Endurance Horse Training Basics Part 2: Tying

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A quick release knot on a cotton lead rope. Keep in mind that if a horse pulls back, it can put enough tension on the rope that it won't qiuck release.

Watch out for horses that like to play with their ropes! You may need to pull the end of the rope through the last loop in the quick release knot.

If you are going to be traveling with your horse, camping overnight and attending endurance rides or other events it is important that your horse knows how to stand quietly while tied.

To have a horse that ties well he must give to pressure.  That is one of the most important things that you can teach your horse.  It is why I started off with a hobbling lesson, since the lessons learned via hobbling are the basis for everything else.

If you are following my blog posts on these basic endurance horse training lessons your horse should learn and progress well if done in order.  Keep in mind that different horses will respond differently so you may need to spend more time working on one thing than another.  You didn’t learn how to read in a week or even in a few months so be patient with your horse and don’t worry if some of this training takes longer than you want it to.  These lessons are like teaching your horse the alphabet.  They are the base for everything else and just as necessary as the riding and conditioning part of your horse’s education.   Many horses will benefit from these lessons even if they are already trained and experienced.  It never hurts to do some basic reinforcement from time to time.

Most horses at some point will pull back while tied, for whatever reason.  It can become a real problem if the horse manages to get free as they will quickly learn that if they pull, they can get free and in only a couple of instances it has already become a bad habit.  Those horses will need a lot more work with tying and learning to give to pressure than one that progresses through the basics without any mishaps occurring.   Many times it is the human part of the equation that leads to a problem.  This is why it’s so important to pay attention to detail, use proper and safe equipment and always only tie to stationary secure objects that cannot be pulled apart if a horse does pull.

Quick releases should never be attached directly to a horse. Here is one of my favorite ropes, wrapped around the hitching post and clipped with the quick release.

There are many types of tie rings and other items that are marketed and sold to people who have horses that have problems tying.  If it works for a particular horse, then by all means consider using those items.  My feeling is that many of those things are only a substitute for not training a horse; a way to shortcut that ultimately is cheating the horse out of the education that he should have gotten (or is still getting) in the first place.  It can be a frightening thing to have a horse that panics, fights or freaks out when tied.  Taking horses that do that to endurance rides is a wreck waiting to happen as well as a huge liability.  This is why it is so important to spend time doing the basics and taking the time it takes to teach each horse these lessons at a rate that they area comfortable with.

Before you can teach your horse to tie safely, you need to have a horse that will lead and stand.  Take some time to make sure your horse understands giving to the pressure of a lead rope.  Apply pressure by pulling down on the lead rope.  When your horse responds to the pressure immediately release and praise him.  Repeat this exercise many times, pulling down or even sideways on your horse’s lead until he is consistent about giving to the pressure.  If you run into resistance here then go back and do some more rope work around the legs, hobbling, and spend more time working on leading.

Once tied, the clip on the end of the lead should not touch the ground. This is the longest you want to have a rope tied to your horse.

How NOT to tie a horse - this is way too long! A horse can easily get a leg caught if the rope is too long.

Once you have your horse leading and giving to pressure, you can then move on to teaching him to stand.  Lead your horse to a quiet area that is free from distractions and ask him to stand.  Once he is standing, move a couple of steps away.  If your horse tries to follow you, quickly correct him by asking him to back up a few steps, moving forward again to the original spot and asking him to stand.  Repeat this several times until your horse learns to stand quietly while you move away.  An example of when this work will be useful is if you go out into your horses turnout area with a hoof pick and can expect him to stand quietly while you clean out all four feet (without needing to put on a halter or lead rope).  It is also important that your horse knows how to stand, since they will be doing that quite a bit while tied .

You can see that teaching a horse to tie is not as simple as tying your horse up.  I have had a couple of horses that needed some work in this area.  It takes time to resolve those issues to the point of having a horse that is safe enough to take out in public.  Some horses may tie fine for years and then they have some sort of incident that then causes them to panic and pull when tied.  These horses need someone with patience and that will spend the time to develop trust and work through the fear or other issues.

Here is a quick rundown of a list of things that you should do in preparation for tying training your horse:

Hobble and rope train your horse (this sets up the initial lesson of “giving to pressure”)Work on leading, standing and getting your horse to give to the pressure of the lead ropeUse good quality, secure equipment:  Rope halter, cotton lead rope with bullsnapOnly tie to secure, solid objects that cannot be pulled down or apart by a horseDo tie the rope short enough so that a leg cannot get caught, and keep checking on your horse to make sure he hasn’t stretched the rope out or started to untie himself (some horses are Houdini’s when it comes to getting out of being confined!)Use a quick release knot when tying your rope, or use a rope that has a built in quick release snapWear gloves, good boots or shoes and consider wearing a helmetKeep a sharp knife close byBe aware of your surroundings – stay out of your horses way should he decide to pull or dance around while tiedMake every day you see your horse a learning experienceGet help if you are having problems

Here are some things that you should NOT do!

Never clip a quick release snap of any kind to your horse’s halterDo not tie a problem horse without practicing the other lessons firstDo not leave things lying around that your horse could get tangled in – such as water hoses, manure forks, etc.Do not simply tie your horse up to a solid object and leave him, especially if he has had tying issuesNever leave a horse new to tying unattendedNever tie a horse with reins attached to a bit in his mouthDon’t use bungees to tie withDon’t fall for gimmicks;  they are not a substitute for trainingDon’t wait to get help if you are having problems -  you don’t want to turn a minor issue into something serious! Here, i have placed feed in front of Chief after purposely wrapping his lead rope around the end of the hitching post so that he can't possibly reach it. He stood there patiently, perhaps giving me the "evil ear look" and waited for me to adjust the rope so that he could eat. Would your horse panic if his lead rope got wrapped around something like this?

Start with shorter tying sessions of around 15 minutes or less and gradually build up to leaving your horse tied for longer periods.  After your horse is showing that he is comfortable being tied practice tying him to different things.  Tie him to your trailer (if it is a bumper pull, make sure it is attached to your tow vehicle), a hitching post, a sturdy tree, etc.   Practice tying higher up, lower down – just remember to always keep the lead rope short enough so that the snap cannot touch the ground.  It is preferable to have the snap a few inches off of the ground especially if a horse is going to be tied overnight.

Eventually you’ll want to work your horse up to being able to stand quietly while being tied for several hours or even overnight.  All of my horses have spent multiple nights tied on my trailer in advance of going anywhere overnight.  This is important.  You don’t want your horse to go to an endurance ride having never spent any or hardly any time tied to your trailer.  Your horse will be calmer and better adjusted if he is used to experiencing something on a regular basis.  If you are tying for more than an hour or two during training, be sure to offer your horse water and feed -practice just as if you were at a ride or traveling away from home.

My horses view their horse trailer as a “home away from home”.  Even if you plan to use a portable corral system at rides your horse should know how to tie to your trailer, or a tie-arm if that is what you use.  You never know when you may not be able to set up your corral due to limited space, or perhaps your horse or somebody else’s horse has run through your corral and damaged it (this does happen!).  You could get hurt during the ride, leaving others to attend to your horse.   They may have no choice but to tie your horse to something for several hours.

What if you are riding and encounter an obstacle on the trail – you can move it, but first have to tie your horse out of the way.  Having a horse that is difficult to tie could cause all sorts of problems and this is why horses that can’t do this should not be taken out in public and especially not to an endurance ride.  Think of the liability and danger that you could be causing not just for you and your horse, but for others.

One of the things that I like to do with my own horses, is to expose them to as many things as possible at home.  That way, it’s not a big deal if it happens while we are traveling or at an endurance ride.   I purposely set things up so that they can experience a variety of things.  These things are only done after a horse has done all of the basic work and training that I’ve blogged about so far and only after they have proven to be able to tie safely without panicking or pulling back.  I will do another completely separate blog post on some of those things.  I call it accident avoidance training or as my horses might refer to it as “what is she going to do to us next?” 

Disclaimer: These lessons I am covering are meant to be for endurance horses or for horses that travel that already have some training and conditioning base on them.  They reflect my experience and opinions and are not guaranteed to be effective in the hands of others nor are they meant to be the only method or means of training a horse in order to accomplish the same things.  Working with horses can be incredibly risky and dangerous.  You should only try these methods with proper supervision or assistance from an experienced trainer or horse person that you trust, and at your own risk.  If you have any questions or comments feel free to email
me or comment in my blog.   Happy trails, Karen

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Endurance Horse Training Basics Part 1: Hobble Training

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BENEFITS OF HOBBLE TRAINING A HORSE

Hobble training teaches a horse to give to pressure, not to freak out when caught/cast/trapped and to wait to be rescued (patience!).   It desensitizes your horses legs to being confined or trapped.

If you’ve ever had a horse get caught up in wire, step into a wooden pallet, roll and get cast under a fence or gate or become entangled in a rope or other containment system you no doubt have seen first hand that horses can and will find ways to get into trouble.  How they handle it can often be attributed to how the horse has been trained.

Hobble training is something that I have done on every single one of my endurance horses before taking them to an endurance ride.  It has really paid off too.  I have posted blog posts on this topic before because I do feel so strongly that hobble training should be included in the basic training for any endurance horse.  If you haven’t already, please read this post on preparing a horse for hobble training, and this post on some personal examples on when hobble training paid off.

JUST WHAT IS HOBBLING, EXACTLY?

Hobbling involves the act of fastening two of your horse’s legs together with a short length of rope, leather or other material in order to contain them.

Hobbles are often used by trail riders and packers who want their horses to stay close to camp as well as by trainers who want their horses to learn to stand without struggling and to learn to not fight against pressure on their legs.

Once a horse learns the ever important lesson of giving to pressure, so many situations that could have turned into a wreck often end up being a non-problem.  Hobble training sets the stage for the rest of the training basics that I’ll be covering.

There is always a chance of an injury occurring during the training process.  I feel that the risk is much higher of having a much more serious injury occur should your horse panic after getting entangled in barbed wire while you are trail riding, should your horse not have any of this training.

SAFETY CONSIDERATIONS

Get an experienced horse person to help you the first few times out.Work on hobble training in a safe space with good footing and no obstacles.Start hobbling lessons when your horse is tired rather than fresh.Take things slowly and include every step for safety and acceptance.Keep your body and face away from the front of your horse when installing or removing hobbles.Stay alert and out of harm’s way, no matter how experienced you are horses can be unpredictable.Keep a pocket knife handy in case of emergency; use it only if you can do so without endangering yourself.Wear gloves at least for the first few sessions, and consider a helmet as well (you can never be too safe).

 HOBBLE INSTALLATION

For the first few sessions, it is best to have an experienced horse person hold your horse for you with a lead-rope while you apply the hobbles.

Begin by applying the first hobble to your horse’s pastern.  At this point you may wish to repeat some of the earlier basic exercises and pick up your horse leg with the hobbles.

Be sure to take time to reassure your horse as you proceed.  Your horse should be calm and not fearful.  If he is, spend more time doing the exercises I mentioned previously.

Now apply the hobble to the second leg.  It is very important that you don’t put your face in front of your horse’s front legs.  Doing so would make you extremely vulnerable to getting a black eye, or worse.  Stay to the side, and if need be walk around to the opposite leg before applying the second hobble.

At this point, I usually like to remove the lead rope from my horse and move out of the area.  If you do choose to leave the lead rope attached, wrap it around your horse’s neck and tie it so that it won’t be dragging on the ground.  I choose to move out of the way rather than hold the horse, since your horse may hop and lose his balance it is much safer not to be close enough to become part of a wreck.  Some may choose to stay and hold the horse – if so, be quick on your toes!

What happens next, is entirely up to your horse.  I have seen some horses stand and not move from the first hobble session, and I have seen horses that hop like a rabbit at high speed around the arena.  Others may fight against the hobbles and appear to be in a panic.  This can be frightening to both your and your horse especially if you  have not experienced this before.  While this may be alarming to experience remember that this reaction is how your horse could have reacted to something in a public place (such as getting caught in something).

For your safety, your horse’s safety as well as the public it is all well and good that your horse is having to deal with this situation NOW, in a safe and controlled environment.  Make sure you are well out of harms way – if possible leave the fenced in area that your horse is in and watch from a safe distance.

Give your horse a couple of minutes to get used to the idea of wearing the hobbles.  Repeat the exercise often enough so that it becomes routine for your horse.  Your horse will in turn, learn to trust you, view you as his leader and become calmer when being handled — all in addition to the valuable lessons of learning not to panic, giving to pressure and waiting to be rescued.

HOBBLE REMOVAL

One you are sure that your horse is going to stay put, return with your assistant and reattach the lead rope.  Now remove the hobbles, undoing one side at a time.  Reassure your horse.  Some horses may be reluctant to move at first after the hobbles have been removed, so lead for a few steps before turning your horse out.

Most horses will stand quietly in hobbles by the third or fourth session.  If a horse is reacting more strongly then keep doing reinforcement lessons every week (or more) until they do accept being hobbled quietly and without any drama.  I like to do a once a  year reinforcement lesson on all of my horses.   Remember to stay calm and reassuring to your horse during this entire process.  Hobbles the way I use them are meant to teach horses important and possibly life saving lessons, not as a way to abuse them.

I have used photos of my own horses – Chief (grey) and Bo (bay) to illustrate how to hobble.  My horses are both very well trained in this regard and that is why you may notice that I don’t follow all of my own recommendations for safety.  Like for example, I’m not wearing gloves, and nobody is holding Bo when I applied his hobbles.  Do as I say, not as I do, okay?  I don’t want anybody getting hurt!

Disclaimer: These lessons I am covering are meant to be for endurance horses or for horses that travel that already have some training and conditioning base on them.  They reflect my experience and opinions and are not guaranteed to be effective in the hands of others nor are they meant to be the only method or means of training a horse in order to accomplish the same things.  Working with horses can be incredibly risky and dangerous.  You should only try these methods with proper supervision or assistance from an experienced trainer or horse person that you trust, and at your own risk.  If you have any questions or comments feel free to email me or comment in my blog.   Happy trails, Karen

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Endurance Horse Training Basics Part 2: Tying examples

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Another very important lesson for an endurance horse is tying.  They really need to be able to be tied to a variety of different things.  Why?  Well, let me tell you a story.

Many years ago on an endurance ride I heard a couple of horses galloping by my rig.  It was about…oh, 4 a.m.  I got up quickly and put shoes and a raincoat on.  Of course it was raining!

My horses were both tied safely on their trailer ties.  The loose horses came galloping past me again.  They didn’t have halters on them.  I was able to grab a couple of halters, ropes, and a bucket with some grain in it.  Woke up a friend next to me and we went in pursuit of these loose horses.  We were eventually able to catch them with the bucket of feed, and we got halters on them easily enough.  Then we went to tie them up to a trailer so that we could go in search of who they belonged to.

The horses didn’t tie.  They panicked, freaking out, slipping and falling all over the place.  Did I mention that it was raining?  The ground was wet and slippery.  So, we gave up trying to tie the horses up and instead took them with us as we searched through camp to find where they belonged.  We did eventually find an open and empty corral.  When I knocked on the door of the trailer, the horse’s owner sleepily announced that those couldn’t possibly be his horses, as his were “right there in the corral”.  Just what you want to hear after running around camp for twenty five minutes in the rain at 4 a.m. – NOT!

This was a ridecamp right next to a busy highway at the bottom of a hill where semi trucks run down it at high speeds.  Had these horses headed that direction or let’s just say they broke free from being tied (had we been able to tie them up to begin with) it could have easily resulted in fatalities of both the human and equine kind.  When I refer to having a horse that ties well, I mean that you can leave your horse tied up safely for hours and not worry about them trying to get loose (or injured in the process).

What is even worse, is that above experience has happened to me more than once, at rides in more then a couple of different regions.  This is in part why it is so important that your own horse be as well trained as possible.  It’s the best thing you can do to keep them safe as there will always be somebody that hasn’t taken the time to do the rope/hobble/tying lessons, etc.

A horse that has been trained to give to pressure, will not pull up and panic if they step on their lead rope, or reins.

The thing with having a horse that ties well is that you never know what might happen at an endurance ride that is totally out of your control.  This is why I am going over some of these training lessons and giving examples of my experiences to show why this type of training is so very important.

There are no shortcuts when it comes to having a horse tie well.  It takes time and repetition.  As my disclaimer at the bottom states, these methods and opinions are mine and may or may not work for your horse.

If you are having trouble training your horse then please seek out a knowledgeable and experienced trainer.  Sometimes getting help can make all the difference in the world.  The most important thing to keep in mind is that you want to keep both yourself and your horse safe and free of injuries when doing any type of training.

My reason for covering these training basics is so that when you take your horse out in public (like to an endurance ride) your horse will be relatively safe and not likely to cause a wreck or get injured.  Because trust me when I say – if a horse can find a way to get into something, they will.  Endurance rides create thousands of opportunities for mishaps to occur.  A horse that doesn’t tie (usually because he won’t give to pressure) is a proverbial accident waiting to happen.

Not a fan of bungees for tying horses in any way!

I have had horses that didn’t tie well when I got them.  When I write the second part of this training article on tying I want to cover a lot of things that you should do as well as things that you should not do.

Top of the list of what NOT to do is to use something like a bungee to tie a horse with.  Horses and bungees go together like gasoline and matches.  DANGER!  Think about it – when a bungee breaks, it will fly full speed like a weapon and can cause serious damage.  I’ve seen wrists shattered from bungee ties breaking and I’ve heard about much worse happening.  If a horse gets tangled up in a bungee, or pulls back hard enough it WILL break somewhere.  My personal philosophy on this is that if you want your horse to tie safely and tie well 100% of the time you want your horse to give to pressure.  Having a horse learn to pull on a bungee is not giving to pressure and reinforcing bad behavior.  I have seen many times horses that have been kept on bungee ties later get tied with something that doesn’t give – and then a freak out panic attack is sure to ensue.  The last thing you want is to have a horse that learns to pull (be he tied to a bungee, or a spring type tie on the trailer) and that is the kind of behavior that leads to bad things.  I’ve seen this happen more times than I can keep track of.  I know some people love bungees for tying their horses, and if you are comfortable with the risks involved then by all means use them.  I’ve seen too many wrecks involving them to consider using them myself.

Disclaimer: These lessons I am covering are meant to be for endurance horses or for horses that travel that already have some training and conditioning base on them.  They reflect my experience and opinions and are not guaranteed to be effective in the hands of others nor are they meant to be the only method or means of training a horse in order to accomplish the same things.  Working with horses can be incredibly risky and dangerous.  You should only try these methods with proper supervision or assistance from an experienced trainer or horse person that you trust, and at your own risk.  If you have any questions or comments feel free to email
me or comment in my blog.   Happy trails, Karen

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Endurance Horse Training Basics Part 1: Hobble Training Preparation

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Bo waiting for his rope re-inforcement lesson!

Preparations for Hobble Training

Before putting hobbles on a horse, it’s a good idea to do a bit of preparation.  Some horses may need more time spent doing this additional groundwork in advance, while others may be fine to hobble right away.  It all depends on the horse’s previous training, their temperament and how well the horse and handler get along and work together.  If your horse trusts you and looks to you as his leader then all of these lessons will be easy.  If you are still developing that relationship of trust then these exercises will be a great way to work on improving your relationship with your horse.

The more time you spend gaining trust and making your horse comfortable the less likely you will be to have a panicky horse, or an accident.  Spend time sacking your horse out and getting him comfortable with new objects and situations.  The time you spend desensitizing your horse will be hugely beneficial because it’ll allow you to learn how your horse reacts when placed under pressure.

What we are trying to accomplish with these lessons is teaching your horse to give to pressure, not to panic when caught in something or is trapped, and to wait to be rescued.  Once a horse knows that lesson then it can greatly reduce the chance of a wreck or injury in many different situations.

Safety Guidelines

Work with your horse in a safe area with good footing and no obstacles.Some horses may respond better if they have already had a workout and are not “fresh”.Take things slowly and include every step for safety and acceptance.Stay alert and out of harm’s way, no matter how experienced you are horses can be unpredictable.Keep a pocket knife handy in case of emergency; use it only if you can do so without endangering yourself.Wear gloves at least for the first few sessions, and consider a helmet as well (you can never be too safe).

Let the Lesson Begin!

Our goal here is to get the horse used to having ropes wrapped around his legs. You may wish to have another person hold your horse for you while you do these exercises.  You want your horse to stay comfortable and calm during this process.  Be sure to stay calm and collected yourself!

Start by folding a cotton rope around your horse’s pastern and ask to pick that leg up.  Hold it in a way so that if your horse pulls back, you can release the rope.

Now use the rope to pull the leg forward.  You may want to practice doing these exercises first without using a rope so that your horse will get the idea of what it is you are trying to do.  Again, fold the rope so that you can release one end quickly should you need to.

Now do these exercises on all four legs, one at a time.  I like to hold each leg up for several seconds.  Try and work up to being able to hold any leg up for 30 to 60 seconds.  Take time to praise your horse as you go, and be patient if it takes awhile for your horse to become comfortable with the idea of having ropes picking up and holding his legs. up.

Now spend some time loosely wrapping the end of your cotton rope around one pastern and slowly pulling it off of your horse.  Your horse may tense up if this has never been done before, so be sure to offer reassurance and to stop and allow your horse to realize that everything is allright.

Proceed with caution and go slowly enough with this entire process as to not cause your horse to feel the need to panic or try to escape.

After your horse is comfortable with these first exercises, then proceed to wrapping the cotton rope around more than one leg.  You may also want to work on additional sacking out at this time using the rope – putting it over your horse’s back, pulling it down so that it falls on the ground, or even falls down around one of your horse’s legs.

Use extra caution when working with hind legs - you don't want to get kicked!

Repeat these sessions often enough so that your horse is staying relaxed and calm throughout the entire process.  Once your horse is comfortable with ropes being wrapped around his legs and picking up and holding his legs then it will be time to start the actual hobble training!

The reason why this type of work is so valuable for an endurance horse is because these are the kinds of things that may actually happen to an endurance horse either on the trail or in camp.

Imagine if this were barbed wire? Would your horse stand still while you untangled him?

This is the start of a good base for confining a horse safely in camp.

Since we often ride around and through many gates and fences there is a good chance at some point of having a horse step into some sort of wire.  If that happens, wouldn’t you want your horse to stand and wait to be untangled and rescued?

In addition, have you ever known somebody to take off a horse blanket and forget a leg strap?  Or perhaps they put a blanket on and a strap got attached over something else like a lead rope, corral panel, etc.?  This kind of training (including the upcoming lessons) can go a long way to averting a huge wreck when those things happen.

Disclaimer: These lessons I am covering are meant to be for endurance horses or for horses that travel that already have some training and conditioning base on them.  They reflect my experience and opinions and are not guaranteed to be effective in the hands of others nor are they meant to be the only method or means of training a horse in order to accomplish the same things.  Working with horses can be incredibly risky and dangerous.  You should only try these methods with proper supervision or assistance from an experienced trainer or horse person that you trust.  If you have any questions or comments feel free to email me or comment in my blog.   Happy trails, Karen

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