A Good Scratch

A 10-minute scratching session with no strings attached will win your horse???s heart.

12/6/2007

I think we can all agree that a good scratch is worth its weight in gold. Notice if your horse tightens his tail and muscles against your touch – can you get him to relax and let you move the dock from side to side? A 10-minute scratching session with no strings attached will win your horse’s heart! Write about the results in your log.

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A Good Scratch

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Reader Comments

Lisa Garrettsville, OH

8/8/2009 6:15:07 AM

Great way to bond with your horse.

lexi Greenville, SC

5/8/2008 5:41:37 PM

Hi,I work with Clinton Anderson but like your technecs too.do we scrtach your horse all over or in one certain spot?

Jane Lancaster, PA

3/6/2008 6:59:24 PM

The results from scratching sessions are great!!i've never really counted time, but does that matter? haha
i'll take my pony out and let him graze and i'll rub him all over, and the results have been great! when i first got him, i couldn't even hardly brush his hindquarters or back legs, or even go anywhere near him, for that matter..i mean, i could, but it took a good bit of time, and a lot of stuggle..but i've been doing Parelli natural horsemanship with him since i got him in August, and the results are amazing!! now, thanks to scratching sessions (or rubbing) and the whole natural horsemanship program, i can stand next to his hind quarters and rub him all over, i can lay my head on his side, lean on him, and all that good stuff! and he doesn't try to move away or kick! he doesn't even pin his ears! so for me and him, that's great progress!!
parelli works wonders!

Mary-Jane Kingston, ON

12/23/2007 7:51:20 AM

I have to tell you that giving my horse a good scratch everyday is not only a great reward for my horse but I love giving her a good scratch as well, I love it when I grab my brushes and my horse Laila gets so excited to see them, then I scratch away! not because I want to make her coat look nice or for any reason at all really except to tell her I love her. My horse actually has a bit of an attitude and the people that work at the barn tell me she is "bratty" but I rarely ever see it, she always runs up to my in the field when I come to get her but runs from others, I can blanket and un-blanket her with no problems at all but she'll try to kick others. I can pick up her feet with no problems but I think she might not like it if someone else gave it a try, Although I don't like that she does those naughty things with others, I'm happy that she respects me I think this is all because of a few simple things, I respect her and her space, and of course giving out a few loving scratches every now and then never hurt either.