Sarah & Alula

Advocating for equine welfare and consent-based horsemanship. +R/LIMA trainer 🥕 Animal behavior undergrad 🐎 Chronic illness warrior🎗️she/they

[Sarah & Alula @lifewithalula]

Hi there 👋🏼 I'm a lab tech and undergrad just beginning my journey into animal behavior science. Alula is my rescued filly. I joined Twitter to connect with folks in animal behavior and cognition, and meet other people who practice positive reinforcement training.

[Sarah & Alula @lifewithalula]

And it's DANG fun! 😅

[Sarah & Alula @lifewithalula]

How clicker trainers think: oh look at this unusual and novel object that might startle my animal

*turns it into a target*

[Sarah & Alula @lifewithalula]

Your horsemanship is not defined by how much you ride and your level of riding.

You can be a great trainer, owner, and horseperson and hardly ever sit on a horse's back - or not at all - or ride a lot.

Riding is a privilege and a bonus option, not the be-all-end-all.

[Sarah & Alula @lifewithalula]

Pointing out that a horse is experiencing stress is not the same thing as accusing someone of abusing their horse.

[Sarah & Alula @lifewithalula]

If you post a public video of your horse online, especially for the purpose of promoting your account...the internet will have opinions and observations. You may not always like them.

[Sarah & Alula @lifewithalula]

I got blocked on IG by the original account for resharing the video in my story as an opportunity to practice observing stress signals in horses. Oops 😅

It's crazy to me owners would rather dig their heels in than just...learn basic equine behavior?

[Sarah & Alula @lifewithalula]

THIS is why equine behavior education matters. Horse demonstrates classic signs of stress, owner says it's "just her personality" because "she's a mare", and thousands of people leave comments agreeing that an obviously overstimulated animal is very happy.

[Sarah & Alula @lifewithalula]

As much as we want to think our horse is having a great time because the idea of that makes us feel good about ourselves, we absolutely must put our egos aside and consider animal behavior objectively.

A happy horse typically does not repeatedly flip their head, rear, and paw.

[Sarah & Alula @lifewithalula]

THIS is why equine behavior education matters. Horse demonstrates classic signs of stress, owner says it's "just her personality" because "she's a mare", and thousands of people leave comments agreeing that an obviously overstimulated animal is very happy.

[Sarah & Alula @lifewithalula]

@SMSObsessed I did this until my doctor informed me that the caffeine had overstimulated my nervous system and accidentally made me more sensitive to my chronic pain and worsened my quality of sleep, thus worsening my conditions. And yet I need caffeine to function whatsoever!

[Sarah & Alula @lifewithalula]

@RosannaPBrost @SMSObsessed I rescued her a year ago when she was a feral 2 year old and the gentleness and kindness she showed me when I worked with her while recovering from my surgery was incredibly special. My dream is to turn her into a therapy horse.

[Sarah & Alula @lifewithalula]

@SMSObsessed 1) You have protection and you can take them to small claims court over that, because that is not okay unless you literally broke them yourselves.

2) I love when your photos pop up in my IG recommended feed because I drool over your horse 😅

[Sarah & Alula @lifewithalula]

The hives won't quit despite the meds Alula is on, so I'm having a new vet out next week for a second opinion and potentially an allergy panel. I just want my poor girl to be comfortable!

[Sarah & Alula @lifewithalula]

I have no idea whether she cared about what I had to say, and like I said she's not my student so it's not my place, but I shared my thoughts this time in the hope that she walks away from that conversation with the idea that maybe her confidence isn't the problem here.

[Sarah & Alula @lifewithalula]

I was talking to a green lesson student recently and she told me excitedly she had finally "found the confidence" to reprimand a young horse for "bullying" her on the lead rope.

Here's why I think it's really harmful that we make students believe their confidence is at fault:

[Sarah & Alula @lifewithalula]

I get that it's not my place to question someone else's program, but I think the mindset horses are out to bully us and we just need to "be more confident" by being willing to lash out at them is a really harmful mindset perpetuated by too many lesson programs.