The Wildest Mustang: Belle Parker

 

The Wildest Mustang: Belle Parker

by Maria Loper on September 04, 2021

Belle Parker was introduced to me as 'the Forest Service’s wildest mustang'.  Before I got to Mustang Camp, I remember Patricia explaining how this mustang was the most panicked to even look toward them at the holding facility. When I arrived, my first contact with Belle Parker was behind the protection of a fence and pretty quickly she was willing to gently take food from my hand.  The next few days passed with training sessions going great, she was gentle and willing and with each session I grew more calm and confident and started working with her inside the pen.  Being new to training horses, I still fumbled and made beginners mistakes but despite the errors and clumsy movements on my part, we were progressing and she didn’t seem so wild.

In Task 3, we ask the animal to be able to accept the trainer on the right and left side, eventually wanting the animal to remain in the 'easy' position while we are all the way back near the shoulder.  Belle Parker's preferred side was to keep me directly in front of her, she was semi-ok about me being on her right side, but she did not want me on her left side, it was during this transition where we first saw Belle Parker get angry.  Probably her anger came from fear and while I don't think I ever felt angry with Belle Parker, I spent the next month and a half also fearful.

I think a lot about my own fear and how it limits my ability to be an effective trainer.  Many teachers have told me, "stop being afraid, the animal is looking to you, if you are afraid the animal is sensing your fear and thinks that there is something to be afraid of, it never occurs to them that they are what you are afraid of."  It makes sense.  But in the moment, when the animal's energy comes up, logic does not matter and the body seems to take over. Instead of 'not being afraid', I have developed some other strategies to help: have a plan, sing a little song, deep breaths, excessive protective equipment, and spending time to develop a relationship.

I spent 2 months with Belle Parker and the last 2 weeks were different.  Beyond her normal training, I started going out and grooming her in the middle of the day in the shade while she ate an extra bucket of hay.  At first, like most sessions, it was about the food, but it wasn't long until she started to enjoy my touch.  She would lean in to a nice butt rub or close her eyes as I scratched her neck.  I think for both of us, this low stress interaction was helping us build trust.  This calmer relationship carried over to our other training sessions and Task 25 (lifting and cleaning feet), which I had been dreading for a month, was something we were able to get through together and it was actually not that scary. 

Belle Parker taught me a lot about training, but something that is not explicitly in the 26 gentling steps, especially when working with a human or animal that is fearful, is to find the time to have low stress interactions that will help strengthen your relationship.