tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8146749005828721428.post1235492797323581836..comments2022-11-15T04:59:26.839-08:00Comments on A Thought for the Horse... : Licking and Chewing; What Does It Really Mean? Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10724653311656228729noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8146749005828721428.post-89191215506029607822016-03-19T13:03:36.854-07:002016-03-19T13:03:36.854-07:00I've noticed that Quarter Horses might do this...I've noticed that Quarter Horses might do this lick and chew thing after "Join Up," but my warmbloods don't do this at all. Even Linda Parelli noticed that her warmblood didn't respond or react to the normal classic Horse Whisperer cues. He simply responded to treats, just like my warmbloods. Why? Super simple. My warmbloods are almost never stressed. There is no transitioning from one "state" to another. Training is just one more game to play, and they never stop thinking for even one minute, so the only licking and chewing they do is with something you handed them. That's if they haven't already jumped clear out of the laughably too-low height western round pen, to be found nearby inhaling grass. Unless in pregnancy mode, warmbloods are not energy efficient compared to other breeds :). Feed me, feed me, feed me now. When I bought my first warmblood (now 22, still fit & sound after a successful show career, and a great great grandmother), her middle name quickly became Houdini, because the world was simply either a container to break out of, or a container to break into. I seriously thought about how I could create blacksmith toy puzzles for her to solve, her tongue and lips are so prehensile. She quickly learned how to instantly pry lids off of supplement containers near her in an aisle (while being led by them), grab a plastic bottle of Mountain Dew, tip it back, and drink, lift her lip to receive a squirt from a ketchup packet, break out of her stall and into the stall of another horse to steal their food, jump out of a dutch stall door from a standstill, and grab the end of a hoagie, manipulate it around, and spit out _just_ the meat. My favorite moment was when she learned to intermittently blow into my minor (vs major) bamboo flute, while I moved my fingers to different notes. This was just from watching me play, then placing it literally just in front of her nostril. This mare not only took me over a few 6.5 ft fences for fun, she won money and ribbons in showjumping, dressage, eventing, and even barrel racing -- fastest horse touched a barrel and got a time fault, so she won! She has never "licked or chewed" in the 20 years I have owned her, and neither have any of her descendants. I've seen other horses do it, so I know exactly what it is, but not with my Holsteiner clan. They also all lack ulcers -- even her children and grandchildren who show and are worth $100K. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com