Train a horse? Of course?

Phoenix and Dragon are two of the youngest "students" at the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources. They're probably the most playful, too. That's because they're foals, born last spring on UD's Newark farm, and the focus of a new independent study course designed to train horses.

"Phoenix, the colt, and Dragon, the filly, needed to be 'desensitized'--in other words, taught not to be afraid of humans," says David Marshall, assistant professor of equine studies. "As University horses, these two will come in contact with lots of people. They need to learn how to behave appropriately, both for their own safety and for the safety of our students."

Christina Abramowicz, AG 2002, an aspiring horse trainer, was one of the students who took on the task of training the foals. Her assignment was not for amateurs, Marshall says: Foals, who can quickly get up to 200 pounds and stand 4 feet high, are challenging to train.

"Horses can rear up suddenly, kick you or bite," says Abramowicz, who has horses of her own back home in Lewes, Del.

Abramowicz conducted the training with animal science majors Kim Maroon, AG 2003, and Marsha Duey, AG 2004. First, the novice trainers had to learn about natural foal developmental patterns and then set goals to modify the horses' normal behavior. One of the goals, for example, was to get the foals to wear a halter.

"We worked on basics, such as picking up their feet, grooming them and leading them around," says Maroon, who made the four-hour round trip from her New Jersey home at least once a week last summer to work with the foals.

Marshall and Sue McDonnell, an animal behavior specialist at the University of Pennsylvania's New Bolton Center, met with the students frequently to discuss training strategies and typical horse behaviors. The students also studied the current research to develop a cohesive training program.

Before training began, Phoenix, a frisky and playful colt, and the calmer Dragon had had limited contact with people. The foals, who continued to nurse for a year after birth, spent most of their time romping playfully together, as their mothers grazed nearby.

"One of our challenges was to prepare Phoenix, Dragon and their mothers for official inspection, so they had a chance of being listed in the prestigious International Sport Horse registry," Abramowicz says.

The offspring of dressage-trained Holsteiner stallions and Thoroughbred mares, the foals are considered Warmblood show horses, a breed that often finishes first in the standings at equestrian competitions. To qualify for the Warmblood registry, UD's horses had to meet standards in body conformation, grooming and movement.

"Spirited horses without proper training could be disqualified because of unpredictable behavior," Duey says.

"We were all nervous 'stage moms' as the horses entered the judging ring," she adds, "but our hard work paid off. All four horses were accepted into the breeding registry."

The trainers and their equine pupils continue to make the grade. Marshall says he is pleased with how well Phoenix behaved recently when a physiology class used the colt to demonstrate an EKG heart monitor. The foal patiently cooperated throughout the procedure, which involved clipping his coat to attach the device, he says.

The training continues, however. In a few years, the foals will be expected to tolerate a saddle, allow riders, jump fences and pull carts.

Marshall says the horses aren't the only ones getting an education. "Our equine studies program is designed to teach science and production agriculture to students, using horses as a model," he says. "Working with horses is fun, so many of the students may think that what they are doing is play. In fact, they are learning to think scientifically and prepare for the work world or graduate school."

--Wendy Stamm