Re-Training A Horse With Pressure-Sensitivity Issues

     So, this post is going to be on how to re-train a horse with pressure sensitivity issues. I recently had the opportunity to work with a massive 23-year-old ex-racehorse named Commander. Commander is essentially dead to pressure and as a very large horse, it can make him dangerous to work with. The techniques I am going to go over work on horses on both ends of the pressure sensitivity scale, namely the horses, who like Commander are mostly dead to pressure as well as horses who over-react to everything. 

The type of training I am going to be teaching you is a simple method I call Contact-Free Ground Training, or Suggestion Training. The theory behind this training is that you are using no pressure or contact between the horse and you. Instead you are using the suggestion of pressure.

       When you are doing this type of training, I do warn you that it will not work the same on every horse. Most respond well, including very young horses. I have used these techniques on three-month-old foals to great effect., but there is always the odd one out, the horse that will not respond to this kind of training.

Starting

      What You Will Need:

• A halter with a lead attached- I prefer to use rope halters, but it is still effective with a regular halter.
• Treats or some kind of reward system

     You will want to make sure your horse is haltered and warmed up to some degree. You are working with a horse that does not respond to pressure well, so just walking around or trotting in hand can serve as a warm up. Next, you will want to have a reward system of some sort. I've trained all kinds of horses and some respond well to treats and some respond better to separate reward systems such as patting, rubbing or vocal praise. 

     To start with, the way you hold the lead is vital. Since you aren't using any pressure or contact, you need to have the rope very loose. You will have approximately 2-3 feet of rope between you and the horse, with more for a larger horse. The rest of the rope can be in your other hand or the same hand that you will be using to direct the horse. You want to have the hand holding the rope up high, near the horse's eyes where he can see the rope. If you trust the horse not to panic, wiggle the rope slightly to get his attention on it. He needs to be focused on the rope, because it will be what is directing him. To start with, walk backwards across an area where you will not trip, holding that rope near the horse's face. You want to keep his attention on the rope so his head follows the rope, and therefore the rest of his body. If you need to tug to get him going, that is alright, just make sure the rope is up and loose as you walk. Once his body is nice and straight in front of the rope, stop and push the rope back to one side of his head and tell him to stop with a vocal command if he knows those. Make sure you stop walking, even if he doesn't at first. Don't let yourself get run over, but try not to keep moving. This will help him understand that he is supposed to stop. Then, do the same thing again until you think he is stopping well. From the stopping position, determine which way you want to turn. Then, step backwards and in that direction, moving the rope as well, making sure to keep it up. Keep backing up and your horse will start to follow you. Repeat in both directions until your horse follows easily. It's really that easy! With consistent practice, you will be able to lower the rope and still have the horse follow with little contact. To you Western riders who know what I am talking about, this principle is similar to neck reining and a horse who has had this ground training will likely take better to neck reining.

Thanks for reading, and happy riding!

Until next time, 

                          Rowan Sierra

Buying a Horse- Do it Right the First Time

Note: My apologies for the weird formatting. This was typed on a separate program and pasted in and I can not figure out how to fix it. 

What to Look For In a Horse

Basics

Conformation

Teeth

Hoofs

Eyes

Coat

Fitness

Soundness

Movement

What to Do at a Pre-Purchase Meetings

 

1. Inspect the area the horse is kept in. Look for vices such as chewing and stall and gate 

kicking.

2. If possible, watch the horse and how he behaves around other horses and humans.

3. Ask to prepare the horse for the ride yourself. Pay attention to how he reacts while 

you tack him up.

4. While watching the owner ride him, pay attention to the way the horse is moving and

 ask about any and all problems you notice.

5. Try to have someone film as much as they can, especially when the horse is being worked on the ground and ridden. This will help if you are comparing many horses.

6. Horse should be trotted in hand while you or an experienced rider watches to 

ensure soundness.

7.Make sure you can touch all parts of the horse’s body and inspect for injuries or flaws.

Make sure to have someone take note of these possible flaws or injuries.

 8. Ride the horse both in and out of the arena, and make sure he performs well in multiple 

areas.

Feel for his movement, and make sure you run him through walking, trotting, and  

cantering. Many riders don’t want to canter a new horse, but doing so will let you know 

more about how he moves.

9. If you are capable of doing so, ride him bareback some, mostly at a walk.

Feel his muscles underneath you. Do you sense anything amiss?

What to Watch for in Listings
Owners are not always truthful in listings. Here is what to watch for when looking at listings. 

1. Project horse. If you are not looking for a project horse, ignore these listings.

Note: Almost all sellers will under exaggerate flaws. Also watch out for listing that state that a horse is
“green”, halter broke, or “in training.”

 

2. Age. If the precise age of a horse is not listed, chances are it is an older or younger

 horse that might be too old to do much or to young to be ridden.

This does not mean you should entirely ignore these listings. Sometimes the seller may 

forget to list this information. Call the seller to clarify.  

3. With foal or two-in-one package. Often sellers will try to sell a horse that is pregnant

 so they don’t have to deal with it.

Chances are, you don’t want to deal with both a mare and 

a baby. Same goes for several horses that must be bought together. Chances are, these

 horses are not well trained and are extremely herd-bound.

4. Needs someone quite advanced or not a beginners’ horse. These horses will be difficult 

to ride and often bad-tempered. Only consider these horses if you are extremely advanced 

as a rider.

5. Needs work or out to pasture last 6+ months. If you are a good rider, you may want to

consider these ads, but only if you are good rider and confident with ill-behaved horses.

Those are some of the main things to watch for in ads, but there are others as well. Always be sure to ask the owner several questions about the ad before agreeing to see the horse, lest you waste a trip.

Always be aware that there are many horses available, and don't buy one that is unsuitable for you or your environment and those around you. Happy riding!

 

Mustang Training!

Hello, readers! I am Rowan Sierra and this is my blog, The Bareback Rider. My first post will be on mustang training. I learned to ride on Mustangs and I rode them for several years, as well as learned to train them. Today, I am going to teach you how to get started with Mustang training.

     Set Up: When you are preparing for your Mustang, you need to take sever things into account, whether the horse is being kept on your land or being boarded. 1- Space. You need to have the right amount space of your mustang. When you first get a mustang, it will be very scared and shy. So, you will need to have a smaller space so your horse can't hurt itself. I recommend a round pen, about 15-25 feet across with even footing. Your round pen should be as far away as possible from the main area of traffic and should not be near a road or public walkway. 2- Materials. Your round pen needs to be solid and have no gaps or weak points. It should also have a secure entrance that provides easy access to your horse. Your locking mechanism should be strong and not too simple, because mustangs are smarter than the average horse and are more likely to be able to open the lock. 2- Equipment. When you are training a mustang, you will need a bare minimum of equipment. Here is a basic list of the things you will need. 1- A halter and lead. You will want a simple, easy to put on halter with a long lead, ideally 5 feet long. 2- A lunge whip or flag- You will want either a lunge whip or a flag. During the first few weeks of training, you will be doing a lot of lunging and ground work with your horse. it will come in handy to shell out a few more dollars to buy yourself a good lunge whip or flag that will stand up to a good deal of use and the possibility of your horse stomping on it. (I have seen it happen!) You will also need to know how to lunge correctly, which will be in my next post. 3- A saddle- When you begin training, you will want a lightweight saddle that is comfortable and broken in. Do not buy a new saddle for training a mustang. The saddle leather should be supple and clean. If you don't already have a saddle that is alright for training, do not buy a new one. Try and get an older saddle from a neighbor, or buy one used. Do not spend too much money, though. Chances are, once training is complete, you will use a different saddle. Also, when training, your saddle may be damaged (another reason not to spend too much!) I have seen horses panic when a saddle was brought near them, the when the trainer dropped the saddle, the horse stepped on it. Point is, when training a mustang, expect your equipment to be damaged. 4- A good pair of boots. It may seem silly, but you will want a good pair of boots because when you start training, you will be spending hours upon hours upon hours working with your horse. You will be grateful for both the protection if you are stepped on, and the comfort both in and out of the saddle. Again, the most important things you will need are, 1-A halter and lead, 2-A lunge whip or flag, 3- A saddle, 4- A good pair of boots. Keep in mind that these are the bare minimum of supplies you will need. As you train, you will discover other things that will help you train your horse. However, I do not recommend buying treats because training a horse with treats can cause that horse to become greedy and nippy. The occasional treat to reward good behavior is fine, as long as you use treats sparingly.


Choosing Your Horse- Often at any place you buy mustangs, there will be many, many horses. The basics of what to look for are theses. 1- You will want a horse no younger than 2 and no older than 5. The horse needs to have spent at least 1 year in the wild because by then, they will have learned to jump and not be afraid of water, which sets a good base for future training. 2- A good horse should show interest, but not be too friendly. A horse that seems friendly and walks right up to you is likely to be more aggressive and more likely to injure you. 3- Conformation. Not everyone knows anything about conformation. If you don't that's all right. If you do, you will  want to make sure your horse has decent conformation. A horse with poor conformation could have other problems that could be tricky to fix. Also, if it is your first time buying a mustang, try to find someone who has at least a little experience in general horse shopping, if not in mustang shopping in particular.


Beginning Training- Training differs from horse to horse. I once had a trainer tell me that, when asked what she did in training her horses, she said, "Everything I could think of." When training your horse, do everything you can think of for the. Some horses can begin to be halter trained right away, but some horses may need time, up to a few days, to calm down, and become approachable. In this particular post, I will not go into detail on training, but I will give you the basic run-down. 1- Halter training- Make sure you keep the horse in the halter with the lead on at all times so you can grab the horse when you need to. When training, you will want to have another person with you, in case or an emergency and to help with the training process. When halter training, you will want to use the lead to pull the horse forward. The instant the horse takes a step, make sure to release the pressure. Many students have trouble with releasing, so I will clarify. Releasing does not mean dropping the rope. It does not mean you relax your hold until the lead is pulled right out of your hands. Releasing correctly means that you will give the horse slack by moving the rope closer to their body. Continue to do this until the horse moves easily and willingly with the rope. 2- Lunge training. This is where your round pen comes in. You will need to, for several weeks, work with your horse from the ground, lunging them and teaching them voice commands. 3- Saddle training. When you begin to teach your horse to wear a saddle, it will feel very strange to him. To get him used to it, you will want to lunge him while he is wearing the saddle. From there, you can use several methods, some of which I will explain in later post, to move lo sitting in the saddle and letting him walk. 4- Bridle training. When you begin training the horse to respond to the bridle, you will need to have very strong legs, as your legs will be how you teach him what each motion of the reins means. I may also cover bridle training in later posts. Also, by the time you have finished up to step 3 you begin to let your horse out into the pastures to graze, provided you know you can catch them again. You may at some point want to teach your horse when you whistle, clap, etc.

From these basics, you can teach your horse many other and more difficult things. Who knows, one day your horse may be a champion worth millions of dollars! Just make sure when you are training your horse that you always ask for help from others when you need it, and that you consider your horse. In this basic training guide, I gave you a loose timeline. However, all horses are different and it may be many months before you can even sit on him. Thanks for reading The Bareback Rider!


     Until next time,
                     Rowan Sierra