Sometimes things are just so simple, we don’t even think of them.
My husband went to buy a new chain saw blade for his chain saw today. The salesman asked him if he’d like him to dispose of the old one. My husband said, no, I’ll keep that for when I cut a tree near the ground so the dirt won’t damage my new one. The man stood there, looked at my husband, and said wow!, I never thought of that. Dirt, rocks, gravel, really dull a blade fast, no matter what you are using to cut with.
So it is in the horse world too. Most of the time it’s just plain old “horse sense”, but we fail to even think about things.
I love when I have a new student or boarder, they may bring to mind things that I just do normally, without thought.
We brought my boarders horse and one of mine into the barn to ride the other day, and put them on the cross ties. Mine was on the cross tie in the center of the barn, hers was by the back doors. I faced mine toward hers, and she faced hers toward mine. Okay this made her horse more comfortable because he could see his pasture mate, BUT was it really safe. I simply mentioned that when your horse is near a door, it’s always a good idea to let him face the outside, this way he can see what might go by that would frighten him. I told her that you never know when my husband is going to come by with a tractor, or even just the golf cart. The unknown flash of movement, and sound, going past the barn just could be a horse eating dragon, or it might not, but with him facing the door he’ll be able to see and hear it clearly, and make that judgement with more information. She told me that it was a good idea.
When we went to turn both the horses loose, back into the pasture on another day, she asked about the best way to hang up the electric wire that goes across the gate. I said, “Oh just hang it anywhere so they won’t get caught in it.” Her reply was, “well I just want to do it safely so I don’t get shocked, I got shocked all the time at the other barn”. I explained that the wire over the gate wasn’t live until it was connected to the side where the electric is coming from. You just have to run the wire from the dead side to the live side to let the electric flow to the rest of the fence line. All our gates are like that. She said she was an Art Major and didn’t get what I was trying to say. So I explained again. The wire in your hand is not electrified until you connect it to the live wire. Any of the fence past the disconnected wire in your hand isn’t electrified either, until you connect that wire in your hand. The light bulb went off! “Why didn’t my other barn owner know to do that?” We were both amazed for different reasons. All she has to do is reverse the wire that goes across the gate. No big deal. People want to disconnect the wire and open the gate at the same side. But what really determines where the wire opens, is where the electric is coming from. It may be easier to have the gate latch and the electric handle in the same place, but I’ve been fried enough times to know that it really hurts. We’re talking about a person who reached through a fence every day to turn on the water, and every day got nailed. I just truly believed that I could do it today without getting shocked. Never happened. The one I have now doesn’t just curl your eye lashes, it’ll put you on the ground. Ask my husband how he knows this.
There are just so many things, both in life and horses, that people just don’t think about. How many times have I watched people try to open a gate up hill. They push, they lift, they struggle. I just calmly stand there, watch and say, “Open it the other way” and it swings in with no problem. Ideally you want a gate to open both ways so that you can get one horse out, or in, without letting them all through. Unless you are on a hill, then you only have one option. But if you see that the ground rises, doesn’t it make you think? Even a little? If you are trying to lead one horse through the gate you want it to open toward you, so you can swing it shut behind your horse before the others get out. If you try to open it out, chances are that the other horses are going to want to push through also. Unless you have horses with manners that won’t do that. Chances are if the one and only friend they have in their life is leaving, so are they.
I’ve covered many simple ideas in my previous posts, but they don’t always come to mind unless someone reminds me, the hard way.
It’s not rocket science, just plain old horse sense.
