Teaching a weanline to tie up without pulling back?

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domane

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I have a lovely Welsh D colt who will be 6m next week. I've been lightly handling him and I'd like him to start to get used to being tied up but he panics and pulls back. I'm very aware that he could damage his poll at such a tender age so I'm asking the best way for him to learn not to panic? Today he snapped a safety tie so that's just taught him that if he pulls hard enough he will be free so after that I looped the lead rope through the tie-ring and held the end with my hand whilst I groomed his shoulders and when he pulled back a couple of times I gave with the rope to a degree but didn't let him back off competely and after a few seconds he relaxed and yielded so I immediately released the pressure and asked him to walk forward a step or two and then made a fuss of him. The only bit in the whole procedure is the bit where he is pulling back as I'm so worried he'll damage himself. Are there any other preferred methods with babies?

He's been a little star with everything else as he copies my other two who are both laid-back, placid and well-mannered. I don't really have the right set-up to be able to tie one of the others up beside him so he can see it's nothing to be nervous of but with hindsight, I guess it might have made a difference...

Thoughts/ideas/advice please?

ETA Doh! Sorry about my spelling of weanling in the title!!!
 
what you did with the rope was how we taught Rami & Rar (also Sec D's) started off with holding rope whilst mum was tied up & then progressed to them alone as they were weaned, as they got older we used a long line & moved further away from them & the tie up point, Rar soon got the idea but it took Rami somewhat longer but then he was a dimwit.
 
This is our horse friendly way to teach them to tie up , i have used it t fix horses that had serious rope breaking issues, it takes time , but as yours is just a foal its just he kind of thing you can spend time doing whilst grooming . e.c.t

good solid ring tie,

step one- attach lunge line to horse and loop hrough the ring, groom him, fuss him , whatever, just let him learn that he can pull away but he is still attached, this way if he really panics you can pay out the line then real him back in, he will lean its no a trap , he does not need to fight, but just stand nicely

step 2 - once he is standing nicely put a long lead rope through the ring tie as well as the lunge line now you can tie the rope but if he realy panics ( and he shouldnt if you have done step one right)you still have him on the lunge, eventually you can get rid of the lunge line...
 
As Silver Zaanif says, long rope through a ring and stand the colt where you want him, if he backs up, let him, then bring him back and make him stand again, and again and again. No pressure = no panic =no pulling. I tie untrained colts in a small stall, that way they can only back up maybe another 6' anyway, hardly worth the bother doing it at all.

Teaching a horse to 'Stand' or 'Whoa' is hugely important, it isn't enough that they will tie up, I mean 'Stand' as in don't move your feet, at all!
I use 'Ho' as a universal 'stop what you are doing, NOW!' command, not a 'slow down any time you like today' fluffbutt kind of cue.

Oh, and to train your horse not to panic about standing on a rope/reins or with any pressure, leave him with a lead rope on, he'll stand on it, and he will figure out that if he lowers his head and steps away the pressure will release.
 
Stinky was trained by his breeder by tying him to a solid ring but on a quick release knot on a long rope. They will only let them go if they are really freaking, and they learn that they can pull but they will not get free. Standing nicely gets a reward. They are not left unsupervised and start with a very short period and work up.

It has worked on him, and so far he has never pulled back to snap the rope and get free. If something does startle him he will go to one side, but not backwards. I can also leave him tied up for up to an hour without a net if I need to and do jobs round the yard knowing that he will stay put - unless he can undo the knot and go for an investigation but that is a different problem.:)

I think it is a good idea to have a youngster realise that being tied up and pulling back will not get you free, but you do need to be able to free them quickly if they really panic and having them on a long line so they can't escape is essential.

It took me nearly 5 years to retrain my TB not to pull back and escape, she was a master of the art. I had to put her on a very long line and over time was able to slowly shortening it bit by bit until she would stand with the rope short and not snap it if she felt any pressure.

Sounds like you are doing the right thing with him.
 
What you did is how I did it. They have to learn that when they pull back some pressure is applied and is NOT released until they step forward. They get the hang of it suprisingly quickly and if you use a lunge line you can start to introduce the idea of leaving them alone for a few minutes so they don't panic when you aren't right by their side..
 
I found those elasticated short tie things very handy, & they stopped my horse reverted to pulling & snapping the lead rope/headcollar / tying point.
 
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