A Horse By Nature: Managing Emotional and Mental Stress in Horses for Improved Welfare by Mary Ann Simonds *NEW!*
Softcover, 424 pages
The first complete reference to help equestrians make the changes needed to ensure social license and the ability to ride and compete horses for years to come.
Renowned wild horse ecologist and equine behaviorist Mary Ann Simonds provides a practical soup-to-nuts manual for understanding how horses think, feel, learn, communicate, and interact with each other and with humans. Integrating over 30 years of field research, identifying functional social behaviors in wild horses with her lifelong professional practice working with equestrians solving equine behavioral issues, Simonds helps readers gain a strong foundation into the emotional and cognitive lives of horses and explore various horse-human relationships. She provides numerous tools for assessing personalities, communicating with horses, and understanding how horses learn, with an emphasis on improving care and reducing stress in competitions and sports.
In three parts, each introduced by top researchers and scientists in the equestrian field, readers will:
- LEARN the natural history and social ecology of free-roaming wild horses.
- UNDERSTAND the instincts, learned behaviors, gender differences, social roles, and social bonds that are the driving factors in horse culture.
- DISCOVER how adaptable horses really are, and how that makes them an ideal species to share their social lives with humans.
- FOCUS on horse-human relationships applying the knowledge from Part One to reduce equine stress and improve communication in the management and training of all horses.
- EXPLORE how to better assess the horse’s personality and emotions, understand his learning style, and use various communication channels to establish trust, improve friendship, and enhance performance.
- ADDRESS the ethics of horse sports and ask the questions needed to ensure horse welfare in all the disciplines.
To read a sample chapter click here
See all the brain and body health science books for horse and human here
Includes FREE Riders Prayer Bookmark
