I have been around horses my whole life and in recent years people have begun noticing that I have a certain "connection" with them, particularly the horses that are afraid of most people. My grandfather, who might also be an Aspie, has been training horses for a long time and he calls this "The Touch". He first mentioned it when one of the young horses he was training let me pet him without hesitation. When I told my grandfather he was shocked because apparently the four year old gelding was terrified of women. This type of situation has happened with several of the timid or generally unruly colts he has worked with. Even if the horse is well behaved and trusts people, the animal will typically approach me if there is more than one person standing near them. For example, my neighbor has a horse who is very friendly but when we first started moving in, my mother went over to the pasture fence to pet her and the mare did not approach her. However, when I approached the fence the horse neighed excitedly at me and walked up as if she had known me for a long time. Does anyone else experience these types of situations with animals?
25 May 2013, 12:55 am
