Horse Matching-The Fire Horse (Part 2 of 5)
Tips from Veterinarian and Author Madalyn Ward, DVM
AUSTIN, Texas, October 31, 2007—In the Traditional Chinese Medicine thought pattern, five elements—Water, Fire, Wood, Metal and Earth—describe each mammal’s personality and even impact body function. How do these types apply to horses? Your horse’s personality, health and disposition point to his type. Knowing your horse’s constitutional type can help you choose the proper diet and know how to treat him for optimum training results.
In the last edition, we discussed the Water element and its impact on horse behavior. Here, we’ll continue with the Fire element—how the Fire type affects your horses disposition and performance. Stay tuned for a scenario featuring a Fire horse and tips about how to help your Fire horse when characteristics turn problematic.
About Fire Horses
Fire horses love to be at the center of attention and they want to be adored. They make excellent horses for hunter and dressage events, as well as good pleasure horses. They need to be shown that they are loved. They enjoy grooming and bathing.
At a young age, Fire horses are very inquisitive and spend a lot of time exploring their environment. These foals are sensitive and easy to handle if one is gentle with them. They naturally like people. Fire foals are agile and athletic but not very tough. They can be easily stressed by extremes in weather. Fire horses are ideally suited for the show ring where beauty and a willing attitude are important. They make great show hunters, pleasure and trail horses.
Working with your Fire Horse
The Fire horse thrives on attention and love. The more stimulation and attention he gets, the happier he is. He absolutely hates to be bored. To relax the Fire horse, give him a day of grooming and pampering. He’ll be thrilled with all the admiration and be ready to return to work with a good attitude.
Case in Point:
Cerise is very sweet, gentle, and smart thoroughbred mare. She tries hard to please people. She enjoys being groomed and loves having a bath. Cerise is easy to train because she’s a quick learner. She works very hard until she gets tired. When she doesn’t understand or isn’t able to do what is being asked of her, she feels anxious. She needs regular reassurance that she’s doing well. She dislikes drilling on the same task over and over. She is sensitive to pain and lets her owner know when something (such as a sharp tooth) is bothering her.
Dr. Ward’s Response:
Cerise shows the typical friendly and willing attitude of a Fire horse. Like most Fire horses Cerise works well for praise and attention, but gets stressed when she doesn’t understand something, is tired, or is in pain. Short training sessions that include a lot of praise and quite a bit of variety will keep Cerise interested and willing to work. Since Fire horses have a low pain tolerance, she may also need bodywork and regular checkups to ensure that her she is in top physical form.
--Madalyn Ward, DVM
About Dr. Ward
Madalyn Ward, DVM, owns Bear Creek Veterinary Clinic in Austin, Texas. She is certified in Veterinary Homeopathy and Equine Osteopathy. Memberships include American Veterinary Medical Association, American Association of Equine Practitioners, American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association, Texas Veterinary Medical Association and the Academy of Veterinary Homeopathy. She has authored several books and publishes the monthly newsletter, “Holistic Horsekeeping.” Her new book, entitled Horse Harmony, Understanding Horse Types and Temperaments ... Are You and Your Horse a Good Match? is due out before Christmas, 2007. To learn more about Horse Harmony visit http://www.holistichorsekeeping.com/resources/hhbook/
Visit http://www.holistichorsekeeping.com to sign up for the newsletter and for more information.
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