11th April 2025
This session was quite a long session (about 2 hours) although the video is the last 20 minutes or so. The reason it was long was because there was an intention to be set.
What does that mean?
When we need to work towards something it is important to set our intention properly. With Belle, because she is very fearful of humans in her personal space (and her personal space for humans is very very far), we first have to work out what we are asking of her, as humans.
Now she resides at Faugere, the only thing we ask of her is to allow us to help her be a healthy, and therefore, hopefully, a happy pony.
So how do we set an intention that will enable her to move towards trusting humans again?
Firstly we keep the intention simple. When we forget all the human words we think we should put around an intention, we just come back to one word…Trust. Feel that word in yourself. What does it feel like? Do you trust yourself? Because if you don’t why should anybody else trust you?
Secondly we ask the community for help. In this case the community are the herd she is currently spending most of her time with.
In order to gain the herds help we have to enable each member of the herd to understand the intention and engage with it. That is why it needs to be one simple word that has a feeling attached to it that we can share between us all.
Then we humans have to Trust in them to lead the way. We have to trust each and every member of the community will help in their own way, and they have to trust that the human that is asking for the help will do its part as well.
They were amazing. I spent time firstly just being with each member of the herd for a little bit, showing them my intention, by sharing how trust feels to me. Then they took over. Each member of the herd did something to help her while we wandered through the fields grazing, until they manoeuvred themselves to go into the arena area.
It was so interesting to be a part of this manoeuvre. Lara and Belle alongside one of the big horses (names I can’t remember) went up the side of the arena where I couldn’t follow without trapping Belle, which I didn’t want to do. The others went into the arena so I followed and slowly made my way to a position well away from the gate, so all members of the herd could leave at any time. I then sat down and waited.
This video shows Belle entering the arena where I was sitting, after taking about 3 -4 minutes to make the decision after the rest of the herd had entered.
Each member of the herd did something to help her while in the arena.
Belle was very aware of me but relaxed, and once she entered the arena it was important to stay until she left of her own accord. She was the last to leave also. Allowing her to enter, be, and leave under her own recognisance, with the support of the herd, whilst I was just Being amongst the herd, was important.