Horses And Resistance

I'm so proud of my problem filly. I was getting some tack together in preparation for moving my horses to a better barn. My brother, who is afraid of horses was getting the trailer ready. Then, he loaded my Arab, because she is very cooperative. Next, he decided to load problem filly. She hopped on like an old cow and didn't bat an eye even when a piece of Milar plastic that had somehow gotten into my trailer blew up under the feet of both horses. The Arab temporarily checked out for about 3 seconds, but Misty just walked calmly onto the trailer. All my brother did was run the rope through the front and pull lightly. It was amazing how well she did.

I have no doubt that she was so good, because the first time we loaded her we didn't allow for much in the way of resistance. I train all of mine to always go forward with a crack on the ass. So for her first loading, I used a rope halter and long lead. I ran the lead through the front of the trailer and handed it to my brother. He took all the slack out of the rope, and Misty stepped forward. She calmly walked halfway on and stopped. We let her stand with no pressure for about 10 seconds. My brother gently tightened the rope up again. The filly gave her head, but refused to walk forward. Furthermore, she started to sit back on the halter. I gave her a swift one before she could really get going, and she hopped the rest of the way in.

By defeating the initial resistance, we made the second loading go off without a hitch. Now, it is ingrained in her mind that she goes onto the trailer and saying "no" is not an option. This also helped her to realize that any resistance against the halter is futile, and she is now much lighter, She leads anywhere without balking. My experience is teaching me that your first chance to teach a horse something is the only chance to really solidify it in their head without having to deal with major problems. I'll take a wild adult horse over a spoiled one who knows that there is a way out of something other than submission.
The same principle applies to teaching a horse to accept farrier work. My filly had never had her feet trimmed. I am surprised that her feet weren't terrible and her legs weren't more crooked as a result. Here's what I did:
I planned ahead and scheduled the farrier like I normally do for my Arab. This filly would squeal and attempt to strike anyone messing with her front legs. Rather than try and try to pick up and hold her feet, I fitted a front leg strap. This is simply an old stirrup leather wrapped in a figure 8 around her leg so as to hold the front foot off the ground. I had touched all her legs a lot with ropes and a lunge whip, so she wasn't too upset as long as I put it on quickly. I then went out to the end of my long lead rope and waited.

My Halter Ego

This is my 15-year-old Arab mare. I have owned her since she was three. Tessa is sweet, but she's not a pushover and will not tolerate poor handling. Up until the last three years, I have always used a leather halter on her. If she got close to being on top of me, a bump on the lead was sufficient to sort her out. If she refused to be lead somewhere, it didn't take much to change her mind.
I bought a rope halter for her and noticed that she was even lighter and more responsive. Bear in mind that this mare has never been heavy. When I put her in a rope halter, it was almost like there was no horse on the lead. However, lately she has decided that if I go to catch her with the rope halter, she will not make it easy. If I show up with her leather one, she is right there waiting to get caught. I am starting to wonder if I may have hurt her with the rope one. I don't need to rip on her face or hang on her to get a response, but I tied her up about a month ago while I went to catch my filly. She has never had tying issues, but I am worried that she might have pulled back when I wasn't there and possibly hurt her poll. She is a lot mor defensive now when I put on the rope halter; her head is high and her back is dropped and tense. Has anyone else ever experienced something like this? I am even considering switching my filly into a leather halter to see if she is more comfortable. She has definitely needed the rope one in the past, but she is very soft on the lead now.
I guess this is one of those times where if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Unfortunately, it took the probable injury of my horse to get it through my thikc head.
Rope halters aren't always such a gentle, touchy-feely piece of equipment.

Crazy Horse Or Crazy People?

I was a one horse wonder for several years. I boarded my Arab mare at a nice barn and all was well. One day my brother mentioned that his neighbor had a piece of fenced pasture for rent. I would have to do my own care, but it was a great opportunity for my horse. When I went out to chekc the place over, there was a ragged-coated black weanling wandering the pasture. I inquired about her. Apparently the owner of the land had been at an auction looking at farm equipment when a rack of bones mare and her filly were brought into the ring. They were owned by some people who had kept them in a drylot with nothing but pinetrees and rocks. When they ran out of money, the lactating mare lost condition and had to feed on the trees. So the owner of the pasture bid on the pair and got them for $100. The mare was docile, but the filly was wild and defensive. The mare was given to a friend to fatten up, but the filly was just put out on the pasture and left to her own devices.
Anyway, I took the filly and with the help of a good roping horse got her passibly halterbroken. She had been teased and tormented by a few kids and some guys who thought it was funny when she snapped at them and chased them. I set about training her to accept hobbles and rear leg restraint in preparation for a visit from the farrier. This training also has a positiveeffect on the psyche of every horse I have used it on. It instills respect and encourages the horse to think about problems instead of struggling. I know it works, because she stood perfectly for her first ever trim the day after I impleminted the training. She is relatively easy for me to handle; she loaded right up in the trailer when it came time to move her and my mare to their current digs.
Anyway, this move was brought about by the antics of the filly who was named Misty when I took over her care. misty didn't like anyone very much. She had this dirty habbit of nipping and running off. (it's not like any other young horse has ever done these things) She was most aggressive over the fence and toward men. She was much easier for me to deal with after I got her trained to lead and stand for the farrier, because I was consistent and tried to be fair. I didn't play games with her or stuff her full of treats to get her to like me. However she became destructive to property. This involved tearing up a Ford Escort that I recommended not be parked in the pasture. The land owner had played with and teased her so much that he couldn't safely go inside the fence anymore.
To b continued.