The Young Horse: Ground Manners

Use the same amount of pressure as you did before. It may take a few times before your horse gets the idea. When it does give to the rope, PRAISE IT LAVISHLY. Next, do the reverse - you on the left, the horse turning to the right. Praise it for a job well done.

Step 4
Working on the fence, put the rope around a solid post, don't tie it. Your horse may back up. Let it back some and then hold the rope firmly so it puts pressure on the horse's head. If you did the previous lessons then your horse should stop when it feels the pressure of the rope. If not, return to the previous lesson. If the horse responds well, shorten the rope some. The horse should walk toward the post. If he fights, return to the previous lesson. The idea is that you should work on the lesson until the horse understands it. If it is fighting, it doesn't understand. We use this method to teach out horses to tie, both foals and older, untrained or abused horses. It does work, but it takes time. Your goal is to get your horse to stand tied. You are working toward that without actually tying it.

Step 5
Your horse should be able to stand at the fence with the rope around the post (one time) but not tied. It should have about 18" of slack. Your horse should stand quietly without pulling. If not, go back and work on it. If it does, now you are going to simulate some situations your horse may be in while tied. You need someone to help you with this part. Have your helper walk by the horse. If it pulls, hold firmly and give it a chance to settle down. If it starts to panic, let it have some rope. It will probably want to turn to look at the scary person walking by. When it see the person isn't going to eat it, try again. It helps if the person is making a little noise at first, like quietly talking to you. Repeat this part until the horse doesn't respond to the person walking by at all.

Step 6:
The horse should be in the same position as the previous lesson. It should not care if someone walks by, either talking or quiet. This time you are going to have your helper put the saddle pad on. Your horse should have already experienced sacking out. Have your helper approach the horse with the pad. Let the horse smell it and see it. Have your helper put the pad on the horse's back. If it pulls back at any point, hold firmly. If it panics, take a step back to the previous lesson. If your horse accepts the pad, let it stand quietly & pet it. Tell it how smart and wonderful it is - horses love this. Now, have your helper make the pad fall off. It may scare the horse some. That's OK, you want it to be a little scared so it can experience things that might happen in real life. Hold firm to the rope. Your horse should be learning to accept firmer pressure so when it is tied it won't pull. Some resistance is natural, you just don't want it to really freak out. When the horse gives to the pressure and stops pulling, praise it. If it panics do the previous lesson. Keep trying until it doesn't care anymore. Do this lesson with a lead rope over the back, touching the legs, putting the pad on and off, letting it fall on one side and the other. You should be able to hold the rope without using too much strength. If you are fighting the horse, you need to start over, yes, from the beginning. All this may take a few hours or weeks, depending on the horse.

Step 7
When you are sure that your horse will not panic when you challenge it, you may try tying the horse. Use a quick release knot. Tie the horse, hold the free end of the rope so if it panics you can release the knot. If your horse does panic, begin from step 1 or 2. If it doesn't do steps 5 & 6. If your horse accepts this, you have been successful. Give it a good grooming while tied, returning to a well understood and accepted step any time your horse panics.

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