Feet Trimming
Another area that we have been working on is with trimming feet. Gunny has always been polite about picking up his feet when asked and holding them up very nicely while they are being trimmed. But in between steps when the trimmer would set the foot down to go to another one, or go to put the foot on the stand, or go to walk around him to change sides, it was likely that Gunny would pin his ears or look worried. So even though he was responding with the right physical action, I felt like there was something wrong.
Over the past several months we have made a point to wait for a chew in between each step of the trimming process. And when the trimmer needs to change sides, he waits for Gunny to "open that door" to let him know he is ready.
"Opening the door" is something that I figured out for walking past Gunny in tight quarters. If I pause for a moment with the intention of walking past him, Gunny will then turn his head in the opposite direction. That is the door opening. Then it is all right to walk past. But if his head is straight and I don't pause, he will likely be unhappy about me walking past.
By making these changes, foot trimming has evolved to a point where it looks pretty normal and it doesn't take any longer than with a less particular horse. Gunny has worked out a communication system with Eric where he nods to Eric when he is ready for the next step. This way he doesn't always chew in between each step, but lets us know when he is ready.
Over the past several months we have made a point to wait for a chew in between each step of the trimming process. And when the trimmer needs to change sides, he waits for Gunny to "open that door" to let him know he is ready.
"Opening the door" is something that I figured out for walking past Gunny in tight quarters. If I pause for a moment with the intention of walking past him, Gunny will then turn his head in the opposite direction. That is the door opening. Then it is all right to walk past. But if his head is straight and I don't pause, he will likely be unhappy about me walking past.
By making these changes, foot trimming has evolved to a point where it looks pretty normal and it doesn't take any longer than with a less particular horse. Gunny has worked out a communication system with Eric where he nods to Eric when he is ready for the next step. This way he doesn't always chew in between each step, but lets us know when he is ready.
Comments
Very interesting idea about "Open the Door." Charlie is fed grain while he is in his stall. When I walk into the stall and he has backed away from his bucket, he will turn his head away from me. Then, I'll go on in and fill his grain bucket. I thought he was turning away because he just couldn't stand me that close at that time and he couldn't watch. (However, I do feel safer when he turns away and I was glad he did.) I will think of him turning away as a sign that he is giving me space and a go ahead signal to fill his bucket, and see how my NQR is then.