Disheartened and Frustrated....

[clairenmolly]

having a real frustrated day with the madam horse today and looking for any suggestions.

Amongst a few bad habits, the one that is really p'ing me off the most at the moment is her inability to be tied up. She walks from side to side not standing still which drives me mad, tries to bog off when I bring the bridle out and if I do anything she slighty dislikes (like look at her the wrong way) she pulls back on the rope and keeps pulling until the string she is tied to snaps.

She has gone through fazes of this on and off but its really not acceptable and is getting worse. She did it once tonight and twice yesterday.

Any ideas how to combat this problem? she did it in the trailer the other day and ended up running backwards out of the trailer snapping 2 strings (she was cross tied and I was on my own so couldnt be in 2 plces in the trailer). That is not good in itself as its dangerous for starters.

Even when being lead, if theres any pressure on the headcollar, she will refuse to move and go backwards. she is so frustrating!!! She will not tolerate any pressure on her headcollar at all, she wiill pull back and keep pulling until something breaks. or I talk her into moving forwards.

thanx

 

[dwi]

Buy a dually halter from the monty roberts site.

I was sceptical but desperate because my mare would plant and then barge off.

I had a trainer come and work with her and we established a starting ground from which we have continued to improve in just one session.

You aren't supposed to tie up in them in case they hurt themselves but I did tie her up several times standing right next to her so nothing bad could happen and she soon learnt that it was much more comfortable not to pull back on it. Problem solved.

 

[clairenmolly]

does anyone have the dually halter dvd?? may be worth me watching before buying one

thanks dwi

any other thoughts?

 

[flyingfeet]

You get a free DVD with the Dually halter and they are cheapest on eBay.

If you are having any doubts, they are a seriously worthwhile investment. Not only do they solve leading, handling & loading, but they are great for lungeing, leading off another horse and can be used as a side pull hackamore.

Fab peice of kit!

 

[mandy4727]

I would look at some sort of pressure headcollar like the Dually. The dvd will show you how the horse realises that pressure is not nice and they give in to it. By stroking and talking nice when the headcollar is loose and slack and as soon as they pull away and the pressure starts. The being nice stops. They soon realise that when it is slack it is nice. Well that is in basic turns anyway. We got our filly in Jan. 9 months old. Had been handled loads and was very soft. But as our turnout facilities this winter were not ideal she was in her stable so became a bit of a handful sometimes. This years winter turnout sorted you will be pleased to hear. We made our own version of the pressure headcollar and it really did work with her. She still had a couple of "moments" but no where near as bad or as long winded.

 

[teapot]

Having dealt with a horse who used to be tied with 2 leadropes and still managed to break both of them.

What's she like being tied up elsewhere as we found with Pos that if he could see stuff, he was much better. Put him in certain stalls or parts of the yard and he'd flip.

Or is she only like when she's on her own? Pos would do anything to get out of the yard if he was on his own - we always used to have to have atleast 1 other horse on the yard with him.

We didnt use the Dually on him, but instead, just one of the rope headcollars (he's the horse on the left of my sig) not sure if you can see it clearly enough.

Best advice for tying up - is tie her to something that stretches like bungee or even a tail bandage - that way as she pulls back she wont receive any pressure.

 

[GTs]

Monty Roberts? Tie them to something that is not going anywhere, and let them pull all they want. Horses pull back as they know they can get away!! As far as not standing still - hobbles!

 

[PeterNatt]

What about some info on the horse? How long have you had her? How old etc?

 

[filly190]

Only a suggestion, is there any little holding area on your yard, where she can groom her loose and let her chill for a bit with a haynet. It sounds like she is stressed with the whole procedure of being tied up and by dancing around you cant groom her as you'd wish. If you could take the stress away for a bit and get her to enjoy grooming again, little steps at a time perhaps.

Another way is just to slip the rope through and not tie her. When she pulls, there is no resistence and she has achieved nothing, maybe she will then loose interest if its her game.

I personally like it is dangerous to tie them up too securely, you may end up with unwanted vets bills to add to your problems.

If you dont have anyway such as a small holding area, perhaps leave her loose in the stable and try classical conditioning, gain her interest in you with carrots and treats when grooming. She will stand still to be fed and eventually may chill out.

Good luck, its a horrible problem, one that is not fixed over night. I dont personally think fighting with her will help, she already knows her strength. I think you need to out wit her a little.

 

[tuscanyD]

I've used a lunge line with my mare. She learned she could pull back, break the string and grt away and it became a bad habit for a short while.

Clipped a lunge line through the ring to her headcollar and held the other end. It was like landing a fish - she'd pull and I'd give with the lunge line then when she relaxed move her back to the tie ring and carry on.

It works because there's no pressure or pain for her to panic at but you still have hold of the horse! Couple of sessions and she gave it up - just like that. No pain, no panic no risk of physical damage to the horse or equipment.

 

[malibu211211]

Hi,
I can recommend the Dually halter especially for the leading problem you have.
My horse is simply a thug and it was always his way or no way at all

When leading to and from the field he would refuse to move and then try to push you off balance with his head which he succeeded everytime. Going through gateways was an absolute nightmare, once you turned to shut the gate he would rear up and when you tried to bring him down he would strike out so you had to let go. I was losing the will to live so after lots of advice and trial and error, I had a Monty Roberts trained instructor out to him.
He has always been really 'in your face' and she did lots of groundwork with him wearing this Dually halter and he seemed to enjoy it too.
It works on pressure and release, first of all you give him enough room to make a mistake, if he does the soft rope puts pressure on his nose and they soon learnt to move away from the pressure and do what your asking. When they make the slightest of movement towards what you're asking you reward them with a headrub

My boy will now happily lead to and from the field and he will follow me across the field without being clipped on aswell

Gateways are not a problem now and I can turn and close the gate without worrying

Ebay are probably the cheapest but Robinsons do them too
Mali xx

 

[leskaneen]

My welshie had this problem together with leading issues-so went down our local market ,bought 4 yards of rope & made an old fashioned halter like we used to use as kids.It cost 3 quid and works a dream.Pity all other issues with my horse aren t so easily solved!!

 

[starsky]

I don't know the proper name for them, but you can get bungee cord leadropes. When they pull back the rope stretches and stretches and doesn't actually break so they can't get free. My friends mare gave up after a while and would stand perfectly still.