How to Help a Needle Shy Horse

Why are Some Horses Needle-Shy?

As discussed in this post, needle shyness in horses happens because the horse is very frightened of some aspect of the injection process.

How to Train a Horse That Fears Injections

It is possible to overcome needle shyness in horses, and teach horses how to stand calmly for injections, when we know how. But first, here’s some information on how not to try and solve this problem on your own.

How Not to Help a Needle-Shy Horse

Unfortunately, this problem can’t just be 'trained away'. When people try to address needle-shyness in horses using common training methods, it usually makes the horse’s fear - and the problem - much worse. For example, using ‘pressure and release’, or ‘making the wrong thing hard and the right thing easy’ are ways people might try to fix the problem. But both of these approaches just create more fear, because they involve pressuring an already frightened horse into getting closer to the source of their fear.

‘You can’t frighten fright out of a horse.’ ~ Caval Graham

Sometimes it helps to see this from a human perspective. These same problem would also occur if someone with a fear of heights was asked to stand calmly behind the railing on a tall bridge. Even though the task itself is simple, and safe, the person’s strong fear of heights would prevent them from feeling or behaving calmly. They would likely try to run away, cry, scream, or maybe even faint! Using ‘pressure and release’, or ‘making the wrong thing hard’ and yelling at, pushing, pulling or physically threatening the person to just get closer to the railing - and only stopping the yelling or threats when the person complied - might indeed get them closer. But it’s easy to see that this approach would further frighten the person, and also likely damage any trust they had in the person trying to help them get closer to the railing.

How to Help a Needle Shy Horse

This is why the techniques used to address strong fears, whether in people or horses, need to be different. Triggering more fear or even causing pain to try and force the person or horse closer to the source of their fear is totally unnecessary. There is another, more effective and kind way.

The techniques recommended by professionals to address strong fears are different. They involve exposure to triggers for fear, like the tall bridge or the needle, in small, gradually increasing ‘doses’ that don’t trigger fear. This allows for the brain to relearn that the trigger is not dangerous, and can be safely tolerated. As a pleasant side-effect, this approach also builds trust between the person or horse with the fear, and the person helping them.

There are decades of research and evidence showing that these techniques work for both people and animals who have developed strong fears or phobias about certain things. Broadly, these techniques are called exposure therapies, and they are studied and used by professionals who specialize in treating fear and anxiety disorders. In people, this means professionals such as counsellors, psychologists, and psychiatrists. Professionals who work with horses in this capacity include horse behaviour consultants, clinical and applied animal behaviourists, and veterinary behaviourists.

For horses that are needle-shy, these therapeutic techniques can be highly effective. They work by changing the horse's feelings about the injection: from it triggering feelings of strong fear, to it triggering feelings of calmness or even happy anticipation about the delivery of tasty treats.

While these techniques are often implemented in one-on-one sessions with a professional, with the right information and guidance, they are not difficult to learn or implement on your own. The developers of the Needle-Shy Horse program have both years of experience helping needle-shy horses in-person, as well as teaching people remotely how to address this problem on their own. With Needle-Shy Horse’s guidance, no matter where you are in the world, you too can learn how to help your needle-shy horse, using kind and effective techniques.

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