Owning a horse is an enriching and fulfilling experience. Horses are majestic creatures that have been utilized for transportation, agriculture, and recreation for centuries. However, sometimes, horses can become nervous, anxious, or stressed, making it difficult for owners to handle and interact with them.
The nervousness could be due to different reasons like unexpected situations, sounds, lighting, or even unfamiliar things within their environment. Nevertheless, it’s crucial to calm your horse to maintain a healthy and happy relationship with your equine companion.
Here are some essential tips to calm a nervous horse and ensure a positive and relaxing experience for both you and your horse.
Slow and gentle desensitization
Many horses may become nervous when introduced to new stimuli like objects, sounds, or others around them. To help desensitize and calm a nervous horse, introduce new stimuli slowly and gently.
Gradually increase the intensity and frequency of the stimuli to enable your horse to get used to them, allowing your horse’s nervousness to decrease. Such slow and gentle steps toward desensitization can improve the horse’s overall well-being and cope with new changes within its environment.
Utilize relaxation exercises during training sessions
Relaxation exercises can help calm nervous horses before training or other activities. An essential relaxation exercise is the use of deep breathing techniques. Provide positive reinforcement every time your horse demonstrates good behavior during training sessions.
This behavior could be as simple as standing still or responding to specific cues. Positive reinforcement encourages your horse to repeat the same action and positively strengthens the horse-owner relationship.
Use supplements that focus on calming horses
Supplements formulated explicitly for calming horses help to reduce nervousness and control stress levels. These supplements, including Equine CBD Products, contain ingredients that ease anxiety and provide a relaxing effect on the horse’s body.
Consult your veterinarian to determine the best supplement and dosage for your horse. It is essential to ensure that the chosen supplement is safe, and using the supplement is in line with your horses’ dietary needs.
Create a sensory-rich environment
Create a sensory-rich environment in which your horse can feel safe and secure. Horses prefer living in an environment that feels familiar to them. Ensure that the surroundings are safe and secure and provide visual and auditory stimuli that are relaxing.
Consider using calming scents and music to help reduce nervous behavior.
Be patient and consistent in working with your horse
Horses are sensitive creatures that respond well to patience and consistency. When addressing nervous behavior, patience is vital since horses tend to sense human emotions, such as frustration or impatience.
Be slow and deliberate in how you interact with your horse, using steady and consistent communication techniques to establish trust and calmness. The consistent approach serves to boost the horse’s confidence and reduce nervousness.
Give your horse time away from work to reduce stress levels
Like humans, horses too require adequate rest and relaxation to reduce stress levels. Allow your horse to have some time for rest and relaxation outside of training or other activities.
Time away from work can be instrumental in helping nervous horses calm down and adjust to new environments or stimuli. Ensure that your horse gets sufficient time to graze or rest in paddocks, away from their usual surroundings, to reduce any stress levels.
