30/ JULY/AUGUST 2024 THE RIDER
The Science of how Horses Think & Learn Behind the Bit, Grace and Forgiveness.
and the back of the box are rigid, or their boundaries inconsistent, the horse learns to: 1. lean on them (the heavy horse) 2. fight them (rooting the reins out of the rider’s hands) 3. or avoid them (behind the bit). If rider’s hands are noisy or incon-
By Lindsay Grice. Equestrian Canada coach, horse show judge and specialist in equine behaviour.
Headset is a “bad word” in my vo-
cabulary. Most judges these days aren’t
fooled by that horse with his nose tucked in. Instead, judges analyze the balance, rhythm and relaxation of the whole pic- ture.
I often describe the horse as in a
box, a shape or frame. The rider sends him forward from her legs (the back of the box) into her hands (the spongey, for- giving front of the box). The horse rounds his top line and softens to the bit and the energy springs upward rather than running forward. But when the front
sistent, once a horse learns how to escape them, he’ll tend to hide behind the bit even with a rider of educated hands, avoiding the annoyance before it begins. In horse psychology, this is called “avoidance conditioning”. He’s found an escape route that works and it becomes his default whether or not the threat is still present. Kind of like cringing in the dentist
chair after he’s pricked you once or twice with that sharp little tool. Hard to relax. “Hurt me once, shame on you. Hurt
me twice shame on me”. So the saying goes. So many folks protect themselves from further hurt by avoiding confronta- tion, love or risk. I’ve found the confidence of the be-
hind-the-bit horse can be rebuilt by re- teaching the horse, through elastic “forgiving” arms, to accept my contact. We’ve all been hurt and embar-
rassed in life. Avoidance conditioning says “never again!” Forgiving those that have hurt us.
Admitting and learning from mistakes. Risking to try again.
And we do the same - once hurt we protect ourselves from further hurt by avoiding a person vs. forgiving them, self-protection vs risking again.
the bit becomes his default whether or not the threat is still present. This is “Avoidance Conditioning”.
A horse will tend to hide behind the bit if his rider’s hands are noisy or inconsistent. If it works, behind
About Lindsay Grice.
“Is it me or my horse?” Horse show judge, coach, trainer and specialist
to Ontario farms as a freelance coach. She’s taught the science of equine behavior and learning for horse associations, courses for University of Guelph and therapeutic riding facilities. Lindsay judges multiple disciplines and breeds, holding judging certifications with • AQHA • Equestrian Canada • Extreme Cowboy • Ontario Working Equitation • OE provincial Hunter/Jumper • OE provincial dressage She loves to share her own insights and stories
tion and just enjoy the process of riding, not just the results! Lindsay enjoys teaching clinics and travelling
in equine behavior, Lindsay Grice helps riders solve their “horse puzzles”, sharing keys from the science and research of how horses think and learn. She loves to help riders prepare for competi-
learned from 25 years as a competitor and horse trainer.
“Why do horses do what they do?” Lindsay says, “In the horse world, our traditions and the evidence sometimes collide. I love to com- municate the WHYs behind the HOWs of riding. “Equitation Science” – it makes life better for horses when we speak in a language they under- stand!”
UK study sheds new light on horse rider falls The risk factors surrounding many falls may be preventable, researchers find.
CAMBRIDGE, UK – 4 JULY 2024 – Since horse riding is considered anecdo- tally to be a ‘dangerous sport’ globally, Dr David Marlin and Dr
Williams have undertaken a first-of-its-kind study in the UK to investigate the com- mon factors surrounding rider falls, and, crucially, how the risk of falling and injury can be reduced. The research paper,
titled: UK rider reported falls in a 12-month period: circumstances and conse- quences, has been published in Comparative Exercise Physiology by Brill Wa- geningen Academic. The large-scale study
determined that rider falls
from horses are caused by a variety of factors. Impor- tantly, many may be modifi- able and hence preventable. According to the re-
Jane
search findings, rider falls appear to happen more fre- quently when hacking/trail riding, and/or schooling on the flat, and showjumping schooling. As such, encouraging
riders to wear protective equipment in activities cur- rently perceived as ‘low risk’, such as hacking or schooling at home, may help to reduce injury sever- ity.
Dr David Marlin ex-
plains: “This is by far the largest-ever study of the cir- cumstances around rider
falls, and the consequences of those falls. What is en- couraging is that this survey provides opportunities to re- duce the number and sever- ity of
falls through
awareness. As we found, riders are much more likely to fall while hacking or schooling – when they may be less likely to wear a body protector or, possibly, even a helmet – than in competi- tion”.
Dr Marlin continues: “In ad- dition, whilst rider falls were 10 times more com- mon than horse falls, riders falling can lead indirectly to an increased risk of horse injury. For example, if the horse gallops and collides
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Dr Jane Williams com- ments: “Decisions when rid- ing are often based on our own assumptions rather than being based on evidence. Our results show that falls occur more at home – when hacking and training – which highlights that rider safety should be considered in these environments, and not just in competition or when we perceive we are doing something more risky. This knowledge can help us all to make informed deci- sions to safeguard both our own and our horse’s wel- fare”.
The findings • Understanding the risk factors leading to falls from horses has received little at- tention to date, despite hav- ing the
capacity to
significantly reduce serious injury.
• As such, the researchers surveyed riders with the aim of understanding when most falls from horses occurred, what factors riders felt con- tributed to falls, and how the risk of injury and falling could be reduced.
• Some 3,757 horse riders in
the UK were surveyed on- line to ascertain their expe- rience of falls over a 12-month period. Of that total, a subset of 1,977 com- pleted
surveys were
analysed. The majority of respondents were female (97% or 1,914 respondents).
• The most common fre- quency of falls was once in the last 12 months (experi- enced by 53%). Some 24% of riders had fallen off twice, 11% three times, and 7% more than five times.
• Respondents were asked to specify the activity they were undertaking when their last fall occurred. The three most common activities where falls took place were: hacking/trail riding (26%), schooling on the flat (26%), and showjumping schooling (19%).
• The most common reasons for rider falls were given as: horses changing direction rapidly
(41%), rearing/bucking or (24%).
Most riders fell off the side of the horse (73%) as op- posed to the front or back.
• Riders were most likely to injure their back (51%), shoulders (39%), or pelvis (37%) when they fell off, but most injuries were self- rated as minor. Severe in- juries as a result of a fall were more common when
Dr Jane Williams is an expe- rienced equestrian re- searcher whose work focuses on improving horse and rider performance and well-being through real- world research and practical performance analysis that can generate change. Jane is also the Junior Vice Presi- dent for the International Society of Equitation Sci-
Dr David Marlin and Dr Jane Williams are two of the highly-esteemed equestrian experts who make up the team at Animalweb – an in- dependent, unbiased infor- mation resource for all animal enthusiasts, and a source of science-based re- search.
Dr David Marlin is one of the equine world’s leading scientists, having worked at the forefront of equine re- search for over 30 years. He is passionate about equine welfare, and, as a result, has been involved in many cam- paigns, projects and re- search programmes. David is the current President of the UK National Equine Welfare Council, and the President of the internation- ally-established Sport Horse Welfare Foundation.
the riders’ head, back, shoulder or ankle was in- jured.
About The Researchers
About Animalweb Animalweb is an in-
dependent information re- source for all animal enthusiasts. A source of un- biased, science-based re- search, the site delivers news and product reviews, webinars, podcasts, videos and articles, covering the full breadth of the equine world from leading experts. Brought to you by Dr David Marlin and his team of ex- perts, Animalweb cuts through the misinformation by enabling animal owners to look to the genuine ex- perts and science for the right answers, rather than making decisions based on myths and marketing rub- bish.
askanimalweb.com
Follow Animalweb Web –
askanimalweb.com Email – hello@davidmar-
lin.co.uk Facebook – @DrDavid- Marlin Instagram– @drdavidmar- lin_animalweb X – @DrDavidMarlin YouTube – @drdavidmar- lin-animalweb LinkedIn – Animalweb TikTok – drdavidmarlin
ence, and an Associate Pro- fessor and Head of Research at Hartpury University in the UK.
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