# Right brain Left brain



## anndankev (Aug 9, 2010)

How did they work at all after they were split?


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

I didn't ask but this type of research is usually done with electrical stimulous.


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## Palomine (Oct 30, 2010)

Ah...more of the smoke and mirrors theories, to explain why horsey won't do what I want it to..debunked at last.

Never did believe in it...foolishness.


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## loosie (Jun 19, 2008)

It's not a myth at all. Just that many people don't understand what it means, and their perceptions of the neuropsychology is a bit... mythical:lol: As you have explained, different hemispheres are responsible for different actions/thoughts.

Saddle, so far as I remember, this study you're talking of is not new, and going from memory, I think this has been understood for a long time before it was 'proven' with the study anyway. When people talk about 'right brained' or 'left brained' horses/people, that doesn't at all mean the horse is _only or always_ using it's 'left brain', but that the horse may be more of a calm, assertive, level headed type, than a more 'right brained' beast who is more emotional & reactive. And regardless how 'dominant' one 'side' may be in an animal, with the possible exception of brain damaged, we all use _all_ our brains. It is the particular behaviours, responses, attitudes, that are considered more 'right or left brained'. 

There are many exercises, etc that are recommended as helpful in building & strengthening pathways between the sides of the brain, such as the program they do at my kids school called 'Brain Gym' where they do stuff like writing with the 'wrong' hand, drawing with 2 hands at the same time, 'cross crawling' & other exercises that use both hemispheres.

We could also convolute the issue further by considering behaviours/responses of the 'hind brain' compared to the 'frontal lobes' if you like too:wink:


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## anndankev (Aug 9, 2010)

Does the term butt-head fit in here anywhere?


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## loosie (Jun 19, 2008)

How about man's brain v's women's brain.... no, bad idea to go there...


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## Lia and Midnight (Sep 22, 2014)

yes the two brains are continually working together, but just like people some horses use more of their right brain and others more of their left brain.


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## ZabysMom (Oct 24, 2014)

I believe in this..Google Pirelli horsenality profile


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## ZabysMom (Oct 24, 2014)

Parelli*


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## bsms (Dec 31, 2010)

Parelli's horsenality nonsense has no more basis in fact than the 4 humors of humans:










"Four temperaments is a proto-psychological theory that suggests that there are four fundamental personality types, sanguine (pleasure-seeking and sociable), choleric (ambitious and leader-like), melancholic (analytical and quiet), and phlegmatic (relaxed and peaceful). Most formulations include the possibility of mixtures of the types.

The Greek physician Hippocrates (460–370 BC) incorporated the four temperaments into his medical theories as part of the ancient medical concept of humorism, that four bodily fluids affect human personality traits and behaviors." - Wiki, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_temperaments

As translated into horses by Linda Parelli:










I guess you can say I'm not a fan. But then, I haven't sent the Parellis $79 for an ever so much more accurate "digital" horsenality report, available here:

https://shop.parelli.com/catalog/education/horsenality---humanality-reports/product/1547-hohor2009

"_For the first time in history you can generate a detailed report that reveals your horse’s innate Horsenality™ and gives you specific recommendations for success! This 40+ page personalized report is totally focused on your horse and will detail clear and concise training strategies based on his unique Horsenality™_"

:evil: :evil: :evil:


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## DanielDauphin (Mar 11, 2014)

There's two kinds of people in this world: 
Those gullible enough to believe that there are only two kinds of people in this world and everyone else...


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## loosie (Jun 19, 2008)

^Gotta remember that one!


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## Foxhunter (Feb 5, 2012)

In humans most men are left brained, women right. This leads to certain factors being inherent to each sex. 

A survey shown on UK TV several years ago "Why Men Don't Iron" had twenty boys and twenty girls aged about five, turned them loose in a playground. Mostly they segregated themselves into sexes. The girls talked and organised games, the boys were soon rough housing it running around and playing far more roughly. 

Many other things came out, boys learning differently to girls. Boys learnt faster by diagrams and grafts, girls for listening.

I have noticed with young horses the colts will play far more roughly then the fillies. They are more inclined to rear up and bash each other whereas the fillies race around more gently. 

I have never found that particular problem horses fall into any category as far as their personalities go. They are 'naughty' because they have either never been taught correctly or allowed to get away with things. 

Whether they are of a shy disposition or bolshy can be from genetics or handling, or lack of. Either way correct handling master all.


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## Sharpie (May 24, 2009)

I must have the uber expensive horsinality profile for my guy- it's so exact that it identifies him as the only one of his kind! A unique individual who responds in his own way to any given stimulus! A profile worth thousands! If you want, I'll come to your barn, and for a low, low $1K give you a one on one analysis of your very own hay-burner!

Seriously though. Take the horse you have in front of you that day and work with him. There are no gimmicks or tricks. Each horse is going to do what they're going to do and you have to take what they're actually giving you that minute, work with it, and train them in the way that they practice the behaviors you want and avoid practicing the ones you don't. Not always easy, but it's simple. There are no gimmicks. You just have to learn to read horses, not some sort of balderdash printed off the internets. Right brain left brain so what.


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## Sharpie (May 24, 2009)

Double Post, Apologies!


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## Foxhunter (Feb 5, 2012)

If I had the money I would send a profile for them to analyse! Boy. Would that be a profile and a half!

My last horse came to me as being a worrier, nervous yet bolshy and prepared to take a human on should he disagree.
To ride him he was go go go. Get it over with as fast as possible and he could pull like a train. He was destructive in that he would chew anything he got his teeth into. 

Following hounds with the others he was awful, he was strong, would be hard to stop, fidgety and basically a horrid ride. Then one day I saw some hounds rioting on a deer. I rode him after them to whip them away. When I reached the place where the deer had crossed he pulled up with no problem. I used my hunting whip (swinging it around and cracking it) to warn the two couple of hounds and when they chose to ignore, I used it on them.
The horse never moved or batted an eyelid yet if you flipped a whip at him he would freak.

I never rode him in the field with him I always rode with the huntsman acting as a third whip. That horse never put a foot wrong, he jumped hedges he couldn't see over, stood for long periods without moving. Never minded hounds around him, faultless. 
So how can a horse change his personality in moments?


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

About the only beneficial thing I learned about men is that they are more focused whereas women see and know what's going on around them. I'm sure this was part of the survival mechanisms way back during primitive times.


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## Foxhunter (Feb 5, 2012)

One of the tests they did on a group about 8 yrs old was for them to wear headphones, they piped two different words into each ear, cat - door e.g. Girls heard both words boys only the one that was entered into the right side. 

Watching a sports day at primary school the boys were naturally throwing over arm the girls under arm. The boys had a far better aim than the girls! 

With horses colts are more likely to say "What happens of I do this?" To avoid something, fillies more inclined to switch off if they don't understand.


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

When barely two my niece and nephew (twins) were sitting on either side of me while I played Mario Bros. As Mario got the goombas my nephew made shooting sounds. My niece was silent until the end of the lever then in a small high pitched voice asked "But where's the princess?" Her parents had never read princess nor shoot em up stories to the childen but chose gender neutral because the twins were very close and always together.


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## Foxhunter (Feb 5, 2012)

Similar story, woman was insistent that her boy and girl would have equal toys, if he wanted to play with dolls, fine if she wanted to play with cars fine. 
TV was closely monitored to no violence. 

It shocked her to find he had sat his Barby Doll against as chair and was throwing things at it!


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## loosie (Jun 19, 2008)

I must have a 'mans brain', from everything you guys have been saying... including the doll thing - apparently someone gave me a gorgeous, expensive doll when I was 2yo & Mum found me later stabbing it with a pen & biting it! And to my Mum's mortification, I proudly went & got it to show off next time the gift giver visited! I also inadvertently taught my first dog to bark at the horses - he was a working dog & only wanted to help... and when I was concentrating on the horses, I just didn't hear him for the first minute!


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## greenhaven (Jun 7, 2014)

Certainly every horse has it's own personality, but to segregate them into strict boxes will surely create artificial limitations, just as prejudice does upon humans. I am with whomever said "ride the horse you've got today."

I guess that is a little far from the original topic.

Eta: It was Sharpie. Sharpie said that. Except not in those exact words.


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## Nokotaheaven (Apr 11, 2012)

Whelp... According to the standard right-brain-left-brain, I am a 90%right brain introverted person... Even though the bossy, creative, and always thinking left brain appears every day..


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

Loosie, my older sis had been given a beautiful doll, a rather large one along with a stroller. I was told I grabbed that doll from it's stroller and ran to the house bashing it's bisque head on one of the porch pillars as I ran by. When my father would take me bird hunting I was happy to be his retriever.


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## loosie (Jun 19, 2008)

See, be we horses or humans, you can't stick us in boxes... says she the farrier, with a rugby(real, not touch) playing sister & ballet dancing bro... AND we're all straight... sexually at least!


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## thesilverspear (Aug 20, 2009)

How come my husband irons and I don't?


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## Sharpie (May 24, 2009)

And BTW, ever since I was a small girl, I've thought dolls are creepy as ****, especially the ones with the eyes that move. Worse than clowns. Almost as bad as the monkey with the bloodshot eyes and cymbals. So much for gender stereotypes. I'd get angry as a child if they gave me the stupid 'girl' toy instead of the cool car or gadget I could take apart and reassemble. 

It's only in the past few years that I don't resent the color pink on principle for the giant round hole society tried to shove this square peg into and label 'female' for years. It wasn't until college that I was really 'okay' with myself and my gender identity- I always felt that there was something 'wrong' with me for thinking all the feminine things I 'should' like (according to everyone around me, the movies, everything on TV, etc) were absurd and not me at all. Turns out I can be feminine and be myself without any of that garbage... and now I don't hate the color pink so much to boot. (And let's not even get to the reactions and responses to clothing choices and haircuts from family and society. This headline surprises me not a bit: https://www.yahoo.com/beauty/ohio-g...ing-hair-for-cancer-charity-100251917018.html)


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## TXhorseman (May 29, 2014)

You might consider the following when discussing the right brain/ left brain theory.

In their book "Top Brain Bottom Brain", Stephen M. Kosslyn, PhD, and G. Wayne Miller point out that the study on which the popular right brain/ left brain theory is based was done on people in a mental hospital who had abnormal brains. Even before receiving the Nobel Prize for his work, Roger Sperry cautioned against over-emphasizing the results of his study. Many studies on the brain have shown how faulty the popular understanding of the right brain/ left brain theory has become.


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## loosie (Jun 19, 2008)

Sharpie said:


> I'd get angry as a child if they gave me the stupid 'girl' toy instead of the cool car


Tell me about it! Now I've got daughters that hate pink & frilly & if they don't want... transformers, spiderman... type boy stuff, there's too often not much of a choice. :evil:


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## Nokotaheaven (Apr 11, 2012)

Haha! As a kid I broke all my Barbie dolls and played with plastic Dinosaurs. Instead of playing dress up I dressed up our cats and ran outside to play with my toys in the dirt. My favourite sport (to watch) is Bull Riding. My favourite colour is Camoflauge. I've never liked Pink. I love muscle cars and old trucks. I like smash up derbys and any event with trucks. And although I don't hunt animals, I like shooting targets and although I'm an ameture I do pretty good at beating my boyfriend with both real and video game guns.
I don't think I fit inside the 'norm' for a 20 year old girl lol.

Also, I know two men who not only love to bake, but are geniuses at it. Lol!


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## Foxhunter (Feb 5, 2012)

thesilverspear said:


> How come my husband irons and I don't?


That is a simple one to answer!

He was in the forces.
His mother trained him
You trained him.


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## Clava (Nov 9, 2010)

Foxhunter said:


> That is a simple one to answer!
> 
> He was in the forces.
> His mother trained him
> You trained him.


 
None of those apply to my husband who irons, not forces, not from his mother or from me - self taught from living alone.


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## Reiningcatsanddogs (Oct 9, 2014)

There is something called entrenchment where a neuropathway is created by learning and then that pathway is used over and over again each time the stimulus is presented in the same way and the same response is required.

Think of it like a dirt road that is the only way in or out. Every time you drive on it the ruts get deeper and deeper. If you wanted to make a new road to by-pass the old one, it gets harder to turn off to the right or left without bottoming out. 

In this manner, a horse can become reliant upon one side or portion of the brain more than the others unless a new pathway to store/retrieve/send the information is created. That is one reason why a variety of experiences for the horse is important. 

You can't teach an old dog new tricks? You can, but it is harder.


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