BuzzTreats

I was always taught that giving horses treats is usually a recipe for bad manners. Then we got a bunch of Grandkids. Then we got Buzz.

Buzz loves treats. His former owner Kathy somehow made me feel just a wee bit guilty when I would answer her query of “Do the Grandkids like feeding Buzz treats?” with “Well actually we just don’t feed Buzz or any of the horses treats.” And, of course, the Grandkids found out that horses liked treats – not from me but none-the-less I now had Buzz, the Grandkids and Kathy making me feel guilty.

I’m not even sure how the treats got here. I think it may have been from booths at the Mane Event. Sample bags I think they call them. Of course, the sample bags just got everyone excited about this fun-for-everyone venture. The kids were really interested in how horses can pick up things out of your hand with their lips and how excited they were to see them now. Soon we were buying whole containers of the goodies. But I wasn’t quite aware that one grandson was delivering multiple treats each evening. He is 8 and he really likes them. Soon the horses were coming on the dead run as soon as they saw humans as we had now gone from never, ever seeing a treat to multiple treats per visit.

We had to stop the treats. But… some particularly nice ones with whole grains and molasses that all the horses particularly loved were left sitting in their little container in the barn. They have been keeping well. It is cold in there. So I thought it would be a good idea to spread a little cheer with it being Christmas and all and so I took the container, snapped into my skies and headed out to the winter pasture.

Keeper, my saddle horse came to greet me and got the first one. Then her best friend Dreamweaver and then Todd’s yearling Carl. I tried to feed one to Manana but she is a broodmare and above accepting those kinds of handouts. Only real food for her. Then Buzz noticed. He lifted his head in the air, his ears pricked forward and he marched right over. And took his treat. Then Keeper was nuzzling me and Carl had my sleeve and Buzz was looking for more and things were going south very quickly. I was feeling a little pressured when I remembered I had 2 ski poles that looked a lot like the sticks I have been using lately in my groundwork.

When they have been taught a cue to move any body part at your request and you can duplicate that cue, it changes a lot of things and mostly in your favor. Even in deep snow with treats on her mind, Keeper quickly gave me some space. I got myself out of there and I made myself a little challenge. I am only going to feed them treats when they will stand in their designated space and wait for me to deliver it and stay there afterward.

So… I’m looking for anyone else’s experience here. I will start with the 4 saddle horses. I would suppose it would be best to work with each one individually first? Then two at a time? Then 3 and 4? I probably won’t get far on this before summer as the snow is too deep to do much right now. Got any hints or ideas for me to try? I wish I had an arena so I could get started sooner. I am really quite excited to see how this goes. I think I know who will be “easy” and who will be “hard”.

I can still hear my mother’s voice saying “Don’t ever give them treats – it just makes them start demanding them.” She may have been onto something.