Over the next six days the woman repeated the process with the colt to the point that by the fourth day he no longer thought about running when she entered the pen, and by the fifth day she could touch him nearly anywhere on his body, with the exception of his lower legs. Being touched low on his legs instinctively told the colt to be on alert. If someone got a hold of his legs, he somehow understood he wouldn’t be able to run if he needed to, and while he was relaxed around the woman, he still wasn’t totally convinced the situation was completely safe.

Also by the fifth day the colt had become so comfortable with the woman that he would willingly follow her in the round pen anywhere she wanted to go. Wherever she went, he went, without question or hesitation, always quiet and with his head down. On the sixth day, after the woman had been in with the colt for nearly a half-hour going over all of the things the two of them had worked on during the week, the woman asked the man to come in the pen. Immediately upon the man entering, the colt went on alert and quickly moved to the far side of the pen. He stood with his neck and body rigid, ears and eyes focused in the man’s direction. The woman spoke reassuringly to both the colt and the man, then stepped out of the pen leaving the two of them alone. The colt snorted a warning, and without moving from his spot in the middle of the pen, the man said quietly to the woman, “You sure this is a good idea?”

“Breathe,” the woman said with a smile in her voice. “Move just a little to your right and lets see what he does.” The man did. The colt, still alert, dropped his head, then raised it, then dropped it again. He was mapping the man and the area around him. The colt then shot a quick glance at the woman standing outside the pen, then looked back at the man. “Do it again,” she said quietly. The man did. This time, the horse shifted his body to get in line with the man, and lowered his head.

“Okay, now take a half-step back.” The man did, and much to his surprise, the colt raised his head slightly and stepped toward him, just as he had so many times with the woman. “Good,” the woman said. “Now do it again.” The man did. It was then the colt began to receive an image. It was a picture of him standing next to the man while the man touched him just like the woman had. But this image was different. In the past when he received an image, the colt was sure it was coming from the person in the pen with him, in other words, the woman. But this image wasn’t coming from the person in the pen. In fact, there was very little coming from the man standing before him with the exception of a strong feeling of uncertainty.