Clicker Training Can Be

A Useful Tool

For years now animal trainers have used clicker training as a more humane and behavior modification training program for all types of animals but only recently has it begun to gain acceptance by horse trainers. Clicker training relies on positively reinforcing positive or correct behaviors from your animal and then building on these successes.

Trainers have been successful teaching their horses to lift their hooves for checking shoes or trimming, loading into a trailer or taking their bit or giving the crowd a bow.

Clicker training can be a useful tool especially when you are navigating a crowd and your voice is competing with the noises of the crowd and other horsemen. The basics of this type training mean that you’ll be able to use a technique that your horse will come to enjoy and perform the tasks much faster and with more enthusiasm.

Getting Started with Clicker Training

The first step to having your horse respond to clicker training requires that you get him used to hearing the sound and responding to a reward based training system. The way that you do this it to take a handful of your horse’s favorite treats and spend a few minutes introducing them to the sound and what happens when he hears the click.

So make a click and as soon as you do provide your horse with a treat. Do this several times and very quickly he will learn that when he hears the click a treat will be coming. This allows you to begin to control his behavior by rewarding him.

Try to use an easy behavior when starting your clicker training. One of the easiest is to have your horse put his nose on a target, such as a ball on a stick. When your horse learns to do this behavior with the clicker, then you can actually lead your horse onto a trailer or have him stand still for an exam using this technique.

Clicker Training Techniques: Keeping It Simple

In order to get your horse interested in touching the ball you have to reward any interest that he shows in the target. As soon as your horse touches the target with his nose click and give him a treat. Move the target and when he touches it, reward him again. Keep your training sessions short so that your horse does not lose interest and begins to enjoy the training sessions.

Once your horse is able to touch the target reliably, you can begin to make the target tougher for him to get to. You can move it so that your horse has to turn his head, put it between his front legs or make him reach up high. Each time your horse gets the target, click and reward your horse’s behavior.

Remember that so far we have not used any commands as all.

You’ll now be able to add the command “touch” just before your horse reaches the target. Then after he touches the target reward him. Do this through a couple of sessions and only reward your horse when he touches the target when you use the command and the click. This type of training can be used to introduce almost any type of behavior or action.

Clicker Training Sessions: Keeping Them Short

When you do a training session make sure that you are only providing one behavior per session. Any more than this and you may begin to confuse and frustrate your horse making it hard for him to pick up your cues reliably. By offering only one goal per session your horse will quickly learn the behavior and the command for that move.

It’s also important to keep your sessions short. Longer sessions will bore your horse and this again will lead to frustration and refusal to respond which is the opposite of what you’ll want to accomplish with this type training.

Clicker training is perfect for horses that will be around others, and must be moved a lot or participate in events where there is a lot of noise and confusion.

The sound of the clicker, the command and being rewarded is something that will stick with your horse and allow him to know what is right and wrong in most situations.

Clicker training also offers a way for the horse to respond to you in a more personal manner.

Recommended Horse Training Resources:

Natural Horsemanship Training videos … CLICK HERE

Applied Posture Riding … CLICK HERE

Related posts:

1. Training Your Young Horse Personally Or Letting Nature Do Your Horse Training For You
2. Do It Yourself Parelli Horse Training.
3. A Bucking Horse: Rider Training Or Horse Training

Nature vs. Nurture, the Dilemma of Young Horse

Training

Training a young horse

Over the years that I’ve been associated with young horses and horse training, I’ve seen two approaches used when it comes to training young horses. The first is to work with your horse every day to build a bond and teach them in a very specific and controlled manner.

However, the other method of horse training involves allowing the young horse to develop naturally, among any other horses in the barn and take their cues from the rest of the herd.

Effective Horse Training Requires an Effective Horse Trainer

Even without the intervention of regular horse training, your young horse can learn the basic skills from other horses by watching how they react. If fact many, horse owners allow their young horses to learn from the community for as much as 3 years before they institute formal horse training.

This can be effective as well as time saving but if you would like your young horse to gain valuable skills early, be more receptive to human contact and provide a longer useful life then you should start training your horse at a very early age. This allows the young horse to be socialized with you and other humans and accept you as a part of the herd and someone that the colt can learn from as well.

Not only does a daily training routine for your young horse allow you to teach them basic skills, you also learn the personality of your horse and the limits to which you can train them on a daily basis. This is important just like with any athlete you need to understand the limitations and strengths of your young horse and its tolerance for your horse training regimens.

Adding More Advanced Horse Training as a Young Horse Develops

Young horses are like young athletes and they need to have a structured learning environment that allows them to grow and mature in their all-around life and not just excel in one area. Adding additional lessons for your young horse training sessions not only keeps the horse interested but it keeps you the trainer from becoming bored with the same old horse training routine.

Basics need to be covered all the time but by adding different exercises or taking them for a walk while being led by another horse and rider are excellent ways to keep your young horse not only growing but motivated to learn as well.

The Spanish word “colgar” means to hang out or relax with someone and your horse needs to learn to participate in a “colgado” session with you so that the social interaction and bond grows.

These types of hanging out sessions allow you to put out some incidental training such as maneuvering in tight spaces, backing up, sidestepping and obedience type training such as coming when you call. This type training allows you to reward your horse and allow them to become more friend than anything else.

Horse training lessons for young horses should always be simple, have a clear beginning, a clear goal and very few steps to accomplish. Once a task is mastered your horse can then be guided to use that training to learn additional tasks.

A young horse learns fast and will soon learn to enjoy your company as well, as long as you keep your lessons short, offer quality rewards and are patient.

Recommended Horse Training Resources:

Natural Horsemanship Training videos … CLICK HERE

Applied Posture Riding … CLICK HERE

Related posts:

1. A Bucking Horse: Rider Training Or Horse Training
2. Early Lessons ~ The Backbone of a Foal’s Higher Education.
3. Do It Yourself Parelli Horse Training.

How to control a bucking horse.

How to control a bucking horse

Whenever I scan the “Horses for Sale” ads the most often used word tends to be the word “gentle” because so many new horse owners have ended their dreams of riding because of a bucking horse. Often this occurs not because the horse is wild but can be a result of a number of actions and reactions on the part of both rider and horse.

A horse bucks for different reasons and a trainer who’s able to control the horse  is not necessarily a great trainer but is perhaps just an excellent rider. Training is essential and, as always, the best time to train a horse is as a colt, but bucking in an older horse can be corrected once the cause has been determined.

Searching for the Cause of a Bucking Horse

If the your horse has just recently begun to refuse the bit or reacts each time pressure is applied, the first place you should check is your horse’s mouth for a problem. Of course ,if there is no physical problem, it could be a matter of you, if you are an inexperienced rider, giving your horse mixed signals.

When you spur your horse forward and, in a response to your horse’s quick start you pull on the reins, this may confuse your horse and make him react. Perhaps pulling the reins too hard for a turn causes your horse to jerk in response and you think your horse is refusing, so you pull harder and it becomes a force of wills that often results in you lying in a heap on the ground and your horse grazing quietly in the meadow. Bucking is the natural response of a frustrated horse and often a horse is frustrated with the inexperience of the rider and that is what makes him buck.

The Best Way to Control a Bucking Horse

Riding Lessons. Quality lessons make a quality horseman and that leads to a long and happy riding career. Learning to provide your horse with the proper messages makes it much easier for your horse and you  to communicate and ,as always, whenever there is miscommunication a problem exists.

Learning to relax while riding transmits a calming message to your horse and allows him to feel more comfortable which reduces the chance of him bucking. Never over exaggerate your rein movements as this can cause your horse to over react and begin to buck as well.

Provide your horse with consistent, relaxed movements and your horse will react in a calm and relaxed manner and you’ll be less likely to have your horse buck. Controlling the reins and thinking about what you’ll do next and what you want to accomplish goes a long way toward keeping your horse doing what you want and actually enjoying the ride.

Imagine switching places and having someone drive you with reins. They signal you to turn and then take off running but almost immediately slow you down and then when you slow down they want more speed or pull very hard causing you pain. Frustrating scenario isn’t it? You might be tempted to buck as well.

However, a good rider learns to accept the riding experience as a joint venture between their horse and themselves. When your horse bucks and you  remain relaxed and allow him to settle by moving him forward and letting him get the frustration out, you’ll be still maintaining control.

Controlling a bucking horse can be extremely frightening to an inexperienced rider but with practice and time in the saddle you will soon master the joint partnership that is real riding.

Related posts:

1. Training Your Young Horse Personally Or Letting Nature Do Your Horse Training For You
2. How to Stop a Bolting Horse ~ Tips for the Beginner Rider.

Is catching your horse a problem?

How to catch a horse

As catching a difficult or problem horse can be difficult,  I figured it might be worth talking about the issue.

Keep in mind that a newly acquired horse or a horse that may be herd bound needs a little assurance & patience from us. They want to know that you’re not going to harm them or abuse them in any way.

As the owner of this type of horse you need to create a friendly, but “I’m the boss” relationship with your horse. That’s if you want a long and rewarding partnership with him as I’m sure you do.

Horses, no matter what age, are constantly learning from their interactions with us. Whether or not you think your interactionwith your horse is a “formal training session” your horse is always learning.

This is the case whether you are riding, lunging, feeding, playing, bathing, your horse or just walking through your horse’s pasture or in his stall. Your horse will come to trust in you as you work, play and interact with him.

To start this process you should make every experience with your horse an enjoyable, learning experience.

For instance, if you are having problems catching your horse in the pasture then you probably don’t have a working relationship with him.  But with a little  patience and persistence from you you’ll find you can overcome this.

First you should  reassure your horse you mean him no harm and that it’s a pleasant experience when he’s with you. When you go out into the pasture don’t just go with the intention of “grabbing” your horse for a quick ride, workout or training session.

Instead, walk up to him with a treat in hand; a carrot or apple will do. He may be stand-offish at first but his natural curiosity will eventually win out and he’ll accept the treat.

As he reaches for the treat try to pat him gently on his head and neck. Maybe you won’t be able to pat him today or tomorrow but I’m sure it won’t take long before you can.

Persistence is the key to having your horse remember!

Do this every day, several times a day until he realizes you aren’t there just to catch him and put him to work. Eventually he will learn to enjoy these “little get togethers” and these “little get togethers” will build his confidence in you. Before you know it he’ll be coming to you whether you have a treat for him/ her or not.

Horses actually enjoy being with us as our partners and friends! Horses are by  nature very curious creatures and are always interested in someone or something in their space. Take advantage of this! Maybe you need to work on your fencing, or round pen and chances are that if he sees you in his space he will come to see what you are doing. Seize this opportunity to just talk to him and give him a gentle pat. I don’t know about you but when I’m in the pasture working my horses come to see what I’m doing and I always take a few minutes to ask them how their day is going, and give them a gentle pat or two.

You should be persistent and patient in your efforts. Rome wasn’t built in a day and your horse may not let you catch him in a day either. This will take a few days or possibly weeks but your horse will come to trust you and enjoy your company.

RECOMMENDED RESOURCE:

Natural Horsemanship Training videos

Horse training system teaches natural horsemanship with 17 training videos

CLICK HERE

Pilates and Applied Posture Riding

This is a really excellent program.  See details by …

CLICKING HERE

Related posts:

1. How to Catch a Problem Horse.

Training Your Foal Early Pays Big

I believe we all have an inborn love for a special animal. The Eskimos in the Arctic developed an extraordinary kinship with polar bears while the Aborigines in Australia live their lives in perfect harmony with the kangaroos and emus. Worldwide, people are attracted to dogs, cats or other pets. But if given the chance, many people would probably be spending a lot of time with their horses.

Witnessing a pregnant mare bear a newborn foal is a wonderful experience. However, no matter how watchful your eye is or how many nights you may spend sleeplessly, you just can’t seem to catch her when she slips out the foal. But when you do first see the new borne foal you’ll probably just stand there stunned as you lay your eyes on your new companion.
 

Even if horses were made to be man’s perfect companion, you still need to mold the instincts of a newborn foal to develop a mutual relationship that’s both rewarding and heartwarming. Most mare owners have developed their own versions of foal training that they have found to be effective.

The good thing is that horses are born to learn.

As early as a few hours or days after they are born, foals can undergo an actual training. The first few weeks of a foal’s life are essential in his learning process. In fact, it is during this time that it will learn the basic lessons in life.

You can start off by cuddling the foal in its stall. Then you may walk the foal around in the barn. You can try to use a flexible wand so you can gently pat the foal lightly if he falters or hangs. You would also need to train the foal to stay in the place where you left him. This training may take a few sessions before the foal will be obedient.

These are the basics of horse training. The trick here is to be able to teach the foal how to learn on his own. When he becomes older, it’ll be easier for you to train him more difficult feats.

Just remember that the most important thing you can instil in your foal is trust between the both of you. With trust, it’ll be easy for you to conduct your training. Trustful foals will be willing to listen to you and absorb all the knowledge that you wish to impart.

If you can manage to inspire the foal to be trained in the earliest stage of its life, you can be sure that it’ll grow to be an honest and submissive horse. These early lessons are the backbone of the foal’s higher education.

You can access seventeen excellent videos that teach natural horsemanship by CLICKING HERE

Related posts:

1. The Soul of a Horse ~ Life Lessons from the Herd.
2. Training Your Young Horse Personally Or Letting Nature Do Your Horse Training For You
3. Baby Horses: Caring for Newborn Foals.

First of all … catch your horse!

I was recently chatting to a group of Instructors at my local Saddle Club and was interested to hear that they all agreed that they had more requests for assistance from members who couldn’t catch their horses than for any other reason. And the general feeling was that if a horse was difficult to catch, either the owner was being unsympathetic to the horses needs and feelings, or the horse hadn’t learned to trust and work with the owner.

Based  on this casual chat I think I can safely say that if your horse doesn’t enjoy your company he will be unwilling to be caught, and this will usually become a habit.  So if your horse is reluctant to be caught, you have to turn the situation around so your horse looks forward to your visits. But this isn’t as easy as turning up every now and then with a bunch of carrots.

Be prepared to spend the amount of time it takes.

Allow plenty of time. Once you start you should perservere until your horse is safely and readily caught. Set this as your goal you need to achieve, however long it takes. Strive to achieve the ideal situation where your horse wants to come to you. It’s definitely a weekend job. Not something you tackle if you’ve got to leave for work in half an hour! You’ll need to be both fit and tenacious.

Your joining-up techniques will work better in a larger area than in a round pen.

Although you’ll probably have lot of walking to do, you’ll need to allow both your horse and yourself plenty of space to move. Then, for starters, you’ll have to convince your horse that being caught doesn’t necessarily lead to discomfort or work. This can be achieved by spending time with your horse that doesn’t involve any of what your horse sees as negative experiences.

A good start is to regularly visit your horse in the pasture. You can clean up manure, check your fencing, in fact anything but approaching your horse. Should he approach you, just let him do it in his own time, perhaps sniff at you and you then walk away. Do not let your horse walk away from you. You must be the final decision maker in any exchange with your horse. Keep doing whatever  your current activity and do not make eye contact. I suggest that several visits a day will achieve much more than just the occasional long visit.

On the occasions when you do try to approach your horse don’t walk up full of purpose and intent. If you do your horse will read your intent and think ‘oh, oh, something is up’. Rather, you should soften your body language and slowly stroll towards your horse. Again, don’t make eye contact. Don’t approach head or tail on … approach from an angle at the neck or shoulder and where you horse can clearly see you.

Make this a habit …

It takes time, but I suggest that you make a habit of bringing your horse in to be groomed, to chat with him, brush and groom him, and generally spend quality time with him. He’ll really appreciate it and it will show him that he’s not just been taken in to be worked. Hopefully, after several weeks he’ll start to enjoy being taken in.  Who knows! Perahps he’ll come bounding to the gate every time you approach the field!

The halter and lead rope.

If your horse only runs away when he sees you coming with a halter and lead rope, then you should approach him with them over your shoulder. Your horse needs to learn that the appearance of the halter and lead rope doesn’t necessarily mean that you are going to work him. 

The obstinate horse!

Bribing your horse with treats is not the solution to the problem of catching your horse. Treating your horse, especially if there are other horses in the paddock, can become rather dangerous. If the other horses learn that you always come out with treats you could get hurt as they jostle each other to get the offering.  Your objective must be to catch your horse without carrying a feed bucket or other treats.

Should your horse be determined to not allow you to get close enough to catch him, you’ll need to make available adequate time and have your horse in a small paddock or yard. Bear in mind that a round pen is too small and a large acreage will work only if you don’t mind walking for miles.

What to do next …

When you approach your horse and you know he’ll run away from you, keep him moving. You can use a longe whip as as extension of your arm to assist you in keeping your horse moving forward.  A smart trot is the best gait. At the beginning your horse may act like this is fun and gallop, buck and kick. That’s OK, just let him play and he’ll settle. He may try to stop. It’s possible he may even try and approach you. Don’t let your horse make those decisions. If he tries to stop tell him firmly to trot.

After you see that you horse is starting to pay attention to you, ask him to halt. You may find that he starts looking towards you, flicking his ears, or lowering his head. Move him into a trot again and try to have him working steadily around you. When he’s moving comfortably, again ask him to halt. When he does as you ask, praise him and just let him go.  Repeat this several times so you feel confident that you are getting a consistent reaction to your commands.

When you see that your horse is halting obediently on command, drop your whip and approach him. Hopefully he’ll stand quietly, so praise him.  Pat and pet him and then walk away. Send him out at a trot again. “Rinse and repeat”, as the saying goes, until you know your horse will stand and wait for you.

When to catch your horse.

Only after you know your horse will stand should you attempt to catch him. But if he moves away from you, send him on his way and repeat the process. Your goal is to convince him that standing to be caught is more comfortable than running away. And, patience is a virtue in this process of training.

If he does stand for you be sure there is a reward at the end of the lesson. Put his lead rope on and give him a bit of grooming. And then once again let him go loose in his pasture. A short time later visit him out in the pasture. This will reinforce the fact your your appearance does not mean he has to go to work or suffer any form of discomfort.

Finally, a few tips that may help you.

*    Encourage your horse not to feel like he’s being caught and trapped. He should always want to be with you.

*    Make it clear that when your horse chooses to be with you, you make him welcome.

*    Make a habit of catching your horse, giving him a pet and a rub on the neck, then lead him a few strides and let him go.

*    Try to vary your routine. Sometimes he’s caught and released after a pat and a cuddle, sometimes he’s brought in and ridden.

*    Vary your horses workload so he looks forward to going out, and always handle him sympathically!

Related posts:

1. How To Catch A Difficult Horse!

Based on talking to the Instructors at my local Saddle Club, here are some of the more common mistakes that are frequently made by riders who take on the responsibility of becoming a new horse owner. See if any of them apply to you!

Mistake #1 - Assume you can ride any horse.

Horses are not all the same. You’ll find that some will let you mount up and that you can ride them easily. But others may be so green that you could get hurt if you have little or no riding experience. Or it could be that the horse has become so used to being ridden by only one rider that he’ll be determined to unseat any strange rider.

The horses that will let just about anyone on and ride are usually the older horses. Because they have been ridden the most, usually with a variety of riders, they’ll be the most forgiving of the mistakes that a beginner rider can make.  The younger horses are usually a lot tougher to ride and should only be ridden by an experienced rider.

Mistake #2 – Assume there is only one way to train a horse.

When an experienced horse owner starts having problems with their horse, they will ask questions and look for solutions. One of the first places they’ll look is at how the horse was trained. They’ll question the training technique that was used to see if they can find the answer. The new horse owner may assume that the same technique is used by all horse trainers. So they apply this technique to try to find the answer to their particular problem. If they don’t find the answer they can then think that they just have a dumb horse or that the horse just can’t be trained.

But there are a wide variety of ways to train a horse. So if you are using one particular technique and this doesn’t seem to be working, then you’ll need to try something else. It is at this stage that a new horse owner should probably be looking for advice and assistance from a more experienced rider. And from my experience, this is where belonging to a Saddle or Riding Club becomes a valuable asset.

Mistake #3 – Not riding your horse enough.

As a new horse owner, if you are having trouble with your horse, chances are that you’ve not been riding him frequently enough and that he’s ‘gone sour’. Irrespective of your horses age, it’s really important that you ride him often. From time to time, for a variety of reasons, you’ll find that you just don’t have the time to saddle your horse up and go for decent ride. If this is the case, at least take half an hour to give your horse some grooming and fifteen minutes or so of good lunging.

The best thing you can do for your horse is to ride him, ride him, and ride him. Riding every couple of weeks is not enough for your horse. It might sound like a strange thing to do, but even just taking your horse for a walk using a lead rope is better than nothing. It gives your horse a chance move his muscles, a change of scenery, and an aid to avoid boredom.

Mistake #4 – Thinking your horse is at fault when there is a problem.

Your horse needs plenty of exercise.

Horse are not unlike any other creature, they have their own unique problems. However it is not unusual for many of the problems you will see in your horse are not actually his fault, but your fault.  When you come across a problem with your horse, stop for a moment and make an effort to assess the real reason behind the problem. In many cases you’ll find that it could be that you don’t have the control over your horse that you need to make you and your horse an effective team.

If you can’t find the root of the problem then you must realise that there are various alternative methods of gaining the needed control. Once again, I recommend that you don’t fumble around seeking the answer but get the help of an experienced horse person. This is another instance where belonging to an active Saddle or Riding Club can be of assistance.

Mistake #5 – As a new horse owner, you don’t realise that every interaction with your horse is a training exercise. 

You need to realise that whether you’re just petting your horse, brushing him down or giving him a full groom, you are also actually training him. If you are a new and inexperienced horse owner you should stop and think about what you do and how you do it. In some ways your horse is like a child; he will pick up things from you. You have more of an effect on your horse’s behaviour that you may be aware of.

Mistake #6 – As  a new horse owner, if you ride your horse when you have little or no experience of riding and horsemanship, you may do more harm than good.

In their enthusiasm to get going with their horse ownership and riding career, many new horse owners will ride their horse when they have virtually no real horse riding training or skills. Horses react to leg pressure, how you sit in the saddle, whether or not you are tense, and many other sometimes subtle signals, so it’s important that you have a comprehensive understanding of riding procedures.

It is best that you have riding lessons from a qualified trainer right at the start. In my case, I had an instructress from my local Saddle Club come to my property for quite a period of time to give me one-on-one riding lessons, as well as instruction on general horse care. This was followed by the group riding training I received at my monthly Saddle Club meetings.

Related posts:

1. Horseback Riding ~ Avoid the Mistakes I Made When Buying a New Horse!
2. The bit is the key to the horse.
3. So, You Want To Buy Your First Horse ~ What You Need To Know

 CONTENT OF THIS POST IS BY COURTESY OF:

Related posts:

1. A Tip On Dealing With Problem Horses.
2. Grooming Tips For Horses ~ A Major Part of Easy Horse Care.

What are the benefits of horse lunging?

• Lunging your horse is one method of teaching him that you’re the pack leader and to understand and respect your instructions to him through your body language, with the assistance of a lunge whip, and well as your verbal commands.
• Even in the later stages of your horse training and riding, lunging is a very affective method of using up excess energy prior to your mounted ride should you horse be ‘full of spirit’!  But be sure you don’t overdo it prior to your ride. Ten minutes covering a short ‘walk’,  a short ‘trot’,  and possibly a short ‘canter’. Possibly five minutes in both directions.
• When you are just too busy to get the ride you want, a period horse lunging  is a great way to to provide exercise for your horse, which ideally he should be getting every day.

Should I lunge my horse with, or without a saddle?

This is purely your choice. If the lunging is for exercise only, I ‘d suggest you go with no saddle, just a halter. If you’re going to ride after the lunging I’d suggest you tack your horse up with the saddle and a snaffle bridle.  But be sure  the stirrup irons are secured up at the top of the leathers to prevent them from bouncing about.

Getting started

When you commence your  lunging session, start by working slow, smooth and easy.  Think of your horse as being young with a short attention span and still developing his knees. So keep your sessions short ~ no more than 10 minutes.  But this isn’t to say an older horse won’t benefit from lunging, too, he will.

Communicating with your horse and setting up the pecking order.

First, your horse must know what is being asked of him and ultimately, both of you need to be on the same page while “communicating” with each other.  So start the lunging to open the lines of communication and create correct movement with your horse.  While it may sound odd to have your horse working in a circle it actually teaches him something. It sets up the pecking order between you and your horse by controlling your horse’s space.  It also acts to condition your horse no matter what his age. 

Pecking order communication starts with your horse reading your body language and vice versa.  Over time, and with lots of patience, your horse learns to wait for your signals rather than run in tight little circles.  Once commands are learned on the ground, it makes them easier for your horse to understand while you’re mounted. 

Start with the right lunging equipment.

You’ll need to start with the right equipment. This should include a properly fitted halter, lightweight lunge whip, a lunge line that you can work with in comfort and boots for leg protection in case your horse happens to have an over reach.  The lunge whip by the way, is an aid only and not your primary training tool. 

Where to lunge your horse. 

Try to lunge in a round pen or an enclosed area of some sort with rounded corners, and flat ground.  Remember the goal is to keep control of your horse at all times, so don’t try this in an area without fencing.  When you start your lesson, always start with one direction and stick to it.  If you choose to work on the left side, then always hold your lead in the left hand with excess line in your right (and the whip as well, if you choose to use one) and keep all body positions the same.  You start to the left, pointing to the left, leading the horse’s nose to the left and move your feet, swing your rope end (or lift the whip) towards the horses hip to ask for forward movement.  Should your horse keep facing you then guide him  forward by swinging your rope/whip toward his shoulder.

 So now your horse is moving in a circle to the left.  Move with him, staying in the middle of the round pen with sufficient line played out. Keep the whip low, or your rope end low and walk quietly.  The thing you want to teach your horse is, that if YOUR feet are moving, his feet need to be moving.  Keep your body behind his withers to ensure forward movement. If you get in front of the withers, your horse will probably stop. If he does, calmly keep moving and touch the whip or rope end to his hind legs to keep him moving until YOU stop your feet.

The major reason this approach will work, and work well, is that this is totally natural behavior for a horse.   If you lunge in this manner, your horse will understand your body language almost immediately.  So initially use body language, then you can add voice to the body language.

Adding the verbal command.

Once your horse has your body language learned you can add your voice commands to match your body language.   You’ve already laid the foundation for him to understand what you are asking with your body. By combining a verbal command with your body language, it’s relatively easy for him to make the association between body and voice.   You’re doing all the pre-preparatory work so that when you do saddle your horse, he can make the transition from ground body language and voice commands to the same language in the saddle.  Your body language and position are crucial when communicating with your horse.  Once you are in the saddle, if your body language matches what you gave your horse on the ground, you will build confidence in your horse that you are a trustworthy leader and he’ll listen to you. 

Teaching your horse to stop.

Now you need to learn how to teach your horse to stop.  As simple as it sounds, all you have to do is stop all forms of communication.  Stop walking, lower your head, and softly say “Whoa!”  If you want a nice stop, quiet and relaxed, you have to give your horse the right language to do that.  If your horse doesn’t stop, just keep on walking and try it again.  He’ll get the idea so long as you have the patience.  Bottom line is if you want a nice quiet and obedient horse, you have to be all those things yourself.

Positioning your horse.

Remember to keep your horse ‘on the fence’, not into the middle of the circle with you while you’re lunging him..  Should he drifts in, point your the whip or swing the rope at his shoulder to move him back out.  Just keep doing that until he does a few nice clean rounds staying in a circle.  Then you can stop him and praise and pet him.  Once this positioning is almost automatic, you can then change direction and work on the other side.  So if you started on the left, switch to the right and work on that side.  What you will be doing on the right side is exactly what you were doing on the left side. 

Your horse may have a ‘good side’ and a ‘bad side’.

 And here’s some good news, in many instances once your horse has learned what you want on one side, you probably find that it won’t take as long to train on the other side.  Having said that, it’s important to note that many horses do have a good lead/side and a bad lead/side and it may seem your horse is have trouble with “getting it right” on that bad side.  You will be able to tell if this is the case with your horse once you have had the chance to work with both sides.  If this happens, don’t be discouraged about it.  You’ll find it will just require a bit more patience on both your parts to work through this. 

Moving on into change of gait.

Having  mastered the start, walk, and stop, add in the trot and then move on to the canter/lope. To trot, raise the whip a couple of feet higher. Raise your shoulders and trot ~ yes, you trot too. If your horse doesn’t trot, cluck to him.  If that does not work, crack the whip. Once in the trot maintain your body and whip position. Your horse should keep trotting until you drop your arm/whip position and slow your trot to a walk.

Moving to the canter. 

 For the canter, raise the whip a bit higher than for the trot and cluck to your horse. And yes, you will be running as well.  The nice thing about this process, aside from the fact you will be in great shape when the two of you are done, is that your horse will have learned to listen to you and respond to body and voice commands. 

 It’s always a very special feeling to see the end results of patient and loving training.

And one parting point. It’s been established that the most subtle and precise cues that can be given to a horse is by the astute use of the rider’s seat and legs, something you you will probably have to be taught by a well qualified instructor.

Recommended reading:    The New Rider’s Horse Encyclopedia by Elwyn Hartley

Related posts:

1. Horse Language: Here’s Why It Is So Important
2. Mistakes New Horse Owners Make.
3. How to Catch a Problem Horse.

 ”If you can’t BREATHE … nothing else matters!”

That’s a very true saying from The Australian Lung Foundation.  A rather similar well-known saying in the horse fraternity is “no foot … no horse“. It’s a fact that most of the horse lameness problems have the origin in their feet. So it’s important for you to regularly check  your horse’s feet, if not daily, then very frequently. This brings us to a problem that many people who are new to owning a horse have, and that’s lifting a horse’s foot.

This where some practice should come into play. A horse known to play up when being treated by a vet or farrier can be a real problem. Some farriers will not shoe or otherwise tend to your horse’s feet when the horse is difficult. Farrier care is one of the most important parts of caring for your horse so it’s important to teach both yourself and your horse to have your horse’s feet picked-up without fuss to make things as easy as possible for the farrier, your horse, and yourself.

Don’t leave the training to your farrier.

Here the farrier has no problem in picking-up this horse's foot.

If your experience is like mine, here in southern Australia, finding a good farrier is hard enough, so you don’t want him to refuse to trim or shoe your horse because your horse is behaving badly. Squirmers who snatch their feet away, kickers, wigglers, stompers, lazy leaning horses  are the bane of a farrier’s existence.  Farriers are always busy and they don’t have the time to train your horse to pick up his feet and stand quietly. That is your job. So, train your horse to do this early and do it well. And yes, it can also be taught to older horses. Just don’t ask for too much too soon from them and it will all work out.

You need to understand some of the reasons a horse isn’t  happy about picking up his feet.  A horse’s feet are used to run to safety. Holding his foot makes him feel vulnerable. It might be they have not even been shown properly how to lift their feet. He might have been handled badly in the past when having his feet picked up, or there may be a physical problem – like a sore foot.

Also horses seem to have the knack of sensing when farriers, or vets for that matter, are about. This could be caused by a variety of things such as the smell of of other horses clinging to their clothes, or perhaps medical smells. The cause for your horse having this sense is impossible to isolate.

Suggested strategy for training your horse.

Here’s a suggested strategy for you start with to teach a horse to pick his feet up and stand quietly. You should start with small bits at a time, perhaps about 5 to 15 minutes twice a day should work. Having said that though, each horse is an individual so pace yourself accordingly.

Be sure to start in a safe place such as a round pen. Don’t work with the horse tied for your safety and his. Begin by stroking your horse’s neck and then work slowly down to the shoulder and then the front leg. If he’s happy, you’re on the right track. If he fidgets, just slowly remove your hand at the spot he started getting jumpy and start over again until he settles. Keep doing this until you touch his feet. If you can’t during the first session, don’t be concerned. Just end things on a good note and try again another time. This same routine can be used with the back legs. Just remember, slow, easy and calm does it.

Once you get to your horse’s feet, try picking one up and holding it for a mere fraction of a second and releasing it before your horse takes it away. Then  praise and reward him. Go on to another leg and so on. When you are first working with your horse you don’t want a long hold, you just want to be able to pick the foot up and put it down right away. This teaches your horse you’ll not harm him. Keep increasing the hold time over your sessions with your horse. Eventually, and who is in a rush here anyhow, you will have your horse  stand quietly for not only you, but the farrier. Always keep in mind that trust is a major issue here, so treat your horse with respect and he’ll respond willingly.

Related posts:

1. How To Select And Hire a Farrier
2. How To Pick Up Your Horse’s Hoof
3. Grooming Tips For Horses ~ A Major Part of Easy Horse Care.