You can get a horse to do all sorts of amazing things in an arena, but that only gets you so far.
Today I took Twiggy and Eva out to see the world.
We saw cars and sheep and working dogs, we even saw a truck. The thing that brought them both undone? Cows.
Twiggy was a bit stressed about them but we should be able to overcome that quickly.
Poor Eva. There is a lot of work in front of us to cross that bridge. Hence no video of her.
@Arapalla I figured the cows were close up and personal. No, they are way over there!
Is a fear of cows common in horses?
No, it's not.
Horses get used to the things around them very quickly. Our guys are used to deer and goats and pigs because they cross paths with them often.
The cars, sheep and cows are on the other side of the trees so they don't see them.
It's just a training thing. Some horses adapt quickly and some horses have to question everything they know in an effort to deal with the fundamental paradigm shift they have just experienced. 🤣🤣🤣🤣
My horses live with cows.
One of them is still scared of every new cow she meets. She beats up the cows she knows, driving them away from her precious hay. But an unfamiliar cow? Terrifying! She... is not a cowpony.
She has come to trust me, though. If I guide her toward a cow, even an unfamiliar one, she charges them. The cows always move. Maybe someday new cows won't be scary.
It's never dull.
Arapalla
Axomamma, Antifa from birth
equiraptor