Educating the HorseByDr. J. C. Hennessey,Reno, Nevada.
ByDr. J. C. Hennessey,Reno, Nevada.
The horse is conceded to be the most intelligent of animals, the best friend to man, and until recently the most universally used and most necessary; yet the same animal is also the most universally abused. Men hitch the poor animals in harness that is sometimes too small, or too large, as the case may be, and in consequence he rebels and refuses to pull a load when by doing so he suffers torments by chafing, or from choking, if the collar be too small. This is all that is necessary to stigmatize the poor brute as being balky, and unless some humane person happens to run across the animal it will be spoiled, and no one will take it as a gift. Now, as a matter of fact, the horse that absolutely refuses to be treated thus is the horse that has the right material in him and the one that will give you most service, providing you treat him right. The horse I own was such an animal and was given up as a “runaway” and “kicker.” Yet he is now so gentle that he will absolutely refuse to run away on any pretense whatever. Upon hearing that a fine looking but “mean” horse was for sale, I took occasion to visit the owner and learn something of the “outlaw.” After seeing the animal, even after I had learned that he had been in runaways and had broken up at least four buggies, I bought him for $150, but not until I had made a phrenological examination and found that the horse was particularly well supplied, as I thought, with good horse sense. I could see that his disposition was “keyed” up pretty high and that trait combined with a broad forehead and a good eye, suited me, and was what I always select in an animal. The price was as nothing, when we consider that he was a Woodnut by Nutwood, and that his sire sold for $22,000, and his grandsire for, I think, considerably more.
I only drove the animal a few times before he was as gentle as a lamb and has never committed one unkind act while I was with him. He now performs twenty tricks and is trained to hunt, and enjoys it. I shoot over his head and he waits for me to get the game. He will stop when he sees a rabbit and expects me to shoot it. If you want your animals to be kind to you you must first treat them kindly. After driving this “runaway horse” for a few months my wife and I drove across the mountains on a hunting trip. On going down a steep grade the buggy upset and we were both thrown out, but the wild horse absolutely refused to run away. He would have been as kind to his former owner if he had been treated properly. You can tyrannize over some people, while others will fight back, and it is just so with animals.
A horse never forgets anything, and if he is badly scared in a certain place, he will show the same fear if brought back to that place a year afterwards. A horse will develop the same disposition as the man who drives him, and if the man is nervous and fretful, by continually jerking the lines and striking the horse with a whip, he instills this irritability into the poor horse, and sooner or later the animal starts up too soon, and, expecting to be whipped, runs off at the top of his speed, perhaps killing somebody. Of course, the poor horse is to blame for this (?). Sometimes he is hitched so close to the wagon that he cannot trot without striking his hocks against the vehicle and, thinking he is being abused, he will run away. If the traces are too tight he will suffer from sore shoulder or sore neck.
Never allow a blacksmith to spring a shoe in a place by pressing down and nailing. Have him take the shoe off and straighten it on the anvil. Do not allow him to cut the frog away as it furnishes nourishment and moisture to the hoof. Don’t check your horse too high unless you wish him to be knee sprung. In shoeing horses some people are of the same opinion as is John Chinaman when buying boots. They want to get all the material they can for their money and in shoeing a horse too heavy you not only ruin his gait, but cause him to get tiredsooner than he otherwise would. In driving, control your animal by speaking to him. By following this method and being kind, not allowing yourself to lose your temper, you will be surprised at the control you will have over your horse in a short time. If the animal wishes to run away there is no man strong enough to hold him. You cannot stop a runaway by sawing on the bit, but if you will not lose presence of mind and not get excited, you can stop any horse and cure him of trying to run by the following method: Grasp the lines tightly and pull as tight as you can. Let one line slip through your fingers (not losing it entirely), and pull hard with the other, which will bring the horse’s head around to the side. If you hold his head in that position you will throw him down as the legs will become mixed by thus drawing the head to the side. If you leave his head free once more he will stagger but not fall and will have great respect for the driver who can thus mix him up. This is something that every one should know, as no horse can run unless he can have his head in front of him. To control him it is necessary to jerk the head quickly, and the driver must keep the horse from turning around, thus upsetting the rig. Should your horse get frightened at any object, do not whip him; scold him and drive him carefully up to the object and he will eventually become so gentle and observing that he will recognize objects and not get frightened at them.
Should he get away from you do not get into a passion and beat the animal as soon as you get him again, for he will always remember it and you might be miles away from home and should he get loose, you will have to walk, as he will not care for another beating and will leave you “alone in your glory.” On the other hand, if you are kind to him you can go among a band of wild horses, and yours will leave them for you.
Horses know more than they are given credit for and have been known to carry their master home when the owner was intoxicated and unable to walk after getting there. A great many horses are spoiled by the driver forcing them to do something when the horse does not know what is wanted of him. Show him what you wish him to do and he will do it. Never fool your horse and always praise and reward him for doing good. Horsemen will tell you that it spoils a horse to teach him tricks. Does it spoil a child to educate him? My buggy horse that performed twenty tricks was thought to be a spoiled horse but at the State fair I could not get a race for him with trotters and had to enter him with pacers that were going in :17, :19 and :20. He was never driven better than :26, but did not make a break, and won handily in straight heats, and the last was :24. In trying to beat him they ran him into a fence, and on the back stretch locked wheels, making him drag the other under the wire in :24. That did not excite him, because I had educated him and he came back the next heat (fourth) in :24 in a jog. By educating your horse, you give him courage, make him brave, and he becomes almost human, just like Lou Dillon when, in a mighty drive she becomes part and parcel of the greatest educator of animals who ever existed—Millard Sanders. The old familiar quotation, “Full many a flower is born to blush unseen, and waste its sweetness on the desert air,” is exemplified time and again, when we see trainers driving animals with a world of speed, not knowing how to shoe, handle or drive them. Would education spoil these men? Training, gaiting and educating a horse is a mathematical problem, and the man who can teach a little each day and who understands that by increasing the action in front means something to the hind hoofs, and by slowing up the action behind means something to the front hoofs just as it does to multiply and subtract, is the man who takes the purse at the race meeting even if he does not make a hit in his workouts. When you wish to train to perform tricks, start in with the easiest one first and begin in the following way:
The first and easiest trick to teach a horse is to say “no.” Stand on the left side and with a tack prick him gently on the withers. He will shake his head. Ask him a question, at the same instantyou prick him, and after awhile he will get so used to the inflection of your voice that he will shake his head every time you ask, without the use of the tack. To teach him to say “yes” prick him on the breast. Be gentle, so he will not get in the habit of snapping at you. For instance, ask him if he likes politics and he will shake his head “No.” Ask him if he reads Trotwood’s Monthly, and he will nod his head “Yes.” Next, teach him to lie down. Some teach this trick by the aid of ropes. The easiest way is to take the horse out of the stall, or, better, after a drive, just after unhitching, while he is sweating, lead him to the corral and say “Lie down, sir.” He will obey, because he wants to roll. After he gets up give him some sugar and pet him. After doing this several times he learns what is wanted of him and finds that by obeying he gets his sugar. Next, you wish him to kneel. This is easy, as he must always kneel to lie down. By holding the rope, you can allow him only to kneel after which you give him sugar and pet him.
To teach him to sit up it is first necessary to make him lie down. Then say, “Get up, sir.” By holding the rope, allow him to get up on the front feet only. Next you wish him to open a box. Get one with hinges and have the lid extend a little over the box. Allow him to eat out of it several times, being sure to close the lid frequently while he is eating. He will see you throw the lid back and in a short time will do so himself, that he may eat the grain. After this be sure to pet him. In a short time you can send him from a distance to the box and he will open the lid. To teach him to kiss you is the easiest of all. If he likes candy, as all pets do, place a piece in your mouth, and he will reach for it. Say, “Kiss me, sir,” and he will attempt to get it. He will become accustomed to the command, after a few times and will obey the order without the candy. Next you wish him to stand on a barrel. Lead him to a box, about five or six inches high, being sure to have it solid so it will not turn. After getting him as close to it as possible, raise one hoof and place it on the box, then raise the other and place it by the first, after which give him the usual reward. As he gets used to this trick increase the height of the box until you have it as high as you wish and he will climb up to get the sugar. Teach him to shake hands by picking up his hoof and, at the same time, giving the command, “Shake hands, sir.” To teach a horse to tell his age or the time of day, or to multiply, subtract or add numbers is the hardest of all and requires a great amount of maneuvering on the part of the trainer. Get him impatient and he will paw the ground with his hoofs. Pat him every time and he soon learns what you want. The hard part is to make him stop at the right number. Of course there is a key to this and an easy method may be used. I stand close to my horse and nudge him with my elbow when I want him to stop. For instance, I ask him to multiply 7 × 2, and he paws 14 times. To have him stop I nudge him just after he paws the thirteenth time, and he stops on the fourteenth. Train him to stop, to turn corners, and to turn around in this way: When driving go the same way a number of times, always turning to go home in the same place and being careful to turn slowly. Say, “Whoa,” and then, “Turn around, sir.” After a little coaxing with the rein he will do this. In a little while he will know what is required of him every time you ask him to turn. Get him used to your gun by driving him with an open bridle and, for the first few times, shooting back from the buggy. By proper handling he will, after a time, stop when you level your gun to shoot or, as my horse does, when he sees anything to shoot at. Teach your horse to play tag, by giving some person his sugar and having him run from the horse. The animal will learn to put his ears back, show his teeth and run for the sugar. This should only be taught horses that are perfectly gentle, as it makes them cross. When they find people are afraid of them they always enjoy frightening them. Many horses are considered of no value because their owner does not know how they should be shod. I shall be pleased to answer any communications from people who wish to knowhow to shoe horses, how to avoid interfering, forging, or any of the bad habits horses may have. All can be rectified if people only know how. Remember you can only teach a horse through kindness. As soon as you lose patience he will be spoiled.
In driving an animal, if you treat it kindly and do not lash it with the whip when there is no occasion for doing so, it will become attached to you and will cool down in a moment of danger or excitement, as it feels that you are its friend and going to protect it; whereas, if you were in the habit of abusing it you may get into a “tight place” and the horse will get excited and perhaps kill you. This is something that people should understand, and how much more satisfactory it is to have your animals watch for your home-coming and have them run to greet you than to have them afraid and shrink and expect the lash every time you move. Teach your animals to be courageous, and then whatever they do they will go through on their courage and not by the whip. My animal was very fast and I hired a trainer to train him for the track. I gave him instruction not to whip the horse, and being headstrong thought he knew it all, so one day he struck him with the whip and was immediately kicked out of the cart. The horse ran for about fifty yards and stopped. I informed the trainer that he received his just deserts and he never drove him again. In this instance the horse knew more than the man, and I have seen many such instances. It is not right that we abuse animals, and we should not be permitted to do so. They are willing to obey us and will always do so if we give them a chance and I am delighted when I see a horse that will have the courage to resist ill treatment. Some people check their horses up to the skies and never put the check down when they tie them, but leave the poor animals tied to a post for hours with their neck stretched so that they are in constant pain. It would be a good law that would cause such men to suffer the same punishment.
It is a very wrong thing to feed a horse too much hay. It only distends the stomach, and gives the animal an ungainly appearance. Feed him regularly, and four quarts of oats is a good feed for a buggy horse.
When purchasing a horse, stand directly in front of the animal and look at front hoofs. If they toe-in, buy; but if they toe-out, do not accept as a gift, as every time he picks his hoofs up, if he is going fast, he will strike his shin or knee, whereas, if he toes in, he will pick them up from his knees and never interfere and you will not be under the necessity of placing boots on every time you wish to speed him. They should toe out behind and in that case they spread and pass their front hoofs when going fast and will not “forge” or strike their quarters. It is a very common thing for a horse to trot along and by forging you can hear them a block away. The click, click is caused by the hind feet striking the front ones, and is very annoying, and at the same time is very bad for the horse. You can remedy this by shoeing in front with all the weight in the toe, causing him to pick up the hoof quicker and thus getting it out of the way of the hind shoe when it comes along. If he interferes behind, shoe with weight on the outside to spread the hoofs. A horse should be shod every four or five weeks, as the hoof grows and the shoe interferes with its expansion.
No man can be great who does not believe in himself.