Pressure, it’s only Natural

PRESSURE,

It’s Only Natural

“It takes pressure for relief to be effective, and relief for pressure to be effective.” - Martin Black

This is the quote that has offered the most value for me in a succinct little package. It sounds simple, but the proper application of pressure takes a lifetime of refinement to get really effective at.

Martin Black, a horseman from Idaho who I take virtual lessons from, and have studied his work extensively, is masterful at using pressure. He only uses as much pressure as it takes to clearly communicate his ask of the horse, but always as little as possible. Martin fully understands how subtle of communication the horse can pick up on, and based on this understanding, has learned to apply and release pressure with excellent feel and timing. I see horses really appreciate Martin’s honed skills, as he is clear and fair.

Glenn Stewart, another accomplished horseman and mentor of mine, also wrote a great article in this very magazine that relates well to this topic of pressure in horsemanship. He had a creative way of helping readers understand the horse’s point of view. He gave a metaphor that explained how all relief and no pressure with horses can be ineffective, and not really feel like relief at all. Glenn’s metaphor was “if you offer a piece of pie to someone that just finished supper, ate too much and has already had two pieces of pie and you offer them more, it doesn’t have the value as it would to someone that hasn’t had any pie for months and is still hungry from supper.” (Excerpt from Glenn Stewart’s “A Reason to Care… Physically and Mentally Stimulating Horses” article Saddle Up November 2021 issue). This metaphor gives us a concrete mental picture that we can relate to; how to time a release so that it actually has the value we intend.

Another great saying, from another great horseman, is “Does what you are doing have meaning to the horse, or is it all Vanilla?!” That is something Jonathan Field (another mentor of mine) often would say. What I believe he meant by this is are you nagging, or keeping the pressure at a detectable, but ineffective level, so that the horse just learns to tune you out, and is only irritated by your aids, or, are you getting in, getting the message across, and getting out. The horse, I have learned would much prefer the latter.

The last memorable metaphor I would like to share with you is from a friend and mentor of mine, Miles Kingdon. Miles gives the example of a teacher who drones on and on, talking and talking, until you don’t hear anything he is saying, and you just tune him out. Like a fly buzzing in your ear he says, after a while you become desensitized and don’t hear it. But, if a teacher were to only say what is absolutely helpful and timely, you hang on every word, like it is life’s bread. The reason I am sharing this example is it relates strongly to the person who will apply pressure, but again, at a level that is not effective, so eventually, like the droning teacher, gets tuned out by the horse.

Now folks, that may seem like I just did a whole lot of name dropping, and I sure did! However, it was all for your benefit, those were all tremendously useful and pivotal moments in my understanding of the proper use of pressure with horses. You see, what it all boils down to, is these horsemen, through experience, understand the very nature of a

horse. If you observe any group of horses interacting, you will notice they use pressure. That is how horses communicate, through the application and release of pressure. Think of the less dominant horse standing at the water trough on a hot day. He is having a long, cool slurp when a horse higher ranking in the herd comes along. The more dominant horse gives him a look as he approaches the trough that says “clear off buddy.”

Picture this as the first level of pressure. This is similar to us having a clear intention to do something with a horse, and lifting our energy, eyes and focus towards the horse we plan on communicating with. Next, the dominant horse, if he doesn’t get the less dominant horse to move after his menacing look, will usually kind of bunt his head towards the horse he wants to move, and pin his ears. Picture this as the second stage of pressure, no physical contact has been made, but there is a clear gesture. This would be like us now adding to our clear intention, a motion with our hand on the rope, directing the horse in the direction we want.

Next, if the less dominant fellow still hasn’t got the idea, the dominant horse may now reach out to bite or kick the horse who is still standing in the way at the trough. This is when we may have to lift our stick and string, or tail of our rope and eventually make contact if necessary. The key here is… AS SOON AS we get a change, towards what we are asking, RELEASE!! It is as they say the release that teaches!

So, if we want our horse to learn what the right answer is, we need to back off the pressure and let him find comfort within our ask. That way it becomes a sweet spot, and he understands, this is the right answer. So, as you have heard many times before I am sure, clear communication boils down to feel and timing. Using pressure, with good feel and timing is the goal.

I hope this has shone some light on the topic of pressure in relation to communicating with horses. Pressure if applied with feel and timing, is a communication style that is natural to the horse. I hope to see you soon at one of my clinics and we can further expand on the pressure conversation. Until then, happy trails friends. 

Elisha Bradburn and her husband, Clay, own Faithful Farm, an equestrian center in the Fraser Valley. Elisha’s passion with horses lies in psychology based horsemanship, with a strong consideration for the horse’s point of view. Elisha is available for clinics, expos, demonstrations and speaking engagements and can be followed on her Legacy Horsemanship pages on Facebook and Instagram or e-mailed at legacyhorsemanship@shaw.ca.