pic courtesy of 'make less noise'
All parents are naturally concerned about the safety of their children around horses.
Please be assured that the safety of your child is my highest priority. That is why my therapy horses are hand-picked for their temperament and abilities. Some horses prove to be valuable teachers from the other side of a fence, but I wouldn’t put them in the same yard as the child because that is not where their strengths lie. Only horses that I believe to be suitable hands-on horses are allowed in the same space as the child.
Challenging the idea of safety…
Never go behind the horse! I think this is a saying that all of us has heard at some stage in our life; however, I will not be saying that to your child. Confused? Didn’t I just say that safety was my highest priority?
Yes, it is. That is why I would never put a horse that was a known kicker in with your child. Only horses that have a perfectly clean record of horse-human interaction are permitted with your child.
Horses don’t kick without reason, and that reason is usually fear. So I only use horses in a hands-on capacity that I know are calm, confident horses. I would never ask a child to do something that I felt uncertain about. And I watch the children and the horses at all times for signs that things might be going to change. Horses will almost always give warnings that they are feeling unsettled and that’s what I’m monitoring.
Safety is emotionally defined. What I consider safe might not be what you consider safe. But why is that? Perhaps it’s because you were brought up to fear horses; because you do not have a lot of experiences with horses; or because you’re feeling anxious. The reality is that if a horse is going to kick a person, he can do so no matter where the person is standing! Horses are quite adept at kicking out to the side, for example, and yet people rarely say, ‘Don’t stand beside the horse!’ I don’t say this to unnerve you, but rather to illustrate that the idea of safety is one that we take on, and not necessarily a reality.
So what of anything in life is really “safe”?
Horses are wonderful mirrors to our lives and reflect back to us what we need to see. In EFL, we teach children to monitor what is going on within themselves that might be bringing about a reaction in the horse. The saying “Never go behind a horse!” could rightfully be replaced with “It’s not about the horse!”
The real statement to believe in is: “What is going on with me while I am interacting with a horse?”
All of life has risks, and it’s how we learn to monitor and challenge those risks, and learn to assess what is “safe” and what is “not safe” that can provide our most valuable learning, which is where the horses are the greatest teachers.
How it plays out in an EFL session…
Having said all of that, there are certainly times when I might intervene in what a child is doing if I feel it is best for their safety. Remember, safety of the child is my highest priority.
Example:
Katelyn is running around the horse and swinging off his tail. I notice that the horse is pinning back his ears and turning around, shaking his head at her.
Me: “Hey Katelyn, can you come over here for a moment?”
This strategy has two benefits. The child removes herself from the situation and it gives us a chance to reflect of what was going on with the horse and Katelyn’s behaviour that might have led to an “unsafe” situation.
Me: “I noticed that when you were swinging on that horse’s tail that he flattened his ears and turned around to face you. Why do you think that might be?”
Katelyn: “He didn’t want me pulling his tail.”
Me: “Oh. Would you like to have another go at the activity without pulling on his tail?”
Katelyn: “Okay.”
