Q: My horse is great at the walk and jog on the trail. However, when we are loping in a group, he bucks and shakes his head. I try to keep him at a slow lope, but he wants to take off and go to the front of the group. What else can I do?
Horses, just like all prey animals, feel the safest in a herd. Prey animals rely on “safety in numbers”—the more bodies there are, the greater the chance they have of surviving. And the faster they’re moving, the more of a tendency they have to race one another.
While no amount of training can completely wipe away your horse’s natural instincts, you can teach him to use the thinking side of his brain, relax and trust you when he feels threatened. Any time you need to get your horse’s attention and get him to use the thinking side of his brain, move his feet forward, backward, left and right, and reward the slightest try. The more you move his feet and change directions, the more he has to pay attention to you. He can only think about one thing at a time; he’s either listening to you or worrying about getting ahead of the other horses.
When your horse shakes his head, kicks out or tries to race ahead, pick up on one rein and bend him in a circle around your leg. Then, change directions and bend him the other way. More than likely, it’ll take several minutes of bending him before he relaxes and focuses back on you instead of the other horses. Once he’s working well (i.e. he’s calm and paying attention to you), put him back on a loose rein and continue your ride. Give him the opportunity to speed up again and commit to the mistake.
If you constantly try to hold your horse back, you’ll always have to baby-sit him. If he starts to build speed and heads after the horses in front of him, bend him around again. With repetition, he’ll learn to relax and stay at the pace you set—not getting any faster or slower. If he speeds up, he knows you’ll put him to work. Horses are creatures of habit and are basically lazy; they’ll always choose the option with the least amount of work involved. After a few repetitions of bending and hustling his feet, your horse will realize it’s far easier to stay at the gait you set and go down the trail on a loose rein.
Set Him Up for Success
Before expecting your horse to calmly lope out on the trail with a group of horses, be sure that he can lope on a loose rein in a controlled environment without shaking his head or kicking up his heels. If he can’t calmly lope around the arena or pasture on a loose rein without misbehaving or maintaining the gait you put him in, then you’re just setting him up to fail on the trail with other horses.
Everyone dreams of having a horse that lopes in a relaxed manner, but very few people are willing to put in the time necessary to teach their horse to lope slowly. It takes a lot of time and concentrated training in order for a horse to develop rhythm and cadence at the lope. If you want your horse to lope slowly with rhythm, you have to let him practice loping until he learns to get comfortable in the gait and relax. Always set your horse up for success.
More Training Advice from Clinton Anderson:
Video: Backing for Respect
Earn Your Horse’s Respect
Clinician Clinton Anderson owns and operates Downunder Horsemanship in Stephenville, Texas, where his method of horsemanship has helped to transform the relationship between thousands of horses and riders. He also hosts two inspirational training programs that air weekly on Fox Sports Net and RFD-TV. www.downunderhorsemanship.com.
This article originally appeared in the September 2011 issue of Horse Illustrated. Click here to subscribe.
Great advice.
You make it sound so simple! I had a trail horse run away with me faster than i could blink. i gently nudged her with my heels to canter and she took off like she’d been whipped across the rear. she did NOT want to stay with the other trail horse. and when she finally did decide to stop, and not because i tried to stop her by half-halting, she dumped me in a puddle.
I’m sorry, but what about some practical advice on how to stop a runaway trail horse?
I, too, would have appreciated a few other suggestions. Clinton’s answer to every horse problem is exactly the same, it’s always word for word…”Any time you need to get your horse’s attention and get him to use the thinking side of his brain, move his feet forward, backward, left and right, and reward the slightest try.” The basis of his whole program.
Remember that every horse is differnt with it’s own “personality”. Included in that is the horses experiences/background. There is always a reason why a horse REACTS in a certain way at a certain time. One possiblity in the case of this question is that the horse is scared and acting instinctually.ie, the fight or flight response, in this case flight. He bucks and shakes his head because the rider was trying to control him/keep him from running……………
I would recommend not loping him on a trail with a large group, but start with one other horse, put him in front first until he is comfortable with that and not “panicing”. Then as he gains confidence, switch places and put him second(out of two), etc. This can be praticed as well in a ring or field, in a single line (where he can be circled to slow any over reaction) or in pairs (side by side) again where he can be circled. These are only a couple options, the main point is you have to figure WHY your horse is doing what he is doing, understand his particular traits, so you as the rider can instill the best solutions. It’s always a two way avenue of communication! (think about putting yourself in your horses situation/mind)Good luck and always have patience……
I liked your article on the runaway trail horse. Mine sometimes does what is mentioned in the article and when I try to correct her the way you say, she sometimes will get on her hind legs. Also if I try to lead with her pasture mate she will not move. And then again give me the same problem.
I’d like to thank Clinton for the timely article on horses who race ahead. My mare, in trail rides or parades, thought she had to be at the head of the pack. when I turned her, anyone riding next to us, or nearby, had their horse freak out because Violet, at some point, had her heels n butt pointed their way. Not good solution in a crowd. and, when she DID get her way to run ahead, many of the others saw her as ‘boss mama mare’, and tried to stay with her. Turned many a parade into something that looked more like a race! Any suggestions for riding in a crowd with a determined mare? At home, she was fine, relaxed, etc. thanks, martha
I don’t have a runaway horse, I have a horse I sold and repurchased that has been abused and is mentally and physically a wreck. I can ride her but she is skittish. However, I cannot get her in a trailer. Everyone has tried everything, every method, patience, feeding, and NO ONE has any success. I decided she needed to earn my trust and then maybe she would load. I can’t buy a bigger trailer, I have a two horse slant Sundowner. I am in tears not knowing what to do. I am afraid I will never get to enjoy this beautiful mare. When I sold her as a six year old, anyone could ride her. She was the best horse and now someone has destroyed her. Please HELP.
To the lady whose horse rears when she tries to stop him galloping ahead – he won’t be able to rear if you are turning him in a tight circle
Ride out with other horses then hold your horse back to a slow walk to make him drop behind. When he tries to go ahead, let him, but only at a trot. When you reach the others repeat holding him back at a slow walk. Again when he wants rush on let him but once again at the trot. You will find that the first time you hold him back it will only be for about ten yards before he wants to rush on. The second time it will be a bit further. Repeat this and after a few times you will find he will walk as far away from the others as you want. Once you get to that stage only keep him there for a short time and then trot up to the others. But this time it was because you wanted him to do it, not because he got on the toe. Repeat again but lengthen the time. Riding him like this and in a shot time he will walk behind for as long as you like. Many things that you do with horses are as simple as that.