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In traditional lesson and boarding barn environments where there is often a lot going on, the focus typically stays on the horse and rider’s physical performance. Because of this, it is easy to miss the very subtle changes in a horse’s body language and facial expressions that can tell us a lot of valuable information.

Learning to see these small shifts is a skill that takes time to develop, but it is often the key to helping horses who seem stuck or lack confidence. Today we had a clear example of this we caught on video.

We are working with a sweet young mare who shows in the hunters. While she may be physically capable of jumping a full course, she loses her confidence when she is unsure of the correct answer to almost any new question. Her go-to is to quit trying or make up something different.

By breaking things down into very simple tasks, such as stepping over a six-inch rail as you see here, we can help her navigate her hesitation without the pressure of more complex tasks.

Her history with flower boxes is a perfect example of how these associations form. Initially, she appeared to be worried about the flowers themselves, but after we got to know her, we could see that her anxiety was actually linked to the worry of the entire process of being ridden and jumped. The flowers had simply become one (of several) predictors for that experience.

To change this, we used classical conditioning to help her find a sense of security and safety through touching the objects that once worried her.

During an exercise we call "A to B’s" (where she is asked to move between two people), her preference for the familiar became obvious. She would often rather do something she knows, even if she dislikes it, because there is safety in the predictable.

By reinforcing her curiosity and asking her to touch objects all around the farm, she eventually learned to offer that behavior boldly. Seeing her choose to interact with the flowers instead of stepping over the rail is her way of communicating that she feels more confidence and success in that familiar game.

We can distinguish her movement toward the flowers as avoidance rather than a random choice by looking at the timing and the tension in her body. A random decision often looks relaxed or inquisitive, but avoidance usually happens right at the moment the pressure of the request is felt. You might see a slight tightening in her muzzle, a fixed stare, or a subtle bracing of her neck before she ducks away.

These micro-expressions tell us that she is feeling internal conflict about the task at hand. By choosing the flowers, she is not just wandering off; she is actively selecting a known, safe behavior to displace the anxiety she feels about the uncertain one. It’s so subtle it simply looks like walking away.

This is why working with horses at liberty is so valuable, as it allows for an unobstructed view of their expressions and overall emotional state. It ensures that horses are always given the right amount of encouragement to try something new while being set up for a successful outcome.

You can see with a little encouragement, she was willing to step over the rail and her confidence through the rest of the session grew. The amazing part is how these simple games are paying off in her under-saddle work. When we make the steps small and digestible, horses learn to develop massive trust in their owners/riders.