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You decide you want to buy a new horse, you go check some out, fall in love with the rightone, get home and things seem a whole lot different and you don’t know why.

Things were so perfect when you purchased him. What has changed?

Firstly, I would like to stress that when buying a new horse you must do your research! Youneed a horse that suits you and your level of ability. You need to think about what you wantto achieve for yourself and your horse and, importantly, you need to make sure that theperson you are purchasing from is reputable. To get all this done it may be well worth whileconsulting with a professional trainer to make sure you tick all the boxes and get the besthorse to suit your needs. However, this is a whole other topic to go into at a laterdate.

Now onto the matter at hand, you’ve got your new horse home and things are not going sowell. He is looking around everywhere, jumpy, flighty, not eating etc. These are perfectlynormal traits of a horse in a new environment. Horses need to make sure their survival issecure. Only when this is achieved can they relax, get comfortable, eat and drink. So, onthis point alone, it would be absolutely normal for a new horse to be a bit nervous whenchecking out or surveying its new surroundings. This is especially true of young horses withlimited travelling experience. One of the best things to do in this situation is simply toleave your new horse alone for a period of time.

Now put yourself into your horse’s shoes. Remember when you have moved home … it’sstressful! In fact, it’s well known that relocating is one of the most stressful events inour lives. We pack up and leave a familiar, comfortable environment and move to therelatively unknown. This is how our horses feel and like us there is always going to be anadjustment period. Let them settle into their new environment, and don’t be over anxious toget out there and start riding straight away.

After a settling in period, it is now time to do something with your new horse. In myopinion, the best and safest way to do this is to start with a series of ground workexercises. Learn how to communicate with your new horse on the ground, let them know thatyou understand their language and how they feel as a vulnerable prey animal.

Horse crave leadership, it is the dominant mare of the herd that takes them to the safeareas and good pastures. We need to take this role and become the leader our horse needs.

So prove to your horse through effective communication techniques that you are to be trustedand respected as a leader and cause your horse to relax in your presence, as well as intheir new home.

Show them the different areas of their new environment and desensitise them to all these newsights, sounds and smells. By doing this you will build the level of trust and respectbetween you and your new horse and start a healthy, willing relationship that will last alifetime.

See Also:
A Horse Buyer’sGuide To Getting It Right

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