I played with Spy again yesterday and she was hot to trot! I blew some hair off a horse brush and off she went to the other end of the pen with a snort. She flung her head back as she was leaving, looking at me, as if to say - "C'mon Mom! There are monsters in the wind! Run!" Silly girl. Later that day after having played with her a bit, and with a halter on this time, I blew in the brush until I thought I was going to pass out from a lack of oxygen while trying to desensitize her to it. It worked though! I'm not sure at what expense to my brain cells, but now I can blow in the brush and she just looks at me but doesn't freak out. I guess I took all those things for granted in my LBEs and LBIs. This RBE thing is keeping me on my toes.
She's still exhibiting a lot of curiosity when I introduce new toys but not a lot of confidence. I find it very interesting she can be afraid of something, blowing, cocking her head, and still wanting to bite it and follow it. I think it's cool and I'm hoping to expand on her wanna-be-left-brain behaviors.
What I am finding really interesting is this introverted thing she does. I mentioned it in an earlier post along with the gray RBI in a SC DVD from last year. That closed eyes / sticky feet thing. She doesn't seem to do it when under a lot of pressure, when she is spooked or feels too much intensity she goes RBE, and when she does this introverted thing she's not looking she she'll snap out of it or that she's worried or she's being evasive. I am not sure yet how to describe it. The few times I have seen it in a pattern is when I yo-yo her out. She'll back out on a light, light, light phase 1 and then she'll just get those sleepy eyes and get kind of sticky to her spot. When she does this, because I'm not sure what it is, I've just been hanging out with her until she wants to come back over. Sometimes I'll rub her, and she responds to me approaching, turns her head into me, wants to be pet, but still with sleepy eyes. Again, I'm not sure if she's just coming down off some kind of tension/adrenaline and really relaxing, digesting thoughts, processing or if for some reason she's struggling with what's going on and then goes introverted... She seems to do it after we've completed an exercise, I've disengaged her, and it's time to relax. I am hoping to get a video camera soon so I can record some of our play time together and our progress and hopefully this introverted thing as well for some more feedback. Which by the way, if you have any comments (especially you Parelli people!) please leave them for me! I love feedback, even if your opinion is way different than mine. I really appreciate being able to think, compare, and evaluate all the information out there - and who knows - you might have the breakthrough I'm looking for! Anyone have any links to info/pix/video on horses going introverted/catatonic? I really don't feel a tension in this behavior, but I've never experienced it before, so I can't say for sure.
Also, yesterday, she got spooked by my friend's dogs who were playing and carrying around my grain bucket. She took off in her pen and wow - she looked so pretty! Even in the mud and slop of the feedlot she really can move. I have yet to see this girl on good footing, when I bought her the round pen and her pasture were a combination of ice and mud and when I brought her home she went into the crappy footing of the feedlot so I can't wait to put her on some good footing and watch her go.... Trying to be patient for summer and hopefully a new place to live with pasture. I don't like when she spooks/runs because it's unhealthy behavior for her in general and I do worry about her hurting herself but she is pretty to look at. :)
Hi Samantha:
ReplyDeleteHave you watched the Liberty and Horse Behavior course? I am just now watching it and ironically enough, watched the demo with Linda and Allure going catatonic. She discusses ways to bring him out of it by stopping the pattern (that might not be your solution).
My RBI/E TB mare does this bizarre sort-of catatonic thing that you attempted to describe about Spy. She does this when I approach her sometimes. It's as if she goes brain dead and accepts her fate. So I have to use a LOT of retreat/approach with my mare until she goes, "Huh? You're not just going to come grab me and do what you want with me?" It is definitely extreme unconfidence, but sometimes it's hard to understand why she does it.
My mare, Dancer, can switch very quickly from relaxed to very introverted in seconds and I sometimes miss it (because I am so accustomed to left brained horses!). I am not sure if I am doing the most appropriate thing, but I usually retreat and then approach from zone 5 so she can flee if she wants.
Anyway, just thought I'd give my perspective!
Thank you! I have seen the Liberty DVDs and seen Allure do his cookie catatonic thing. When Spy does this eyes closed thing it doesn't strike me in the same way that Allure does, again more like that gray horse I keep talking about on the SC DVD from last Spring. When you do approach and retreat to get your horse out of it, do you just physically bring yourself in and out of her space? How long before she looks at you and gives you any kind of a response? I'm going to go home and watch Linda and Allure's bit again on going introverted to see if it sheds any new light since I've now got a tangible example of my own.
ReplyDeleteThanks again!!! :)
Sometimes she'll just stand there, very still and somewhat tense. Her eyes are half-lidded, but in an introverted way as opposed to sleepy or bored. When I back away about 3 feet from zone 5 she will sometimes wait and then look back and ask a question. But occasionally I have to walk big circles around her until she sort of snaps out of it and looks my way.
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