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Citaat:

Feed Time Aggression, And Making Excuses

So here is part of a Parelli email that I received. The topic is aggression at feed time, and the Parelli solution. You might find it interesting, or sickening. Whichever....
Feeding time can stir up emotional and dominance-based behaviors in horses. In the herd environment some of the biggest pecking order battles occur over who gets to drink or eat first. Even though your horse may not be kept with other horses, this behavior is still a strong part of his instincts. You may find your horse performing these same behaviors with you.

Here are some of the most common behaviors:

· Ears back
· Charging or kicking at you
· Pacing, head tossing, pawing and other demonstrations of impatience
· Aggressive behavior towards other horses
· Anxiety

AND THEIR SOLUTION...
Don't feed at exactly the same time every day
Allow a two-hour window for feeding (for instance, anywhere between 5PM and 7PM). Horses learn habits very quickly. If you are regimented in your feeding times, you will teach horses to become demanding, impatient and emotional if you are late.

And Now for Real Life...
I would love to write into Parelli and tell them that we feed our horses at the same time everyday and that none of our horses are allowed to be disrespectful towards us. This is exactly why the horse industry is struggling. Making excuses for the horses. "Oh it's showing aggression because I've been feeding him at the same time everyday."

No, it's showing you aggression because it doesn't respect you as a human or the dominant handler- feeding time or any other time. But hey I guess if excuses make you rich, and that's what ignorant people will believe... more power to the Marketer. Just sucks that the horses are done a disservice because of it.

And I suggest folks get out and see "natural horses" unspoiled by the tripe above watch the pecking order as they are fed. There generally isn't any serious fighting, because of the established pecking order.

Ok off my soap box...
Lori,
Start 'em Right Senior Intern

8/1/2011 Added by Mike.
As I fed the training pasture this morning, and the five in training went past me to their respective pens, without threatening me, without fighting within my area of control, I wonder why the Animal Rights (AR) folks don't recognize that they, and the horse owners that are so gullible and willing to fall for the get-rich-clinicians can't accept that horses are horses. Horses are a dominate or be dominated culture. One either recognizes and deals with it naturally, or one can call it "Natural" and set the horse up to be abusive to humans and potentially take the long trailer ride to a slaughter house when the horse is so disrespectful that it becomes dangerous.
If the novice owner and AR folks could see the suffering they perpetuate.... It makes this old horseman's stomach turn to know so many folks with good intentions do such terrible things to one of God's creatures.