| By Heidi
Potter, PATH Int'l Equine Welfare
Committee
Have you ever led a horse through
a gate and just as you turn to close
the gate with your right hand your
left arm is pulled out of its socket
while the horse on the other end dives
for grass? Or, do you not allow a
child to lead the lesson horse because
it is such a struggle to keep his
head up when you pass grass? This
behavior is not only disrespectful,
it is dangerous. Many a toe has gotten
stepped on during the process of either
trying to prevent the horse from eating
or trying to pull him up once his
head is down.
Chances are that starvation is not
the issue here. Your horse has just
not been trained to stay focused and
listening to you while on the leadline.
Luckily, this is an easy fix. Here
are the steps:
1. Put the horse in a rope halter
and lead without a buckle on it.
2. Lead the horse to a grassy patch
and wait for him to drop his head.
Please remember that an important
part of good training is allowing
the horse to make the mistake so that
you can fix it! If you do not allow
this to happen you will forever be
dragged to the grass or be constantly
“nagging” at him to keep
his head up.
3. Wait for the horses lips to just
begin to touch the grass. **Timing
is everything! Do nothing until his
lips just reach the grass**
4. At that precise moment send a
quick, sharp coil down your leadline
to the horses head. The knot or rope
will come up and bump him under the
jaw. He will likely pull his head
up quickly and jump back as if to
say, “What was that?”
You should act like it was no big
deal and you have no idea what happened.
5. Then, just stand there and allow
him to try again. Some will drop their
head right back down and you must
offer the exact same response. Make
your correction sharp, clear and without
emotion. (However, you may chuckle
just a little as you see his expression.)
6. Some horses will slowly lower
their head and stop just above the
grass line. Pay very close attention
to exactly where his mouth stops.
Do not apply a correction until he
opens his lips and touches the grass.
This is how he will learn where the
boundaries are.
Consistency and correct timing will
get this problem fixed quickly. You
must get every horse handler on the
same page to fix this annoying and
dangerous behavior.
**Rope handling practice: It is a
good idea to first tie your rope halter
to a fence rail and practice sending
the coil to the fence. Hold the rope
in your left hand. Grab the rope with
your right hand just in front of your
left, thumb pointing down and palm
out. Give the rope a good clockwise
swing with your right hand by flicking
your wrist around. A nice coil should
move quickly down the rope to your
target.
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