Realising my Presence was noticed...

[Courting the Horse]

My favourite moment with our horses was when I was living in the field with them and I realised that they registered my presence very strongly even though they barely looked up from their eating the whole time. 

If I moved too far away they would gradually wonder where I was and possibly come with me.  I realised that they don't hug and jump for joy to express their sense of connection - they accept you and that is enough.  It was great to realise that I was important to them

[Christine]

My most joyful and moving moment was when Claire (who isn't/wasn't into people at all) leaned her head against my shoulder while I was holding her when her hooves got trimmed.     

Her usual behaviour when she got approached was to turn her head away. What I do is I stop about 1-2 yards away from her and wait. If she turns her head towards me I approach and if she turns the other way I either wait or leave depending on how strong the signal is. But nowadays most often she turns towards me. About a year after I started this pattern I read K.F. Hempfling's statement that mares most of all need our respect - this is certainly true for Claire.

Maria, your experience is so wonderful - I love your blog about living with your horses!!