Meet Cinco, the 17-2, 1500-lb. 8-year-old Holsteiner who was bred and born for jumping. Cinco is perfect in every way for this career… except that he just can’t handle it.
He either doesn’t want to move forward or freaks out—bucking, rearing, spinning, and generally putting himself and his rider in danger.
Cinco has been in his current home with Sally, a veteran jumper trainer and competitor, for three years. Of all the horses she has trained, owned or jumped in her career, he has the most potential. And, fortunately for Cinco, of all the owners, trainers, and riders he has had in his life, she is by far the most understanding and compassionate.
Coming from that place, she called me to talk to Cinco and see if I could get any further insights into his behavior and disposition. Every time she’s gotten him to the point of showing and competing, he has regressed—horribly. It’s as if it’s just too much for him and he simply can’t face it.
By nature Cinco is macho and self-assured, with an extremely strong presence. It is therefore tempting to think he is resorting to temper tantrums when he misbehaves. I always try to shoo away any such preconceptions, however, when I’m getting ready to talk to an animal who is behaving poorly because when I really tune into and start listening to them, there is always something unexpected or unknown in the mix. Not surprisingly, such was the case with Cinco.
Having been a large, raucous, and mischievous colt (synonymous with “dangerous,” in the horse world), Cinco’s mismanagement began early on, as soon as his training was started. Young horses remain mentally, emotionally, and physically immature much longer than most people realize (some until six or seven), which is why, for instance, the Spanish Riding School doesn’t even begin training their Lippizaner stallions until they are three years of age, and their serious training begins at around five.
Unfortunately, most well-bred and talented equine youngsters are pushed into performing way beyond their capabilities by the age of two. Some do okay with this emotionally; others do not. And many break down physically, due to the early stress on their joints, years before they should.
Rough handling by a series of trainers (who were no doubt afraid of Cinco because he was so big and rambunctious) combined with the physical trauma of too much work and at least one bad accident resulted in a very dangerous horse who would do just about anything he could to get a rider off his back.
Enter Sally, and finally the picture is changing.
It turns out that Cinco’s personality type (according to Dr. Madalyn Ward’s horse typing system based on ancient traditional Chinese medicine) is a fierce combination of fire and wood. He is what is known as a “Shao Yang.” To quote Dr. Ward:
“Shao Yang horses are the supreme competitors. They are agile, coordinated and athletic, but can take aggressiveness to an extreme.”
Sounds good for the career for which Cinco was bred. Sounds bad for working with a Shao Yang who is angry and frustrated.
Normally, the Shao Yang individual, whether equine, human, or other species, is all about going, going, going… action, action, action. In Cinco’s case, because most of his physical action was unsuccessful or unacceptable, what he showed me was that all of the “busy” energy has gotten locked up in his brain, causing it to go haywire when he becomes anxious or frustrated. He can’t control it. All the old memories flood in along with all their associated emotions and reactions. He becomes completely preoccupied with what’s going on in his head and can’t even begin to breathe or focus on what is being asked of him. All resulting in an explosion, which is not surprising.
There are a number of things Sally put immediately into practice once she understood what was going on in Cinco’s brain: flower essences (vibrational remedies that address the psyche and emotions), a type of non-invasive body work called Ortho-Bionomy (that “reminds” the body of what’s normal in order to stay stress and pain free), and some adjustments to Cinco’s training program that take into account and help avert his brain-syndrome freakout.
But, interestingly, Cinco began changing right away, even before these measures could be fully implemented, and Sally believes it’s because he felt he had finally been “heard” vis-à-vis the animal communication session. There were several moments during the communication where I could feel Cinco take a deep sigh of relief after getting some critical point across to me. So I think there is validity in Sally’s take on this, and I have seen “being heard” effect other animals similarly. They appreciate being understood and like being listened to as much as we humans do.
Just a few days after the communication session, Cinco is making wonderful strides, and Sally is dedicated to taking the time needed to help him work through his old patterns. I won’t show you the video I was sent when asked to talk to him, because it is painful to watch him as he loses all self control and practically throws himself and Sally down a steep incline off the side of the arena. But, holding that in mind, if you watch this one it is hard to believe it’s the same horse. There is still some stiffness in his body, but he is so relaxed mentally and emotionally that the video is practically boring. We may see a Grand Prix champion here yet. Cinco is only eight. He has years ahead of him before he even reaches his prime. Go Cinco! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTNUzHeT_ec&feature=youtu.be
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