spooking

Question
I have a blm mustang mare that I have been training and riding a little bit. she is doing very well with most things except:
When she sees other people on horses she gets spooked a bit and sometimes gets pretty squirrely. It also depends on the number of people on other horses. More people on horses equals more spook. Can you tell Me some ways to help her get past this fear?
Thank you very much for your time and your help!
Randy

Answer
Hi Randy,
         A horse is a prey animal, they will run from anything that scares them. In the wild, this is how they survive. When a horse spooks,it can be frightening to the person as the spooking is unpredictable. The reason she is spooking is that she is feels unsafe. The first thing to do is to make her feel confident. When she seems to be about to spook, get off her and calmly walk her to the item that is scaring her. Let her stop when she wants. Give her lots of praise when she goes forward. You need to make sure that you are calm and confident, this will help her. Once you feel that she is good with the situations that bother her on the ground, you can reintroduce her to the situations while riding her.

Lisa