New Foal

[pauldmin]

Just like to inform the group that my mare has given birth to a foal, a nice chestnut filly named 'Misty'.
Obviously, this is not what you may consider to be a skepticism issue, but recently events have made it so.

Another horse at our stable is having trouble. It is 25 years old ( equivalent to geriatric age ) and cannot walk properly.
The owner has enlisted two vets to have a look and they have determined that it has nerve damage and so cannot articulate it's legs properly. They cannot determine whether it will recover.

The owner has brought in an apprentice Reiki healer to have a look. I am not sure of the outcome with this horse, but she has approached my girlfriend in order to advance her Reiki training on our foal.
From what I can gather, she wants to 'analyse' our foal using her healing touch in order to get useful marks in her training program.

She is also learning 'horse communication', which is a valid learning activity as it involves learning about horse behaviour, which is a definite scientific activity.

I wish to ask this forum, how should I treat this request?
I am tempted to allow her to try out her 'special touch', only to see if the foal will try and kick or bite her, like she does on me!!


In any case, I will keep the forum posted about any developments in this area. You never know, I might even convert the Reiki healer to see 'common sense'!

BTW, the owner of our stable is very much into magnet & laser healing therapy, but I do not have the guts to tackle her yet. I still need somewhere to keep my horses!!

[Suezoled]

Foals are very nutty creatures and improper handling early in life can make them sons of b*tches to train up later.
If Reiki girl knows how to handle herself around horses, maybe it wouldn't hurt for the foal to get some handling by other people. If, however, you think the foal is going to trample over the situation (and the girl), don't let her near the baby.
And the owner of the stable might believe in magnet-alien-sacred faerie healing candles, but the foal is YOUR property. And if you don't think it's a good idea for an inexperienced person to be around the baby horse, those wishes had better be respected. In fact, if you don't want an experienced person near your horse, that wish should also be respected.

[Throg]

Originally posted by Suezoled
Foals are very nutty creatures and improper handling early in life can make them sons of b*tches to train up later.
If Reiki girl knows how to handle herself around horses, maybe it wouldn't hurt for the foal to get some handling by other people. If, however, you think the foal is going to trample over the situation (and the girl), don't let her near the baby.
And the owner of the stable might believe in magnet-alien-sacred faerie healing candles, but the foal is YOUR property. And if you don't think it's a good idea for an inexperienced person to be around the baby horse, those wishes had better be respected. In fact, if you don't want an experienced person near your horse, that wish should also be respected.

Also bear in mind that if Misty gets upset she might end up hurting herself as well as the Reiki girl.

[vbloke]

so this girl wants to progress from "horse whisperer" to "horse fondler"?

[pauldmin]

Don't worry, I won't let Reiki Girl handle the foal without someone being there with her ( I will also try not to let my negative skeptical energies mess up her 'chakras' )

I only hope she learns more about horse behaviour than the mystical 'chi' energies of a newborn foal.
There is perhaps some benefit in having people put their hands on the foal in a calm way, which is what I am already doing at the moment as 'desensitisation'.

[Suezoled]

You better make it clear she can only touch the baby horse with certain permission and only at those times.

Anecdote:
I know a little girl who became a total rat sh*t because people would see her and let her sucks their fingers, jump on them, etc....they seemed to think since the owner let them play with the horse while she around, they could play with her when she wasn't.

[Throg]

Originally posted by pauldmin
Don't worry, I won't let Reiki Girl handle the foal without someone being there with her ( I will also try not to let my negative skeptical energies mess up her 'chakras' )

I only hope she learns more about horse behaviour than the mystical 'chi' energies of a newborn foal.
There is perhaps some benefit in having people put their hands on the foal in a calm way, which is what I am already doing at the moment as 'desensitisation'.

No doubt there is but I know if she was my foal I'd be very selective about who her early experiences were with and they would be people I know and trust. Maybe get to know the reiki girl a bit, first? Have a coffee and a chat to get a feel for her before she gets to feel Misty?

[Soapy Sam]

The critical issue here is not what the humans believe, but what the horse believes.

Some people bond with horses. (I am not one of them, though I quite like the brutes.)

If human, foal and mare get on fine, let them get on with it.
The human might learn something.

[Suezoled]

Originally posted by Soapy Sam
The critical issue here is not what the humans believe, but what the horse believes.

Some people bond with horses. (I am not one of them, though I quite like the brutes.)

If human, foal and mare get on fine, let them get on with it.
The human might learn something.

Fine fine. You can deal with an 11 month old weanling who has learned it's "cute" to bite someone's hand, or clothes, or hair. You can deal with 500 pounds of sheer "cute" as she charges you from behind and attempts to knock you over and run away because it was an acceptable "game" that she learned early on. You can also deal with the lawsuits that will come of this animal if she's allowed to remain the way she is due to poor handling. Oh, and that 500 pounds isn't even when she would achieve her full growth, either.

The human, if she's someone who indulges what could be bad behaviour in the future, would do better to be with a horse that's used to silly dudes copping a feel on their bodies, then.

IMO only.

[Zep]

Let me just extract one quote from the OP:The owner has brought in an apprentice Reiki healer to have a look. I am not sure of the outcome with this horse, but she has approached my girlfriend in order to advance her Reiki training on our foal. From what I can gather, she wants to 'analyse' our foal using her healing touch in order to get useful marks in her training program.Given that the foal at this stage is "normal" and will probably be cared for properly by its mare anyway, I'd keep this deluded person the heck away from it if all she wanted to do was "practice her Reiki" on it. Instead, you are entitled to have the foal treated as you prefer.

I'd suggest you tell this girl that the foal is quite OK and so does not need her nascent Reiki "skills" or any other anti-scientific folderol, thanks all the same. And if it does get sick, you will call a qualified veterinarian, not an apprentice quack.

You can suggest she can go practice on someone else's horse - perhaps the sick one elsewhere in the stable, for a start... See if she can make any progress with that one instead and would she care to fully document her efforts scientifically, hmmm??

[brachet]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by pauldmin
Just like to inform the group that my mare has given birth to a foal, a nice chestnut filly named 'Misty'.

Where are the pictures of your new baby? I thought that was almost reflex in new parents. Please? Pretty, pretty please?

[pauldmin]

Oh, go on then..

http://www.paulmin.nildram.co.uk/foal1_small.jpg (http://www.paulmin.nildram.co.uk/foal1.jpg)
http://www.paulmin.nildram.co.uk/foal2_small.jpg (http://www.paulmin.nildram.co.uk/foal2.jpg)

[Throg]

Originally posted by Zep
Let me just extract one quote from the OP:Given that the foal at this stage is "normal" and will probably be cared for properly by its mare anyway, I'd keep this deluded person the heck away from it if all she wanted to do was "practice her Reiki" on it. Instead, you are entitled to have the foal treated as you prefer.

I'd suggest you tell this girl that the foal is quite OK and so does not need her nascent Reiki "skills" or any other anti-scientific folderol, thanks all the same. And if it does get sick, you will call a qualified veterinarian, not an apprentice quack.

You can suggest she can go practice on someone else's horse - perhaps the sick one elsewhere in the stable, for a start... See if she can make any progress with that one instead and would she care to fully document her efforts scientifically, hmmm??

I don't think I'd suggest an of this if there is a likelihood o Reiki Girl (my least favourite superhero) being around the stables as it's going to lead to bad feeling and tension, two emotions which it is best to keep away from horses as far as possible. I might think it, but I wouldn't suggest it. I'd be more inclined to waffle about how I wanted my foal to get used to being handled by my family, my friends and me - those who are going to be involved with her for the rest of her life - before widening her circle of acquaintances.

That said, I still don't think there's any reason to suppose that someone who believes in Reiki is necessarily a bad person or even a danger to horses. I would just want to get to know a little about any person, whatever their state of belief or scepticism, before letting them near my new born foal.


pauldmin - beautiful pictures. Thanks.

[Soapy Sam]

Suez- The beauty of it is that I don't have to deal with it.:D You don't have these difficulties with cows, because you eat cows. I'm sure this would work for horses too.

Seriously- I don't see how Reikiing (is there such a verb?) can do a foal any harm, because it does not suffer the "King's New Clothes" effect. Either it tolerates the lady, or it won't. I can't see how she could hamper it's training. (Bit early for training anyway, is it not?)

I've watched one horse whisperer at work with her own animal. Clearly some of it is effective, if you can keep the animal from being distracted by other people/ dogs / horses etc. , but I don't think either she or pauldmin is proposing letting her actually train the foal.

[Suezoled]

Originally posted by Soapy Sam
Suez- The beauty of it is that I don't have to deal with it.:D You don't have these difficulties with cows, because you eat cows. I'm sure this would work for horses too.

Seriously- I don't see how Reikiing (is there such a verb?) can do a foal any harm, because it does not suffer the "King's New Clothes" effect. Either it tolerates the lady, or it won't. I can't see how she could hamper it's training. (Bit early for training anyway, is it not?)

I've watched one horse whisperer at work with her own animal. Clearly some of it is effective, if you can keep the animal from being distracted by other people/ dogs / horses etc. , but I don't think either she or pauldmin is proposing letting her actually train the foal.

No, I don't think anyone is proposing to let Reiki Girl train the foal. And no, it's not too early for a foal to start on training.
And yes, the Reiki Girl can do the foal harm if, while interacting with it, she lets it get away with behaviour that will be difficult to work out, at best.
I'm thinking you're thinking of training as in learning to be led and even getting used to tack? It goes much earlier. Foals learn that people are a part of its life, and that it will be touched, and brushed, and its feet will be handled. And it will learn it's not okay to bump or rush or nip a human, even in play. Social interaction and what's okay and what's not is all a part of training. Which is why a person needs to be careful on who they allow the foal to interact with at first, because learning unacceptable behaviour WILL hamper training.

...I dunno about your cows, but the cows that I met were all very polite and they each had their own stall that they ran to during mealtimes. They were trained to do it. And yes, cows get their feet trimmed up on occasion, and cows like to be groomed, and cows can be lead to and from a station.
And yes, they taste great on the grill.

[Phaycops]

Originally posted by Suezoled
And yes, the Reiki Girl can do the foal harm if, while interacting with it, she lets it get away with behaviour that will be difficult to work out, at best.

It seemed to me that we all assumed that pauldmin or his/her girlfriend would be present if Reiki Girl were to do her laying of hands thing to the foal. What a cutie, by the way ;)

[brachet]

THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU
Oh my, what a pretty girl...

[Aussie Thinker]

Originally posted by pauldmin
Oh, go on then..

http://www.paulmin.nildram.co.uk/foal1_small.jpg (http://www.paulmin.nildram.co.uk/foal1.jpg)
http://www.paulmin.nildram.co.uk/foal2_small.jpg (http://www.paulmin.nildram.co.uk/foal2.jpg)

Awwww. shucks that is sooo cute !

BTW.. after I stopped laughing at the Reiki suggestion I would say what the hell is it you do again... then laugh during their ridiculous explanation ! Rude but effective !

[Suezoled]

Originally posted by Phaycops
It seemed to me that we all assumed that pauldmin or his/her girlfriend would be present if Reiki Girl were to do her laying of hands thing to the foal. What a cutie, by the way ;)

Heh. Unless Reiki Girl takes it into her head that since she can see the foal when the owners are around, it won't hurt for her to see it when they're not...

I cannot remember how many baby horses were set back in their gentling and training because of careless handling or people assuming they can play with the baby because they did before.

[pauldmin]

Reiki girl has now laid her hands on in the presence of the girlfriend.

Sorry this isn't more exciting but it was simply a matter of her touching the foal and reading it's energy.
There was no stress involved, except for the healer who got a little emotional with the cuteness of the situation.

Anyway, it seems like she will not be back any more because the reason for her being here in the first place has gone:
The horse she was originally treating has been put down by the vet after the owner finally realised that it was not going to get any better. ( Serious nerve damage. It was unable to move it's back legs properly )

So, no harm done.

BTW. The foal is doing well and I can pick it's feet up, put on a head-collar and lead it without too much hassle.

Thanks for all the feedback..