what would you reccomend

You Wont Forget Me

You Wont Forget Me

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Hi all basically i own a big 17hh WBxTB who is now 6 years old and im looking for some advice as when he is being led to or from the field he is very energetic/strong/uncontrolable basically i have been told that a simple rope halter or control head collar should help me have some control over him but i would be intrested in what you guys can reccomend for me (at a good price too) Thanks :)
 
Have you tried leading him in his bridle? you don't necessarily need to go to the
Expense of buying control halters etc, when you presumably already have a bridle.

I appreciate that he is a big horse to handle from the ground, but just using his bridle would be my first port of call.
 
I appreciate that he is a big horse to handle from the ground, but just using his bridle would be my first port of call.
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I agree with this. :)

You can also get loops to attach a bit to a headcollar.

Pressure halters are very effective if used correctly but they can also be quite harsh. If you want to use one, try to find someone who knows what they are doing to give you a lesson.
 
I would be focussing on trying to teach him not to do it rather than using an aid to prevent him from doing it.

There are some very simple leading exercises that work very quickly. Always hold your lead rope with your hands on top with 2 smiles in the rope.. One smile from him to you. This is the space between you and him that he needs to respect. The second smile between your 2 hands. This is your stability and freedom of movement.

In an arena or enclosed area (not on the way to the field at first) practise walking him around, at all times maintaining your smiles. Do lots of transitions to halt by SHARPLY pulling back your right hand. To gain his respect he must stop instantly at this command. When he does not poke him in the chest with all fingernails until he is backing up. Praise him with a pat once stood quietly. Repeat the process again and again sometimes only put in three strides between halts.

Horses submiss very quickly when being poked and us much smaller humans need very little strength for this technique to work well (imagine when you are a child, someone poking you makes you stand back away from the pleasure very quickly)

Your horse will very quickly learn just by doing this that the sharp pull back on the rope means hold on as he won't want pocking in the chest if he disobeys.

Also if he walks into you breaking that first smile, again poke him in the shoulder/neck. Resist the urge to push or lean on him as all they do is lean back on us and they will always win that battle.

Hope this makes sense and works for you, it has never failed me and is always the first lesson I teach to youngsters ex racers etc.

They need to respect us on the ground first and foremost
 
Either a bridle or a pressure halter. I'd imagine you've already got a bridle so you won't incur any extra expense there but they are a bit of a faff to use just for turning out. A rope pressure halter does work quite effectively and the long lead rope makes it very difficult to get away even if they are messing about. We use them on the bargy ponies and they really do the trick. Otherwise a lead rope over the nose can work quite well if he just puts his nose into the headcollar or whatever.
 
LissyBear said:
I would be focussing on trying to teach him not to do it rather than using an aid to prevent him from doing it.

There are some very simple leading exercises that work very quickly. Always hold your lead rope with your hands on top with 2 smiles in the rope.. One smile from him to you. This is the space between you and him that he needs to respect. The second smile between your 2 hands. This is your stability and freedom of movement.

In an arena or enclosed area (not on the way to the field at first) practise walking him around, at all times maintaining your smiles. Do lots of transitions to halt by SHARPLY pulling back your right hand. To gain his respect he must stop instantly at this command. When he does not poke him in the chest with all fingernails until he is backing up. Praise him with a pat once stood quietly. Repeat the process again and again sometimes only put in three strides between halts.

Horses submiss very quickly when being poked and us much smaller humans need very little strength for this technique to work well (imagine when you are a child, someone poking you makes you stand back away from the pleasure very quickly)

Your horse will very quickly learn just by doing this that the sharp pull back on the rope means hold on as he won't want pocking in the chest if he disobeys.

Also if he walks into you breaking that first smile, again poke him in the shoulder/neck. Resist the urge to push or lean on him as all they do is lean back on us and they will always win that battle.

Hope this makes sense and works for you, it has never failed me and is always the first lesson I teach to youngsters ex racers etc.

They need to respect us on the ground first and foremost
Click to expand...


I knew i would get an answer like this!! Very helpful advice but general ground work going anywhere is perfect as i done a lot of this when he was younger but the problem only occurs to and from the field! I will try using his bridle and see how he is with that, was putting leadrope round his nose but he hated it and at any point there was a bit of pressure on his nose he reared up so gave up with that technique
 
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