Calm down cue
I tought Poco this cue to calm him down when he got upset.
We worked on giving to the bit when he had that down pat we went on to droping the head on cue.
I would start by taking one rein and taking the slack out of it untill he bobbed his head and immediately released the rein. Then repeted it again untill he would drop his nose all the way to the ground and hold it there. Then I would work on the other rein the same way. After he got that down pat and respond each time I ask to drop his head we would work at it at the trot he picked it up realy fast. Now if he get up set I ask him for the cue and he calms down faster. After we work out I will ask him to drop his head to relax and cool off. It helps him not get sore and it tells him he did good and we are done with the lesson. I Will use this cue to get him to listen to me when we start our lessons and to warm up.
Giving to the Bit
With your horse standing still Start out with the right rein and take all of the slack out and hold it, Braceing your hand against the saddle so he will not beable to pull the other way. Take just enough slack up that you can see the Right shank of the bit move slightly and stop and wate. The second he turns a fraction of an inch let all the slack out. when the horse returns his head to a forward position Repeat the first step, The next time take up more slack and the first reaction that he turns he nose that way let the slack out. Keep doing this untill when you pick up that rein the horse is all ready turning his head and keeping his head turned untill you give him something else to do. Every horse is different and some may take longer than others. When your horse turns his head consistently every time on that side. Then start on the other side.Work untill your horse is consistent on both sides. The most Problem that some people will come up against is that some horses will do it in a matter of minutes and they think well he knows how to do this so I don't have to do it any more. Then they get out on the trail and go to ask for a turn and the horse pulls the other way and they start jurking the reins to get him to turn the way they want when and if they had stayed with the training in the first place this wouldn't have happened. I use this as a warm up to get my horses mind on me before we start another lesson. This also comes in handy if you are out on the trail and your horse runs in to some cobwebs and you want to get them off of his face,also you can tell if your horse is sore in his neck if he wont turn his head all the way toward you.
More Training
Spooking: Spooking
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