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A Resilience-Friendly Lifestyle Kathie Gregory discusses the importance of putting a resilience program in place to ensure horses have access to a range of activities that cater to their individual physical, psychological and social needs
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or many of us, the term ‘resilience program' implies that there is a set timescale and an endpoint when, in reality, what we really want to implement is a ‘resiliencefriendly lifestyle.’ After all, the mind is not the same all the time. It develops through life and is subject to experiences that change perceptions. How resilient we are can also change depending on our age, experiences and perception. Promoting resilience, then, cannot be simply a case of completing a program. Establishing a strong bond with your horse can go a long way to wards teaching him resilience, or the aspects of it that can actually be taught, at least. None of us know everything or are good at navigating all aspects of life, nor have we experienced all the possibilities. But if we have some emotional resilience, we are better able to cope with the things life throws at us.
Stress Whatever the species, some individuals are naturally more resilient than others. But however much natural resilience we have, we can all find that it reduces over time if we are in ongoing stressful situations. Mak ing sure our lives are set up to minimize the impact of stressful situa tions and events helps us to deal with them more efficiently, and remain able to cope during longer term difficulties. As I mentioned in my previous article, Understanding Emotional Re silience (see BARKS from the Guild, November 2020, pp.52‐54), the three elements of emotional resilience are physical, psychological, and social. Each of us will find it easier to naturally look after one element over the other two; one element will be in the middle, and the other will be least considered. For humans, this is often a choice – albeit not necessarily a con scious one. However, many of us are in the position where we can do the things we feel we need to in order to stay healthy. For example, if you are the type of person who enjoys activity, you are more likely to make exercise part of your regular routine. But you may not pay as much attention to the psychological and social elements. Sometimes our circumstances dictate which of the three elements we are able to utilize and which one is pertinent at present, as in the ongoing restric tions necessary to keep us safe during the pandemic.
© Can Stock Photo / Antonio_Diaz
Just like humans, horses need social interactions and it is important for them to interact with humans as well as other horses
While many of us are now living under restrictive circumstances due to the pandemic, some, or even many, horses experience such restric tions for most of their lives. Some will have one element provided for over the others, with the others being far less accessible — or perhaps not being addressed at all. And some, unfortunately, may not have any of the elements of emotional resilience catered to at all. Now, while we may be unable to change the place where our horse is kept, it doesn’t mean we are helpless to improve his situation. Indeed, caring for our horses by doing everything we can to promote the three elements of re silience will make an enormous difference to their quality of life.
Physical Activity Natural Preference Let’s now consider our horses. They, too, will have a natural preference. Knowing what that is tells us which of the three elements they find most important and will, thus, take the time to engage in for their own selfcare. At the same time, we need to be sure we understand what we are seeing. For example, does a horse engage in one of the elements be cause he has a preference for it, or because of a lack of it? It is impor tant to know the difference because what we do about it needs to be based on the individual animal. To break it down, then, a horse that en gages in one element due to personal preference means that, as long as he has access to that element, we don’t need to do much more. On the other hand, a horse that engages through a lack of exposure means we need to find a way to make this element a part of his life.
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BARKS from the Guild/January 2021
Let’s start by looking at the physical element of emotional resilience. Ideally, we need to provide an environment which allows our horses to move about and exercise freely. How much this is possible depends on the individual situation, of course. Some horses will have huge environ ments while others will only have limited access to small areas. So we need to compensate for this and provide specific exercise opportunities. We also need to be aware that just because a horse has the ability to ex ercise, it does not mean he will. Just like us, horses have preferences but can lack motivation. Think of how many times you have decided to get fit and enthusiastically taken up some form of exercise only to lose the motivation for it a few weeks later. This is often compounded when we are in a limited environment. Due to the current situation with COVID19, many of us have found
