If a horse doesn’t want to do something, it’s important to find out why. There could be several potential reasons:

• The horse may not understand what is being asked of it, which is a training problem. 
• The horse may be in an inappropriate state of arousal - for example fearful or stressed.
• The horse may be experiencing discomfort, and then we need to identify the cause of that discomfort and address that. 

Horses' expressions of pain and discomfort are often overlooked or misunderstood. But if we discover discomfort or pain early, the horse is less likely to develop secondary problems. If we can identify the underlying cause as early as possible, and treat the horse accordingly, the horse is going to be more comfortable, more trainable and rideable and safer for the rider.