06/01/2026
Horses don’t struggle with the mounting block
We, struggle to see that their tension starts before they even enter the arena
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I hear equestrians complain about their horse not wanting to stand at the block
Saying that the horse is stupid, stubborn and that they shouldn’t be defiant because all we’re doing is getting on
I watch multiple people holding a horse and planning to prepare for rocket ship take off just so the rider can get on
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And this isn’t just a lower level problem
It’s something that you see most frequently in performance horses at the higher levels — usually paired with red ribbons in their forelocks and tails [because an over-faced nervous system will always have multiple symptoms and signs]
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But what isn’t being seen is that the resistance and defiance toward the mounting block starts before the horse even leaves the cross ties
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They aren’t seeing that the horse begins to hold its breath as it crosses the arena threshold
They aren’t seeing that the horse begins becoming fixated on what is going on outside the barn as the last buckle on the bridle is done up
They aren’t seeing that the mounting block holds such more significance than we give it
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And because of that, we label horses with mounting issues while simultaneously giving them more and more reason to hold these tension patterns and habits as we climb aboard despite their defiance
We label them dangerous as they increase their self protective habits to communicate that they’re overwhelmed and uncomfortable with what comes next
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But the real problem is not the mounting block
The real problem is a lack of awareness
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When we can’t see tension patterns, we label communication as defensiveness, resistance, lack of respect, defiance or “just how they are”
When we can be aware of where tension begins to build, we can stop the defiance in its tracks
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This isn’t mythical, it’s neuroscience
As tension builds, signals and chemicals flood the body
[Most of these being cortisol, adrenaline and sympathetic activation]
As we carry forth with our desire and need to mount our horses while they are in this state — and not all horses need to be jumping out of their skin to be defiant. Horses can also be complacent within their defiance — we send signals to the brain that mounting is unsafe and that the body needs to maintain or strengthen its self protective mechanisms
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With repetition these become patterns and processes strengthen — nerves that wire together fire together
But the beautiful thing about the brain and the body is that we have the ability to change these responses by interrupting the loop of signals and chemicals
When we pause at the first signal of tension and allow a horse space to come down from that, we stop the signal loop from closing and strengthening (remember nerves that fire together wire together so if we want to interrupt a pattern we must stop the psychological and physiological process from finishing and we do that by interrupting the pattern, which is “the pause”)
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When we do this repeatedly and at each sign of tension, we wire NEW neural circuits and remove the self protective association to the mounting block
Most horses don’t have a mounting problem, they have a tension problem that begins long before the mounting block
(Images taken from Pinterest)
