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The Middle Ground Theory
Michael Peace @ThinkEquus
I firmly believes that there is not a bad horse born. There may be bad horses about but they certainly didn’t start like that. Some are easier to get on with than others but all have some softness in them that can be developed if we know how to do it. The ‘middle ground theory’ helps people understand how to work with horses a little better.
‘All horses have an area of tolerance in which you can work with a certain amount of inconsistency and get away with it without causing problems to you or to him. Provided you work within this area of tolerance (or ‘middle ground’ as i like to call it), you can be too hard sometimes and the horse won’t resent you and too soft at other times and the horse won’t exploit you. In other words, the relationship can go slightly out of balance without you doing any permanent damage.
If however you work outside the limits of the middle ground and for example are really too hard sometimes or really too easy at others, you will begin to damage the relationship. The ‘middle ground’ will erode and cause the horse to become less and less generous. In this case the middle ground will eventually become a fine line at which point the horse will give you very little room for manoeuvre in future encounters. This is when a horse is considered a problem horse and requires skilled, delicate and precise handling/riding to restore the middle ground'.
Michael has not met a horse that he could not help by widening the fine line to give the owner or rider room to work again. He can achieve this with most horses on a home visit. Michael Peace ©1999
#horsebehaviour #horsemanship #horse #horsetraining #horselearning