Four steps to good manners
1 Learn to lead correctly
“In this country, we’re taught to lead our horses by walking alongside them at the shoulder, with our short rope quite taut,” says Patrick. “But this is not the best technique to adopt if you want a mannerly horse. By standing at his shoulder you put your horse in charge, which is just what you don’t want. In the wild, only a foal or a weak horse would stay at the shoulder and decisions about speed and direction aren’t made from there. “Instead, we should be at his head; his nose level with our shoulder. This allows you to see clearly around you, so there are no surprises, and if he gets spooked he’ll come behind you, which is much safer. The lead rope should be loose, hanging like a smile from the halter to your hand. A long, cushioned rope is best, so if he pulls away you can let it out, then gather it up again, staying in control without being in harm’s way. “I use a Monty Roberts Dually halter as it doesn’t put harsh pressure anywhere on the head. The Dually will tighten high on the nose and become uncomfortable when your horse makes the wrong decision – pulls back, for instance – and releases when he does, which is how he learns to do the right thing.”
2 Lead with purpose
Leading should be a simple affair – if you take a step forward, then your horse should take a step too, and if you stop, he stops. As you start to turn he should follow, with no pushing, pulling or elbow in his neck to ‘encourage’ him to turn. “The first stage in your horse’s training is to practise basic leading,” says Patrick. “Do this in a small space, not an open field. Stand by his head and start walking with purpose, like you mean it. The ideal is that he follows you, but if not, and he lags behind, he’ll run into the pressure of the Dually as the smile in the rope tightens. If he then takes a step forward, the pressure is released, and it is this release that teaches him he’s doing the right thing. If he doesn’t come with you, encourage him by putting a little on-off pressure on the line by opening and closing your hand. If, on the other hand, he rushes ahead, stop and let him walk into the pressure of the halter. To release the pressure, he will need to stop and wait for you, or back up.” Walk backwards and forwards over and over, repeating the principles. Putting these building blocks in place is crucial for success and you’ll find that your horse will quickly learn to walk, turn, stop, speed up and slow down when you do, not before or after.
3 Back him up
“The next exercise is about backing him up,” says Patrick. “The principles are the same, and this is another way of showing leadership. “Stand in front of your horse facing him and just slightly to one side. Gather up your rope and use it to ask him to go backwards at the same time as opening and closing the hand. This action will cause pressure through the halter and when he takes a step back (which he will eventually) the most important thing is to release the pressure immediately, let him think about it for a few seconds, then go again. “The more you do this the easier backing up your horse will become, to the point where you only have to assume the position and he will move in the right direction.”
4 Slow down using poles
This exercise draws on what your horse has already learnt – to go forwards, turn and go backwards with you. “One of the benefits of this exercise is that it slows down the owners, who are often a bit stressed, and their horses too,” says Patrick. With four poles, make an L-shaped tramline with the poles at a spacing your horse will cope with. It can be narrowed as he gains confidence. “The aim is to lead your horse through the tramline forwards, and then back him up through them too, without touching the poles,” explains Patrick. You will need to make small adjustments to your horse’s position, particularly as you get to the bend. Take one step at a time using the pressure on, pressure off technique. Obviously, it’s more difficult going backwards, so give your horse time and allow him short breaks between steps so he can analyse what’s happening and learn from it.