Learning the Language of Equus


By Katy Whipple In May 2021, I had the privilege of spending


three weeks as an intern at the Monty Rob- erts Mustang and Transition Horse Program (MRTHP), housed at Flag Is Up Farms in Solvang, California. I learned about Roberts’s methods and how his team is able to meet the individual needs of the horses in the program. MRTHP was created to help Right Horse


adoption partners make their horses more adoptable through retraining and remedia- tion, depending on the needs of each individual horse. T e program teaches interns about the language of Equus, which is how Roberts de- scribes the way horses communicate. Interns learn how Equus allows humans to “talk” to horses in their care more eff ectively and in a non-threatening way. Successful communica- tion between human and horse, as is the case between human and human, makes the part- nership more solid and more productive, and sets the partnership up for success. I had the opportunity to work with a wide


range of horses: freshly off -the-track T or- oughbreds, highly trained western show horses, stoic mustangs, sassy ponies, and a terrifi ed and untrusting feral horse. T e power of Equus is that it is universal to horses. It is the language that herd matriarchs use to communicate with and control their herd, and it is taught to every foal by its dam. Equus was eff ective no matter which horse I worked with at the farm. I saw how even the smallest change in my commu- nications led to immediate results—a couple of shallower, quicker breaths, for example, would cause the horse to speed up. T e principles are constant, and the key is to become fl uent in those principles so as to be clear, confi dent, and communicative with the horse. One of the more challenging and rewarding horses in the program while I was there was Pop- py, an OTTB mare. T is sweet girl was tough to


connect with. She was highly distractible, and she would move around the enclosed round pen with her head up, trying to


catch a whiff or


glimpse of whatever was going on outside. Our instructor, Si- mon D’Unienville, my fellow intern Bonnie McRae (from After the Races, a Maryland nonprofi t rehabbing and re- homing center for OTTBs and a Right Horse partner), and I tried unsuccessfully to Join-Up with Poppy. She had a hard time focusing long enough to commit to the rela- tionship we were off ering. Toward the end of my internship, we brought


the end of the fi rst day, with the help of the Monty Roberts Gentling Facility, she accepted a halter and line, she was lead- ing with a good amount of comfort, and she was allowing touches outside the chute. Just a few days later, she was fol- lowing us at liberty, albeit cau- tiously, around the gentling pen; she was allowing touches down her legs; and was she much less reactive to our gen- eral presence. Starlight was diff erent from


Poppy and Katy after their suc- cessful Join-Up


Katy getting some fi rst touches on Starlight in the Mon- ty Roberts Gentling Facility chute. This is the fi rst day of work after Starlight’s arrival at Flag Is Up Farms.


Poppy in to complete the Right Horse’s Basic Behaviors Profi le. We decided to try a Join-Up with her again, and it was my turn to try. I had learned enough at this point to follow the horse rather than push the horse, so my expectations were low. She had been through the phases that lead to Join-Up a few times already, so we hoped latent learning had taken eff ect and she was ready for the next step. My three weeks of education and practice may have made me a better communicator. I was certainly clearer in my language. T e combination of her latent learning and my improved communication skills was the ticket. We completed a Join-Up! When she turned and took a step toward me— the moment of Join-Up—my mouth dropped, and I quickly had to compose myself so I wouldn’t lose her. What a gorgeous moment that was, to be the person that this otherwise challenging mare had agreed to converse with. Another highlight of my time at Flag Is Up was my work with Starlight. Starlight was a troubled mare who we suspect had been used in tripping, a barbaric and traumatic practice where a gal- loping horse is lassoed around the front legs and caused to crash to the ground. Understandably, Starlight was terrifi ed of humans, and her owner, who had purchased her from a kill pen, had been unable to handle her for the whole six months she’d owned her. Once Starlight came to Flag Is Up, we worked with her twice a day every day. T e main priority was to help her accept a trim because her feet were in bad shape. We covered a lot of ground with her in the less than two weeks we had her before I came home. When she arrived she had a 30- foot bubble: under no circumstances were humans allowed in that bubble. By


the rest of the horses in the MRTHP because she was in need of so much rehabilitation


and recovery from her presumed past abuse. She came with a lot of baggage, and we had to con- vince her it was okay to let go of that baggage. Using the Monty Roberts Gentling Facility meant that we could safely and eff ectively show her that we didn’t mean her harm. Our touches weren’t going to hurt. Our lines and halters didn’t make her fall. She was safe. While she remained skeptical for a while, she quickly trusted us to do basic things with her. It is humbling to work with animals who have experienced so much trauma at the hands of humans—they can be so gener- ous with their trust. Showing them safety and love is life changing, for both them and us. I hope that my work with Poppy, Starlight and


the other MRTHP horses at Flag Is Up Farms helped them transition to their next careers. T e work also made a lasting impact on me both personally and professionally. T e language of Equus helped me to understand more accurately the experience level of the horses I was handling in my work as the Assessments Specialist at the Maryland Equine Transition Service. It is also helping me in my new position as the Supporter Engagement Coordinator at Days End Farm Horse Rescue. I can now discuss the more sub- tle behaviors of the horses we may see on tours, and what horses may be experiencing in their rehabilitation and training journeys. T is helps the supporter and the horse connect. My time at Flag Is Up Farms was invalu-


able, and I hope I will have the opportunity to visit again. T e promise the language of Equus holds for equine welfare is vast, and I feel it is important to bring the lessons I learned into my work whenever possible. Continually im- proving our ability to communicate with the horses in our care is a conversation that needs to happen among equine welfare advocates across the country.


Katy Whipple is the Supporter Engagement Coordinator for Days End Farm Horse Rescue. Formerly, she was the Assessments Specialist for the Maryland Equine Transition Service, a program of the Maryland Horse Council Foundation. She is committed to the advancement of equine welfare in Maryland and across the country.


www.equiery.com | 800-244-9580 THE EQUIERY YOUR MARYLAND HORSE COUNCIL PUBLICATION | NOVEMBER 2021 | 23


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