I have heard Clinton Anderson say that horses are afraid of objects, especially if they move and make noise. It's funny because it's true. If it doesn't live in the horse's stall or pasture it comes under suspicion, and horses don't usually wait around to find out if it will kill them. They need to trust their rider's judgement, so lots of desensitizing exercises help the horse to build it's trust and confidence in the rider. I don't think we can ever prepare our horses for every situation they may encounter, but each time we have a successful training session, and the horse isn't hurt, it helps them to trust
a little more and look to the handler for guidance. Here's Calico's first encounter with the tarp. She's not too worried; she was more indignant than afraid.
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In the second video, you can see the trainer has added the saddle. She uses the basic round penning cues; move forward, inside turn, change direction, come in to me, but has added the stress of something noisy dragging and flapping behind her. She did great.
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