A True
Story..Fool's
Gold
When we talk
about the
brave horse,
we're
talking
about
courage.
And courage
is mental,
physical and
emotional
strength.
It is the
ability to
withstand
danger, fear
or
difficulty.
As an animal
of prey,
that is not
necessarily
a natural
trait of the
horse; it is
something we
must
develope.
Several
years back,
I was
brought a
palomino
horse to
work and I
must say
that this
horse's
demeanor was
one of
fear. I
believe this
horse had
been abused,
and I knew I
would have
to start
from the
very
beginning to
gain the
trust of
this
traumatized
Horse. This
horse's
instinct was
always the
instinct of
flight, and
he had a
fear of
humans so
strong that
when I
approached
him he would
shake.
I made up my
mind I was
going to
help this
horse.
A year
later, I
felt I had a
great
rapoprt and
understanding
with this
yellow horse
that I came
to call
Gold. He
had come a
long way and
was a
completely
different
horse, but
still had to
be handled
corretly. I
had a friend
named Pat
working with
me at
the time.
Pat was a
veteran and,
I think, had
empathy for
this horse
because of
his
experiences
in Vietnam.
Pat enjoyed
riding
Gold.
One
afternoon I
was visiting
with my
friend Ty
Murray when
Pat said he
was going to
work Gold.
It was a
cool morning
and I
suggested
that he be
sure to warm
up Gold to
maintain the
confidence
and trust
that we had
been
developing.
Pat
nonchalantly
said, "Oh,
heck, he'll
be allright."
Then Pat
saddled and
bridled
Gold, and
rode past Ty
and me,
headed down
the hill
behind my
barn. Not
10 seconds
later, here
came a
yellow horse
headed back
to the barn
with no
bridle, no
saddle and
no rider. I
looked at Ty
and said,
"What horse
is that?"
There was no
way that
could be
Gold because
Pat had just
ridden out
seconds
before,
complete
with bridle
and saddle.
As I looked
up, here cam
Pat afoot,
carrying his
saddle and
bridle. We
asked what
the heck
happened.
Pat said,
"Gold
swallowed
his head,
bucked, and
sent me, the
saddle and
bridle over
his head and
onto the
ground.
Pretty
impressive,
huh?"
Ty's quick
response
was, "The
only way I
would have
been more
impressed is
if you had
come back up
the hill
that quick
with no
saddle, no
bridle, and
you still on
the horse."
The moral of
the story is
no matter
how good or
how brave
you think a
horse is,
you can
never go
wrong-- and
probably
always have
a better
ride--when
you warm up
your
horse.
Remember:
Correction
is good, but
encouragement
is better.
Excerpt
taken from
Craig
Cameron's
Ride Smarter
book, Pg 134
. Published
by Western
Horseman
with Susan
Morrison.
Ask
the
Judge: 
