We wrote about this earlier (see my earlier post on loading a horse into a horse trailer). But most likely, if you are reading this post, you still have trouble with your horse when it comes to loading the horse into a trailer.
A few thoughts:
Like the rest of us, horses have a strong instinct for self-preservation. Being naturally timid, they generally try to flee situations they perceive as life-threatening. If flight is not possible, they will put up a struggle.
A horse trailer is potentially life-threatening to horses. Every large animal veterinarian has seen plenty of trailer related horse injuries and fatalities.
Your horse is not "bad" because he won't load into the horse trailer. He is acting naturally, trying to avoid what he correctly perceives to be a dangerous situation. He is doing what any horse would do--he is acting according to his nature. He is a good horse with the right instincts, even if he won't get in the horse trailer. Approach the problem with this attitude, and a barrel of patience.
Wearing gloves, and non-skid boots, lead the horse, wearing a stout halter and cotton lead rope at least ten feet long, up to the trailer and let him sniff and examine the trailer for about fifteen minutes while you make reassuring noises. Stay on the side of the horse, near the shoulder. Don't get in front or in back of him.
If the horse is stiff, tense, snorting and bug-eyed, you ought to take him back to the paddock and longe him for ten or fifteen minutes to calm him down. If you are used to riding him (safely) when he is in a nervous condition, go ahead and ride him for an hour or more.
After he has been vigorously exercised and is more relaxed, approach the trailer again and let him sniff. Have some of his favorite foods, hay and treats up in the trailer near the front.
Lead the horse in a confident, matter of fact manner up to the trailer, as if you are sure that he will get in. Don't walk in front of him, and don't look back at him hesitating. Stay at his shoulder and lead him right up to the left side stall of the trailer. (Always haul a single horse up on the driver's side. If you have two horses to haul, put the bigger horse on the driver's side.)
Don't get in the trailer with the horse, unless there is an escape door, or way for you to get out fast. There's no point in getting in a trailer with a horse that might go ballistic with you trapped inside, is there?
If you're lucky, the horse gets right in, and you reach through the side and tie his lead to the trailer tie, or unsnap the lead, if you prefer to have them free in the trailer.
Most likely, your horse planted his feet and pulled back when you tried to lead him up to the trailer, right?
It's all right, he will learn eventually. Don't praise him, but don't punish him either. Don't be angry or despairing. You are on schedule.
The next step is to get a strong friend with gloves and non-skid boots, a cotton longe rope at least 25 feet long, and a longe whip.
Some other good equipment to wear, if you have them, is a safety vest, a helmet, and leg wraps or trailer boots on the horse, to protect his legs. A protective trailer hat for the horse is not a bad idea either, as some horse rear up in a trailer and cut their heads.
One method that sometimes works, and is not too traumatizing, is to tie the end of the horse's lead rope, using a square knot, to the end of the longe line. Thread the longe line up through the trailer stall and out the front side, where you want the horse's head to go. Pull the longe rope and lead line gently till they are somewhat taut, and make the line go in a loop back around the horse's butt. Don't get too close, as you may get kicked. Do not wind the rope around your hand or arm, and be sure you not to get tangled in the rope in any way. You should be able to drop the rope immediately at any time and be completely free of the horse. Have your longe whip or driving whip ready. When the horse feels the tug of the lead rope pulling him forward, most likely, he will pull backwards. That's when you pull the loop of the longe rope against his hindquarters, just above his hocks. He may try to kick or sit down upon the rope. You give a little tug and crack the whip or touch him lightly with the whip and say "Walk!" With any luck, he will go forward.
If he does go forward, let up, just a little on the rope--a relief of pressure is how you reward him for the right response. But don't let up too much, as he will most likely try to bolt out of the side of the trailer. Most likely, the horse fights you, sitting down on the rope, kicking or yanking his head back and forth. Ply the butt rope back and forth, and repeat the whip cracking while saying 'walk." Be sure you are clear of the hind legs, and also that if the horse flips over, you aren't going to be underneath. Whenever the horse starts to do the right thing, let up a little and praise him. When he starts to balk, crack the whip, saw the rope and continue the voice commands. Hopefully, he will eventually get the idea that if he keeps moving forward in to the trailer, you are going to let up on the pressure. You will stop pulling the rope against his butt, and you will stop cracking the whip. This concept may take weeks for some horses to learn, especially if they've had bad experiences in the trailer before. The goal is to get him to recognize that moving forward means comfort. Anything else means discomfort.
The other goal is to keep the situation calm. It's easy to get frustrated, because some horses are very stubborn and balky about loading, and it's easy to blow your stack. Keep cool, be patient, the horse will eventually learn.
If these methods are not successful, I will tell you some other things to try later on...
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
How to catch a horse
You've probably already tried catching your horse by offering him tempting treats, hay or shaking a bucket of grain. You also know better than to go into a field or paddock full of horses with goodies--that's a way some people get trounced on or kicked by a mob of stampeding horses fighting over the treats. Not a good idea.
If the field is full of horses, and your darling mount won't come nicely up to the gate to be haltered and caught, you may have to "divide and conquer," that is, catch any of the other horses that will come up to the fence and allow themselves to be taken out of the field. Try to get as many out as you can before you go in to catch your shy friend. Horses have a tendency to bunch up in a group, making it harder to single one out.
Once your horse is alone in the field, try luring him to you with treats and food again. If he still won't come, get yourself a longe whip and summon all of your reserves of patience. Resign yourself to the fact that you probably won't be riding, but that today will be a groundwork lesson for your horse. He is learning how to allow himself to be caught. This may take several lessons.
Keep a positive attitude. The horse is a good boy, not a bad boy. He just doesn't know how he should act. You are going to let the good boy have some exercise till he is ready to quit and stand still so you can put his halter on. Hopefully, your paddock or field is small, otherwise, you are going to have some exercise too!
Have your halter and lead rope hung on your shoulder. The idea is to keep them with you and have them ready in case the horse decides to stop and stand quiet, but to be sure that you, or the horse won't get tangled in them. Also have your longe whip.
Approach the horse, and the minute you see that he is going to trot or bolt away, crack the whip and ask him to canter, (or trot, if he is slow). Keep him going. If he whirls around to go the other way, praise him and encourage him to keep going. Keep your distance from the horse, because many will try to kick out at you as they run. In fact, you should be wearing a helmet, some non-slip boots, and if you have one, wear an equestrian safety vest, just like the guys who work at the race track.
You are conducting a free-longeing lesson. Keep the horse going nice and fast. If you see that he wants to break stride from a canter to a trot, say "Trot" and praise him when he breaks into a trot. Keep him going and don't let him stop to eat, drink or rest. If he starts to tire, and you see that he is planning to walk, say "Walk" and praise him if he walks,--otherwise, keep him going. If he decides to stop say "Whoa," and let him stand for a minute before you hold your whip behind you and approach. But, if he starts to walk or trot again, encourage him to go faster. If he turns his butt toward you, snap the whip and ask him to trot or go faster. Praise him when he goes faster and keep him going till he begins to tire and wants to slow down. You will again command him to "walk" when you see he is slowing to a walk, and praise him when he does so. If he stops but turns his butt toward you again when you approach, back up away from him, crack the whip and get him trotting or cantering again. Be sure to say "trot" or "canter" when you ask him to go, so that he will be acting as a good, obedient boy, doing as he was told. He needs to learn that turning his butt toward you means more exercise for him. The goal is that he stops, stands and does not move when you approach with your halter and lead rope. Just be sure that your longe whip is in a non-threatening position as you approach the standing horse. It should be behind you, not pointed at the horse. Keep your movements slow and confident, not jerky, nervous or angry.
The idea your are trying to teach the horse is that the nicest, most comfortable thing for him to do is the thing YOU want him to do. Everything else is a great deal of work. He's not bad when he does what HE likes, he just has to work very hard, and you are happy to make him do so.
NOTE: The key is to be sure that you are consistent in your commands and actions so that the horse will not be confused about what is being asked of him. For example, don't raise the longe whip toward his flank unless you want him to go faster. The whip should be down and inconspicuous when he is standing as he should.
If the field is full of horses, and your darling mount won't come nicely up to the gate to be haltered and caught, you may have to "divide and conquer," that is, catch any of the other horses that will come up to the fence and allow themselves to be taken out of the field. Try to get as many out as you can before you go in to catch your shy friend. Horses have a tendency to bunch up in a group, making it harder to single one out.
Once your horse is alone in the field, try luring him to you with treats and food again. If he still won't come, get yourself a longe whip and summon all of your reserves of patience. Resign yourself to the fact that you probably won't be riding, but that today will be a groundwork lesson for your horse. He is learning how to allow himself to be caught. This may take several lessons.
Keep a positive attitude. The horse is a good boy, not a bad boy. He just doesn't know how he should act. You are going to let the good boy have some exercise till he is ready to quit and stand still so you can put his halter on. Hopefully, your paddock or field is small, otherwise, you are going to have some exercise too!
Have your halter and lead rope hung on your shoulder. The idea is to keep them with you and have them ready in case the horse decides to stop and stand quiet, but to be sure that you, or the horse won't get tangled in them. Also have your longe whip.
Approach the horse, and the minute you see that he is going to trot or bolt away, crack the whip and ask him to canter, (or trot, if he is slow). Keep him going. If he whirls around to go the other way, praise him and encourage him to keep going. Keep your distance from the horse, because many will try to kick out at you as they run. In fact, you should be wearing a helmet, some non-slip boots, and if you have one, wear an equestrian safety vest, just like the guys who work at the race track.
You are conducting a free-longeing lesson. Keep the horse going nice and fast. If you see that he wants to break stride from a canter to a trot, say "Trot" and praise him when he breaks into a trot. Keep him going and don't let him stop to eat, drink or rest. If he starts to tire, and you see that he is planning to walk, say "Walk" and praise him if he walks,--otherwise, keep him going. If he decides to stop say "Whoa," and let him stand for a minute before you hold your whip behind you and approach. But, if he starts to walk or trot again, encourage him to go faster. If he turns his butt toward you, snap the whip and ask him to trot or go faster. Praise him when he goes faster and keep him going till he begins to tire and wants to slow down. You will again command him to "walk" when you see he is slowing to a walk, and praise him when he does so. If he stops but turns his butt toward you again when you approach, back up away from him, crack the whip and get him trotting or cantering again. Be sure to say "trot" or "canter" when you ask him to go, so that he will be acting as a good, obedient boy, doing as he was told. He needs to learn that turning his butt toward you means more exercise for him. The goal is that he stops, stands and does not move when you approach with your halter and lead rope. Just be sure that your longe whip is in a non-threatening position as you approach the standing horse. It should be behind you, not pointed at the horse. Keep your movements slow and confident, not jerky, nervous or angry.
The idea your are trying to teach the horse is that the nicest, most comfortable thing for him to do is the thing YOU want him to do. Everything else is a great deal of work. He's not bad when he does what HE likes, he just has to work very hard, and you are happy to make him do so.
NOTE: The key is to be sure that you are consistent in your commands and actions so that the horse will not be confused about what is being asked of him. For example, don't raise the longe whip toward his flank unless you want him to go faster. The whip should be down and inconspicuous when he is standing as he should.
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