What to focus on during your first month’s worth of rides on your horse.

Ken McNabb with "Jericho." Journal photo

By AQHA Professional Horseman Ken McNabb in America’s Horse

When I put my first 30 rides on a horse – whether it’s a colt I’ve just started under saddle or an older horse that’s new to me – there are a number of things that I’ll teach or reinforce to the horse.

It’d take a book to talk about everything that need to be accomplished, but I’ll go over a few things that were important to me as I began working with “Jericho,” a 4-year-old gelding registered as WR Turning Diamonds. I handled him (and later purchased him) at the 2010 Road to the Horse colt-starting challenge. So I had started him under saddle, but when we got home, we had a lot more work to do. Here’s where we started:

Softening to the Bit

Once I’m in the saddle, the most important thing to me is that my horse responds softly to any cue that I give him. If I add pressure to the horse by delivering a cue, as soon as he responds, I release him. That sets up a system. If I consistently release and reward my horse for giving the correct response, that will develop his desire to respond quicker and try harder for me.

I use a snaffle bit for these first rides because it allows me to contact each corner of the horse’s mouth individually. If I touch the right rein, the horse is going to feel pressure in the right side of his mouth. If I touch the left rein, he’s going to feel pressure on the left side of his mouth. And it provides an honest feeling of how he’s responding to me, because it’s a pound-for-pound pressure bit. A curb bit with leverage multiplies a rider’s strength and makes it possible to force a horse to break at the poll, and that’s not what I’m after. I want my horse to respond willingly and softly to a light touch.

The first cue I’m going to give from the saddle will be to pick up a direct rein and add a light pressure to one corner of the horse’s mouth. As I add pressure to that inside rein, I won’t pull my horse’s head around, shortening my rein and forcibly bringing his nose to my knee. I’m going to wait for the horse on the rein, but I will push his body with my legs.

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As the horse feels that added pressure on his body, he’s going to seek a release and try to get away from that pressure. I want him to bring his nose off center two to three inches and flex in the poll, dropping his nose slightly toward the point of his shoulder and bringing his face to vertical.

As soon as I feel that response, I release the pressure from both my legs and rein. I only release him on that head position two to three times, then I’m going to add one more step into it and require that before he gets the release, his feet need to follow the direction of his nose.

One of the worst habits developed from softening exercises is horses who are bent consistently from side to side but do not connect it to their feet. These horses are very flexible in their head and neck, but when pressure is added from an outside influence and the emotions raise up, and the rider picks up on that rein, a lot of times that horse will bring his nose over to the rider’s knee but keep right on going in a straight line through his shoulders.

To avoid that habit, or to fix that habit, I am not going to release the rein unless my horse moves his shoulders in the direction of his nose. Or, if I’m asking him to disengage his hindquarters, I will release only when he moves his hindquarters away from the direction of his nose.

This exercise should be practiced at both directions at the walk. When I start getting consistently good results, I take it to a jog, then an extended trot and eventually the lope.

When I start riding this exercise, a lot of times the horse will just go in circles as he tries to figure out what I’m asking for. But as he becomes more and more responsive, the exercise begins to look more like a slalom course, as if I were riding an “s,” so I call this exercise the “Circle S.”

As I ride the “s” shapes, I’ll look where I want to go, take contact with the horse’s mouth, wait for him to bring his nose off center, flex in the poll and then follow his nose with his feet. I immediately release the rein and change directions.

If there is a pause between the release of the rein and the change of directions, the horse is likely to stay sluggish and lean on the bit much longer. If I release the right-hand rein and immediately start the process on the left-hand rein, back and forth, them the horse will start expecting to receive a cue and will be waiting to respond. He’ll get much softer, much lighter, much faster.

Disengaging the Hindquarters and Stopping

My second softening-for-control exercise is teaching the horse to disengage his hindquarters.

I’m going to continue the “Circle S” exercise but will shorten my inside rein and look over my shoulder at my horse’s hindquarters until his front end stops moving and his hind end steps over  away from his nose. At that point, I release him and ride forward.

You can use the hindquarters to control the horse’s forward movement, and that’s a great way to develop a stop in a horse that doesn’t know how to stop. However, after I’ve been riding a horse more than two or three days, this isn’t the only exercise I’ll use to stop him. I don’t want to dwell on this one-rein stop.

Once I have my horse consistently disengaging his hindquarters and bringing his body to a stop, I start asking him to soften his nose on two reins.

I pick up on the rein, just as I did in the “Circle S” exercise. I contact his mouth with my right rein and maintain that pressure until the horse recognizes the bit. I maintain the pressure on my right rein and add an equal amount of pressure on my left rein.

This encourages the horse to flex at the poll and bring his face to vertical. When he does that, I release him and tell him what a good job he’s doing.

It’s really important that my horse continues walking or trotting forward through this exercise at a good pace. I want him striding out and going someplace, because as my horse reaches out and moves forward, his hind end will come up underneath his belly and cause him to lift his belly up and elevate his back. That’s the beginning of a collected frame.

If the horse lollygags and drags his feet instead of reaching under himself, he’ll elevate his head, bring his chin in and hollow out his back. That causes both physical and training problems for the horse as he braces against the bit with his lower jaw.

Once my horse is really softening his nose with good forward movement, I ask him to stop straight on two reins.

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It’s important to realize that, when pulled on aggressively, the bit is going to stop the first thing it comes to, and that’s the front end. The last thing I want to do is teach my horse to stop on his front end. I want him to stop smoothly off his hind end so I’m not getting jolted out of the saddle and I’m not causing damage to my horse’s front end.

To create a soft stop on the hindquarters using the reins, I ride my horse forward, get his nose really soft in my hands, bring his face to vertical and keep a soft contact on the reins. Once I have the horse soft in my hands, I’m going to softly say “Whoa.”

I’ll give the horse two seconds to respond (counting “one thousand one, one thousand two”). If he has not responded, I pick up on one rein. Then maintaining pressure on the first rein, I lift the second rein and apply pressure. This keeps my horse’s neck straight forward, but it puts a twist in your bit, which causes the horse enough discomfort that he will immediately stop. I’ll back him up to a point where I first said “Whoa,” drop the reins and let him sit and think for a minute.

I’ll practice this exercise at a walk until the horse becomes proficient, then move into a trot, an extended trot and eventually a lope. In no time at all, my horse will be stopping off the “Whoa.”

Top professional competitors share seven tips for riding accurately to the jumps.

In the perfect world, a horse lands 6 feet from the jump, setting up the next in a line. Illustration by Jean Abernethy.

From The American Quarter Horse Journal

Today’s AQHA over-fence classes include working hunter, equitation over fences, hunter hack and jumping. Each event, though unique in style and purpose, demands horse and rider athleticism, efficiency, balance and a strong understanding of distances.

Define a Distance

Hunter-jumper riders and coaches use the words “distance” and “spot” to reference the exact geography in which a horse’s legs lift from the ground in front of a jump. A good “distance” or “spot” is a safe, esthetically pleasing measurement – typically about 6 feet away from an average 3-foot jump.

Some riders seem to be born with a natural eye for a distance. They can ride nearly any horse and harmoniously soar over jumps without a misstep. Whether consciously or not, those riders accurately calibrate their current speed, rhythm and the ground stretching out in front of them as they approach the jumps. They seldom change pace.

“You’ve either got an eye, or you’re developing your eye,” says AQHA competitor, coach and restricted hunter judge Sandy Vaughn of Ocala, Florida. “For some riders, it’s like breathing – we don’t think about breathing, we just breathe.”

On the other hand, Sandy says, no one rides a perfect distance all the time.

“Everybody is going to chip in at a jump at some point, and it’s not a cardinal sin,” she says. “I assure you, it’s going to happen. The challenge is to remember that it’s not over if you have one bad fence. So what if you had a bad fence? Your competitors might have five bad fences!”

A good distance is a critical component of a beautiful, safe ride. Horse-rider miscommunication about distances leads to haphazard, even dangerous, riding.

“If you do get to a bad spot, you have to sit deep and ride what you’ve got, without panicking,” Sandy says. “If you make a big move and don’t sit and wait, there’s a good chance you’ll be kissing the earth.”

Improve Your Odds

Whether you were born with a natural eye or not, the pros say you can always improve your odds of finding consistent distances. Dozens of great books, videos and DVDs are available on the topic, with scores of tips, ideas and coaching.

For this short refresher article, the Journal talked with six successful Quarter Horse hunter-jumper pros and noted their tips for finding distances.

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1. Understand the 12-Foot Blueprint

Every great hunter ride follows a blueprint of specific strides, take-off and landing positions. Simple mathematics rules the ride.

Hunters are expected to maintain a 12-foot average stride throughout a course to negotiate the obstacles properly and exhibit stellar jumping form. Without that rhythm, it’s difficult to find consistent distances.

“It’s custom to set a course of 3-foot jumps off the 12-foot stride, as long as the footing is good,” says Mike Christian, course designer for the AQHA and AQHYA World Championship shows. “If the footing is too deep, we might shorten the lines a little because the horse has to work harder to get to the jumps.”

Mike, who is an “R” judge for the United States Equestrian Federation, notes that for lower, 2-foot or 2-foot, 6-inch jumps, lines are set one-half to 1 foot shorter. Likewise, the lines can be set up to 2 feet longer for courses with larger, 4-foot jumps.

Still, he said, a 12-foot stride is the average. “It’s hard to judge exactly where horses leave the ground in front of the jump, but for a 3-foot jump, it’s about 6 feet away,” Mike says. “Then they land about 6 feet on the other side of the jump.”

In a perfect world, a horse will jump the first jump from 6 feet away, form a perfect arc over the top, land 6 feet on the other side, and continue away on a 12-foot stride toward the next obstacle. If horses were computers, and riders robots, the formula would work beautifully, and every horse and rider would achieve perfect distances and gorgeous, flowing rides. Unfortunately, when humans and half-ton horses try the task, the margin of error is substantial.

2. Know Your Horse’s Stride

How long is your horse’s natural stride? How do you know when you’re galloping a 12-foot stride?

Horses that compete strictly in hunter events can quickly learn to pick up a consistent, 12-foot stride with training. However, many versatile Quarter Horse hunters also compete in other disciplines, such as horsemanship, so they must learn to be even more adjustable.

“You need to know how to feel exactly the amount of ground you are covering with every stride,” says hunter trainer Lisa Brown of Charlotte, Tennessee. To develop a feel for your horse’s stride, Lisa recommends walking your horse through exercises with poles on the ground.

3. Practice Ground Poles

“Set up four poles on the ground in a big circle,” Lisa says. “Walk through those poles until you know exactly where you are in relation to the poles. Can you feel when your horse picks up his left front leg? How about his right front leg? Can you tell when you are far from the pole, near to the pole or on top of the pole?”

These exercises, Lisa says, seem almost too simple, but they work to train your eye to look and feel for distances.

“If you can’t walk over these poles and know where you’re at, then you’re definitely not ready to look for distances at a big jump,” she says. “When you can walk great through the poles, then try a trot, and ask yourself the same questions. Later, move on to the canter.”

An assistant is helpful.

“Everyone – even professional trainers – needs a ground person to give feedback and make recommendations,” Lisa says. “If you can’t work with a trainer all the time, ask a friend to help. It’s also a good idea to have someone videotape your rides so you can see for yourself how you and your horse appear.”

Eventually, Lisa sets three poles on even ground, spaced 9 feet apart, and canters through the poles to determine her horse’s stride length.

“If your horse can casually take one stride in between the poles, increase the distances to 10 feet, and then longer,” she says. “Ask your ground person to increase the distances between the three poles until they are spaced 12 feet apart and your horse can gallop through the poles consistently, without having to make a big change in step.”

As you go, remember that a faster pace does not necessarily mean that you have accomplished a longer stride.

“Sometimes, the faster you run, the shorter your horse’s stride can become,” Lisa says. “If you chase them, they are going to run and shorten their stride.”

Instead, work to create long gallops in big, open fields. If your horse isn’t especially tall, don’t give up. Plenty of 15.3-hand horses are known to have nice, long and flowing strides.

4. Visualize

David Connors, trainer and coach of multiple world champions and AQHA Superhorses, teaches visualization as a pre-game warm-up.

“First, I tell my students to visualize the course and the approach they will take to the first jump,” says David, of Colts Neck, New Jersey. “Think about the way the course rides and the distances between the obstacles and the finish. Also, I always, always, always tell my students to look ahead to the next jump.”

Sandy agrees.

“Look beyond the jump you are approaching,” she says. “And never look down. There is no golden spot on the ground. I find that when you focus on the ground, you get a chip.”

5. Maintain Rhythm

David Warner of Alto, Michigan, stresses rhythm as the key ingredient of a successful ride.

“When people start worrying too much about seeing a distance instead of riding a rhythm, it makes things more complicated,” said he says. “If you keep your horse on the correct, 12-foot rhythm, you’re not going to get the perfect distance every time, but you ride the distance you’ve got. You might ride a little long this time or a little short, and you can change it up a little, but it’s less complicated. People find their way around courses much better when they just lock in to a rhythm.”

David Warner tends to keep his students thinking about their courses as simply as possible.

“Remember that a jump is just a canter stride,” he says. “If you ride it well and consistently, the distances will come to you.”

6. Keep Coming

Shane George, world champion rider, coach and AQHA judge of Magnolia, Texas, stresses working forward out of the turns.

“The biggest thing I can say is, make sure you have your horse in front of you through the turn,” Shane says. “Do not be taking back and backpedaling. The tighter the turn, the more leg you should hold on your horse. If you allow things to change too much, you will have more trouble seeing a distance.”

The phrase “have your horse in front of you” means, essentially, “keep the rhythm consistently motoring along.” Don’t allow your horse to slow down and change pace. Slowing to balance a bit is OK, Shane says, so long as you get your horse back in front of you again as you round your corner.

“You don’t want to fly around the turn, but you also don’t want to back-pedal,” he adds. “A lot of times, people don’t know where they are. By the time they see a distance, it’s too late. Then they make a big move or just get that bad, tight spot. If the horse is in front of your leg, then you’re not pulling back or having to move up much at the jump.”

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7. Remain the Same

Most riders see a distance about three strides in front of the jump. At that moment, their tendency is to think, “Wow! There it is! I see it!” Unfortunately, at that point, instead of staying on the same rhythm and stride, the rider makes a big move – perhaps asking the horse to go forward a bit – and consequently riding past the perfect distance.

“Instead of sticking with a rhythm, they gun it,” Sandy says. “That disrupts everything. Instead, you should stay on a rhythm and let the jump come to you.”

One of the most complicated jumps to assess is a single oxer parked way out in the middle of the arena. Because of the long approach to the jump, riders tend to make stride adjustments along the way, resulting in a choppy approach and an inconsistent ride.

“People want to gear up way too early for this,” Shane says. “If you canter around the corner, take your time and hold your pace, your eye will find a distance.” Shane notes that some riders gallop directly to the single oxer, which can be impressive. Unfortunately, if they miss, it’s a big miss.

“Just be patient until you are three-quarters of the way there, and then you can see where you need to be” he says.

Get ready for travel season with tips from USRider.

Perform maintenance checks on your trailer before traveling. Journal photo

From AQHA Corporate Partner USRider Equestrian Motor Plan

Before the start of the summer travel season, it is critically important for horse owners to perform basic yet essential maintenance on their trailers. USRider, the national provider of roadside emergency assistance for horse owners, reminds equestrians to invest time doing routine preventive trailer maintenance. This will be time well spent because it will ensure that trailers will be in optimal shape to provide safe passage for precious cargo during the upcoming season.

“A good roadside assistance program is something all horse owners should have but hope they will never have to use,” says Bill Riss, general manager for USRider. “To that end, our mission is to continually educate horse owners about trailering safety.”

To provide a reliable and accessible source of information about trailering safety, USRider maintains an Equine Trailer Safety Area on its website, www.usrider.org. The safety information is developed with input from equine travel expert Neva Kittrell Scheve.

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“We have carefully developed this area to be a resource with helpful and practical topics – all free and available to members and non-members alike,” Bill says. “Our website is designed so visitors can print out information as a handy reference. We also post safety bulletins as new information is developed.”

Examples of the information available at www.usrider.org include a list of items every horse trailer should have on board, short trip and long trip precautions, and trailer inspection procedures.

“Horse owners can put these tips to work and greatly reduce the chances that they will be stranded on the side of the highway,” Bill says.

Some of the tips include:

1. Remove and inspect all wheels and hubs or brake drums.
2. Inspect suspension for wear.
3. Check tightness of hanger bolt, shackle bolt and U-bolt nuts per recommended torque values.
4. Check brake linings, brake drums and armature faces for excessive wear or scoring.
5. Check brake magnetic coil with an ohmmeter. The magnetic coil should check 3.2 ohms (+/- 0.3ohms). If shorted or out of tolerance, replace.
6. Lubricate all brake moving parts, using a high-temperature brake lubricant.
7. Remove any rust from braking surface and armature surface of drums.
8. Inspect oil or grease seals for wear or nicks. Replace if necessary.
9. Inspect and grease wheel bearings.

In addition to these recommendations, USRider advises horse owners to check all trailer tires, (including spares) for signs of dry rot, correct air pressure, faulty air valves, uneven tire wear, overall tire wear and damage. USRider recommends investing in a high-quality air pressure gauge – learn how to use it – and inspect tire pressure before each trip. Always replace tires if worn or damaged. In addition, tires should be replaced every three to five years regardless of mileage. When replacing tires, always replace the valve stems. USRider recommends that only high-quality tires specifically designed and rated for trailers be used – never use retread or automobile tires on a horse trailer. Bill says, “Quality tires are like fine leather shoes, they only hurt once – when you pay for them.”

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It is also important to service the wheel bearings annually, or every 12,000 miles, due to moisture buildup. Keep a spare set of wheel bearings in your trailer in case of premature failure. Be sure to inspect trailer wiring and lighting; inspect door latches and grease the doors; inspect the floor (be sure to remove any rubber mats so the entire floor can be examined); and inspect and lubricate mechanical moving parts, such as the hitch and suspension parts. If the trailer has been sitting for a while, check for wasp nests, spider webs and any other creatures.

Bill also reminds equestrians to check the contents of their equine and human first-aid kits.

“Any depleted and out-of-date items should be replaced,” he says. A list of recommended items for first aid kits is posted on the USRider website.

USRider advises horse owners to use ICE – In Case of Emergency. This important initiative was designed to aid emergency responders in identifying victims and determining who needs to be notified. Implementing ICE is easy. Program your emergency contact information into your cellular phone and designate it with the acronym ICE.

Horse owners should also ensure that their emergency contact information is stored in their tow vehicle. USRider has developed an In Case of Emergency form and posted it online for horse owners to print out. Simply fill in the blanks and store the paper in the tow vehicle, as well as in the trailer. Additional recommendations, as well as a Power of Attorney form, are posted on the USRider website.

For additional safety tips, visit the Equine Travel Safety Area on the USRider website at www.usrider.org.

USRider provides roadside assistance and towing services along with other travel-related benefits to its members through the Equestrian Motor Plan. It includes standard features such as flat-tire repair, battery assistance and lock-out services, plus towing up to 100 miles and roadside repairs for tow vehicles and trailers with horses, emergency stabling, veterinary referrals and more. For more information about the USRider Equestrian Motor Plan, visit www.usrider.org or call (800) 844-1409.

Clinician Martin Black says he never stops learning.

Martin Black at the recent Horsemen's Reunion. Journal photo.

From America’s Horse

Martin Black grew up in Idaho’s Great Basin around some great horsemen. Not the least of those were his grandfather, Albert Black, and his great-uncle, Paul Black. In that company, he had the opportunity to soak in a lot of time-tested knowledge, which Martin tried to take full advantage of.

His family history with horses actually starts with his great-grandfather, who was born in 1875 and grew up among vaqueros who took great pride in their horsemanship. Joe Black ran thousands of horses through the early 1900s, and he handed those skills and that respect for tradition on to his sons. They, in turn, lived with horses their whole lives.

Paul was the cow boss at the TS Ranch in Nevada, where Ray Hunt had his first buckaroo job.

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Martin was 14 when he first met Ray, who became a great teacher. Tom Dorrance was another mentor. Melvin Jones, a talented Nevada horseman, and Bill Van Norman, a former training columnist for America’s Horse, were other great teachers.

Today, Martin still honors those teachers and their lessons, as he gives horsemanship clinics and travels around the country, as well as Europe and Australia, starting colts.

He says that no matter where he goes, he always remembers his most important teacher: the horse.

“You can’t go to school and learn how to be a wine taster without actually tasting any wine. And you can’t learn to be a horseman without actually riding and seeing a lot of horses,” Martin says.

“Every horse is different, and every step that every horse takes is different. Every breath every horse takes has a different thought behind it,” so it’s an ever-changing process.

“At my clinics, I say that there’s nobody there that learns any more than I do. I watch every horse, trying to figure out what problems that horse is having with that person. It’s rewarding when I can help bring them closer together and see a change in the horse.”

Martin says that as a general observation, he sees a lot of horses having people problems. Or maybe it’s people having ego problems.

“Ego is a big hurdle to get over, and I’m not saying that I don’t have a problem with it myself. But the important thing is to recognize that it is a problem and try to work on it. You have to work on yourself more than on the horse,” Martin says.

If a person takes a my-way-or-the-highway approach to horse training, he is going to have a lot more trouble than if he keeps the horse’s best interests at heart, Martin says.

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That’s what made it so easy for Tom Dorrance to make the progress that he made.

“He had less of an ego than anybody I’ve ever met. It wasn’t about him; it wasn’t about his ego. It was about being there for the horse,” Martin says.

Tom also had a full understanding of the ways in which handlers and riders influence their horses, both positively and negatively.

“It isn’t about conquering a horse; it’s about outwitting him. It’s about setting up a situation so that your desired outcome is the easiest one for the horse,” he says.

How easy is it to pick up the correct lead? Much easier if you think like a horse, not a trainer.

Joe Wolter. Journal photo

From America’s Horse

Most of us, if we’ve been around the arena a time or two, know how to ask for a lope departure.

Inside rein, outside leg behind the girth, moving the hindquarters over just a bit so that the outside hind leg is primed to push off.

If getting the correct lead is a problem, riders are often advised to ask for the lope in a corner or while on a circle.

Easy peasy, right? Yep. Until it isn’t.

Some horses are stiffer on one side than the other, making it difficult to catch a certain lead. It’s important to make sure that there are no medical issues – such as sore hocks – at work. And from there, sometimes we have to start thinking less like a horse trainer and more like a horse.

When riders use a mechanical set of cues as outlined above, “it doesn’t always work,” says trainer and clinician Joe Wolter of Aspermont, Texas. “Especially with a young horse or an inexperienced horse, there are too many little commands that get in their way if they’re not real clear on it.”

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As a young man, Joe says he didn’t know the mechanics – the prescribed steps of horse training – so he thought instead about what made sense to the horse. As he grew in his horsemanship, working for renowned horseman Ray Hunt and then learning from Ray’s mentors, Bill and Tom Dorrance, Joe learned those step-by-steps that would allow you to, say, pick up a given lead or change leads at a particular point in the arena. But he and those great horsemen he worked with never stopped thinking about how to make it the horse’s idea.

“Another way to talk about taking a lead is to just get the direction to be the horse’s idea,” Joe says. “For years, I didn’t know how to change leads with a horse, but I could get a horse to want to go the direction I wanted to go. I found that if it was his idea to go that way, he’d take the correct lead. If it was his idea to change directions, he would change leads, see?

“Sometimes we work on mechanics before we work on changing the horse’s mind,” and that’s when problems can creep in. “We have good intentions, and we think we’re helping, but we’re not. We’re slowing the learning process down by being horse trainers.”

Joe outlines an exercise that sets it up for the horse to succeed, in this case by picking up a formerly tricky left lead.
Trot the horse energetically toward a solid structure such as a barn, at about a 45 degree angle, so that as the horse gets close to the barn and feels the need to change course, she’ll naturally veer off to the left. But don’t steer. Instead, just as you feel the horse about to commit to the left turn, ask for a lope.

If she picks up the right lead, don’t make a fuss. Just wind her down easily to the left, making a smaller circle as she trots and then walks. Flexed to the left, she gets to slow down and relax, making that a good place to be.

But don’t be surprised if the horse very quickly finds out that the left lead is more comfortable in this setup. There’s no positioning the hindquarters, no pulling on the face.

“You used the barn so you could get less involved. And when you got less involved, she had it,” Joe says as he coaches a rider through the exercise. “You set it up so she wanted to turn to the left. You didn’t make her turn to the left; you didn’t ask her to take the left lead. You just got out of her way when she wanted to.”

The same principles can be applied using a fence or brush, or even the edge of a road or trail.

“You know how horses want to travel in that track?” Joe says. “I’ll tip their bodies just a little bit to the edge of the trail or the track, where they’re wanting to get back in the trail, and they’ll pick up the correct lead right there. It doesn’t take much.”

It’s a fun way of thinking: How can I, as a rider, make my horse’s natural impulses work for us, rather than against us?

“If I was waiting for somebody, and say my horse was stiff to the left, I’d position that horse so that when those other riders came over the hill, he’d hear them, and my horse would have to look off to the left.

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“I think there are tons of opportunities to do stuff like that, to help get your horse balanced. The key is to get the horse operating without them knowing that we’re ‘working’ on them.”

Another opportunity might come if two riders get separated on the trail, and the one left behind needs to catch up. His horse, of course, is going to be drawn to that other horse. So set her up by angling her body to the right and asking for a lope. Odds are, she’ll be willing to take that left lead easily.

“Even in a 60-by-100 indoor arena, there is still a place that horse wants to be,” Joe says. “It’s probably by the gate, probably next to his buddies. So use it! Don’t be asking her to take the lead leaving that gate.”

Instead, let her pull toward the gate give you the energy for a lope departure.

“Pretty soon, she won’t want to be at that gate; pretty soon, she wants to be someplace else, so use that. Pretty soon, she just wants to be right with you.”

And when she’s there – when her mind’s with you, wondering what you might ask of her next and being ready to respond – that’s a good feeling for both horse and rider.

Visit www.joewolter.com to learn more about Joe and his 2012 clinic schedule.

Be a “thinking horseman” when you pick up the halter.

Curt Pate says we should remember that every time we touch our horse, we're training him. Journal photo.

By AQHA Professional Horseman Curt Pate in America’s Horse

Before working with a young horse, learn how to correctly catch and saddle him.

In all aspects of horsemanship, horses know when we know, and they know when we don’t know. Skills like catching a horse carry over to riding. If we have the confidence gained from skillfully catching a horse, and if we’re already acting like “thinking horsemen,” we’re well on the way to becoming better riders.

These basic tasks will also give you a good reality check. If none of your horses want to be caught, that might be telling you something. Or if you can’t saddle your horse while he’s untied, you might not be ready to go round up cattle. You need to develop a solid foundation.

Let’s say I have a horse in the pasture that I know I can’t catch. I won’t even go out there and try it, because that would just teach him to get away from me. I’ll go get a saddle horse and bring the horses in to a smaller enclosure, or I might even use grain to make that horse want to be with me.

In AQHA’s FREE Halter Horse Expression report, you’ll learn the secrets to completing your horse’s “total look” in the halter arena.

But with a horse that I have a chance with, I’ll think about catching his front feet. I don’t even think about the rest of the horse. I’m just trying to herd those two front feet to a stop. I position myself in front of the horse, and if he starts moving his head one way or another, or if he lightens up a front foot, I’ll block his movement.

You can’t play too close to the net, because it’s easier for the horse to get ahead of you. If you’re just a split second too late, he is gone, and that’s when he learns he can escape.

I want to get him thinking about getting “heavy on his front feet,” where he’s not shifting the weight off either foot in preparation to step off. When that happens, I’ll approach. If he starts to unweight a foot, then I back up and block him.

Before long, he’ll decide that I’ve got him figured out, and he’ll let me approach.

Whether it’s in the pasture or in the stall, horses are sizing us up as we approach. They’re reading us, so we always have to be reading them to stay a step ahead.

I’m constantly reading my horse as I’m saddling him.

The important thing to remember is that any time we have contact with our horses, we are training them – even as we walk up to them in the pasture or approach them with a saddle.

So if all these simple interactions are so important, how do we know if we’re making mistakes? After all, our habits are ingrained, and a lot of times, we don’t realize exactly what we’re doing.

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I think videos are the answer. Have someone videotape you catching your horse, saddling, getting on. You’ll be able to catch your own mistakes.

Another good tool is to sit down and write an article on how to catch a horse. It will really make you break things down in your own mind and think it out.

And that’s really what I’m encouraging folks to do: to be thinking horsemen.

Timing your cues to the horse’s footfall begins with understanding it.

Know where the horse's feet are and make everything a little smoother. Journal photo.

By Holly Clanahan in America’s Horse

Riding through Pole Canyon, a gorgeous hole in the ground near Quitaque, Texas, the scenery took my breath away. And then so did something else: horse feet.

With my horse striding out nicely underneath me, back rounded and hind feet swinging forward, that’s when I could truly feel it. No guessing, no cheating by looking at the front feet. I felt the hind feet. And I couldn’t stop grinning.

If you know where the horse’s feet are – and the hind feet are the toughest to feel, for me, at least – then you’ll know when to apply your aids. Everything from yielding the hindquarters to asking for lead changes is smoother.

Curt Pate offers 10 tips for building a positive relationship with your horse in Training Your Horse for a Better Relationship report.

Here are AQHA Professional Horseman Brent Graef’s tips for finding the feet:

• As your horse is walking, concentrate on your right leg. Feel the sway of your leg as your horse walks… it will sway out, then in, out, then in.

• When your leg feels closest in to the horse, the front foot on the same side is about to come off the ground. When your leg feels the furthest away from the horse, the hind leg on that side is about to come off the ground.

• Concentrate on one leg at a time and consider asking for help from the ground. If someone can call a particular foot, say the left hind as it’s about to leave the ground, you can register what your body feels like at that moment.

And, different things make sense to different people. So here’s another option for finding the feet.

• At the walk, you’ll feel your hips raise and lower alternately… left, right, left, right.

• Using the right hip as an example, as it is at its highest point and just starting to drop, that’s when the right hind is leaving the ground.

• As your right hip is at its lowest point and about to start rising, that’s when the right front is about to leave the ground.

Order your copy of the Training Your Horse For a Better Relationship, with Curt Pate report today!

Remember, the only time you can influence a horse’s foot to move somewhere is when it is beginning to leave the ground.

Fine tune direct reining for a controlled and comfortable horse.

Learn the direct rein position. Journal photo.

From Fundamentals of Horsemanship

Have you ever wondered how a barrel racing horse bends its neck and body and swoops tightly around a barrel? Or how a working cow horse turns the cow on the fence? Those fine-tuned skills are cultivated through a fundamental of horsemanship: direct reining.

Through honing use of a direct rein, you will establish clear communication with your horse from the saddle, and you will learn how to “allow” direction, rather than force it.

How Do I Do It?

The direct rein position is as follows: Pick up the reins in the middle, and slide your hand down the rein. Keep the rein between thumb and forefinger.

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Open your little finger toward the outside, and open your arm out to a height of 10 o’clock or 2 o’clock.

When you direct the horse, don’t pull the horse; just offer him a direction. Any firm use of the rein should only follow the aid of seat and legs. To teach the direct rein, open your inside leg and apply pressure only with your outside leg, just behind the girth.

Be careful not to lean toward the direction you are asking the horse to take. Leaning into a turn interferes with your horse’s movement. Think of pushing your turns, rather than pulling them.

Open your inside leg, and close your outside rein and outside leg. If you offer the horse a selection of doors, which are either open or closed, he will naturally choose the path of least resistance.

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The Breakdown

This exercise can be broken down into four steps:

1.    Focus: Look toward the place you plan to go.
2.    Seat: Transfer your weight to your outside pocket.
3.    Leg: Gradually close your outside leg to push the horse’s forequarters over.
4.    Rein: Lead the horse in the chosen direction.

AQHA Professional Horsewoman Debbie Owen explains the transition from flat work to over fences.

This simple gymnastic begins with trot poles. Journal photo.

From The American Quarter Horse Journal

“There are three things that I think are really important in a flat horse before you even start them over jumps,” AQHA Professional Horsewoman Debbie Owen says.

The horsewoman based in Bisbee, Arizona, might like to linger over a cup of coffee in the morning, but it’s always after her horse chores are done. She knows the importance of getting the work done first, and having a horse prepared on the flat before approaching a jump is just that.

“They need to go straight; that is first and foremost,” she continues. “They need to move connected between your hand and leg so that their bodies can track straight.

“They need to go forward. If you put your leg on them, they need to know what that means.

“And they need to do it with a good heart, in a relaxed frame of mind.

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“If you don’t have those things in place before you start over jumps, then you run into trouble,” she adds. “You’ll end up with a horse that doesn’t do his turns well, or he’s going to balk at things.”

Once those basics are there, Debbie has a progression of simple exercises she takes a horse through to make the transition from flat work into fence work.

“People don’t always work every day with a trainer, but you can do some of these things on your own, even if you have a small arena,” she says. “If you’re just starting over jumps, and you have a good leg and feel for your horse, you can do these at home.”

Check out Debbie’s exercises even if you’re not interested in going over jumps: Many of them are useful for improving any kind of riding.

No. 1: Round Pen
Work your horse over two trot poles (spaced 4 feet, 6 inches apart) in a round pen.
This exercise gets your horse used to going around and over poles. Debbie often uses this exercise to start preparing horses for jumping even when she’s starting them under saddle. You have to be careful to space the poles far enough apart when they’re young, so they don’t get tangled.

No. 2: Single Poles
Walk and trot over single poles randomly placed in the arena. It’s good to let horses walk and trot randomly over poles on the ground while you work them. It encourages them to watch their feet and gets them used to going over things.

No. 3: Chute
Trot through two poles, or poles with cones, made into a “chute.” Working through a chute gets your horse used to things that come up on his sides. It also encourages him to work straight. You can use the chute to help make your circles symmetrical and to make sure that your horse is round and using himself properly. Trot through the poles, working a figure 8, with the poles in the middle of the 8. Periodically halt between the poles. This exercise encourages straightness and ensures that the horse is working off the leg equally in both directions.

No. 4: “Flower Box” Poles
Walk, trot and canter over properly spaced poles with something new added to them. Trot poles give horses cadence and regulate their pace. Start with one single pole, getting them used to that. Then Debbie adds something new, like flowers. That way, when horses see something new, they don’t think, “Whoa! What is that?” and back off from things. They learn to go over it. Then she puts two “flower box” poles in increments of 12 feet apart, and walks, trots and canters through them. (Remember, the average horse stride is 12 feet.)

When you start cantering through the poles, make sure your horse is adjustable. For example, if the poles are placed 72 feet apart, the horse can canter them in six normal strides. Try cantering through in five extended strides, or seven collected strides.

This gets the horse used to rating his stride and working over odd things.

No. 5: Gymnastic
Work through a simple gymnastic between two jump standards, progressing from trot poles to a simple cross rail line of jumps. Debbie begins by working over trot poles placed between two jump standards. Then she adds a simple cross-rail jump (18 to 20 inches high at the center) as the last element in the line.

When the horse is going over these successfully, she adds two more cross-rail jumps. You can also make the cross rails into simple verticals.

The object in this exercise is to let the horse find his own way. You want the horse to learn to jump on his own, using himself and maintaining forward motion.

If you set up the distances in the gymnastic exactly right, you don’t have to do anything. You can be a passenger as long as you use your legs to encourage the horse forward and steer him straight.

The horse then learns, “This is where I go; this is where I take off, where I land, and how I get to the next jump.” That way they don’t end up being dependent on the rider.

Riders, especially beginners or beginners over fences, often do not have a well-developed eye. They might not see exactly where they need to take off, so they’ll start fussing with the horse as they go into the jump and will get the horse worried.

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Then you end up with a horse that wants to rush at jumps and bolt. It’s all because the horse never learned how to do it on his own.

No. 6: Single Cross Rail
Trot and canter a single cross-rail jump with ground poles or ground lines. Try this once your horse has mastered the gymnastic. If you’ve done your flat work over poles and through a chute, your horse should travel straight.

When you’re ready, you can change it to a vertical single pole jump. (Set jumps 18 to 20 inches high.)

Set your single fences randomly at first, and then set them in lines with the proper distances (12-foot increments) in between.

No. 7: Different Jumps
Add different jumps to your horse’s repertoire.

Debbie adds different things: an oxer, a gate, a brush box, etc. Keep the jumps from 2 feet to 2 feet, 3 inches high, and take them in both directions.

Again, set them up first as single jumps, then in lines.

Take Your Time
This all takes time. Some horses are naturals; others need extra time and attention; and some just don’t like to jump and need to do something else. Try to listen to your horse.

They’re just like people: Sometimes they’re just not ready. Even though they’re broke and you’ve shown them a lot on the flat, they might just not be ready to jump.

Sometimes a little more confidence-building flat work with the poles or gymnastic makes it all come together. Give them time, and you’ll be amazed what’ll happen if you let them think about it for a while.

AQHA Professional Horseman Bennie Sargent shows you how to achieve power steering.

Your reins should create a straight line from your elbow to your horse's mouth. AQHA file photo.

Your reins should create a straight line from your elbow to your horse’s mouth.

When the reins get too long, your hands are either too low or they get up way too high. You lose your leverage, your guide and effectiveness.

Your reins are a steering wheel. A horse carries most of his weight in his front end, so most of your guide and your balance is in the front.

You want light contact on the horse’s mouth and drive from his hind end.

Use your leg as your gas pedal to control how much drive you want. Keep an even amount of pressure on your horse, and do not move your legs back and forth.

I have kids who ask me all the time, “Are my reins short enough?” and yeah, standing there they are, but in the pen when you’re moving, you have to feel and be able to adjust your reins for whatever maneuver you’re performing at the time.

Whether you are showing in pleasure, horsemanship or western riding, there’s no set amount of pressure. It’s give and take.

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Too Much Pressure

Release when your horse gives, and take hold when he takes hold. If you take hold of a horse and feel that he has not given to you, and you pull just a little bit more, that’s probably enough pressure

Just be patient and keep working. If you jerk on a horse, he is going to be resentful to that much pressure all at once. There is not an actual pound or amount of pressure that you need to pull. You just have to feel whether the horse is giving to you or not. When you take hold and feel him giving at the bar and in the poll, you have pulled enough. If you pull really hard and feel your horse pull back, you have over-pulled.

Of course, horses are individuals, just like people, and some are going to take less pressure, and some are going to take more. What a rider has to learn is to find that happy compromise in between. Horses that have been overtrained or mistrained are sometimes a little harder because they already learned an incorrect way. Sometimes you need to go back and just use a snaffle bit. Do a lot of side to side work, and use different pressure points. If that doesn’t work, go to a gag bit where you put more pressure on the poll instead of the mouth. The most important thing to remember is to trust your horse and trust yourself with a less severe bit.

Download the How to Tie a Lead Rope report for FREE!

The Certified Horsemanship Association has produced a video to help give you a few more tips on rein holds. The purpose of CHA is to promote excellence in safety and education for the benefit of the horse industry.

The creator of Centered Riding and mind-body riding guru still inspires.

The cover of Sally Swift's book. Photo courtesy of Trafalgar Square Publishing.

By Randee Fox in America’s Horse

I was determined to become a proficient rider, and I was as green as spring grass. The year was 1990, and I was 37 years old. I never got over my “girlish horse craziness” and had enjoyed riding trails since my childhood. As an adult, I was ready to learn more. So I signed up for real riding lessons. I didn’t know what a leg yield was, and I didn’t know how to use my hands, seat, eyes or body correctly. My instructor recommended a book called “Centered Riding” by Sally Swift, “a book for ‘thinking’ riders,” as she put it.

I bought the book and kept it on my nightstand, consuming it night after night before retiring to sleep. After turning off the lights, I’d close my eyes and visualize what I had read, riding my imaginary horse, with growing compassion and awareness, into my dreams. I’d imagine riding with soft eyes, breathing and a balanced seat, along with all of the useful imagery that Sally presented in her book.

“Centered Riding is simply a new way of expressing the classical principles of riding,” Sally said. “It answers the question of ‘how,’ when the riding instructor tells you ‘what’ to do to communicate with your horse. It applies equally to all English and western riding disciplines.”

Immediately, the principles of Centered Riding seeped into my weekly riding lessons. I had a clearer picture of how I wanted my lesson horse to look and how I’d carry myself upon him. The book helped me process my lessons with more ease and understanding. I was hooked and soon bought my own American Quarter Horse. Off I rode, onto a path toward becoming the lifetime horsewoman I’d always dreamed of being. My world had opened up, thanks to Sally Swift. I’m still on the path, riding and learning.

Educational Pioneer, Visionary

Born into an era when women mostly honored their husband’s demands and spent their time taking care of the family and household, Sally was among the great American women who broke the mold: impressionism artist Mary Cassatt; modern dance pioneer Isadora Duncan; pilot Amelia Earhart; author and lecturer Helen Keller; seamstress and courageous leader Rosa Parks; and photojournalist Margaret Bourke White.

AQHA’s Borrow a Horse Trainer report, brought to you by The American Quarter Horse Journal, is packed with valuable information from the industry’s top trainers.

Born on April 20, 1913, in Hingham, Massachusetts, to Rodman Swift and Elizabeth Townsend Swift, Sally was named after her paternal grandmother, Sarah Rodman Swift. Since she had a cousin also named Sarah, her nickname became “Sally.”

As a child, Sally loved riding horses. Her first experience was sitting on the back of the garbage man’s horse when she was 2 or 3. Every summer for years, Sally’s mother, who was also horse-crazy, rented a horse and boarded her at a neighbor’s farm. Sally and her sister would take turns riding the mare down the side road, accompanied by their mother.

“Mom loved horses, and she was having a great time sharing her love of horses with us,” Sally says. “She would have been very excited by my creating Centered Riding. Unfortunately, she didn’t live long enough to share any of it with me. It’s a shame, as it would have been very exciting to her.”

At the age of 7, Sally was diagnosed with scoliosis, a lateral curvature of the spine. Sally’s mother found physical therapist Mabel Ellsworth Todd to work with her daughter. Mabel was the author of “The Thinking Body,” which was based on her belief that you could control parts of your body and reach muscles with your mind when you couldn’t direct them with physical movement. Her ideas involved using creative visual imagery and consciously relaxed volition to create refined neuromuscular coordination. It’s still a favorite of dancers, students of motor development and those concerned with questions of human fitness.

As the author said, “It is as profoundly true that we are as much affected in our thinking by our bodily attitudes as our bodily attitudes are affected in the reflection of our mental and bodily states.”

“She would do some manipulation with her hands and give me exercises to do,” Sally said. “Miss Todd encouraged me to do horse riding, saying that it would strengthen my weak back.”

After high school, Sally apprenticed for three years with riding instructor Phyllis Linnington, an English woman who taught the importance of a balanced seat.

“Phyllis taught us that we were responsible for what our horses did,” Sally said. “I was taught a balanced seat, balanced over your center but with tight knees. But I still had Miss Todd’s training in my mind about using my body, the ball inside my body, and if you dropped it into your pelvis as if into the mud, you could do anything. As I look back on it, I see this as the beginning of Centered Riding.”

For the first time, Sally went out on her own to teach riding.

“I believe one of the most important qualities of an excellent riding teacher is someone for whom teaching is more than a job – it is a life’s passion,” Sally said. “Great teachers have extreme patience and an eye for detail. I think having an in-depth understanding of the anatomy of the body – mostly the human body – but also of the horse, is very important. I also believe it is very important to accept the student at the level of her riding and not to overload the student. Some teach too much at one time, and the student cannot sort it all out. It is very important to teach in small increments.”

Sally used the winter months to school with Col. Guirey at the Boots and Saddle Riding School in New York City.

“Col. Guirey was a Cossack prince; he was a lovely, cultured person – a real gentleman,” Sally said. “He was a low-key teacher, but good! In the first lesson, he said, ‘Your knees are too tight!’ I was absolutely horrified to hear this because I had spent so long making them tight! So for 15 minutes each lesson, I sat the trot without stirrups, and it loosened up my knees. I rode much better when they were soft because then I followed the horse. Instead of being on top of the horse, I became part of the horse.”

One day, Sally did some experimenting while riding a horse who was so hot-natured, he wouldn’t walk.

“He was sweet, but high-strung – hot as a pistol – and would’ve jumped the moon, if he could have,” she says. “One day, I had made up my mind that I was going to make him walk. I began to experiment by first holding my breath, then I tried breathing (the way we now teach it in Centered Riding), and the horse responded. I did it at the walk, then the trot, and the horse responded. If I went on breathing without effort, he went on walking. The Colonel, observing this, said, ‘Miss Swift, what are you doing?’ I answered, ‘Just breathing, Colonel.’ ”

In her 30s, Sally went to college and had a long career in the registration department of the Holstein-Friesian dairy cattle association. She began teaching again upon her retirement.

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“It wasn’t until I was 62, however, when I decided that I had had all the office work I wanted, that I thought I would retire, teach my friends and travel a little,” she says.

Sally says her most profound moment of teaching was in the early days of Centered Riding.

“I was approached by a woman who had been quite seriously injured in a horse accident,” she says. “When I started teaching her, she was very fearful and riding completely crooked. I took care of both of those things through my teachings. To be able to so clearly see the benefits of my teaching help her to totally overcome her fears and ‘get straight’ was more rewarding that I can put into words.”

Sally experimented using her methods locally on the East Coast. Soon, Sally’s Centered Riding program evolved and gained popularity, bringing a demand for more Centered Riding teachers. So she started training only instructors in her clinics and traveling longer distances. Centered Riding formalized its teacher certification program in the late 1980s; the corporation of Centered Riding was formed in 1993.
Karen Irland, a Level Four Centered Riding instructor from Washington, says, “Sally is the ‘Yoda’ of riding – truly a unique individual. “She was the first teacher to work mainly with the riders, and her unique ways of teaching riders feel awareness on the horse are her real gift. More and more western riders want to discover a connected, quiet seat on their horses. Centered Riding fits into their needs beautifully – whether it be a pleasure rider or a reiner or cutter.”

“I believe it is very important for a rider to learn awareness of one’s own body – understanding how the body functions, paying attention to yourself and the mechanics of how your body is functioning on the horse,” Sally said. “Harmony between horse and rider is very important. The greatest equine partnerships are built upon unspoken communication. This communication will come about if you think about what you are going to do before you do it; think about how it’s going to feel before you do it. When you feel in your body what you want it to feel like on your horse, your horse understands that.”

When asked about the future of Centered Riding and what she believes lies ahead, Sally said, “In recent years, we have seen many therapies, bodywork modalities and even medicinal approaches built upon the theories of working with and directing the body’s energy. This energetic connection, I believe, is the future of the partnership between horse and humans. I think Centered Riding is going a long way around the world, and I would hope that it is here to stay long past my days.”

She passed away in April 2009.

Tom and Margo Ball share more of their halter-starting program based on good, old-fashioned horsemanship.

Have patience while training your foal. Journal photo.

From The American Quarter Horse Journal

“We don’t halter-break foals until they’re ready to be halter-broken,” says Tom Ball of Fort Collins, Colorado. For Tom and his sister, Margo, a longtime AQHA judge and trainer, that often means waiting a while.

“You don’t have to start halter training the first week of a foal’s life,” Margo says. “It depends on the foal and his temperament. If you start a foal too young, you can create problems. But if you wait until he’s mature enough to handle what you’re doing and used to humans, he’ll actually come along quicker and do better with fewer problems.

“Your program has to adjust to the temperament of the horse,” Margo continues. “Your basic techniques are the same, but you adjust as to how long you spend on a step or how old they are according to the individual foal.”

In parts 1 and 2 of this series, Tom and Margo took us through what they call “baby’s first steps,” the early part of their halter-starting process: letting a foal wear a halter, drag a lead rope and begin to learn to give to pressure and walk alongside a handler. That was elementary school. Now it’s time to move on up to junior high. The Balls take us through “baby’s second steps.”

Leading Alongside You

Margo: When we ask them to take their “first steps,” we don’t pull on them to go forward. We work on pulling them to the side to offset their feet, and they step sideways.

Tom: It depends on how well they respond to that as to whether or not we use a rump rope. Some will respond quickly and learn to give to pressure. So when you pull on them a little bit forward, there’s a little pressure, and they give to it and walk forward. Others say, “I am not going to do that!” That’s generally when we use the rump rope.

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You want to get foals to lead with their heads out in front of you, while you’re at their shoulders. So you hold the rump rope and the lead rope in the same hand, the right hand. When you go forward, you can move your hand forward without pulling so much on the halter, instead using pressure on the rump rope. Once you get him moving, you bring your hand back and release the pressure on the rump rope. Then you can take up the slack in the halter if you need it.

Margo: You get a little bit of pressure from the halter and the rump rope, but you’re not pulling on that halter, which you don’t want to do.

Tom: You don’t even pull on the rump rope. You just give a little nudge or a little tug on it. Most foals are goosey enough, they’ll respond to that. You get more response from a slight tug and release. That give-and-take has a better response than constantly pulling.

Margo: If you’re not using a rump rope and he doesn’t want to go forward, a lot of people use the end of the lead rope and swing it back to touch him on his side. I don’t like that because it tends to hit him in his middle and make him swing away from you sideways, not going forward. I like to use a long whip and reach back and just touch him on the hip. It seems to work better for encouraging most foals to go forward.

Tom: There’s one word that’s critical for him to learn: Whoa. When you start leading him around the place and you want to stop, say “Whoa,” short and to the point and with authority. I do it when his attention wanders. If his attention is way down there, watching the red fox go across the lower field, then he doesn’t know I’m here. If I say “Whoa,” and stop, that draws his attention back.

Standing Tied

Margo: I like to start working with foals in a stall. I lace the lead rope through the stall bars and then brush on him. I like the “lacing” because it’s a one-man deal. You can do that and control the tension the lead has on him. You’re right there if he does get upset, but you’re brushing him, and most foals like that. You can hang on to that rope, and you’ve got control. A lot of times, if he pulls back, you can just say something to him and push him back up, and he thinks, “Oh, OK. It’s no big deal.” And he learns to stand. At the same time, you’re handling him, getting him used to brushing down his legs and his feet.

Tom: After you’ve worked with him like that a while, it’s important that at some point you walk off and leave him. That’s when we use a bungee tie or an inner tube to tie him with. We tie him and then go do other things in the barn, checking back in on him. We use a bungee tie with a safety snap in the stall. The inner tube is out in the indoor arena. We use hay string to tie the inner tube to the wall, the heavier kind that comes off big 4-foot by 4-foot bales. We wrap the string around the tube three times. The hay string is easier to cut through. If you attach it with a heavy rope and the colt gets into a bind, it can take too long to cut it loose with your pocketknife. The bungee and the inner tube are fastened high on the wall. So if he comes up off the ground, he can’t get a leg over. And he can’t get a good pull if he sets back. If it’s up high, he doesn’t have much leverage.

Margo: If it’s low and he pulls back, he could really hurt his neck.

Tom: If he decides he really wants to pull, we let him pull. With the bungee and the inner tube, there’s not a solid tie to him, so the impact at the end is reasonably comfortable. It’s not going to yank his head off like a tight rope. When he comes to the end, he’s going to respond, and, at the same time, the elasticity is going to pull him back. Which is the same thing you’re going to do if he tries to take off, you’re going to try to pull him back. It’s the same idea. It just takes the sudden shock out of it. You’ve got to judge where they are mentally. Use your common sense, and go from there. You may work with one for weeks just in the stall before he’s ready to be left alone tied. He first learns to stand and not resist the inner tube. He learns, “I’m tied and I’m not going anywhere.” Then he can learn to stand and be patient. With a young horse, as soon as he stands there two minutes with a certain amount of acceptance, I take him off. Then the next time, I might leave him 10 minutes. And this time, I might go up and brush on him while he’s standing there.

In Horse Training Fundamentals, AQHA Professional Horseman Ken McNabb walks you through his process of how to train a horse.

Margo: It’s something positive. So he learns, “All I have to do is stand here. And I’m rewarded by getting to go do something else, or I’m brushed and given attention.” It’s positive reinforcement.

Tom: We very seldom ever have a colt throw himself to the ground. But if he does get himself into a bind, we don’t quit because he got into a bind. We get him out of that bind, whatever that might be, and put him right back into the situation he was in before the bind. As soon as he responds to what you want done, like standing quietly, then turn him loose. You don’t do that after he does something like throwing himself on the ground. You don’t dare quit then. A lot of them will learn that trick: If I throw myself on the ground, I get my way – turned loose. You’ve seen it with kids. A kid will throw himself on the ground and start screaming and finds out he gets an ice cream cone because his parents give him one to make him stop screaming.

Margo: You want to leave the lesson on a positive note, but where you want to leave it, not where the colt wants to leave it.

Parting Words

Margo: You do get what you expect. You need to handle the colt with confidence, and he’ll pick up on that. If you’re apprehensive or the least bit nervous or scared, and a lot of people are, he’ll pick up on that. If you expect trouble, you’re going to get trouble.

Tom: One of my pet peeves is talking to a colt in “baby talk.” Treat him like a grown horse, and he’ll turn out like a grown horse. You’ve got to be patient. And you’ve got to expect that he’s going to learn good manners.