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From our Starting a Young Horse Series:
"The First Thing I Do," Issue 15, part 1 of our FREE monthly newsletter
If your horse went ballistic out on the trail last week... it didn't "just happen out of the blue." He's been telling you for weeks or months that he was going to lose it when enough pressure was applied every time he resisted (however slightly) the pull from your lead rope or reins.
If he walks ahead of you while you lead him, he's telling you that sooner or later he'll blow past you as you go through a gate or knock you on your kiester with his shoulder when something scares him bad enough.
If the muscles in his neck bulge toward you instead of relaxing when you put the bit in his mouth, he's telling you that he'll do mach sixty when he gets spooked on the trail.
Deal with these situations by doing two things: First establish a zero-tolerance policy; nip bad behavior in the bud the instant it happens. Example: If your horse inches past you as you lead, do an about-face and back that horse up. Keep him moving till he quits pushing back. (If he freezes pull on his head to pull his butt away from you. Getting those feet "unstuck" will allow you to keep backing till he lightens up.) Be adamant.
Second, get proactive. The first thing I do with any horse – and what I do each and everyday with all five of my own horses – is to see exactly where they stand when it comes to "resistance." Luckily the test and remedy are fun.
And having fun with this is a key point. Realize that every horse has resistance tucked away somewhere. Like an Easter egg, your job is to discover it. Instead of chocolate, your reward is a safer, more pleasant ride. The calmest, coolest, bestest trained horse you have ever seen has a little pocket of resistance hidden somewhere.…
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