It is the season of good will so I decided that it would be nice to give you all some gifts and special offers as a Thank you for, well, just being you, wanting to learn about behaviour, and caring about your horses!
So to kick it all off, I’m starting with a FREE gift! You can sign up for my course here:
https://helenspence.podia.com/learning-in-young-horses
Completely free of charge!
This lecture/ talk is based on material I originally delivered as part of staff training for the Blue Cross in 2016. In it I discuss socialisation, weaning, and other factors that influence the development of the young horse at different stages and how they impact on learning.
Understanding these issues help us to make effective training and management choices when working with young horses of all ages, from foals to four year olds. This talk will be of interest to breeders, owners and trainers of youngstock.
This will also be of interest to owners of older horses that are keen to understand some of the reasons for why their adult horses might behave as they do.
My first experience of youngstock in a commercial setting was as a teenager when I took my work experience placement at a large Thoroughbred stud. A few years later I had a summer job working at a family run sport horse stud. There was a marked contrast in how the stallions, mares and youngstock were managed in these different settings and I learned a lot through observing these differences and the impact they had on the handleability of the horses I was working with.
In the decades since then, both in my personal life and in my role as both a trainer and a clinical equine behaviourist, I have had the opportunity to work with a vast range of horses from very differing backgrounds, some with very challenging behavioural issues.
I’ve also handled and trained foals and youngstock raised more naturally, allowed to wean naturally and given very positive first experiences of humans.
I have been able to observe first hand the problems that can arise from abrupt weaning and traumatic early handling and I feel that one of the best steps we can take to reduce the incidence of problem behaviour in the horse population is to improve the way in which we handle, manage and train young horses, from foalhood up.
Does this sound of interest to you? If so, click on the link and sign up!
Seasons greetings🎄
Helen xo
Spence Horse Sense 