Emily McDonald and the Meadow Family, part 4

Luca

From anxious to adoring

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When animal behaviour consultant Emily McDonald went to tame the Meadow ponies, including the two stallions Jack and Luca, she was warned to "take a big stick" in case the horses should attack her. Many horse people still confuse the defensive behaviour induced by our actions towards horses with inherently aggressive behaviour. One of the commonest attempts to justify harsh horse training methods is: "You've obviously never handled a stallion". As if stallions are somehow pre programmed to attack humans. In this feature, Emily McDonald talks about the gentle nature of Luca, originally the most shy of the Meadow ponies but now the most gregarious.