Young horses, old horses, and horses you just haven’t had the time to properly work with can all pick up bad behaviours when working on the ground. One of the most frustrating and dangerous being a pushy horse. Pushy behaviours come in various forms from searching for treats, not respecting personal space, and sometimes walking right through you like you didn’t even exist. These dangerous behaviours can be a nightmare to fix, but what actually causes them?
Here at the program we work with a number of different horses with a variety of background and training. We typically find that pushy horses fall into one of four categories, but can often overlap.
Confidence
Confidence is key for a happy and well behaved horse – but sometimes it can take time to achieve that. A horse that is still learning to be confident will often become nervous, and may become pushy. It is not uncommon for a nervous and anxious horse to invade your space. This invasion is usually due to the drive to seek comfort, because they are distracted by a concerning stimulus, or can even be a test of how safe your leadership is. This particular form of pushiness is often accompanied with a tense posture, pricked ears, and nervous neighs.
Dominance
Hierarchy is a staple of equine behaviour that stems from the herd dynamic. Each individual horse will have their own place or rank within the herd which will directly impact the level of dominance they assert. As a handler, owner, or trainer you are inserting yourself into that herd dynamic. These herds are headed by a leader that is capable of keeping everyone safe, and with this responsibility often comes the power of determining movement within the herd. A horse that attempts to move your feet by pushing, or using threatening behaviour such as aggression, ear pinning, or threatening to kick or nip is testing your ability to lead, and asserting their dominance.
Learned
Horses are intelligent sentient beings with a great capacity to learn, however they do not understand the notion of “right from wrong”. Instead they rely heavily on their experiences in life to understand and develop boundaries. Each experience will be evaluated by your horse through their perception of comfort and/or reward. For example, a horse that searches for treats by aggressively nudging at pockets. It is often the case that a horse with this behaviour has likely nudged a treat filled pocket, and been rewarded with a treat without any thought being given to what behaviours could be reinforced from this “cute” behaviour. Although this behaviour is rarely aggressive, it can become dangerous if left unchecked.
Medical
Although for most horses these pushy behaviours tend to be mental, in some cases physical health may come into play. It is important to consider this last category as pain, vision problems, and other underlying issues may be the cause or at least a contributing factor. When in doubt we advise checking with your veterinarian.
Next weeks article – When Push Comes To Shove – Tips To Help Work With Pushy Horses – will feature some tips and tricks to work with each category of horse.