The lessons learned from Finnegan weren’t about horses it was about me.

Anyone who has ridden an anxious horse will tell you “its like sitting on a time bomb waiting for it to go off”

I wonder how many of you can relate to this story and all my problems.

I got back into horse riding after having many years off, and my enthusiasm wasn’t going to be dampened by my reality.  I knew I desperately wanted a horse and the one I could afford at the time was a green-off-the-track racehorse with a number of issues.  As we all know, for a green rider, is exactly the type of horse you shouldn’t have.  He didn’t load onto a horse float, he bucked almost every time you asked for a canter, he was anxious about everything, and I simply couldn’t keep weight on him.

So I am sure you wouldn’t be surprised when I told you I came off this horse multiple times. I experienced a number of broken bones, concussions and damaged discs in my neck. It is hard to remember the number of hospital visits and injuries sustained with this new found love of mine.  He was just like a ticking time bomb just waiting for the explosion.

Lessons That Everyone Wanted to Impart

Everyone had advice; all I needed was a different saddle, it was the saddle that needed to be fitted correctly, it’s definitely the bridle causing the problem.  When that didn’t work it was; his teeth needed to be done, you obviously just need to lunge him more, tire him out, he needs a chiropractor he is definitely sore.  Then it was; his feed is making him anxious, he has ulcers you need the vet.  I listened to all of them and tried all of them, each with their own expenses.  Now the bills are adding up, and I still don’t have a horse that I can do much with.

Maybe I just needed to spend more and buy a new horse because obviously all of these problems were because my horse just wasn’t right.

The Dream Horse Finnegan

So I bought a bigger better horse, Finnegan.  I was so sure that this was the answer because it was love at first sight. I just had to have this horse. He also loaded on the horse float and could be ridden out in public.  I thought I bought the dream.

That was until I had one of the worst falls of my life.  I broke my pelvis, had severe concussion, a dislocated shoulder, and was in the hospital and unable to walk for weeks.

So now my confidence and self-belief is at an all-time low.  Do I sell him too? I tried but just couldn’t part with him.

Incredible Horseman

It was at this time I met an incredible horseman who said to me, I am not taking on any more horses to retrain them.  He was meeting horses with human problems.  Not people with problem horses.  So unless people came with their horses to work on the whole issue he wasn’t going to do it.  Which is how I started working on me and my horses.

I needed to solve my own issues. It wasn’t just a horse problem it was also a people problem.

Lessons Learned from Finnegan

So now my experiences are very different and I see things differently. My horses allow me an opportunity for self-development every time I am with them.  I am always trying to find new ways to give my horses a stable state of mind and a willingness to learn as there is always something new to explore.  Every time I am with my horses I am practicing so many things. Am I present and aware of how I am feeling right now?  What is my horse telling me about how I am feeling?  When you listen they will tell you.

Finnegan would hold his head on my chest until I started breathing.  It took me so long to understand what was happening.  My routine was to rush down to the stables after work.  If I got home quick enough I could fit a ride in before dark.  So I would grab my horse, quickly saddle him and rush into the arena all the time racing before it got dark.  Then one day he started putting his head on my chest whilst I was trying to saddle him.  I would pat and then quickly rush to get the rest done and he would get more persistent.  Until I stopped and smiled and really noticed him and patted.  What I started to realise was that the act of patting him and noticing him made me think about him and not the task at hand. So I would breathe and my energy levels dropped.  He was a genius. He figured out if he could get me to stop and relax before I rode, I was happier and so was he.  Because I was in a different state of mind, I would be more patient and enjoyed my ride. It wasn’t just another thing to fit into my busy day.  The epiphany came, when reflecting on my behaviours in an executive coaching session. I became aware of what was actually happening.

So I started being aware of how I was feeling when saddling him up.  Every time, if I was rushing and anxious, he would put his head on my chest until I relaxed.  It was a habit.  As soon as I relaxed he would let me get on with what I was doing.  Once I figured out his queue for me our relationship shifted.  I started being more aware of the smaller things he was telling me.  This is how it started.  Finnegan became my teacher and wow what an incredible teacher he was.  So many life changing lessons learned from Finnegan but the biggest one is horses can teach.