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Discussion on Ideas for taking horse on walks
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Member:
heidim
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Posted on Tuesday, Apr 14, 2009 - 8:49 pm:
Hi. I purchased a nice 5-year-old QH mare last fall. Because it was late in the trail riding season then, I only rode Belle a few times and always following another horse. Spring has finally sprung here in Minnesota, and I've decided to take her on some long walks (leading her) across farm fields, through the woods and down the road to help us get to know each other better and to help me gain confidence before I saddle up and ride her out alone. Belle is Amish trained to ride and drive, and I must say she is really quite well behaved. All the same, I'd like some simple exercises to do with her, so we can make the most of our time together on these walks and especially to build her confidence in me. For example, on our walk today, her herd mates whinnied repeatedly to her. She was fine at first, but as we headed back toward home (I'm taking a big loop around our property), she started whinnying back in a big way. It was clear her attention was not on me, so I turned her in circles, changing direction every so often to busy her body and mind. I'm wondering if that's a good thing to do, or if I should just ignore her when she whinnies until she gets used to being away from her buddies. Thoughts? Suggestions? Potential pitfalls to avoid? Like I say, I'm open to anything, and will probably continue the walks even after I get on her this spring.
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Wednesday, Apr 15, 2009 - 9:50 am:
Hello Heidi,
How did your mare respond to your corrections?
DrO
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Member:
stek
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Posted on Wednesday, Apr 15, 2009 - 11:42 am:
Heidi,
I LOVE taking my horses for walks (especially now that I'm too pregnant to ride anyway!) I think it's a great way to build your relationship, especially with a new horse.
I have a mare that tends to be quite herd bound/barn sour early in the season, always in a hurry to get home. Taking her out for walks always helps her work through that, I'm a big fan of working things out with groundwork before trying them mounted in general.
For the first few walks I keep it short and let her graze while we are on our way out, and always stop to graze and rub on her before we head home. Then on the way home we don't do anything special unless she fusses, in which case we do lots of sidepasses, backing up, turns on the fore and haunches, basically as you say keeping her mind busy. I like to do it all on a loose lead to give her the power to make the decision of being 'with' me, but am careful not to let her set the pace or get ahead of me.
As she starts to feel more comfortable we increase the distance of the walks and decrease the amount of harder work as needed. I also usually take the dogs with me for additional company, having them dart in and out of the brush and back and forth around us is a good way to help despook in the woods.
Have fun and happy trails!
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Member:
heidim
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Posted on Wednesday, Apr 15, 2009 - 1:17 pm:
Dr O, you ask a good question. Actually, Belle was good about my corrections. In fact, I had a nice calm mare by the end of the trip. I guess the reason I turned her in circles when she whinnied is that she was also getting a bit bold on the lead. When we got to the point that she could see her herd mates as well as hear them, I walked her toward them until she whinnied. Then I turned and walked her the other way. When the whinnying (and boldness) stopped, I turned her back toward home. I did this repeatedly until she quit whinnying all together. I guess you could say I won the battle. In general, what I find most confusing about training is this: when do you ignore poor behavior and when do you correct it? If anyone has a good rule to go by, I'd love to hear it.
Shannon, congrats on the upcoming addition to your family. I think it's great that you're fitting in time with your horses during your pregnancy. In response to your ideas, I did stop and let Belle graze at times along the way. I thought this would sweeten the solo experience for her. She found this agreeable until we started homeward and the herd mates' whinnying grew louder. So you have a good point about skipping the grazing on the way back. Now that I think about it, trying to get her to do so on the way home only frustrated her. Maybe it's enough reward to just keep on going but, as you say, only at a respectful pace.
I've considered taking my dog along, too. In addition to the despooking, it'd be good exercise for him, as I stay on our property the whole time (we have 80 acres). Have you found any drawbacks to taking your dog along?
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Member:
hollyw
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Posted on Wednesday, Apr 15, 2009 - 9:46 pm:
Taking a dog along is a GREAT idea, especially if you have a naughty horse. Sometimes the dog can help keep the horse(s) in line as in this photo.
Mistress Quickly, Mom Goldie, and 4 month-old Afghan Hound. Morgan Hill, CA
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Member:
mrose
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Posted on Wednesday, Apr 15, 2009 - 11:13 pm:
 Not all dogs are great to have along!
I take my old mare and also Libby out for walks and often it's fun. I play "follow the leader" with Libby, keeping her on a lead except in the arena. She seems to think it's fun. The old girl just likes to go out and "cruise the neighborhood." I have the most problems with her as she sometimes get pretty jiggy as she gets near home. Due to her age, I'm just happy she feels so good and excuse her bad habit I'm afraid.
Shannons tactics sound good.
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Thursday, Apr 16, 2009 - 8:25 am:
Then I would keep doing what you are doing.
DrO
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Member:
jjrichar
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Posted on Thursday, Apr 16, 2009 - 8:59 am:
Heidi, it sounds like you are on the right track with the exercises/corrections you did. The big thing is to just keep their attention. Give their mind something else to work on so they lose interest in whatever they are looking (or whinnying at) and get control back. Now that being said, it's important to differentiate a spook from other behavior. If she spooks at something, you don't want to necessarily correct her. Instead, turn her toward it and let her check it out, and if possible, walk up to it and smell it. Once she is over it, you can continue on.
As far as when to correct and when not to.... It is just like raising kids for the most part and a constant battle to find balance. You have to choose your battles and let some things go and other times you have to discipline. With horses, I fall a little more on the authoritative side because a disrespectful horse can get you hurt. When I am handling a horse I look at it as, "This is 'my' time you can act like that in the pasture, but not when your with me." Also, as you build a relationship with your horse, you will learn what is just her being her and when she is taking advantage of you and acting up.
Good luck and keep us posted. 
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Member:
lhenning
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Posted on Thursday, Apr 16, 2009 - 2:00 pm:
When I walk my horse I am very careful of when I allow him to eat grass. If he is acting up, being fresh, or not paying attention to me I do not allow him to DrOp his head and eat. He can only do so when he is relaxed and focused. I believe this mimics the herd leader. They will push off a horse that is eating where they want to eat and establish their pecking order with food rights. This seems to have good results with my horse and makes him more attentive to me.
Good luck,
Linda
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Member:
heidim
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Posted on Tuesday, Apr 21, 2009 - 8:39 am:
Thanks for all the ideas. I feel better equipped to deal with my mare, both on the trail and off.
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Member:
dustee
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Posted on Tuesday, Apr 21, 2009 - 2:40 pm:
One thing I like about taking my horse for a walk, which I will do, especially when we are going a different direction from the norm...I can practice being totally relaxed, and not worry about whether my butt or my legs are telling her something I wouldn't want her to know. I can be casual, look around on my own, pick routes which look better, which to stay away from and see places to totally eliminate from my next trip. It overall will make me more comfortable when I do this on top of her. If she has been particularly wonderful during one of our walks, I will do that area next, knowing she liked it too. Our confidence together makes us better! Dustee
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