Tying up a horse for 8 hrs??

pixiebee

Well-Known Member
Joined
15 February 2006
Messages
2,402
Location
wales somewhere!!!
Visit site
Now I know the general feeling on NH (parelli in particular) but I was just looking for some tips on herd bound horses and came across this on the parelli website!!!!!!

Preparation is Key

Play the Seven Games to build respect and develop mental and emotional balance. Start by getting your horses used to being tied for long periods of time. This means 4 to 8 hours.

you mean they want you to tie up your horse for up to 8 hours???!!!! Thats insane!
 
Good practice for when you have to transport them very long distances I suppose. Can't see any other use myself.

Do you give them food and water whilst they are tied? Surely you would have to. I know Hippo will stand patiently for up to three hours with a hay net and water, half that time without the hay net. But she gets really muddy and it often takes a couple of hours to groom her properly when she hasn't been rugged, especially if the ground is damp.
 
If it's pat Parelli then no, they probably won't have water.

He believes that if you deprive them of water it makes them more submissive and makes them rely on you more.

Yes, really!

Do his horses not just pull loose or untie themselves then? Is it only Hippo that knows how to untie her own lead rope?
 
Horses travelling will be tied for Long periods horses stalled in temporary stabling at horse driving trails will be tied up for the whole time they are not working or being lead out to graze its part of the domestic horses life to tied .
I don't get tieing them in the parelli thing you are quoting OP but then I have trouble getting parelli ar all.
Although nothing is worse than a horse that has not be taught to accept being tied up.
 
My horses love to do that too, untie themselves to just stand there :D

What gets me is how my OH never even notices that she's done it! I keep finding her standing calmly with the now untied lead rope dangling, and OH pottering about completely oblivious:rolleyes:
 
That's insane!!! Admittedly my mare is not great to tie up another horse on the yard and she will stand happily but on her own or new things she does get a right fidget on but my goodness if I left her tied for that long shed just continuously pull back once shed done it once!!!
 
A couple of weeks away my driving horse decided to escape from our temporary stable at a trainning weekend the stable won but was badly injured in the fight so I was left a nine thirty at night with the criminal stable destroyer In the pouring rain .
I tied him in the lorry offered him water at regular intervals left him tied up over night he was fine it was once the normal way to keep horses.
Well not in lorrys of course
 
Having read all of it, I don't think he was saying "Take the horse out of the field and tie him up for 8 hours straight". He does say build it up gradually and do things slowly. I'm guessing the 8 hour part would mimic being tied to a lorry at a show or whatever.

Obviously anyone who would tie their horse up for 8 hours straight for no reason and without preparation is IMO rather cruel, however lots of horses spend the most part of the day at a competition tied at the lorry
 
Ah! I've just gone and read the link, has anyone else other than Op?
Whilst I probably wouldn't feel the need to tie up a horse for 4-8 hours, he isn't suggesting that you go right in and do that straight away is he?
I hope they won't mind a brief quote:

"Play the Seven Games to build respect and develop mental and emotional balance. Start by getting your horses used to being tied for long periods of time. This means 4 to 8 hours. They learn patience quickly and soon stand quietly. Horses that are not used to separation or being tied need to be tied more often. Start with shorter amounts of time and build up to several hours. You can tie the horse where he can still see his buddy. Next, begin some short separations. Cold turkey is not the way to do it. That is how horses and riders get hurt. Take one horse away for just a moment and return. Then do it again and again until the other horse sees that he’s really not gone. Be prepared for this to take many repetitions. Once they are both calm, increase the time that one horse is out of sight. With each session push the distance a little further but always start with a short one. Begin with the horses tied near each other, and then each day increase this gap until by day seven they can’t see each other at all. By doing this task in stages, you’re helping increase the horse’s confidence."

I could start a whole new thread about the first sentence... ! But as for the rest, the gradual separation, starting with being able to see his "buddy" - that's what my equine behaviour expert boss used to recommend. Increasing time, increasing distance - that's recommended on this forum regularly when a horse has separation anxiety. This isn't the infamous/legendary "patience post" that has been alleged in the past, he says that cold turkey isn't the way to do it. Apart from the duration of 8 hours, I haven't got a problem with this.
Also - where does he say no food or water? In this context he hasn't.

(I now wait for a regular poster to come on and accuse me of being a Parelli supporter).
 
I'm not into polo, but a trainer I know trains polo ponies and he expects them to tie up for about 4 hours.
 
My first pony was kept in a stall and was attached to a rope with a noggin, so he could lie down. He coped fine with it until he had his stable built :)
 
I agree with Tinypony's objective reply about the content of the article.

putting the 4-8 hours aside PP does stress to introduce tying up and increasing the time gradually.
 
Having read about Pleuropneumonia the thought of tying up unnecessarily for long periods of time terrifies me! Although more frequent when tied up to travel, there have been cases caused by just tying up at home tightly for far too long:(
 
So just out of mischievous curiosity the horses that untie themselves, are they left or right brain, shy or confident (sorry can't remember the proper pp terms)?
 
Top