Bicycles?

Last night while my brother was riding his bike in the pasture I found out that Bebe was terrified of a bike. It is amazing how strong a horses sense of self preservation is! I felt so bad for him! So I decided if I could get my hands on him I would put the halter (and much needed) 22 foot line on and help him face his fears. First I did some sideways to get him thinking while my brother slowly rode around us, then when he was calm enough I did the squeeze game with him. He would eventually walk past it without looking frightened. Then I had my brother ride around with Bebe and I right at his tail, it had Bebe feeling a little more confident about the whole situation. Then I had my brother hold the lead rope and lead him around on the bike, by the end of the session he could confidently walk and stand by the bike. This morning he was not as near as frightened of the bike, I had my brother go around in a circle while Bebe followed in with the circling game. Then we did squeeze game and then we played with approach and retreat and got the bike up on his back! We ended the session with him calmly standing by me, and chewing on the tires and handle bars. He also found it very handy as a scratching post! Doing things like this for a horse is one of my favorites, hopefully his trust in me will be better after this. I also played a little at liberty with Sundance, he was very energetic and dominant today, nonetheless he did very well!

xoxo