Page 13 - Autumn 23

would say on average around 4 years old, give or take a couple of years either side.
The comments in Scholten’s stage 2 and the comments in Vermeulen aptly reflect Beryllium type horses. These horses are timid, gentle and unobtrusive and lack confidence. This is not reflected in a particularly anxious or aggressive way but rather in that they need support which they seek out in a passive way.
When they feel that they need help they will wander over to you in a casual way and stand next to you to just to be in your space; often that’s all that’s needed to help, to make them feel less anxious and more secure. They might seek a little affection briefly and then after a while wander off again as quietly as they arrived. There is also the need to feel safe which manifests in much the same behaviour in seeking security from the owner. One of the horses I saw was referred to as a “mummy’s boy” because of this type of behaviour and was apt to chew the fence a little like an anxious child sucking its thumb I suspect. If this horse was any distance from the owner and something worried him, he would gallop straight back to “mummy” for security.
Facing unfamiliar or new situations can present a problem as they do not know what to do. This is where the indecisive part of their nature is seen. At first this may seem like pure stubbornness but it’s simply confusion, bewilderment, indecision and, in reality, working out in their head what to do which takes a little time to happen.
A typical situation is when faced with going up a ramp into a new horsebox. They will just stop and refuse to move. They’ll look around for a bit, think for a while and when it’s all worked out in their head that actually it’s ok, then and only then, will they load. One of the horses I treated was a
good eventer but ended up in the water of a water jump. Whereas most horses would get out immediately our Beryllium horse stays calmly in the water and refuses to move whilst looking casually at the scenery. He’s working out what to do in his indecisive and confused way before eventually concluding that its actually quite a good idea to climb out of the water.
There is a great need to understand what is required of them hence a little anxiety in certain situations, but once it’s all worked out, they generally perform well. On occasion they may pretend that things are not happening (the head in the sand situation) but I feel that this is just thinking time, working out what to do whilst they adapt to what is happening. As far as I can tell, they like to be asked what to do and not told. They are happy with humans which they trust and are comfortable with other horses around.
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