182. How much does a riders personality affect a horses personality???

Yesterday, i was picking out Spices hooves when all of a sudden she spooked at something in the distance, and managed to stamp right on my foot. Boy did it hurt, it was on the top of my foot so i had little protection and now have a rather swollen right foot :(

Anyway, after five minutes of feeling sorry for myself and putting it in cold water the pain eased off and i decided to do what i set out to do with her - some schooling.

I love schooling Spice because she makes it so easy. I never have to ask twice, push her or reprimand her which makes the whole experience very enjoyable.

Not riding her in the school for a while and her being so good made me think about two things...How much affect does the rider really have on the horses overall temperament?

I think most horses have an ingrained personality just like humans and other animals and that each interaction they have with each other brings out slightly different dimensions of their personality. But deep down i believe they still have the same personality.

People often seem to think they would not encounter the same problems if they rode a horse that spooked because they are a 'better rider'. But i have watched the most confident of riders lose their temper, and have their heart beats raised when hacking Spice out because they encounter exactly the same behaviour as i do and worse so i know for a fact it's not all down to the rider.

I think it's definitely true to say that a nervous rider can exasperate a problem and a calm rider can dissipate a problem but i believe that problem will always manifest itself one way or another.

Some horses are naturally confident, some are not, some horses are naturally forward going, some are not. Of course a horse that isn't forward going can be encouraged to be more forward going with a crop or spurs just as a horse that isn't confident can be encouraged to go past a scary object but the truth is some wont ever need that crop or those spurs.

So i guess what i am saying is...a more confident horse does not necessarily mean a more confident rider and vice versa and that Spice would naturally excel at dressage not because of me or anyone else but because she has many of the natural traits needed for it.