Points on Praise for Horses

on his neck and a low slow word for example gooooood. Eventually the horse learns that my sound is associated with getting a break from work and the word itself takes on meaning.
Here are four points to consider with regard to praising your horses
1 Often praising does more for the human than the horse. It makes people feel good to touch and talk to their horses and Im big on encouraging people to enjoy their horses the process not just results in the show ring. So if loving on your horse brings you enjoyment go for it. This is your hobby and you pay your horses bills! But if results really matter to you make sure the process youre using is going to get you there. You may need to question whether the pleasure you derive from the way you relate to your horse is worth the cost of him not taking you seriously. For example is it fair to expect your showmanship horse to stay out of your space and study your body language in competition when you feed him by hand and fondle his head in the barn aisle? Or for your horse to listen to subtle voice cues in the riding ring when hes used to you chatting to him all the time?
2 Petting has no intrinsic meaning to the horse. Humans associate the ol pat on the back with a job well done but horses dont naturally understand it that way. They may link it to a break in schooling but not to an action that they have just performed unless the neck pat is given immediately and consistently after that action.
3 Petting is not all that pleasurable to the horse. I believe horses prefer to be scratched or massaged wouldnt you? With skin sensitive enough