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IN TRAINING

Day 3: the chest harness is a no-go

Not every idea works on the first try. Here's what we're changing in Dingo's roping training.

Yen Lee · 3 min read

Here's something you won't always see on a horse's highlight reel: day three, when the plan doesn't work.

Dingo has been working on his roping training. He's a willing, thinking horse, and for the first two days things went the way we hoped. On day three, we introduced a chest harness, and Dingo made his opinion very clear. The answer was no.

What happened

[Yen's notes: what the harness was for, what Dingo did when it went on, and how the session ended.]

The short version: it's probably not a one-person job. Some steps in training need a second set of hands, one person handling the horse while another manages the gear, so the horse never feels trapped or rushed.

Why we stopped

It would have been possible to push through. But a horse that's pushed past fear doesn't learn the lesson you're teaching. It learns that the thing is scary, and that people make scary things happen. That lesson sticks a lot longer than the one you meant to teach.

So we ended the session on something Dingo could do well, gave him the rest of the day off, and went back to the drawing board.

What we're changing

Next time, the harness goes on in smaller steps. First he gets to see and smell it on the ground. Then it touches his shoulder and comes away. Then it lies across his back. Only when he's relaxed with each step does the next one happen. That kind of patient, step-by-step introduction is how most horses learn to accept new gear, and it's how every horse at Green Pastures will be trained.

Why we share the hard days

Social media is full of perfect horses. But real training has setbacks, and showing them honestly is part of our job as a rescue. If you're a horse owner who's had a rough day with your horse, you're not alone, and slowing down is almost always the right call.

Stay tuned for day four.