home without putting up a BIG fuss!?
he hangs out with my 2 mares in pasture. I want to walk him to home paddock for more training. I understand this is hard for him to leave the pasture-mates. He joins up with me well but I’m nervous he will put up a fit leaving them Talked to my neighbor and he suggests putting a chain on his nose. I don’t want to hurt him. One idea is to bring carrots or feed bucket to entice him. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! - Judy
Do you have to walk him along a road?
Instead of a chain over his nose (which could cause even more problems if he’s not used to it) try a rope halter (parelli type) It offers more control then a regular halter.
you could also do a few trial runs…catch him and lead him around outside of the pasture; a little further each day. Rewards with treats if he’s good. He may start to look forward to your little walks.
If you have to go along a road, you might enlist a knowlegeable friend to walk on the other side of him…kind of like moving crossties.
Another idea, is if the mares lead well; enlist two friends to lead them up to your padoock and then take them back to the pasture.
He’ll be upset for a few days, it will be like weaning all over again, so make sure your paddock is good and strong.
Don’t make a big fuss.
Put a halter on him, add the chain as extra security measure, put on some gloves, carry a small crop, and walk him home.
Step one in the training regiment: horse is being walked.
Chain and crop are there to provide an extra measure of safety for the human should horse lose his marbles along the way.
(but also part one of the training exercise: Horse walks politely next to human)
Unless you are incredibly clumsy or out to draw blood, you will likely not hurt the animal with any of the above.
(and wear solid shoes, closed toes)
Rope halter, with a long lead shank (Think Clinton Anderson type) When he starts getting fussy … stop him in his tracks, get his focus on you again. Back him up a few steps. When he is good and finally does what you want give him a reward, a small treat… or a nice stroke on the neck.
More groundwork…maybe even do it in the pasture … as an exercise. Walk away, walk towards them. … any scenario you can come up with… with positive reinforcement when you get the response you want.
I agree with the above advice. Also, take it slow. If he starts acting up, calmly stop, back him a few steps, wait until he calms down and start forward again. Repeat as many times as necessary. Don’t let him invade your space. If he invades, stop, back him up and proceed forward when he calms down. Apply crop if needed. I used a dressage whip, just to give a reminder if the horse decided to get too near me- a light touch usually worked, sometimes a firm tap was needed. Sometimes growling worked too.
Just don’t make it a big deal. I once had a rank mare who had NO manners- I worked and worked and worked with her on leading and I could lead that mare anywhere no matter what was going on. Of course, I also had a neighbor who was willing to let me walk up and down her drive. In her pastures on either side were alpacas, llamas, emus, and all sorts of weird critters that make weird noises and movements! The first few times it was like having a horse kite but she settled down eventually 
La Gringa must have been typing when I was!
