Case Studies
Successfully completed projects
Below are some video clips and photos of me working with various horses. To run the clips, simply click on the picture. Be aware that some clips may take a few minutes to load depending on your internet speed.
CARA
Cara had not been ridden for a few years, and had more or less been kept as a
pet. Although she was very sweet natured and loving, she had been taught very
little and basically had no idea how she should behave around humans.
Originally just leading her from the stable to the field was a chore as she barged
through the door, pranced from one side to the other, leapt on top of the handler if she saw anything that scared her
(which was just about everything to begin with!), and tried to rush off into the field almost before you unclipped the leadrope.
The first video clip shows Cara before and after I worked on her groundwork, and the second shows her being asked to walk over a sheet of
tarpaulin, and to negotiate some 'L' shaped poles.
TEAK
I was asked to work with Teak to help with a long standing loading problem. I did some groundwork with her first, and then asked her to load onto a trailer with the partitions removed. The actual loading session lasted twenty minutes, and by the end of the session Teak was walking in and out of the trailer with no pressure on the line. The video below shows clips from the beginning, middle and end of this session.
JOIN-UP
Join-Up is term coined by Monty Roberts to describe a specific procedure. It is a way of communicating with your horse in his
own language and encouraging a bond of trust and respect.
The process of Join-Up is explained in depth in Monty’s book ‘From My Hands To Yours’ (see ‘Products’ page.)
The following video clip shows part of a Join-Up that I did with a mare called Pringle.
NO SAY
I worked with No Say to overcome a serious clipping phobia that he had had
for most of his life.
No Say is a retired racehorse who was bought by Amie in 1997. When she bought
him she was told that the only way to clip him would be to tie him down, locked
in a stable, sedated, twitched and blindfolded.
Uncomfortable with this, on No Say’s first winter with Amie she tried giving him
some ACP prior to clipping him, but when he was approached with the clippers he
leapt into a wall cutting himself. The following year No Say was sedated by the
vet. This time they managed to clip his chest and shoulders before he leapt and
bolted through the door. The third winter they spoke to No Say’s previous owners
and reluctantly decided to follow their advise. No Say was sedated and
blindfolded. Despite the very high level of sedation, No Say shook, made a
growling sound, reared and struck out. The fourth year involved a similar
process with the vet remaining in attendance. Halfway through the clip No Say
tried to jump the stable door, hitting his head and hurting his legs. On the
fifth year No Say was given such a large dose of sedation that he could barely
stand up – despite this he still managed to both strike out and rear up.
It was at this point that I suggested to Amie that I might be able to help her
and No Say to overcome their problems. Amie agreed - although she was extremely
sceptical - and my work with them both began.
One of the biggest problems I faced with No Say was that all the various things
people had tried over the years had given him (on top of the fear of the
clippers) a huge fear of being restrained, so that at the beginning, ANY
pressure he felt while the clippers were running sent his adrenalin sky high,
and nothing would settle him down to a point of learning.
Curing No Say’s clipping phobia involved walking a tightrope between extending
his comfort zone (about 40 feet away from the clippers to begin with) and
tipping him over the edge to the point that his adrenalin levels shot up.
I had to keep changing tack, and Plan A was quickly discarded in favour of Plan
B, Plan C etc. as I tried to find a way that No Say could face his fear with an
adrenalin level low enough to learn.
I used food for No Say as an added reward which was a good indicator of how
frightened or relaxed he was. In the early days he wouldn’t even take food while
the clippers were switched on, but as our work progressed, he would eventually
chew a carrot even while I had the clippers running on him.
It took about 5 months of once daily sessions to get No Say and Amie to the
point where she could happily lead him into the clipping area and take some hair
off him without either of them experiencing any fear.
WHAT THE OWNER SAYS:
“I was very sceptical at the start of the process, I even said I would eat my
hat if No Say became clippable! Bonita took things at No Say’s pace and adjusted
her techniques to take into account his fear. She was able to anticipate his
behaviour at each stage and developed an amazing relationship with him.
She realised that as part of No Say overcoming his fear she would need to
address my now developed fear. She gave me clear guidance explaining things step
by step and giving me achievable goals to work to. When we took a few steps
backwards Bonita was supportive and reassuring. No Say and I have gained
confidence, I have new skills and cannot thank Bonita enough. The ultimate
achievement was not just this year’s clip but the fact that I am enjoying our
weekly practice with the clippers in preparation for next year’s full clip. I am
the proudest owner of No Say the patchwork horse.!
In my opinion Bonita has an outstanding ability to help owners understand and
overcome hurdles like clipping with their horses and I owe her a great deal.”