Lunging help

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doodle

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Robin is good on the lunge. Up and down transitions pretty spot on, on and back in trot also good. However walk to halt is very poor. He dosnt slow down just keeps walking. I generally reel him in a bit and get it eventually but it takes several circles. I then tell him he is great. I had the exact same problem with soli so I am presuming I am doing something wrong but when I lunge at work I don't have the issue. Any thoughts?
 
Kamikaze said:
Robin is good on the lunge. Up and down transitions pretty spot on, on and back in trot also good. However walk to halt is very poor. He dosnt slow down just keeps walking. I generally reel him in a bit and get it eventually but it takes several circles. I then tell him he is great. I had the exact same problem with soli so I am presuming I am doing something wrong but when I lunge at work I don't have the issue. Any thoughts?
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Go back to the basics - Whip in left hand - lunge line in right. Lead as per normal, Clear verbal command - 'aaaand Whoooooaaa!' physical halt him with the line. Do this until he no longer needs you to use the line. Change and do on the other rein. Once he will stop to the command well, then move a little further away. keep moving further away.

Another solution is to walk him into something solid - such as the fence.

Getting this command sorted is so important but can take time.

Make sure that your commands are clear and of good tone - women tend to be high pitched and squeaky so try to drop the pitch of your voice. Be consistent with the command.

Lunging is fun and you can work the horse as well as you do when ridden. My Pony Club kids think its great lunging my Clydesdale as she will halt from Trot, go straight into trot and if they ask her to 'steady' they can keep her trotting really slowly, then say ON in a bright voice and she goes straight back into working trot.
 
Are you paying attention to your body language, and where you are positioned relative to your horse? It is not intuitive for horses to know voice commands, and I'm guessing the horses at work are simply better trained to respond to voice. All horses respond to body language though. If you continue to be in a "driving" position relative to your horse (behind his midline, towards rear end, facing him) when you ask him to halt, you may be sending mixed signals, and he'll be more likely to respond to your body language than to your voice.

I would try being very clear with your body language first. When asking him to stop or slow, take a step (or a few) towards his front, as though you were planning to cut across the track in front of him. Turn your body slightly so that your shoulder is pointing towards him, rather than facing him. Completely lower the whip, or even bring it around to the other hand so it is sticking out in front of him, and is no longer driving behind him. If that's still not enough, do cut off the path in front of him, so that his only choice is to turn into the fence or eventually walk into you.
If he responds to your body language, you can slowly start to be less "shouty" with it, until all it takes is a half step towards the front and a slight turning of the shoulder, and eventually just the voice command.
 
Great thankyou. He understands "woah" and will canter to trot, trot to walk and slow the trot from my voice. It is just the walk halt that dosnt happen. He is very good at halting when leading too. It makes no difference if I drop the whip. I do wonder if I am too far behind him. I will work on that and try stepping in front of him. Thanks ��
 
I'm not sure where or why I learnt and I'm sure I didn't invent it, but I put my hand up for halt. It's a visual aid that only means one thing.
 
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