Do you use your voice to train/teach your horse?

PolarSkye

PolarSkye

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Following on from the "do you raise your voice/shout at your horse" . . . do you use your voice when teaching or training your horse - either on the ground or on board - and do you think it works?

Although I know intellectually that horses (naturally) spend far more time reacting to body language than communicating verbally between each other, I do use my voice with Kal. Whether or not he's reacting to my voice, or the associated, accompanying and (often) unconscious body language that goes with what I'm saying, I don't really know - but he does seem to respond in some way.

So what about you? How do you communicate with your horse - and what do you find effective?

P
 
Angelz said:
Yes, I free lunge mine completly off voice commands :-) well, walk, trott, canter, woooww (to slow his pace :-))
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Interesting - and if your horse is either not doing what you want, or is doing what you asked beautifully, do you use your voice to praise or reprimand - or something else?

I, too, use voice commands when lunging - but I also praise him when he does something I want (like stretching right down) . . . I can't reward him the way I would if I was on board (with a scratch, a stroke and/or a pat) so I use my voice.

What about when handling on the ground - or when riding? Do you use your voice then?

P
 
Yes, absolutely. Not to the extent, I hope, that it is a relentless background babble, but I do use specific verbal commands.

Interestingly I trained on a riding school where the YO was adamant that the entire area should be competely silent, she didn't like anybody speaking to the horses or using any verbal aids..her arguement was that if you were on a large yard and everybody was communicating verbally with the horses it would be a very noisy place...and she stated that talking to horses was the true sign of an amateur horse owner, not an equestrian professional

However, I have escaped from there..and if I want to tell a horse to stand, or walk on or I want to count out loud to maintain a rhythm, then I'll do it.
 
when lunging I have always used voice commands of walk, trot, canter whooooaa.

Its great except if I am riding in company and ask the other person if they want a trot or canter !!!!! we are doing it as I ask if I am not careful !!

Also makes me bit lazy with the aids as I can literally just ask for trot !
 
Yeah I talk constantly when I'm riding, lunging, on the ground, whatever. Not necessarily deliberately 'training' to commands, but using the tone of my voice to elicit a response.

A friend of mine has been told off repeatedly by her instructor for not using her voice when riding. When she does, the horse responds in a totally different way and is much more alert to her aids.
 
My cob is incredibly spooky and the only thing that settles him is me chatting to him. Also I train all my horses to walk on voice this is my safety net if anything dangerous happens/ lose control it's a very useful last resort
 
i use my voice when riding, my instructor tells me off if i dont. However i dont use it just for aids, i use it to calm my boy down as he is a very stresy horse and a good boy or steady really helps to bring him back to me and my way of thinking!!
My big question is how does this affect you at competitions?? For example i hope to do dressage next summer but obv i wont be able to use my voice as openly in a test so i am trying to come up with a way to disguise that im talking!!!
 
As I do alot of carriage driving, I use my voice all the time. Its amazing how quickly horses react to "No". One point that nobody has mentioned, is that all the time you talk, you are breathing correctly, and therefore not tense. When I used to teach riding, I used to ask pupils to recite "Mary had a little lamb". The number of people who couldn't do it as they were too tense. I used to find a little singing on a hard pulling racehores also worked wonders!
 
I always talk to my horse!! .. and my dog! And even past rabbits and hamsters and fish!

When I am asking for a command I am always very consistent. It doesn't even feel like effort asking him, I don't have to make a point that I haven;t asked for something the right way etc, because to us it is like having a conversation.

'_____, Listen Listen' (ohh We're going to do something)

I only use the 'Listen, Listen' part of it when I think his attention has waivered a bit and need to call back his attention.

and Trot On/ Walk/ Canter/ Stand.'

I do shout at him when he misbehaves for whatever reason, which means I can shout at him from the tack room when I spy him eating his leadrope, and because I am so consistent in the way I talk to him me asking for a command is for any situation, whether it be riding, lunging or just on the ground.

I would always recommend talking to your horse, but not talking so much drizzle that it goes in one ear and out the other.

I would also point out that all of my commands sound quite different, so trot on is always trot on and not just trot. I think something small like thats it much clearer.

I still use my aids when riding etc, because such as in dressage there is a time and place where you cannot use voice commands, but also because I want my horse to be well schooled, and for other people to sit on him and get good results. I think that by using my voice with the aids in training just helps to reinforce all of my points.

It was also very useful on my previous horse ( also accustomed to voice commands ) that I could gallop across the field and say '__ annd trot'. :D
 
Yes I do for lunging walking / trotting / canter / whooooa. I also use my voice to praise when he is very good and gets it right and when we finish work. He definitely likes praise. I use the occasional no, but rarely. Using words causes issues though when riding out, because if someone says 'do you fancy a trot or canter', he is into a trot or canter before I realise what is happening, so lately we have been spelling the words instead T-R-O-T! :rolleyes:
 
Probably the best piece of advice I was ever given for working around horses was 'For safety sake, speak'.
I also find a well timed 'steady' followed by 'good lad' is far more effective than a pat when under saddle. So I can't understand why people get so upset about eventers not constantly patting their horses.
 
All the time. My youngster is eager to please and loves getting a 'good boy'

Also since I have been backing him myself and using voice commands for the gates it's helped him transition into ridden. When be couldn't work out that I was asking him to trot I gave the physical aid and a verbal 'trot on' he immediately trotted and now knows what the physical aid means.
 
definiteley - my boy was so so spooky out hacking and in teh school but now ive learnt ot anticipate what he will spook at or when he is getting worried a quiet " there there its not going to eat you, go on lad " followed by a "good boy" when hes passed has worked wonders and built up our bond so so much. I trust he trusts me and in turn my confidence has increased too as much as his - total win win.
I also use verbal commands in general riding, schooling and leading
 
I use my voice all the time -my welshie is deffo very sensitive to noise-as soon as my phone rings he stops and stands still-great out hacking but annoying in the school-I have to put it on silent now if I m schooling-I didn t teach him to do this its been learnt "by association".
He also opens gates with his nose-I go "Gate Sparks" and he pushes it open.In the stable he does over and back from my voice-I just think its the easiest way and Welshies love learning new tricks!!xx
 
Yes, definitely use my voice. Horses can hear and aren't stupid - even mine :rolleyes: They understand a sharp vocal reprimand when they step over the line. And certainly listen to commands on the lunge and when long-reining.
 
like cundlegreen I carriage drive as well as ride I could not believe when I got my first a schoolmaster ( RIP lovely boy ) his wonderful reactions to voice commands however since then I have realised they can all be voice trained really easily however you have to be careful of idle chatter round them to keep them really sharp. We train them all now the stand is really useful they will all stand if left but it must be said some are more trustworthy than others fatty Frank my husbands hunter is an expert at pissing off at the moment of maximum embrassament.
It's really useful to have them voice trained and important for the driving as you need to be able to get them to stand in emergency situation such as the harness tangled or what ever.
 
Absolutely yes.. I am very vocal with my horse and I think he responds well. I use a rolling tongue noise in low note to higher note for upwards/forwards movements and the same noise but high note to low or monotone low note for downwards/slowing. I use on on on on on on on in a jolly tone for extended movements (as well as aids obviously)

Usually lots of 'Good Boy' and 'Very Good' when he gets things right. Never really use shouting or negative growling - just a firm NO!
 
yes, I use my voice when I'm lunging, working at liberty, trick training - both in terms of giving instructions and praising / correcting what he offers. I also use my voice when I'm riding, less so for schooling as we do venture into the dressage arena every now and then, but I praise him for good work and occasionally swear quietly at him for being a sod (it makes me feel better). I use verbal commands when hacking and jumping, no real reason I guess, just because I can ;)
 
Very similar to others... and very similar results too...

- OH complains horse listens to and understands my commands when I'm helping him school before he has had a chance to give any aids (so now we wonder how long it is going to take horse to learn to recognise spellings...)
- BUT in an emergency I can give aids from the ground to help them out
- and obviously both of us can use voice aids to reinforce the other aids (and feedback such as priase and corrections) when ridden or on the ground/when free schooling

One interesting point... old horse understood my vocal commands but ignored OH's. New horse is much more responsive to him as well as me. As far as we can tell it is a question of tone... unlike new horse old horse's owner has a very high girly voice which mine was similar enough to for him to recognise but OH's deep growling (he isn't good at the up-down tones for the direction of transitions) just seemed like background noise!
 
For lunging, free work and riding we use the following;

For going up a gait, walk to jog and jog to trot a Kissing noise is used for the transition into canter only, a click noise and to slow down in any gait a soft humming "mmmmmmm" to stop is a slow "woooooooooh"
 
My girl also knows left & right. As she was asked to turn I used the words until she'd picked up the idea. Now, out riding, on a turn I turn her with my voice, & the more times I say it the tighter the turn she does. She also has a specific command for coming back out the trailer so she knows to expect the ramp then step (steady back).
 
Absolutey. My spooky boy's inclination was to run away from anything that scared him and I found that he responded much better to a woooah (on a downward tone) than just aids alone. He was very giddy and when I'd had enough of him tiggering along, I used "walking", also on a downward tone, until he walked. If we were facing something scary, it was "walk on". I basically used the same commands ridden as I did for lungeing and he understood what I wanted. Needless to say, I never had to use a vocal "canter" command when on board though!
 
Yes.

'back' is often used if I have my hands full (otherwise I'd use a hand signal) so they know both, I can even shout 'back back' from across the yard if I'm no where near him and he'll go into reverse if tied up outside the stable etc...quite funny really :D

I've just tought the TB to back up by pointing my finger near her chest, didn't take long really, few sessions in the school but she's not a bright as my lad, he'll pick something up straight away :rolleyes: (but then I tought him from a youngster) but she now understands this, I like horses to move away from gates and stable doors when I enter them, prevents them from trying to barge out too.

I can get my boy to stand while I'm out hacking by just saying stand without doing anything else, doesn't work everytime if his mind is off the job however :rolleyes: but he knows what I mean and tends to do it.

'stretches' he knows when I'm on him and I say this that it's time for some neck streching or kissing the stirrup irons, he does one side then does the other on his own, although sometimes he does like to grab my iron or my foot :D

''lift up'' will lift his feet up to be picked up

''stretch your legs'' he'll bring his front ones forward after I've done the girth

''head up'' this is when I give him his bucket feed in his stable and need to remove his head collar before I switch his light off and leave, he'll bring his head back up for me to remove his head collar even though he's just started eating his feed.

''Drinkies'' he knows I'm getting his drink in a water bucket (if he's been stood tied up out side his stable eating hay) I'll over him a bit of water between.

Think that's it.
 
I always use my voice as well as a whistle sometimes. As someone else said I know a few horses that when they hear the riders phone go off they grind to a halt.
 
the watcher said:
Interestingly I trained on a riding school where the YO was adamant that the entire area should be competely silent, she didn't like anybody speaking to the horses or using any verbal aids..her arguement was that if you were on a large yard and everybody was communicating verbally with the horses it would be a very noisy place...and she stated that talking to horses was the true sign of an amateur horse owner, not an equestrian professional
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What an idiot! I am a professional - I talk to ALL horses I am handling or riding - and I insist my staff do the same. It starts when they are new-born foals - they are told to walk on, and whoa, and stand. And praised with 'good boy' (or girl) And when we come to back them they already understand a couple of very basic words and know they have to listen.

Body language is a back-up when you're on the ground (not much use from the saddle) - and when you're backing a youngster, how on EARTH do you teach him that legs mean 'go forward' and the bit and seat ask him to slow down and stop WITHOUT using your voice aids?
 
I always use voice commands, even hacking. The boys will respond, even at a gallop to TROOOOT & Steady. I use TROT ON to go up a pace. In fact thinking about it, when I want them to come down a pace I draw the word out, saying it slowly & when I want them to go up a pace I use the word in a short brisk way. They know all sorts of commands, from over, to stand, up (to pick a foot up) etc. makes life nice & easy all round.
 
JanetGeorge said:
What an idiot! I am a professional - I talk to ALL horses I am handling or riding - and I insist my staff do the same. It starts when they are new-born foals - they are told to walk on, and whoa, and stand. And praised with 'good boy' (or girl) And when we come to back them they already understand a couple of very basic words and know they have to listen.

Body language is a back-up when you're on the ground (not much use from the saddle) - and when you're backing a youngster, how on EARTH do you teach him that legs mean 'go forward' and the bit and seat ask him to slow down and stop WITHOUT using your voice aids?
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I agree.....I didn't stay there long as I think I disagreed with her (usually silently) on every single point
 
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