Old School Philosophy for Modern Day Horsepeople Warren Bengston has a heart for horses and people. He's spent 42 years as a farrier, 3 years breaking horses, and 10 years as a missionary to the Ojibwe Indians. You will find pieces from each part of his diverse background interwoven into the fabric of his writings.

Although it may not always occur to us at first, both horse and handler see each other as a problem that needs solving. This mutual problem takes shape immediately when the two worlds (in general) and the two agendas (in particular) meet and mix. The handler sees the horse as a diamond in the rough and treats all the interaction as paths to potential. The horse sees the handler (and his antics) as somebody he could do very well without, like sand in his eyes.

We pull him out of his world without his permission, nor do we regard his point of view. If we did we would leave him free to roam on the prairie and just be a horse. That is always a horse’s preference. That’s why we shut the gate of the round pen. We have to counter his preference or point of view.

If that is true, then we have created problems for the horse. He didn’t volunteer for human use, his point of view has been disregarded and he has no personal interest in our plans and purposes for him. Because he can’t escape from the situation that is so unnatural to him, he then will turn his attention to solving what he sees as a big problem. Human captivity and its accompanying expectations have brought his natural world to a screeching halt, forcing an adjustment.

He then begins to do what any respectable horse would do, and that is to resist human intentions and/or intimidate the handler that is presenting him with what he regards as nonsense or threat. He now regards the handling of humans as the art of problem solving. When we are outmaneuvered by a horse, he has successfully solved a problem for himself but created a problem for us that must be solved.

Initially, the main problem is that of a big, powerful animal versus a much smaller but intellectually superior human. If we are to prevail, we have to devise a system or way to neutralize the horse’s physical advantage. We are no match one on one, so we have to “cheat” to establish the advantage we need. This, of course, is to give us access to the horse’s mind so the journey to a partnership can begin. We need that help so that we can prove to the horse that we can indeed answer all his questions.

That’s where our gadgets come in. We use pens, ropes, straps, whips, bridles, halters, spurs, longe lines, etc., etc. to successfully counter his speed, power and personal agenda.

When a horse’s problem-solving ability trumps ours, we very quickly have a spoiled horse. In his eyes, he has soundly defeated a human. His efforts to resist went unanswered and he is chuckling under his breath. Unless the situation is reversed, spoiled will turn to sour, which will turn to dangerous. Now we have a horse that has out-powered, outsmarted and outmaneuvered a human who is scared, defiant or confused in spite of our intellectual superiority. It all started with a human presenting a horse with a problem and the horse promptly solving it. He is learning how to successfully handle confused humans—he is becoming a problem solver. To make matters worse, he doesn’t care if his power and determination result in human injury or death. Now what?

Well, the horse has given us the answer. Since he is a problem solver, let’s give him some problems to solve. We are keenly aware that we are no physical match for a horse so we enlist his natural tendencies and instincts and creatively maneuver him physically and mentally into a position that gives us the advantage we need. To do that we use our gadgets. If you can build it, make it or buy it, it is a gadget. There is no magic in our gadgets—they are of no more value than our ability to use them. They enable us to arrange the circumstances of the horse’s life in a manner that forces him to consider our intentions and expectations. We have to “cripple” him in some way to take away his physical advantage. One way we do that is to trap him in a round pen so we can force the issue of our intentions. For some strong-willed and difficult horses, the best solution is to strip them of their power by laying them down on the ground, rendering them completely helpless and vulnerable. In that state we prove to them that there is nothing to fear and that dealing with us is not optional. The vanquished horse is then empowered by the victorious human to share in that victory. It is a victory for the horse because the monsters of fear, defiance and confusion have lost their grip on his mind. This life could not have been discovered without the destruction of his personal, self-centered agenda. That agenda provided cover for his monsters and was the basis of his point of view.

If these matters had been thoroughly and consistently dealt with from birth this whole discussion would be unnecessary. It is when a horse’s questions go unanswered that problem solving on both sides becomes an issue. When a horse has to solve a human problem, he always believes that the end justifies the means.

If that goes unanswered the horse will assume quickly that he has authority over the human situation. That’s the bad news.

The good news is that the horse’s willingness and desire to solve problems can be used by us to turn him around completely.

The horse’s problem-solving ability may have been a problem for us but it can become the very advantage we need to take back the territory we lost. How so? By creatively giving the horse a problem whereby in solving it he finds himself cooperating with our intentions. Because it was a conclusion that he arrived at on his own, he does not feel forced or manipulated. By considering the dilemma that we presented him with (which forced the issue), he came to a conclusion that was his own. Without him realizing it, we maneuvered him into accepting part of our agenda. You might say that we tricked him into seeing it our way. So, in solving his problem, he solved our problem. We then let him know that we appreciate his decision, which in turn begins to draw him into participating with us instead of simply being subjection to us. In this light, subjection does not have a negative connotation because it is simply a means to an end. To the child in school, subjection to the school’s expectations prepares him for the participation the teacher wants from him. To the solider in boot camp, the subjection prepares him to be a warrior who is steady under pressure.

When a horse is unafraid and willing to comply, his problem-solving interests and abilities will not be aimed at us personally but will be the force that we need from him to accomplish our intentions with him. Education can proceed, the horse-human relationship will grow in truth, and the horse will join us in dealing with whatever problems the future holds.

So the question arises, what problem or dilemma do I give the horse that forces the issue of considering my agenda instead of his? You will be limited only by your understanding of horses, your creativity and your determination to do what is right for a particular horse. The horse will give us the clues we need, by asking-What do I need to be afraid of? What can I get away with? What do you want? Or a blend of them. If we understand the horse’s basic needs and his particular struggle we will get an idea of what must be done. If the horse isn’t changing, he isn’t considering. Either we aren’t believable, clear and appropriate, or the horse is simply deciding how many fines he wants to pay before he quits speeding. If his fine is only 25 cents, he is not going to quit speeding. If you slap him with a $500 fine, he’ll both find and watch his speedometer.

When he starts to watch his speed and drive according to the present conditions, the journey toward harmony has begun. It doesn’t need to be perfect (it seldom is) but it has to begin. Once it begins it will create its own energy or momentum. But we must never forget that the monsters of fear, defiance, and confusion will be following us waiting for an opportunity to do damage. If they do sneak up on us and make a strike, they are merely giving us an opportunity to prove to our horse that we will protect him from the sinister intentions of those miserable creatures. Remember, the monster is the enemy, not the horse. A horse can tell if we are attacking monsters or attacking him personally. We attack by responding swiftly and decisively to clarify the issues involved, whether that be by roughness or gentleness. We love our horses but we hate monsters. Some monsters we starve (stop feeding them), some we confront and neutralize, and some we simply give no place to hide.

When we are solving problems presented by our horses, the monsters are giving us the opportunity to nullify or neutralize their influence on our horse human relationship. When we learn to recognize monsters and are no longer afraid of them, the surprises, disappointments, mistakes, accidents, frustrations, discouragements and all of the ups and downs (problems) of the horse-human relationship become stepping stones and we’re well on the road to unity and harmony.

Then, to our surprise, our horses will also start looking for monsters and follow our example in dealing with them. Never, ever, ever feel sorry for a weak and struggling monster. If you really understand the issue of monsters your horse will know that you are not attacking him. However, at first, because he has signed a pact with his monster to ensure mutual survival, he is not going to appreciate the attack on his monster. On that score, we show patience and empathy to or for the horse but show no mercy to the monster. The horse will figure it all out and begin to realize that he is much better off without the monster. He has solved another problem but he no longer sees us as a problem.

Finally, how will we know if problem solving is necessary? If the horse has no questions and will do what we want, how we want, when we want and do it calmly and deliberate, there are no problems to solve. Horse and human are comfortable with each other and there is mutual trust and respect.

Warren Bengston