TRAINING TIP:

Don't always turn your horse loose or put him back in his stall as soon as his lesson is over. Whenever you have the time to stay around, tie him up and let him learn a little patience. At first, he'll probably fidget and paw the ground, maybe even chew on his lead rope or whinney a lot. Let him. Don't pay any attention unless he starts doing something potentially dangerous like rearing or pulling back on his halter. If he starts being stupid, yell at him. I like to use a sharp "uh, uh!" It's something my horses learn from their first round pen session and they know it means "cut it out!" If he doesn't stop, make a sharp sound by clapping your hands together loudly, slapping something against a barn wall, or kick the side of your wheelbarrow. Startle him into looking at you. As soon as he looks at you, the stupid behavior will stop and you should immediately praise him in a pleasant voice. Then go back to what you were doing and ignore him again.

What if he refuses to stop when you tell him to? Walk closer to him and repeat your "uh, uh!" command. Do whatever it takes, short of hitting him, to make him listen to you. What if he stops momentarily then starts right back being stupid? Correct him again. And again. And again, if necessary. Probably he'll eventually stop and go back to fidgeting or pawing, which is okay for now. Those little annoyances will go away when he learns that they won't make you untie him any sooner.

If you have other horses to work, tie him up where he can watch. You'd be surprised what horses can learn by observing other horses. For example, by watching other horses driving, he'll start to accept that the cart isn't dangerous. As I tell my guys, "Horses all over the world do this everyday. Get used to it." Getting to watch other horses work gives your horse a chance to "get used to it."

Training your Mini to drive LESSON #3 - more long line work

In the previous lesson, you learned how to teach your horse to walk, turn, stop, and back a few steps on long lines. Today, we're going to build upon that lesson. Start with your horse in his open (blinkerless) bridle and surcingle. Practice what he has already learned by ground driving him around the pen several times each direction. Practice his whoa a few times and ask him to back again. Hopefully, today he'll back more willingly and perhaps a few more steps than before.

Now it's time to start teaching him his gaits. Use whatever verbal cue you prefer to ask him to trot. Myself, I use two or three clucks for "walk" and several fast clucks for trot. I also teach my horses the words "walk" and "trot," and it's never too early to start using those words. For now, use whatever command you prefer and encourage him to trot. It doesn't matter at this point how fast or slow he trots as long as he's not totally out of control. In other words, if he trots too fast, let him, just don't let him run away with you. If he just jogs, that's okay for the first time or two, but watch out for a tendency to stop or break to a walk. If you ask him to trot, even at this early stage in his training, he should trot at least a round or two of the pen. Try to slow him to a walk or stop him before he quits on you. If you sense that he's going to stop on his own in 5 seconds, tell him "whoa" in 3 seconds. It needs to be your idea, not his. If you can't keep him from breaking before you slow him down, then encourage him to trot again for at least several strides before you ask him to slow down or stop.

As he improves in his understanding of the lesson, start incorporating a few changes of speed. Ask him to walk for one or two rounds of the pen, then trot him for awhile, then bring him back to a walk. Use your verbal cues first, then use your reins, either to pull him to a slower speed or jiggling against his hip to ask him to speed up. You want him to really listen. Teach him that if he slows down when you ask him verbally, you won't pull on his mouth. And if he speeds up when you ask him to, he won't feel the line slapping his butt.

Work him only long enough to accomplish your goal for today, which is to get him to walk, trot, and stop reasonably well on command. He won't be perfect, of course, but don't stop until you feel he has a reasonable understanding of the lesson. Resist the urge to ground drive him for a hour. He'll only get frustrated if he thinks he's doing what you want and not getting the reward of getting to stop working.

NOTE: The shetland in the photo has been ground driving a few times and is already in the harness, not the surcingle. That's why the lines are so high. When your horse is just starting, run the lines through the lowest rings on your surcingle and let the outside line drape around behind him, between his hip and his hind leg.

Training your Mini to drive LESSON #2 - Teaching your horse to long line

Long-lining means to ground drive your horse while walking beside or behind him. It's an important step that can't be omitted or rushed. Take your horse to your safe work area and put him in his surcingle. From this step on, I use a home-made "work bridle" consisting of a bridle with browband and side checks but nothing else. See the photo for details of this bridle. You can also use a blinker-less driving bridle, but I strongly recommend that you don't use blinkers yet. I want your horse to see and get used to everything around him, including you and the swaying long lines. You'll want to fasten the side checks VERY loosely, just enough to keep him from dragging his nose in the dirt. I start all of my horses in a french link bit, which I feel lies better in their mouth and won't poke the roof of their mouth when rein pressure is applied. For horses that continually get their tongue over the bit, I'll switch to a copper mullen, adjust so that it causes a nice wrinkle at each corner of the mouth.

My lines are made of either light-weight rope or flat 1 1/2" wide nylon and they're extra long. 12 feet is a good length, allowing you to stay a safe distance away from you horse and giving you plenty of extra rein to play out in case your horse tries to pull away from you. Note that I recommend using a surcingle or crupper-less harness for this step. If your horse gets confused and winds himself up in the reins (which he likely will), you don't have to worry about him breaking your crupper. The worst that will happen is that the surcingle will slide forward onto his neck or withers. If that happens, simple reposition it and continue with the lesson.

Before you start teaching him to ground drive, test his responsiveness to the bit by flexing him a few times to each side. When he's giving his head willingly, run your long lines through the lowest rings on your surcingle, step several feet behind him, and cluck.

He's not going to understand at first and will likely try to turn to face you. Keep your lines low so that the one coming from the far side of your horse drapes around his hindquarters just below the hip. That way, when you pull on that rein to turn his head away from you, the pressure on his hip will help him to understand. At first, you might only get a step or two of forward motion before he tries to turn toward you again. During those few forward steps, keep your rein contact very light as a reward. As soon as he tries to turn to face you again, pull one rein to turn his head away again and cluck.

The other response you might get is for him to try to run off. Hold on firmly and steer him toward the fence while saying "whoa." Don't yell it and don't panic. You're in a small pen and can easily stop him, even if it means bumping his nose into the fence. No matter what it takes to stop him, let him settle for a minute then cluck again. Today, on this first attempt to long line, you need to succeed. And you can. Just don't lose your cool and give him time to figure it all out.

Eventually, whether it takes 5 minutes or 30, you'll get him walking around the pen with you behind him or slightly off to one side. Once he's going forward freely, let him. Don't try to stop or turn him just yet. Let him adjust to the idea of walking away from you. After a few rounds of the pen, gently pull on the outside rein and ask him to turn into the fence. Keep the line low so that the pressure on his hip reinforces your command. As soon as he commits to the turn, relax the rein pressure as a reward and cluck, asking him to go around the other way of the pen. Let him go a few times around then pull the outside rein, down low still, turn his head toward the fence, and ask him to turn. When he's moving freely, you can either remain behind him or step toward the inside of the pen, keeping your inside rein shorter and your outside rein longer.

I'd do this at least 2 or 3 times each direction - enough to make certain that he's starting to understand but not enough to frustrate him. Now, you're ready to teach him to stop. Adjust your position so that you're behind him, tell him "Whoa," and gently apply pressure to both reins. If he doesn't stop, turn his nose into the fence and tell him whoa again. Eventually, no matter how long it takes, he will stop. As soon as he does, instantly relax your rein pressure as a reward. If he starts forward again before you ask, repeat the whoa command and make him stop again. Do not jerk on the reins or raise your voice. Just work steadily and quietly until he comes to a complete stop.

Let him settle then ask him to go forward again. This time, let him go only halfway around the pen then ask him to stop again. Repeat this a couple more times to be certain that he's starting to get it.

Before you stop for the day, we're going to teach your horse to back up. With him standing quietly, gently pull backwards on both reins and tell him "back." Do not try to force him back or jerk the reins. Just take a firm feel of his mouth and hold it there. Don't keep increasing the pressure. More than likely, after a minute or two of enduring the pressure, your horse will move one foot backwards. As soon as you see the foot starting backwards, release the rein pressure. After a second or two, apply the same amount of pressure again and say "back." As before, as soon as one foot starts backwards, release the pressure. Try to get 4 to 5 steps backwards, one step at a time if needed, before you quit for the day.

Some horses will "lock up" and just brace against the rein pressure without backing a single step. If your horse does this and simply refuses to move after several attempts, then another plan of action is needed. Gathering up your reins as you go, step in front of him. With one hand on his the front of his nose and one hand gently pulling both reins backwards, tell him "back" and make him take at least one step. Stop all cues, praise him, then ask for another step the same way. Practice this for 4 or 5 steps. Tomorrow will be soon enough to try backing him on the long lines again.

Training your Mini to drive

In answer to several requests, I'm going to start a series on how to train your horse to drive. First, I recommend that you visit my Horse Training Secrets hubpage: hubpages.com/hub/Natural-Training-Methods-for-Small-Equine and take your driving prospect through the round pen program outlined there. This can take as little as two weeks or as long as a few months, depending upon how diligent you are in working your horse and how quickly he learns. After he is respectful, responsive, and doesn't fear either you or your tools, you can proceed to Lesson #1, below.

LESSON #1 - Introducing your horse to the bit, surcingle, and harness

We're going to assume that you've done your homework and that your horse is ready to move into driving training. Take him to the round pen or to a safe, enclosed area. I recommend a nylon surcingle or a driving harness with the crupper and breeching removed. You only want the "saddle" and girth at this phase. I also recommend a bit with a simple bridle - no blinkers yet. (See the photo below) First, check your horse's belly for sensitivity. Wrap your lungeline or a seperate lead line around your horse's heartgirth area and draw it snug with your hands. Careful - if he's ticklish he might kick or jump forward. Tug on the rope several times, see-saw it back and forth and see if you get a reaction. If so, continue doing whatever bothers him until he stands there quietly and relaxed.

To introduce him to the surcingle, simply toss it across his back. If you've accomplished the basic round pen work and have desensitized your horse, this shouldn't frighten him. If it does, do it again and again until he accepts it. Resist the urge to sweet-talk your horse and to tiptoe around him. He needs to be able to tolerate you just walking up and tossing the surcingle across his back. Buckle it snuggly but not too tightly at first. Turn him loose or work him for a few minutes on the lunge line to let him get used to the feel. If he wants to buck or run, let him, but only for this one lesson. After this, you'll correct him if he tries to buck when harnessed. Whenever he's comfortable with the girth, bring him back to the center of your work area and praise him.

Now it's time for the bit. The bridle I use is nothing more than a snaffle bit and a single strap with a buckle for adjustment. This simple rig is easy to put on and to remove. Slip the bit into your horse's mouth, being careful not to bump his teeth, and adjust it so that it barely touches the corners of his mouth. Now is a good time to tighten up your surcingle so that it fits snuggly. Work him again for several minutes while he gets used to carrying the bit. He's going to chew a lot, so don't worry about it. Whatever you do, don't put a noseband on him to tie his mouth shut. Mouthing the bit and chewing it is important. He'll eventually learn how to comfortably carry it with his mouth closed.

After you've lunged him for several minutes, bring him back to the center. Using the halter, ask him to flex his head first to one side and then to the other. Then, snap your lead onto one side of his bit and gently ask him to flex with that. Don't pull too hard or you could pull the bit through his mouth. If this happens, don't panic, just slide it back through so that it's seated properly then ask him to flex again. Work on one side until he's doing it well then move the lead to the other side of his bit and work for awhile on that side. Your goal here is to get him soft and responsive and giving you his head easily. When he's doing that, it's time to end the lesson for the day.

Repeat this lesson over the next few days. You'll notice your horse getting more comfortable in the bit (although he'll likely still be chewing it) and much softer when you ask him to yield his head.

Training your Mini to drive