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A string of bad luck with a new horse owner last month
Had a client bring in two horses for their first shoeing with me, and it was a mess from the start. The owner insisted on holding them herself, which is fine, but she kept moving around and talking loudly. One horse got spooked and pulled back hard, almost yanking my apron off the stand. I got the job done, but it took nearly four hours for what should have been a two hour job. The whole thing just felt off and tense. Anyone else run into a situation where the owner's nerves made the horse worse?
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tessa_adams32d ago
My old boss used to have me ask the owner to just stand at the horse's shoulder and scratch its neck. That quiet job gives them something to do and usually calms everyone down. It took a few tries to get the wording right without sounding rude, but it cut down on those tense sessions a lot.
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quinn6062d ago
Totally get how that works, seth364 is right about the focus shift. Reminds me of when my cousin brings her hyper kid to family stuff. Someone just hands him a bag of chips to open for everyone, and it's like magic, he's busy and the whole room chills out. It's the same idea, give the worried person a small job that helps. Finding the right way to ask is the real skill though, so they feel useful and not bossed around.
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seth3642d ago
Yeah that's such a smart trick. Giving them a simple, physical task totally shifts their focus from worrying to helping. I've seen it work with nervous dogs at the vet too.
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