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| Discussion on Wanted: Tips for leading | |
| Author | Message |
| Member: quatro |
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| Moderator: DrO |
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| Member: imogen |
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| Member: terrido |
Posted on Tuesday, Aug 19, 2008 - 11:20 am: Well you have the tools, obviously. No offense but it's gotta be your delivery and consistency that's part of his actions. He doesn't believe you mean it. Pick one thing and stick with it. Enforce it as if your life depended on it, because some day that may be the case. I learned a good tip from Kathleen Lindley (Mark Rashid) she prefers to have a horse stay about 4 to 5 feet behind her at all times. It really doesn't take long for them to get it once you begin to really enforce it. Two things for you to commit to your brain: 1) the one that moves feet first looses! 2) Perfection matters It sounds like what you are doing is setting him back where you'd like him to be when you walk along but as he starts to creep up you don't enforce him getting back where he was. Or you are not doing it quick enough, meaning catching him before he creeps, or as he is creeping. I personally don't mind a horse walking with me having their head in front of me, what I mind is how they walk along! No bumping into me, they have to know where I am. If they don't pay attention to that then they must walk behind me. When I start out with an unfamiliar horse, I start with them behind me - always. Kathleen's method is not much different from what I always did, or what others do. What she did that was a bit different, for me anyway, was to demand perfection in what I was asking. To not settle for less than having my mare back up right now. Now, how to do this? It's not hard, you already know how to do this you have the tool, it's now patience, timing and consistency. This is what Kathleen uses, and it works really well. Scott Hansen uses a similar technique, I like his a bit better. Kathleen's first: From a stand still/halt you start to walk, use your arm to ask the horse to stay back as you walk ahead. If the horse moves when you move, you stop and begin here. Objective is: horse does not begin to walk until you tell it, and that's after you are past him, so his head is behind your shoulder at least. You pick your distance here. So the horse has decided to walk on with you. Immediately ask the horse to back up, so he is back in position where he was originally standing. Key here, you don't move except to turn and face him! He has to move his feet backward. Your focus here will make a difference. As you turn to face him to make him back, using any method you have at hand to get him moving back - KEY focus for you and your eyes, is on his feet!! LOOK at his feet, not his face! It's his feet you want to bore a hole through here. Watch him move his feet until they are right back where he was standing before you moved. When he is back there, you fully relax your body posture, you can at this point praise. But you're not done. This will take a few times most likely, cause he has to learn that you mean it, you really mean it. Start out again, he will most likely walk off, instantly turn, bore a hole into his front hooves while asking him as firmly as is necessary to back up! YOU don't move except to turn so you can watch his feet moving backward. Keep repeating until you can start to walk off and he stays back there behind you. So the trick is to not move yourself. Use whatever it takes, he has to move back. But try to not have to use any walking into him to get him to move his feet. Very quickly you should be able to just look at his feet and he'll move them back. What you are after is that as you turn and look at his feet he will take one step back, wait... wait for the second front foot to move back too. If it doesn't enforce your 'back!' again until he does. Once he is backing up as soon as you spin to look in his direction, and is moving both front feet instantly back a step - you're done. He's got it! Now that he's got it, USE IT. For the first many weeks, this is the only way you will walk with him. It should become second nature to sense when he is closing that distance, you turning and looking at his feet should be plenty to get him to stop and back up right now. In fact you can test by just walking along nicely and suddenly spin and stare at his feet. He should back peddle like a cartoon. LOL And of course then once he is back where you want him, and standing nicely, you can fully relax your body position and walk up and stroke his face, praising, telling him how good he is. This enforces yes, this is what I want you to do. This is a beginning to good leading. The next step is to add his focus. When you are out in places where he is afraid and distracted, you have to get him to look at you with both of his eyes. Stand in front of him and use your hand/arm to guide his head so he can look at you with both eyes at once. His face will be straight on. Do not allow him to move his head to look at anything else, if he turns his head, bring it right back to you. Again keep doing this until he will only focus on you and he relaxes. First few times, again, he will be everywhere but looking at you. After a very short while though he will begin to say 'ok, whew, I am so glad I have you here!' Perfection! Do not settle for close enough, settle only for perfection. This matters to a horse. If you position their feet do so precisely, Make them move their feet, not yours, and make them place them exactly where you want them. Over and over, whatever it takes, as long as it takes. Consistency, timing, perfection. If you use a command, always use the same one for the same thing, every time. Do not use one command for two different things either. I also recommend using a hand signal along with your commands. Use your eyes as your focus point, look at the thing you want positioned. One common double meaning command I hear a lot is "over". We want the horse to move hindquarters out of our way, we say "over" and maybe point to their butt, or walk into their flank, etc. but we will do this from either side. So this means get outta my way, please. But to the horse you are using one command to mean two things. They understand right and left ya know. In driving they use 'gee' (right) and 'haw' (left). You can say "Over gee" and "over haw" Also, use a different command to move their forehand, so they understand exactly what it is you want them to move. Now when your focus is accurate enough, you can actually move a horse without a word, any way you want them to move. ;] Same with when you are walking. Use one command for one thing only. Use directional commands too, teach your horse left and right and use the words they know for those directions. It will make things nicer for you both in the long run. What are the key points again? 1) The one that moves feet first looses!! 2) Perfection matters! 3) Consistency, timing 4) Where your focus goes makes a huge difference And last 5) Make him focus on you with both eyes. I mentioned Scott Hansen has a bit different way to ask a horse to back. He will take the horse's nose to his chest and ask him to back. It's a much nicer way, the horse will naturally move feet back when his nose is taken to his chest and pressure him to move feet back. Again the objective is to teach what your request means. Once they understand the 'command' they will do as you ask. Patience is key just keep at it, if you find yourself getting frustrated, just stop, make yourself relax more, resign to taking as long as it's gonna take, and begin again. |
| Member: dove2 |
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| Member: quatro |
Posted on Tuesday, Aug 19, 2008 - 3:05 pm: Thanks to everyone for responding. Terrie, I appreciate you taking the time to very systematically describe what steps I need to take. That is what I needed, some actual exercises to work on.Because I work with dogs, Levi, unfortunately, thinks he is a dog, a rather large dog at that! I have taught him many commands. I use these consistently, when we take off I say "Walk", when we turn, I say"turn right", "turn left". When I stop, I do say "whoa" and he does stop every time I stop, I put my hand up as a hand signal. Levi, much to the chagrin of my horse trainer friend, also knows the word "stay" when I open his stable door, "come to heel", just like a dog does, and even "put your ears up", if he is impatient for me to feed him. He also bows, shakes, marches, does all sorts of silly stupid pet tricks. Some which actually come in handy, believe it or not. You are right about my not being consistent with him, which is obviously confusing to him,so he just does whatever HE pleases. I really MUST work on it. I guess, instead of making the rounds, if we only manage to go 30 feet at a pleasant walk correctly, even if it takes 40 minutes, that should be what I should strive for
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| Member: quatro |
Posted on Tuesday, Aug 19, 2008 - 3:57 pm: OMG! That was totally awesome!!!!! I went out with Levi for a walk around the grounds. I did as instructed. When he started inching forward, I stopped, looked at his feet, verbally asked him to back, he took a step back, we started again, and after a few more turns, stops and backs. We walked the whole perimeter most comfortably! We went to get the mail, a car came and he did get nervous, grabbed his head to look in his eyes, but his head was at me, not so much the eyes, but I just made a blinder over his eye with my hand, and we calmed down.On our walk, after a few "chats", he just looked at me with this look like "well, why didn't you say so in the first place, this isn't that hard " Now it is hot this afternoon, and he is lazy, let's see how it goes later when it is cooler, and more activity in the neighborhood. Fingers crossed. It was a relaxing stroll, COOL! suz |
