horses don't have emotions on the same level as humans, some folks say. Some say to try to project human emotions on horses is folly, foolish. Some say we simply want to believe horses feel emotions like we do. Some folks don't even think about it.

Kessy edits my stories with love.

Are emotions the same as caring, connection, bonding, or even the ever popular, joining up? I believe you can't have any of those without emotions, and we all know our horses care about us, bond with us, and yes, join up.

What about respect? Some will ask. To gain respect from a horse we must first give it. Isn't that the same as with our human peers?

What about love? Can they love us the same as a person can love us? What would be so wrong about accepting and believing that a horse can love a human as deeply as they can another horse, or we can another human? When I'm gone a few days doing clinics, Kessy nickers and loves on me when I get back something silly. Robbie says if I'm gone more than 2 days she even gets pouty. When I get home I want to get right into the house to Robbie as soon as I park our geriatric Tahoe, but Kessy will carry on so much I often need to hug her first! Then she'll follow right to the back door!

For a long time Kessy had a fear of circles, from things in her past. So for a long time, months, we did this important spine limbering exercise in a straight line. Now she has the confidence to walk slowly in any size circle.

Oh their just acting that way because they're trained, or looking to you for food, or any other of the many standard explanations of how horses act and react. When I watch Lesson and Therapy Horses gently teach and heal, I see a blanket of love and emotion guiding every step.

Emotions play a huge part relationships. Any relationship. Human to human or horse to human. In relationships with my horses over the years I not only considered what they required when learning new things, but also their emotions while learning too. In the time I spent rehabilitating horses I noticed a wide range of emotions – from fear, to mistrust, to need, to shut down, too confusion, to seeking advice and leadership. Rebuilding their confidence meant understanding their emotions, on a level equal to mine. And it meant seeing them as equals. I really dislike the, "You gotta be in charge" theme. If we're equals we can achieve cooperation, support, loyalty and love. In true partnerships, partners do things for each other because they want to, not because they're "trained" to … I see Kessy as my equal.

Kessy stands like a statue for me to mount & dismount. It is difficult for me to dismount but her understanding of that, and our emotional bond, guides her in helping me.

I'm not a trainer but in all things, I believe love, honor, respect and understanding and feeling emotions make any relationship strong, lasting and sterling. Including a relationship with horses. Sure training is important too, of course. But I submit understanding and honoring the emotions of the horse makes training smoother and more lasting. And actually I'm not even fond of the word, "training." I like education or teaching better.

We'd been out fooling with some exercises, and I had to sit down. Whenever I do this Kessy stands with me. What's more, she'll offer her neck for me to use to pull myself up.

In my heart I believe if a lot more folks projected human emotions on horses … A lot fewer horses would suffer.

Just lovin'

So go ahead, project your emotions onto your horse, and remember to let hers, touch your heart, and guide your hand as you teach, and learn together, too.

Gitty Up ~ Dutch Henry

Veterans Day Ride With Grandpop

Howdy Folks,

This is the Sixth in my series of Grandpop stories. I began writing about Grandpop, June 27, 2013, with what at the time I imagined what would be a stand alone short story, "Perhaps I've Just Lived Too Long." You can read that story (and find links to go on) (HERE)   Folks said they enjoy visiting with Grandpop, so I wrote more. Frankly, I enjoy him too. I hope you enjoy this Veterans Day Ride with Grandpop. 

Veterans Day Ride With Grandpop 

I'd missed a few years of Grandpop's Veteran Day rides. Those years when I was all self-assured that whatever I had to do was the most important thing. I'm sorry I missed those years. I'm happy Grandpop waited for me to come to my senses. I'm not sure when he started his daylong treks to the highest point on the ranch, but as long as I could remember, each Veterans Day, he saddled up and rode to the knob of, Rattle Tree Mountain. The view there, among trees misshapen by fierce winter winds of the altitude, went on as far as the eye could reach. And was worth every minute of the three hour ride to get there.

Everyone was welcome to ride along, and some years, back when I was young, we had quiet the caravan of friends, relatives and sometimes strangers. For a few years, after the local newspaper wrote a story about it, folks pitched in a few dollars each to be part of it. Grandpop always gave the money to the local VFW.

We rode pretty much in silence today. Three days ago Grandpop gotten word that his friend Buck Clayton had passed on. They'd served in Germany together, part of what became known as the Battle of the Bulge. I remembered meeting Buck a few times. Once he even joined Grandpop on his Veterans Day ride. I missed that one. "He was a fine man, loved his family, God and country," Grandpop said when he got the news about Buck. "Stood strong to defend them all." He and Grandpop had been together for three of the four years, "over there," as he puts it.

It was just Grandpop and me today, riding through the flats, on up to the foothills and then along the narrow ridge to the bald knob. Some of the mares had followed us for a while down on the flats, their steamy breath floating up and away on the cold air. Grandpop had tied his hat down with a red scarf, covering his ears, neck and most of his face, but I could feel his smile when the lead mare trotted beside his horse stride for stride.

We sat our horses at the edge of the crest on the high knob, wind whipping around us, doing its best to blow us away. Even in the bitter cold it was easy to get lost in the majesty of the view, the place, the meaning. "I suppose God gave us this view, so we could come up here every now and then, and realize how important and beautiful life is. How precious and fragile it is." I remember him telling us as children one Veterans Day decades earlier. I never truly got his meaning until today. Looking out over that splendid vastness sitting beside him on my horse.

I looked at the little flags in his saddlebag and realized for the first time, he was talking about the precious lives so many risk – and loose, assuring that others can live theirs, free and safe.

Grandpop stepped down and planted three small flags in the garden of tattered, faded flags. One for each of his friends, and friends of friends, who had served – and passed since last Veterans Day. For years now Grandpop has been planting flags in the garden honoring servicemen and women. At first it was just a few, close friends he'd known, then as word spread, and especially after the newspaper story, there were many more little tiny flags to raise on the windy mountain knob's flag garden. I heard one year there were 50 riders to the garden, carrying 200 flags. Some mailed flags from as far away as Pennsylvania. Sadly that was one of the years I thought I was too busy to make the journey. In recent years fewer people sent flags. 

I held our horses as Grandpop struggled to push the short stakes in the hard ground. His hands shook, his shoulders quivered as he unfurled each flag. The ride had become tough for him in recent years. I wanted to help, or plant the flags for him, but he'd not hear of it. He spent an hour on his hands and knees straightening the faded, tattered flags, as best he could, then stepped back, stood tall and saluted. He held his salute, his shoulders rocked, tears streamed down his face, and mine.

I rode down the trail ahead of him, as is his way. He always stayed behind a while, a few private moments. I would wait for him at the old camp a mile down the mountain. I paused, turned my horse to look back up to him. Sitting his horse at the edge of the knob, looking out over the land, he made a striking silhouette. My eyes wetted again. Without words, I promised I'd tend his garden … when the day came.

Gitty Up ~ Dutch Henry  

To read the 7th Grandpop story "Christmas and Grandpop" - CLICK HERE

Feature Friday - Loving and Healing at Twelve Stone Farm- Jerilyn Skyface Flowers

Howdy Folks,
 

Tucked in the mountains of northern Georgia, not far from Atlanta is a loving, healing place called Twelve Stone Farm. Here among nature, hearts, minds, bodies and lives are healed, encouraged, nurtured, and restarted. Abused, neglected and unwanted horses given new life, love and purpose here, use their refreshed spirits to heal and encourage abused, misunderstood at-risk youths.

Sunny and the horses romp at Twelve Stone Farm

After years of working with youths at children's camps and being the director of a spiritual retreat center, Jerilyn Skyface Flowers felt the heart-tug to do more. She sought guidance in a vision quest and saw the beautiful mountains, and in them a peaceful, welcoming farm. Just weeks after that vision she was contacted by the heirs of a farm, and invited to come.

Chiquita Berry had started Twelve Stone Farm as a place of healing. When Chiquita passed away it was her eldest daughter who connected with Jerilyn. "It was even better than the farm I saw in my vision. It really is Heaven on Earth. I knew I was home."

Jerilyn moved to Twelve Stone Farm 3 years ago and carried on the mission that Chiquita had begun. Building on her foundation, Jerilyn created programs and activities designed to use horses and nature to help at-risk and high-risk children and youth to examine their behavior, and to modify their lifestyles from destructive of themselves and others, to cooperation and contribution and to healthy interaction with family and the community.

Jerilyn and New Spirit

Adults and children alike are welcome to come and, "Heal from the inside out," by experiencing nature and the rebuilding of their hearts and dreams. Here is offered a place for primitive camping retreats for Girl and Boy scout troops, school and church groups and families as well as programs for Horse Rescue, Therapeutic Horseback Riding, mentoring for at-risk children, teaching pioneer and camping skills, and many other activities.

Tipi village at Twelve Stone Farm

Twelve Stone Farm is a non-profit equestrian, and agricultural ranch dedicated to providing a sanctuary where people can come into nature and restart their lives.

Making dreams come true

Visit Twelve Stone's website (HERE) and join them on Facebook (HERE)

Gitty Up ~ Dutch Henry

My Thoughts on Blanketing Horses

Howdy Folks,

 

One of our Coffee Clutch friends asked me to share my thoughts on blanketing horses. Like many things we do for, with, and to our horses, there are mountains of opinions about, "to blanket or not to blanket." I'm mostly in the "no blanket" camp. I reckon few of our Coffee Clutch friends are surprised by that, my, keeping it truly natural practices and beliefs, are not much of a secret.

But what is wrong with blanketing? I think there could be a lot.

Now before we get all excited with the exceptions as to, "yes but you must blanket when – insert any favorite exception here – because …" I understand and agree, sometimes blankets are necessary and important. I also believe wool coolers are very important after a cold winter ride and a nice, thick winter coat is soaked and matted with sweat. Wool coolers wick away sweat and help a horse cool down nicely. Kessy wore one this Sunday after we had a fun romp. Took only about 20 minutes for her to dry, I removed the cooler, brushed her all nice and fluffy, and she went about her way wearing only her smile and her own winter coat.

Kessy sporting her no-blanket look.

I've heard it said that from about 45 degrees  horses burn calories to cool. Yes, to cool – not warm. So what must be going on when a healthy horse has a blanket strapped on its back on a sunny breezy 50 degree day? Sure we want our coat, I know I do, but we're not built to deal with it like horses.

Horses have multiple layers of hair to deal with all sorts of weather, rain, cold and snow. Each layer has its own job and function. Even with snow laying on their backs, those layers do their job admirably. UNLESS their hair is waited down under a blanket. Did you know a horse with a wet blanket, or even a waterproof blanket with snow laying on it is actually colder than a horse without? I've personally demonstrated this by sliding my hand under a wet, not soaked, blanket and the owner was surprised to feel the cold back. And too many times the old waterproof blankets loose their waterproofing and owners, unaware, are thinking they are helping their horse.

Temperatures under a blanket with air temperatures about 40 or 50 can be over 70, sometimes close to 90. If you blanket, check it yourself. I've done it. So if a horse is using calories to cool at 45 degrees, what's going on under a 70 degree blanket? And how often have you seen horses wearing more than one blanket?!

Wearing a blanket impedes normal winter coat growth, they can't grow those very important layers.

Horses with a natural healthy coat can readily, and healthily, regulate their own body temperature, changing with the temperatures of the day. Hairs stand up and lay down as needed. How can we think we can manage that by taking off and on the blankets? And how do we coordinate that?

Horses have several ways to "warm up" on cold days. They can walk around, this goes hand in hand with natural and healthy housing, they need room to roam, or they can stand out of the wind. But I think they do need the ability to walk around when they want to.

What they do need is a way to get out of the precipitation and wind, just a nice run in where they can come and go as they please.

So, my thoughts on blanketing horses? I think most folks do it for their own thoughts of comfort, not the horses.

Kessy is warm and happy in her natural coat ... I needed my heavy insulated coveralls. And Saturday was looking for a warm lap!

 To sum it up, mostly I'm against blanketing. Everyone has their own opionon and circumstances. But I feel bad for the horses standing out in the sun on 50 degree days wearing a blanket because no one had time to remove it ... And I think our common accepted practice appears to be we over-blanket. But that's just my thoughts.

Gitty Up ~ Dutch Henry

Special Horses, Wonderful People, Beautiful Drive

Special Horses, Wonderful People, Beautiful Drive

Howdy Folks,

Ravishin' Robbie and I set out at seven AM yesterday. I had an appointment to visit Traveller's Rest Equine Elders Santuary for an interview for my Heartbeats column in Trail Blazer. Most of my interviews I do on the phone, but when the stories are about People and Horses Helping Horses and People nearby enough, I like to go visit. I really wanted to meet the horses there too. There is something about a senior horse that really gets me. They have a wholly different kind of spirit, and heart. They've seen a lot, done a lot, endured a lot. And the kindness, understanding and lessons they can share are so special. So touching. I wanted to meet Mike and Chris Smith too, the wonderful folks who devote their lives to giving a loving home to these kind and knowing horses. They are a very kind of special too.

The drive from Appomattox to Spotsylvania VA, mostly up route 15 is a delightful drive. It meanders quietly through good scenery, by many horse and cattle farms, and through several neat little towns. Mrs GPS says it should be a two and a half our drive that always seems to take me nearly four. I've been known to pull over to admire the big beautiful maple tree cloaked magnificently in shimmering red leaves, or oaks decked out in yellow with a hundred foot branch-span.

I'll happily swerve onto the road shoulder to gaze at a beautiful horse. Old barns with dilapidated machinery guarding them are things of beauty to me too, and of course worthy of a pause to soak it in. Black Angus cattle, their coats shimmering in the sunlight can often automatically force my geriatric Tahoe to stop.

Any friend of our Coffee Clutch blog knows almost any bird, from Blue Bird to Carolina Wren can stop me, too. You can ask Kessy that one, but that's a story for another day. So yesterday's Great Blue Heron fishing in a small roadside pond, well that was a no brainer.

We did eventually did arrive at our destination, right on time, right behind our dear friend, Karen Lindely who was meeting us to take the pictures for our story. She does really beautiful work. If you'd like to see some of her things, be sure to "friend" her on Facebook.

We all had a simply marvelous visit. Mike and Chris took us all on a leisurely tour of the property and introduced us to each of the 18 horses living there. Housing for elderly horses is so important, and the paddocks or pastures are large with run-ins so we had nice long walks in the pretty sunshine. They told each horse's story, as much as they knew, and I visited with each one, often doing a bit of my Therapy For Therapy Horses exercises. 

Just hanging out in the sun, and lovin' life

Robbie took notes of our conversations for my story, and Karen had those shutters snapping. We were having so much fun, it was hard to leave. But eventually we had to.

The story of what they do there to help aged horses, and how Mike and Chris help guide other folks with senior horses will be in the Jan/Feb issue of Trail Blazer. Be sure to watch for it. Chris' motto is from Seabiscuit, "Just because a horse has a few bumps and scrapes doesn't mean you give up on it."

Gitty Up ~ Dutch Henry