2022 Fort Worth Extreme Mustang Makeover Champion and horse trainer Camille White uses groundwork as a tool to help her learn more about a horse, and shares with us one of her favorite exercises.

Using Groundwork to Build Trust

In White’s experience, groundwork is an essential part of building trust with a horse. When on the ground, you have a good read of your horse’s facial expressions and can observe how he is carrying himself. She adds that it can be helpful to see a horse’s reaction to something from the ground before observing it from the saddle.

One of her favorite get-to-know-you groundwork activities is a longeing exercise that teaches the horse how to relax and involves both sensitizing and desensitizing components. White describes “sensitizing” as getting a horse sensitive to cues and teaching him how to move his body, while “desensitizing” is teaching a horse to accept new and scary things.

She explains that many of a horse’s opinions, personality, and coping mechanisms become apparent when he is moving, making this a great exercise to help you learn how your horse thinks and what things he prefers.

“It’s a lot harder for horses to hide what they’re thinking when they’re moving, as opposed to standing still,” says White.

When teaching the exercise, White says to be clear and consistent with your horse by communicating the same way every time. By doing this, he will learn what he can and can’t expect from you, and his trust in you will grow. 

The Exercise

The following steps outline a two-part longeing exercise that White uses to get to know the horses she works with. To perform this exercise, you will need a rope halter, a 12-to-16-foot lead rope, and a flag.

Photos by Shoshana Rudski

Part One: Sensitizing

Step 1: Walk to the middle of the arena. Have your horse stand at the end of the lead rope, facing you. Hold the rope in the hand you will use to point in the direction you want him to go. Hold the flag in your other hand.

Step 2: Ask the horse to move by using your rope hand to point in the direction you want him to go. The horse should move his shoulders away from you and start to walk in a circle around you. Keep your feet planted. Once the horse moves in the direction you pointed, relax your rope hand to let him know he responded correctly.

Problem solving: If the horse doesn’t move after you point, increase the pressure of your ask by wiggling the flag toward his shoulder. If there is still no movement, tap his shoulder with increasing pressure until he moves in the direction you asked. If the horse moves in the wrong direction, keep applying steady pressure until he steps in the correct direction. Once he responds correctly, drop your flag hand and relax your rope hand.

Step 3: Allow the horse to keep moving forward. Once you ask him to walk in a circle around you, he should continue walking until asked to stop or given another command.

Problem solving: When learning the exercise, your horse may walk a few steps, then stop and face you. If this happens, repeat step 2 until he walks on the circle without stopping.

Step 4: Ask the horse to stop. Once he understands step 3, teach him to stop by sliding your rope hand up the rope and taking one step toward the horse’s hindquarters. He should move his hindquarters away and turn to face you. In response, walk to the horse and rub his face to let him know he responded correctly.

Problem solving: If the horse doesn’t move away after you take a step toward him, take another step toward the hindquarters. Keep walking toward the hindquarters until he stops and turns to face you. White notes that you may need to step toward the hindquarters and wave the flag when first teaching this step.

Step 5: Repeat steps 2-4 in opposite direction.

Part Two: Desensitizing

Once your horse understands how to complete part one going both directions, it’s time to introduce a final step to the exercise.

Step 6: Ask your horse to walk in a circle around you like you did for step 2. Then, reach out with the flag and gently rub his shoulder while the horse is walking. He should stay relaxed at the walk while the flag rubs his shoulder.

Problem solving: If your horse jumps or speeds up when the flag moves toward his shoulder, bring the flag back and keep it at the distance where he started to get nervous. Once he relaxes, take the flag away. Wait a bit, then re-introduce the flag and attempt to bring it closer than last time. Repeat this process and bring the flag closer each time you re-introduce it.

If your horse stops or freezes when the flag touches him, return to steps 2 and 3 before attempting to rub his shoulder with the flag again.

Getting to Know You

Humans don’t become experts on each other after one meeting, and neither do humans and horses. Getting to know a horse takes time and effort.

Whether your horse is a carrot cruncher that loves to cross creeks or a grain gobbler that prefers a slow stroll, groundwork can be a great tool to help you learn more about him.

This article about using groundwork exercises to get to know your horse appeared in the November/December 2024 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!

The post Get to Know Your Horse with These Groundwork Exercises appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

Although simple, trainer Clay Cavinder explains that the ground tie exercise teaches a horse how to be accountable and reduces the temptation for you to micromanage him.

Cavinder is a professor and extension horse specialist for Mississippi State University. In addition to training horses and teaching students, he is a professional judge for the American Quarter Horse Association, American Paint Horse Association, and National Snaffle Bit Association.

Why Ground Tie

While many horse-friendly locations provide ample places to secure horses, not every place has a solid, safe place to tie, Cavinder explains. When hitching posts are lacking, ground tying can come in handy.

Also, if you’re interested in showing in ranch horse classes, you may encounter patterns that require your horse to know how to ground tie. So what does a good ground tie look like?

Cavinder explains that the ground tie exercise demands a horse know how to stand still. In a show setting, the obstacle requires you to dismount and walk around the horse or go accomplish a task while the horse stays where you left him.

“Once you park the horse’s four feet, he doesn’t move—he stands there,” Cavinder says.

When he is judging this obstacle, he not only wants to see the horse’s hooves planted, but he also wants to see the horse’s head and neck stay still, too. He’s looking for a horse that mimics a statue. The horse shouldn’t be putting his head on the ground and fidgeting in the dirt. Instead, he should be alert, still, and focused on you.

Preparing to Teach

Before you consider teaching a horse to ground tie, Cavinder advises settling your horse. This isn’t an exercise to teach a freshly halter-broke horse that jumps when your hands move.

Instead, the horse should feel safe around you and know simple cues, such as what “whoa” means. If that’s the case, teaching the ground tie can help you build trust with your horse.

“Ground tying develops ‘Whoa means whoa, don’t move your feet, and let me work around you and develop this trusting bond with you,’” says Cavinder.

He uses a three-step process to train horses consisting of cue, response and reinforcement. It breaks down as follows:

Step 1: Provide the horse with a cue. A cue is any stimulus you give the horse. It can be verbal or physical.

Step 2: Read the horse’s response to the cue. The response is the horse’s feedback (or lack thereof) to a cue.

Step 3: Reinforce the cue. These are actions you take that help the horse understand if his response was right or wrong.

Once these prerequisites are complete, Cavinder says you can begin teaching your horse the ground tie exercise.

Teaching the Ground Tie

To teach this exercise, outfit your horse in a nylon halter. Cavinder recommends using a longe line instead of a lead rope while your horse is first learning the exercise. He breaks the ground tie down into the following three steps.

Step 1 (Cue): Drop the longe line on the ground in front of the horse and say “whoa.” (Hold on to the very end of the longe line in case your horse tries to leave.) Take one to two steps away from him.

Step 2 (Response): Watch how the horse responds. Does he choose to follow you, or move in another direction? Does he take a step and then stop? Does he stand still the entire time? Carefully assess the horse’s response to your cue.

Step 3 (Reinforcement): Communicate to your horse whether he responded correctly to the cue. If he responds by moving, show him that was the wrong response by either lifting his head and backing him up or asking him to move his hip away from you in a forehand turn. Then start over at Step 1.

If your horse responds by standing still or taking a single step and then standing still, show him he found the correct answer by returning to his side and petting or praising him.

As he begins to understand the exercise, you should gradually increase the number of steps you take away from the horse and vary their direction. The horse should remain still until you return.

Common Pitfalls

Although simple, there are several pitfalls Cavinder sees equestrians struggle with when teaching their horses how to ground tie.

Micromanaging the Horse: Cavinder cautions against micromanaging the horse. For example, when a horse is first learning the exercise, Cavinder doesn’t correct him if he takes a single step forward. Instead, he watches the horse’s response and gives him time to self-correct.

As the horse gains an understanding of the exercise, Cavinder’s expectations increase. You want the horse to try to answer the question being asked of him, and that requires him to search for the correct answer.

Giving Up: Horse training takes time. Too often, Cavinder sees equestrians watch or read training material, try the exercise a couple of times, and give up. Like humans, horses take time to learn.

Setting Unrealistic Expectations: Every horse is different. One horse may learn the exercise in three days, but others won’t. Additionally, a horse’s age and experience should help determine the expectations set for him. For example, Cavinder says yearlings should have lots of wiggle room for errors, while an older, well-trained horse will be expected to respond correctly sooner.

Misunderstanding the Three-Step Process: If you aren’t implementing the three-step process correctly, you can’t expect your horse to understand what you’re asking him to do. For example, being inconsistent with cues or misinterpreting the horse’s response will confuse him.

While simple, ground tying is a great skill for you and your horse to learn together. When a safe place to tie isn’t available and you’re faced with ground tying as the only option, you’ll be able to count on your horse to stay right where you left him.

As an added bonus, properly executing this training helps strengthen your relationship with your horse and lays a solid foundation for learning more challenging exercises together.

This article about the ground tie appeared in the October 2024 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!

The post Master the Ground Tie appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

Reason for Respect

Trainer Mike Brashear states that you’re training your horse every time you’re near him. While your horse may not be aggressive or mean, stepping into your space when he isn’t invited can lead to accidents.

Imagine walking into your horse’s pen to put hay in a slow feeder. Would your horse stand at a distance and only approach once you finish loading the feeder, or would he move forward into your space and steal a mouthful of hay as an appetizer?

If your horse is the type who would come to you and grab a snack, you may be in need of Brashear’s training tips so that your horse doesn’t accidentally munch your fingers, bump into you and cause a fall, or put you in a vulnerable position if multiple horses are in the feeding area.

“When you walk in the pen any other time, you want your horse to come to you,” he says. “Your horse learns that if he comes to you, he gets pets and gets loved on. So when you enter with hay, that’s what he’s going to do as well, unless you teach him something different. You may look at grabbing hay as disrespect, but the horse looks at it as, ‘This is what is allowed.’”

Ideally, Brashear says he wants his horses to wait. He works to put “wait” on his horses wherever and whenever possible so that they tune into his cues.

At feeding time, he wants horses to stand at a 3- to 6-foot distance and wait for him to set down and move away from the hay or grain. Brashear uses the following steps to teach a horse when he can come into your space (to get the food) and when he should respectfully keep his distance.

Teaching “Wait”

Make sure your horse has had his usual meal so that you aren’t training a hungry horse. Also make sure you have time to work with your horse without being rushed. Brashear suggests making this the groundwork that you do before you ride.

Outfit your horse with a rope halter and a 12-foot training lead attached to the halter with a knot. For now, leave the food in the barn. You’ll teach the cues without temptation present first. Only after your horse is doing well and obeying your request to stand and wait should you attempt it at feeding time.

“It’s always better to start with a connection with your horse so you have some control and can send him back out,” says Brashear.

1. Start by facing your horse and stand about 3 feet in front of him. Mimic the distance you’d like to be from your horse when you feed him in his stall or paddock.

2. If your horse moves into your space, shake the lead rope to encourage him to step or rock back. If he doesn’t move, shake harder. Make sure to keep your feet in the same place. You don’t want to chase the horse away or act aggressively. Instead, you’re just teaching him to respond to the rope correction and stay in place as you asked.

“I don’t want to walk to my horse or act mean,” says Brashear. “I want to teach him to wait. When the horse steps back, all my energy stops, and I stop moving the rope. That change of energy is the release.”

You may add a verbal cue of “get back” to remind your horse to stand still in a calm way. If your horse will stand still and not move into your space, back up and see if he will come into your space. Your moving back will invite the horse forward.

If you step forward, he should move accordingly, too. If you stop again, make sure that he will stand still. Practice this again. When you want your horse to move closer to you, step back (while still facing your horse) and take slack out of your lead rope.

As you work without feed present, think about how this same skill will work at feeding time. Think, “You can’t come up to this feeder until I’m back out of the stall door. If I turn my back and walk away, you can come up, but you can’t come up on me on your own accord.”

Add Feed

Next, set up the same scenario (standing in front of your horse and expecting him to stand respectfully), but have a pan of grain at your feet.   

Brashear says that now it’s time to ask your horse to move in and out of your space on command while the food is present. First, ask your horse to stand 3 to 6 feet away from you and the feed. Allow him to wait for about 30 seconds.

Ask your horse to come into your space by slumping your shoulders and stepping back. This change will invite your horse to move forward to get a bite from the feed pan.

“Horses will usually take one bite of grain, then lift up their heads to swallow,” he says. “Once your horse has taken a bite, ask him to step back and leave the feed again. Step forward and stand tall. Ask him to stand and wait until invited in again.”

Practice this over and over.

“Every bite of grain that my horse gets is dependent on me asking him to come into me,” says Brashear.

If your horse is responding well to your cues, practice again with a web halter. You want to know if your body language alone is enough to tell your horse to back up. With a “lighter” halter, you can tell if your horse is listening to your cues but still have some connection to him.

Finally, it’s time to test your horse without a halter. Work where you would feed your horse, but when he isn’t waiting for a meal. Take the halter off altogether and try the same setup.

If your horse stands and waits, notice if he’s looking for your cues.

“If he looks like he’s wondering if he should move to the food or not, he’s watching you,” says Brashear. “Make him wait and stand for about 30 seconds. Then, step back and away and allow him to get the food. Your rocking back draws him to you and allows him to get to the grain.”

Keep in mind that you may have to move back to previous training steps if your horse isn’t listening without the halter. Ask him to move away again when he picks his head up. Step forward and increase the energy in your body, then move your hands up and away just like you would have while holding the lead.

If he doesn’t respond, increase your energy until you get a change—without yelling or appearing angry. If your horse won’t move away or listen, go back and work with the rope halter and lead.

At Feeding Time

After you have practiced sending your horse away from the grain during a practice session, it’s time to do the same work at feeding time. Make sure that you have time and aren’t in a rush.

When you walk into the pen, carry the hay to the feeder and make sure that you’re aware of your horse’s position. If your horse comes up to you and you’re focused on filling up the feeder, put the hay down and focus on the horse just as you did in the last “no-halter” training session. Put your arms up and calmly tell your horse “get back.”

When you remind your horse of the training you did with the halter, he should learn that you expect the same behavior any time you are near him—including at feeding time.

This article about improving a horse’s behavior at feeding time appeared in the October 2024 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!

The post Improve Your Horse’s Feeding Time Behavior appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

“It’s super beneficial to expose a horse to any sort of obstacle you can get your hands on because it creates better communication and trust between handler and horse,” says Camille White, who operates Camille’s Mustangs out of Bryan, Texas. White is also the 2022 Fort Worth Extreme Mustang Makeover Champion.

Preparation

Before you begin introducing a bridge or step-over to your horse, White advises preparing him by making sure he has a few prerequisites down pat.

Can Stand Still: A horse that knows how to stand still shows that he is capable of down-regulating his nervous system and accessing the thinking side of his brain, according to White. During obstacle training, she rewards the horse by releasing all pressure and allowing the horse to stand still and relax.

Legs Are Desensitized: When working with obstacles like bridges or step-overs, there is a good chance the obstacle will touch the horse’s legs. White prepares the horse for this sensation by introducing him to the feeling of having his legs touched by various objects before starting obstacle training.

Has a Good Follow: Before she starts obstacle work, White wants the horse to know how to track her when being led. She calls this “having a good follow.” In addition to tracking her, she wants the horse to know how to maintain a respectful distance from her.

Can Isolate Body Parts: White wants the horse to know how to move specific body parts when asked so she can position him to approach the obstacle. This includes the ability to move his shoulders and hindquarters from both sides. Once finished, she wants to see the horse return to a neutral, relaxed state.

Understands Halter Pressure: White teaches a horse how to respond correctly to halter pressure before starting obstacle training. When she picks up on the lead rope and the halter tightens across the horse’s poll, she wants him to smoothly and willingly move forward with her.

Ground Obstacle #1: Bridges

Bridges can show up in the show ring and on the trail. But White explains that learning how to step onto a bridge can also teach a horse how to step onto other strange surfaces, such as loading into a trailer. Groundwork is the key to introducing bridges and other novel surfaces.

Step 1: Begin by confidently approaching the bridge and ask your horse to follow. Don’t stop or hesitate when walking toward the obstacle, as this may communicate to the horse that it’s unsafe to move forward. If he hesitates, reinforce your ask by continuing to move forward and creating gentle pressure across the horse’s poll with the halter.

Step 2: Reward effort. Watch for the horse to commit to following you across the bridge. As soon as he commits, release all pressure. Try to time the release of pressure with the horse crossing the bridge to associate it with the obstacle. You may have to reward many small steps (such as sniffing the bridge or taking a single step toward it) before the horse commits to crossing the obstacle.

Step 3: Once he is comfortable calmly crossing the bridge, have the horse cross it again, but ask him to stop in the middle. When he stops, release all pressure and allow him to relax on the bridge. This helps the horse associate relaxation with the obstacle. If your timing is well-placed during step 2, this step will come naturally to most horses.

Be ready to troubleshoot the top three most common challenges when it comes to introducing a bridge crossing from the ground.

Refusal to Move: If the horse refuses to move during your approach, yield his hindquarters and shoulders to unlock his feet, then approach the bridge again. If he still refuses, create pressure at the hindquarters to encourage forward movement. Begin by simply looking at his hindquarters. If there is no response, increase pressure by using an extension of your arm, such as a training flag, to tap the horse’s hindquarters until he moves forward. Reward the smallest effort by removing all pressure.

Moving Backward: If the horse moves backward, move with him without releasing the tension on the lead rope. Continue to ask him to take one step forward in the right direction. Reward effort, which may be as small as the horse leaning toward the bridge.

Rushing the Bridge: The first time the horse crosses the bridge, he may rush over it. If he rushes through the obstacle, immediately turn around and cross the obstacle again. Repeat until he slows down and becomes intentional about where he places his feet.

Ground Obstacle #2: Step-Overs

Step-overs appear in the form of ground poles, cavalletti poles, logs, branches and even puddles of water. A horse that knows how to step over an obstacle can successfully navigate many different situations. White shares the following steps for teaching a horse how to step over obstacles from the ground.

Step 1: Start with an easy item to step over, such as a ground pole. Confidently approach the step-over and ask the horse to follow. Don’t stop or hesitate when walking toward the obstacle, as this may communicate to the horse that it’s unsafe to move forward. If he hesitates, reinforce your ask by continuing to move forward and creating gentle pressure across his poll with the halter.

Step 2: Reward effort. Watch for the horse to commit to following you across the pole. As soon as he commits, release all pressure. Try to time the release of pressure with him crossing the bridge to associate it with the obstacle. You may have to reward many small steps (such as sniffing the pole or taking a single step toward it) before the horse commits to crossing the obstacle.

Step 3: Once the horse is comfortable stepping over a single ground pole, increase the challenge by adding more ground poles in a row and eventually increasing the height of the step-over. Follow steps 1 and 2 until he can calmly cross the obstacle.

Again, there are some common issues you should be ready to troubleshoot from the get-go when it comes to step-overs.

Avoiding the Obstacle: If the horse tries to sidestep or go around the obstacle, isolate his shoulder and ask him to return to a straight position before asking him to move forward toward the obstacle again.

Reacting to the Obstacle Touching His Legs: If the horse reacts poorly to the obstacle touching his legs, return to the prerequisite of familiarizing him with foreign objects touching his legs before trying the obstacle again.

Rushing the Step-Over: Adding height to the step-over may cause the horse to rush or jump over it. If that happens, immediately turn around and cross the obstacle again. Repeat until he slows down and becomes intentional about where he places his feet.

“Preparedness is always going to be your best friend when working with horses,” says White.

She encourages you to prepare your horse for situations that require him to cross obstacles before the need to cross an obstacle arises. Teaching your horse how to become comfortable with obstacles takes time, but it’s time worth investing.

More Groundwork Articles

◆ Groundwork for When You Can’t Ride
◆ Five Groundwork Exercises for Your Horse
◆ Groundwork Exercises to Improve Communication
◆ Groundwork with a Purpose
◆ How to Start Training a Horse for Liberty

This article about ground obstacles appeared in the September 2024 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!

The post Try These Two Ground Obstacles appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

Circles on a Lead

As discussed previously, the cues to call the horse are to step backward, call him with your voice cue, and possibly motion to him with the whip. After your horse is doing that from a standstill, it’s time to add some energy to the equation.

Start by sending the horse around you, wearing a halter and long lead, on a left circle in a round pen. Hold the rope in your left hand and a longe whip or training stick in your right hand. Once the horse has gone around in one or two circles, swing the whip under the rope and out in front of him, which will block his forward motion.

At the same time, call your horse with your voice cue and step back, drawing him to you. Repeat this a few times, then go the other way and repeat the exercise with the horse traveling on circles to the right.

Leave the lead on in the beginning to help the horse understand that he should come to you, that way you can pull on the lead if necessary. Since you have already taught the horse how to do this from a standstill, this part should be relatively easy.

Loose Horse

Once you have had some success, take the halter and lead off and repeat the exercise with the horse loose. Send him around, cut him off just a little bit, and at the same time back up to draw him to you.

In some ways it becomes easier once the horse is loose because you don’t have to worry about getting tangled up in the lead rope. However, if you’re having any trouble, just put the halter and lead back on until the horse figures this exercise out.

You can practice this at different gaits, but I often find the trot is best because there will be enough energy without things getting too fast.

Liberty Circles

There are some misconceptions when it comes to horses circling at liberty; the main one is that a horse running around in a round pen without a halter on is not really a horse circling at liberty because the round pen is holding the horse in. It seems if the pen were bigger, then the horse would be farther away, so it’s not true liberty.

We always start in a pen, but you want to work toward the horse circling with a strong enough connection to you that in theory, he could be doing small circles around you in a 100-acre field.

The only tool you will need for this part is a whip (either a longe whip or buggy whip) or a training stick. Start by backing up to draw the horse to you.

When he comes to you, stop backing and use the whip to guide him around you as if you were longeing. However, only send the horse about half a circle around you and then back up again and call him to you.

Stop and pet the horse. Keep building off of this. Draw the horse to you, then have him start to circle a bit more, and then draw him back again.

What keeps the horse with you is the thought that he shouldn’t go far because at any second, you are going to call him back, and then he can stop and take a break. Your horse should look at being with you as his “happy place” for this training to work.

Advancing to Next Steps

Build up to where your horse will circle a few times around you before you call him back. If you notice that he looks like he’s going to leave while doing a circle, call him back right away (before he leaves).

If the horse does leave, move him briskly around the perimeter of the pen once or twice, then call him back and repeat the exercise. He will likely learn quickly that it’s easier to do the small, slower circles around you than the bigger, faster ones around the full pen.

Practice on both sides at both the walk and trot. Eventually you can do liberty circles at the lope, but make sure the trot is nearly perfect first.

Once your horse will come to you and circle both ways, you have an excellent liberty training foundation on your horse. From here, the world of liberty and all its possibilities open up to you. You can add obstacles, work in different settings, work with more than one liberty horse at once—and the list goes on. Use your imagination and have fun with it!

Watch our webinar with Jason & Bronwyn Irwin.

This article about building on liberty training basics appeared in the August 2024 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!

The post Building on Liberty Basics appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

There are several ways to get started with liberty. Everyone has their own style, but I am going to explain how I start training a horse for liberty. What makes liberty work is to make the horse’s favorite place in the world with you.

I basically want to turn you into a giant magnet for your horse so that he is either with you, or if he is away from you, he will be thinking about getting back to you. This is the invisible connection that keeps a liberty horse attached to the trainer—his desire to be with that person.

However, even though the goal is to work at liberty, I like to begin the early liberty training with a halter and lead rope attached instead of turning the horse loose. With the rope attached, I can teach the liberty cues much easier, because I can help the horse more and keep things slower than I could if the horse was free in the very beginning.

One last point before you start: make sure your horse has good ground manners before you begin this training. If your horse is pushy and doesn’t have good ground manners, that’s going to cause problems.

In the early stages of liberty training, you are going to be bringing your horse to you a lot, which teaches him to want to be with you. However, if your horse is rude, then he will likely end up pushing into you, which isn’t safe.

To get started, you will need a halter, lead rope, and a longe whip.

Watch our webinar with Jason & Bronwyn Irwin.

Step 1

Pick a voice cue to call your horse. It can be any word or a whistle or just about any other sound.

If you ever watched old Westerns, you have probably seen at least a few where the hero whistles or calls out and the horse comes running to save the day—usually just in the nick of time. This is the same idea. I usually say the word “here!”

Step 2

Stand your horse beside the arena wall or a good fence. Start out with the fence on your horse’s right side.

Stand in front of the horse holding the lead rope in your left hand and the longe whip in your right hand.

Step 3

Back away from your horse, and at the same time lower your whip. Give the voice cue to come to you, and then tap very lightly on the horse’s left shoulder.

If your horse starts walking toward you when you tap him, that’s great. However, if he doesn’t, it’s OK. As you back up, the lead rope will tighten, which will give the halter a tug and bring the horse to you anyway.

What is important is to give the voice cue before the tap on the shoulder; the horse needs a chance to respond to the verbal cue before feeling the tap.

Step 4

As the horse is walking toward you, keep backing up. When you’re ready to stop, say “whoa” and lift your whip straight into the air.

The whip going up like this encourages the horse to stop, and later on, the whip being held up can be the cue for the horse to stand still, no matter how far away you are.

Repeat these steps several times. Once your horse is coming to you willingly, just motion toward him, but don’t tap as often.

Step 5

Turn your horse around so that the fence is now on his left side. Stand in front of him holding the lead rope in your right hand and the longe whip in your left hand, then repeat all the same steps tapping on his left shoulder.

Repeat until your horse is walking toward you as soon as you motion with the whip and begin backing away. Be sure to be very inviting to the horse with your posture and expression.

When the horse comes to me, I pet him (usually using the whip) to teach him that all pressure goes away as soon as he comes to me.

Step 6

The idea behind using the fence and tools as described is to make coming to you the easiest thing for the horse to do.

The horse is held in on one side because the fence is there; he likely won’t go the other way because the longe whip is there, and he can’t go backward because of the lead rope attached to him. Coming to you, therefore, becomes the most logical thing for him to do.

However, we don’t want to be stuck at the fence forever, so now it’s time to get away from it and move around in the middle of the arena. Sometimes I will hold a second whip (such as a dressage whip) in my other hand. This way I can gently guide the horse back toward me if he veers off to either side. If you’re holding two whips, you would lower both to bring the horse to you and raise both to ask for the stop.

Step 7

If your horse is coming to you the moment you call him and is following you around willingly, it’s time to get rid of the physical connection. Take off the lead rope or put it around the horse’s neck. Practice calling the horse to you and stopping him, and if it’s going really well, you can get rid of the halter and lead rope completely.

You’re now working at liberty! To learn the next steps, stay tuned for Part 2 of this liberty training series.

This article about how to start training a horse for liberty appeared in the July 2024 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!

The post How to Start Training a Horse for Liberty appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

If you’ve ever wondered why your horse behaves a certain way, or why you’re having trouble solving an equine behavior challenge—from trailer loading to simply catching your horse in the pasture—you are not alone. According to Emily Weiss, Ph.D., an applied animal behaviorist, it’s the top question she hears all the time, and it all boils down to one simple thing.

“The answer to all behavior, whether you’re a flatworm, a human, a horse, orangutan, or dog is the same: why we behave the way that we do is because it feels good,” she says. “Or, it feels less bad than the alternative.”

Weiss should know—she has worked with species of all kinds, including lions, orangutans, elephants and Komodo dragons, as well as many dogs, cats and horses. While it all comes down to “feeling good,” we have to first figure out what that means.

Think Like a Horse

Sometimes this requires an objective look at the situation, and being observant to best understand why an animal is behaving a certain way, says Weiss.

“Oftentimes we can’t help but think like humans about the things that we would like or what feels good to us,” she says. “We have to be able to take that hat off and think a bit like a horse.”

For example, consider trailer loading.

“Walking up into a horse trailer, for a lot of reasons, doesn’t feel good for horses,” says Weiss. “One thing we often don’t think about is the change in light. Going from a very light area into a horse trailer, which is quite dark, can be incredibly off-putting and frightening because horses can’t see it very well. To set up a horse [for success] while you’re training him to get on a horse trailer, one of the things you might start with is getting the trailer [well] lit so there isn’t that change in light.

“Thinking like a horse can be really helpful to figure out what might be motivating this particular animal to behave in this way at this time,” says Weiss. “And then, what do I have in my toolbox to be able to modify and change that?”

A Trainer’s Toolbox

As a behaviorist, Weiss’ preferred tool is positive reinforcement, which means you give a reward, or something that feels good, when the desired behavior happens.

Typically for horses this is food, but other rewards may include touch, such as scratching a favorite spot. By giving the reward, you increase the likelihood of the horse repeating the behavior.

Traditional horse training, using the concept of pressure and release that most equestrians are familiar with, is known in learning theory terms as negative reinforcement. Folks associate the term “positive” as good and “negative” as bad, but the terms here are referring to giving and taking away, says Weiss.

“Negative reinforcement just means you remove something when the desired behavior happens: I apply pressure, my horse moves to the left, and I release that pressure,” explains Weiss.

One of the benefits of positive reinforcement is that it can increase confidence (in both horse and human) and trust. Many routine horse care and handling tasks can be easily trained using this technique.

Both methods require good timing.

“When you apply pressure, you need to release it at the right time for the horse to learn ‘this is the behavior you want me to do,’” says Weiss.

Tweet & Treat

Thankfully, Weiss says, most domesticated horses are incredibly food-motivated, and some animals, including the horse, can be incredibly touch-motivated. Even the ones that are not comfortable with humans are pretty food-motivated, and that can serve as a powerful starting point.

When working with positive reinforcement using food, it’s important to have a signal that says “food is coming,” says Weiss.

This is typically a sound and is often called a “bridge,” or a marker, because it marks the moment a behavior occurs, and bridges the gap until you can deliver the reward.

At the moment the desired behavior occurs it tells the horse, “Yes, that’s what I want you to do, food will be coming,” and then gives you time to be able to take the food from your pocket or wherever it is and give it to your horse.

“I use a whistle, so I call it ‘tweet and treat,’” says Weiss.

Step one is to pair the sound with the delivery of food. Tweet (or whatever sound you use) followed quickly by treat. Pair the delivery several times and then observe what happens when you tweet. If the horse looks toward the food location, you have successfully paired your sound!

There should be no food visible during the training process, says Weiss. You’re teaching the horse “If I do X (behavior), I get Y (reward).”

How to Use Positive and Negative Reinforcement

There are lots of different ways you can train a horse to pick up his feet. The traditional method uses negative reinforcement, where you run your hand down the leg, apply pressure when you’re closer to the hoof, and then increase that pressure until the horse lifts his foot. Once the horse lifts his foot, you release the pressure. You then have to shape the behavior from there.

Using positive reinforcement can take a little bit of patience in the beginning, but it’s quick and quite effective, as Weiss outlines:

Begin by bringing the horse into the space in which you’d normally work with his feet, placing either a stick or your finger on his leg, waiting for any movement at all and then reinforcing that, using Weiss’ “tweet and treat” method or similar, so that the horse understands that when he moves his foot, he gets a reward.

“Once the horse now understands that touch means ‘move my foot,’ you can progress from shifting the weight and moving the foot to holding the foot for a second (tweet and treat); lifting that hoof (tweet and treat); and then holding that hoof and doing what you need to do,” says Weiss.

Weiss adds the pairing of a verbal cue so that the horse lifts without the handler having to first touch the leg.

“Done correctly, this takes a couple of sessions for most horses to learn to hold their feet,” she says. “For horses that have had a lot of negative experiences, it can take longer.”

Techniques of positive and negative reinforcement can also be used in combination, adds Weiss. The use of positive reinforcement is just one tool in the toolbox, and can be woven into more traditional pressure-and-release training.

Variable Reinforcement

If you’re worried about what happens when you run out of cookies and carrots, or becoming a nonstop treat dispenser, Weiss says that’s where variable reinforcement comes into the process: the horse gets a treat for the behavior sometimes, but not every time.

“When we’re first teaching the behavior, the horse gets a treat every time because he needs to learn it and is trying to figure it out,” says Weiss. “We have to make it consistent so that the horse understands if I do X, and I get Y.”

Once established, you can move on to variable reinforcement to make the behavior “stick.” You might use a little scratch or a verbal reinforcer if he finds that to be something that feels good to him, but he doesn’t have to get food every time.

“If he doesn’t expect to get the reward every time, he’s going to continue to do that behavior and it will remain consistent so long as he gets reinforced every once in a while,” says Weiss. “Think about playing the slot machines in a casino. Most of the time, people don’t win anything. But every once in a while, they do, and this keeps them coming back and pulling the lever.”

Key Takeaway

Positive reinforcement is a valuable addition for any horse handler.

“It’s all about finding the right tools in your toolbox for a particular situation,” says Weiss. “And for a lot of horses there’s a frustration point, where you haven’t quite been able to get the behavior that you want. Removing the negative reinforcer and replacing it with a positive reinforcer can be just the ticket to completely change the horse’s perspective and make it much easier for you to get the training done.”

This article about training horses with positive reinforcement appeared in the July 2024 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!

The post Training Horses with Positive Reinforcement appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

While this article is specifically about showing sport horses in hand, many of the basic concepts and potential benefits also translate to showing hunter horses on the line, in western halter classes, or presenting a horse for ground jury inspection in eventing.

In-hand work also provides the basic framework for later at-liberty training and will certainly make it easier if a horse needs to be shown to a veterinarian for a pre-purchase or lameness exam.

“For me, the basis of in-hand work starts with groundwork; this leads to desensitizing, the concept of boundaries, and responsiveness to pressure or aids—all things that translate to a more well-adjusted horse and are hugely beneficial to any horse once starting under saddle work,” says Quinnten Alston. Alston is a professional rider and handler who runs his own breeding program at Quantico Sporthorses in Southeastern Pennsylvania, which has produced an impressive string of breeding class champions at prestigious shows, such as Dressage at Devon. He is also an in-house rider and sales manager for Iron Spring Farm, a successful sport horse breeding facility in Coatesville, Pa.

Purpose & Process of Showing in Hand

The United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) rules for Dressage Sport Horse Breeding lists the purpose “To encourage the breeding of horses suitable for dressage and to provide an opportunity to demonstrate the effectiveness of breeding programs.”

Horses are judged on their conformation and movement and are given a “general impression” score (which may be influenced by the behavior of the horse, turnout, and other factors). The handler’s job is to present the horse in a way that can show his best qualities.

An important consideration is that the handler must be able to keep up with the horse in order to show him well in competition, so be honest in evaluating your capabilities. If in doubt, ask someone to video you working with your horse to see if you are negatively restricting his forward motion. If you aren’t physically able, it may be better to hire someone else to show your horse.

Each animal is presented one at a time in the ring (except for group breeding classes, such as “Produce of Dam” or “Get of Sire,” where related horses are shown together). The handler walks the horse into the ring for examination by a judge. The horse is first stood up for conformation evaluation; the judge walks around the horse looking at him from both sides as well as from the front and back. Next, the horse is walked around a triangle pattern, followed by trotting the triangle. Finally, the horse is set up again for evaluation before exiting the ring.

The judge stands at the apex of the triangle. He or she observes how “true” the horse travels, looking first from the back as he goes away down the first short side and then from the front as he returns on the other short side. The judge evaluates the horse’s more extended gaits as he travels on the long side of the triangle.

Getting the horse to move in a straight line is very important.

“The judge is analyzing the correctness of the gaits, which is harder to do if the horse is not moving on a straight line to or from the judge,” says Alston.

Getting Started with Showing a Horse in Hand

The aids a handler may use to communicate with the horse in hand include the handler’s body language, gentle touch-pressure applied to the body of the horse, guidance from the reins or lead, voice commands, and encouragement or direction (not punishment) using a whip.

Alston says he starts teaching a horse groundwork as early as he can, many when they are foals, after they are familiar with leading.

“Small introductions to moving away from pressure is the foundation,” he says.

The lessons start with responding to pressure applied to the front and hind end. Then, once the horse progresses on to walking and trotting in hand, he asks the horse to do both gaits on zig-zag lines. This helps the horse learn to change direction and teaches him to be more in tune with Alston’s body movement.

He also uses “square” drills: walking in a straight line, turning a 90-degree angle, continuing on a straight line again, and repeating until a square has been created. This teaches the horse to be respectful and to take into consideration where his handler is and will be going.

Alston advises that it’s easiest to have help from a whip person walking behind the horse the first couple of times so that the horse can figure out confidently walking and trotting in hand. He explains that some young horses may not understand the first time you ask them to trot in hand, but once they have a clear understanding of that, it’s as simple as asking them to be adjustable within the gaits.

“I use the terms ‘big walk/big trot’ and ‘small walk/small trot,’ but you are essentially asking the horse to cover more or less ground based on stride length,” says Alston. “I will also change my own stride length to match the horse. To accompany a bigger walk by the horse, I make my stride bigger, not faster. I always want to have the feeling that the horse is marching within his gait if I am asking for more ground cover. The movement has purpose and energy.”

Teaching your horse to stand in an open stance, then to stand square with front and back legs, and finally to go back to an open stance on the other side, is important so he understands the concept, according to Alston. However, since most of the horses he shows are young, and shows can be busy environments, he doesn’t get too focused on whether the horse is always standing perfectly in front of the judges.

He advises keeping training sessions short, 15 minutes or less, especially with younger horses, and to always end on a good note.

Equipment & Attire

USEF rules state that foals, weanlings, and yearlings may wear a leather halter with lead, but starting at age 2, horses must wear a bridle. Alston says he knows some handlers who use a bridle for yearlings, but he doesn’t until the horse turns 2. Regardless, he stresses that the halter or bridle should be well fitted to the individual horse.

“If in a bridle, the bit should be appropriate in size for the horse,” he says. “Every part of the bridle should be fit to the horse: noseband, flash, throatlatch, browband. The bridle should be practiced in prior to the show. Nothing is worse than a horse’s first introduction to a bridle being at the show.”

According to USEF rules, handlers and/or assistant handlers are allowed to carry either a dressage whip or longe whip to help direct the horse. Although Alston chooses not to carry one when he is showing, he does use a trusted assistant handler moving behind the horse with a longe whip at shows and inspections.

“I don’t always need a whip person at home, but you want to practice having that second person before you go to a show,” he explains. “If you have a horse that isn’t confident or is less forward, having a whip person while practicing can definitely be advantageous.”

The USEF rule book directs “conservative sports attire and a helmet” for handlers. Beyond that, Alston advises that the helmet be well-fitted and to wear comfortable running shoes. He doesn’t wear gloves, but knows some handlers prefer to.

For more tips from Alston and a list of USDF learning resources, visit our Introduction to Showing Sport Horses in Hand.

The post Showing Horses in Hand appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

Regardless of the evasion, horses who are difficult to bridle can make the process of tacking up an exercise in frustration. Brittany Malinoski of Brittany Lee Performance Horses in Lebanon, Tenn., offers this advice on how to correct these issues.

How Horses Become Evasive of the Bridle

Horses can develop these evasive tactics for any number of reasons.

“It could be that they never truly learned how to bridle correctly,” says Malinoski. “Or, it could be that they have had previous dental problems that caused them to lose trust in the bit or the hands of the rider. Finally, it could be the process of how the bridle is removed.”

Malinoski says that lesson horses, due to inexperienced handlers, are often prone to having their bridles removed too quickly.

“The students don’t slowly drop the bit down out of the horse’s mouth,” she says. “Instead, they may pull the bridle over the horse’s head and the bit gets caught on his teeth. The horse can panic or get scared, losing trust when the bridle is lowered.”

To help prevent issues with bridling from developing, Malinoski advises correctly training the process from the beginning, promptly addressing any dental troubles, and taking the time to make sure that the process of putting on and taking off the bridle is done slowly and correctly to avoid banging the horse in the mouth.

But prevention aside, what can you do if the problem with bridling is already well established?

Selecting a Location

Before beginning, Malinoski advises choosing an environment where you are setting up the training session for success. But the perfect location can vary, depending upon the method the horse uses to evade the bridle.

For example, she says that an arena can be ideal for a horse who actively backs away, while other issues, such as a horse who raises his head too high or one that refuses to accept the bit, may be better addressed in a more enclosed area, such as a grooming stall. As for equipment, Malinoski says that a simple rope halter and your horse’s bridle are all you need.

Steps to Lower the Head

For milder cases where the horse may simply be raising his head out of reach or refusing to take the bit, Malinoski begins the retraining process in a grooming stall with the horse wearing nothing more than a rope halter. She then introduces the idea to the horse to lower his head on command.

“This is accomplished by placing your hand on the horse’s head and applying pressure to his poll,” she says. She describes the process of holding the lead rope in your left hand and standing near and to the left of the horse’s head, then placing your right hand on the horse’s poll.

“When the horse lowers his head, you release the pressure,” says Malinoski. She elaborates that after getting the horse comfortable with his face and ears being touched, this process can also be useful when working with horses who are head or ear-shy. Malinoski does not introduce the bridle until the horse has become confirmed in this skill. Depending upon your horse, this may be in the first or later sessions.

Moving on to the Bridle

When the horse is ready, Malinoski explains that she repeats the process, this time using the bridle.

TIP: She says that while it is not necessary to have a certain bit for the retraining process, she advises having a bit that fits the horse properly. However, she says that practicing with a smaller bit, like a snaffle, can help regain trust.

After giving the command for the horse to lower his head from the direction of the poll, use your right hand to gently guide the bridle up into position while using your left hand to position the bit into place.

While she generally waits for the horse to open his mouth for the bit, if necessary, this can be encouraged by placing your thumb and middle finger on the bars on each side of the horse’s mouth and softly applying pressure.

TIP: Malinoski acknowledges that while some trainers use gimmicks such as applying products to the bit to make it taste good or holding a treat for the horse in the same hand as the bit, she is not a fan of these methods. This is mainly because these items may not be accessible when you are at a show or on a trail ride, and you can easily get into trouble if your horse won’t bridle without them.

With the bit in, the bridle can then be softly pulled up and into place. Once on, she lowers it back off, taking care not to bang the horse’s teeth with the bit in the process. She tries to do this a few times before ending the session.

Due to the extra space, Malinoski prefers the arena for working with horses who back away from the bridle. While she will still start the retraining process by teaching the command to lower the head when it comes time to put on the bridle, she then moves to the arena.

If the horse attempts to back away, she simply walks back with him until he stops and lowers his head.

“When that happens, I release the pressure,” she says.

Length of Retraining

Malinoski says that while the retraining process can take time, with patience and understanding, progress can happen in a relatively short span.

“If you work steadily at it, you should be able to make progress in about a week,” she says.

When the bridle goes on smoothly, release the pressure, and the horse has the reward of you taking it off. Malinoski explains that session lengths will vary by horse.

This article about bridling a horse that evades the bridle appeared in the May 2024 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!

The post How to Bridle a Horse That Evades the Bridle appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

It’s also a safety benefit while working in the barn. When other people and horses are coming in and out of stalls, the wash rack, or aisle, it’s important to be able to move your horse wherever you need to—including in reverse.

The good news is you can use simple ground training to teach your horse to back up. While a young green horse will clearly benefit from this type of training, older horses may also lack solid backing skills, or they may have become lazy about the process.

In either case, teaching or reteaching the skill is straightforward.

There are different methods for teaching a horse to back up from the ground, and individual horses may benefit from different techniques; what works for one may not work as well for another.

The pressure-and-release technique for backing up your horse in hand described below is simple, safe, and easy for both horse and handler to understand.

1. Turn to Face Your Horse

Begin in the normal position that you would use to lead your horse: on his near side, next to his shoulder.

The first step to backing is to turn and face your horse so that you’re looking in the direction you want him to back. Try to visualize exactly where you want your horse’s feet to go; this can help you assist him in backing as straight as possible. It may also help to work next to an arena rail or wall to aid him in backing straight while he’s learning.

2. Add a Tiny Amount of Pressure

Next, give your horse a tiny cue that he should move backward. Start with a small amount of pressure on the front of his chest by his near shoulder. You can use your hand to gently apply a bit of pressure, but it may be easier to use the tip of a short riding crop.

At the same time, take just a half step toward your horse. This may eventually be quite beneficial, as he will begin to predict what you want when he sees you take a step.

Also, a vocal cue or clicker can be used in combination with the pressure cue to help him understand that you’d like him to do something.

3. Increase Pressure As Needed

If your horse is completely green to this process, odds are you won’t get much of a response, if any. That’s OK! Starting out slow is fine.

The next step is to incrementally add more pressure until your horse performs the desired behavior. If steady pressure isn’t working, you can always change to a light repetitive tapping.

If there’s still no response, continue to incrementally make the cue stronger, all while moving toward your horse slightly.

4. Stop and Reward

As the cue increases in strength, most horses will naturally take a step back and yield to your prompting. As soon as that happens, stop applying pressure—this is your horse’s reward for yielding. You can add vocal praise as well.

The benefit of slowly adding additional pressure and then releasing ensures that you’re never over-cueing your horse. Repeat steps 2 to 4 a couple of times, and then let your horse take a break until the next day’s lesson.

5. Use Repetition

As with any type of horse training, short sessions that repeat the same steps reinforce the concept to your horse quickly. It’s amazing how quickly a horse can learn a skill if you do it every day.

You can certainly do this type of groundwork in a formal training setting like a round pen or indoor arena, but a couple of minutes while your horse is on his way to daily turnout can work as well. It’s simply backing up, so it doesn’t need to be elaborate.

6. Watch Him Improve

Eventually, your horse will understand the very first moments of your cue. In time, he should start to back up when he feels even the slightest bit of pressure or tapping on his shoulder.

Ideally, you’ll even get to the point where you can back your horse without touching him at all—he’ll just be attuned to your movements and start to back up as soon as you turn around and begin to walk toward him.

Congratulations! You have a horse that is well-trained to back up and easy to work with.

This article about backing up your horse in hand appeared in the April 2024 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!

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