They say you can lead a horse to water but you can’t make it drink. Horses like snacks though, and it was all over when this woman led her horse to a place where he could get some.
This is Panda, a horse. His human parent is Maija.
Maija is a showjumper. Her horse is effectively her partner, and that would be Panda.
If there’s one thing Panda loves, its snacks.
The trouble began when Maija took him to a dementia unit to entertain the patients.
The patients adored Panda. It can get lonely living with Dementia, and Panda’s visit was a much-needed bit of joy.
They showered him with affection and also gave him snacks. That might have been a mistake.
Panda liked the snacks a lot. Maybe too much.
Of course, they couldn’t stay at the dementia unit the whole day.
The time came to go home, but Panda’s mind was on snacks and his new friends.
See, horses are pretty smart. They have strong memories, and something like that is sure to leave an impression on Panda.
And what happened shortly after confirmed this to Maija.
Like a teenager sneaking out to meet a date, Panda snuck out and ran back to the dementia unit.
In Panda’s head, there’s a simple algorithm that goes “(Go to dementia unit) -> (Receive snack)”, and it hasn’t failed him yet.
And he didn’t just do it once. He did it a couple more times.
Maija jested that he wanted to visit his friends. Whether he actually likes their company or just wants to satisfy his cravings, I can’t say for certain.
Indeed, maybe Panda is a more virtuous horse than I’m giving him credit for. Horses have proven to be just as affectionate as some more familiar pets, like cats and dogs.
One of the cleverer comments that Maija received was “They might’ve forgotten, but he hasn’t”.
A reward-system is always the go-to way to train an animal. But it’s especially effective with horses, who’ve shown to have really strong memory responses when conditioned.
Horses even remember different voices, and are more obedient to voices they’re familiar with.
Given that he spends most of his time with just Maija, all that extra company at the dementia unit was probably a huge change for him.
After that many people fed him and gave him affection, I would go back too.
Panda captured the hearts of not just the dementia patients, but thousands of Maija’s followers too.
Maija’s more recent TikTok uploads are of her and Panda at competitions. Seems like Panda isn’t visiting them as often, unless he’s gotten even sneakier.
The next time Panda does it, I hope Maija films it and shows us again.
Panda’s little adventure to see his friends is too much of a treat to pass up.
Watch the moment Maija caught Panda running off below. If you liked this article, please share it too!
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@maija.vance Replying to @mercury.n.the.snail #therapyhorse #horses #palominopaint ♬ original sound – MAIJA
