Some horses love to be handled, and they'll stand quietly for everything from ear clipping to washing their tails. But if your horse doesn't stand like a statue, don't worry. We'll talk about what you can do to make grooming a better experience for both of you and what cues you'll need to establish good, safe control.
Emphasize the Positive
- Choose a time and place to groom when and where your horse is most likely to stand quietly.
- Don't tie your horse when you first start your grooming lessons.
- Use leading lessons, moves and counter-moves to position and reposition your horse.
- Focus on the positive. Don't react to your horse's moody mannerisms.
- Spend plenty of time petting your horse's head before you approach his body.
- Use patterns and timing to build your horse's confidence that he's not going to be stuck standing still forever.
De-stress the Situation
If you have a horse who gets crabby when it's time to groom him, you've probably already learned that trying to "discipline" him into cooperating doesn't work… or it doesn't work for very long. You have to take a different approach, one that will set you and your horse up for success.
To find a good starting point, you want as many things working in your favor as possible. Choose a time when your horse is most likely to be relaxed. Avoid busy or confusing times, such as when the tractor is picking up manure, at mealtime, or when horses are going in and out of the barn. Consider working with your horse after he's had some turn-out, or after a ride, when he's relaxed and not brimming with energy or nervousness like he might be when he first steps out of his stall.
Then find a good "classroom" for the first stand-for-grooming lesson. If you normally groom in the barn and that's the scene of your horse's restlessness, try beginning the lesson out in the pasture, or maybe in his stall.
By doing that, you're not giving into him and he's not getting away with anything. You're just breaking the lesson down into pieces and getting good control of the individual parts. Later, you can move from the classroom into the real world of the barn aisle.
Don't tie your horse to begin with. Ironically, you have to be able to tell him to move in order to show him that you want him to stand. So put a halter or bridle and lead rope on your horse, and use the lead to cue him. I usually use the bridle because it gives me more precise control.
Clarify the Signals
Next, consider specifically what you want your horse to do. Though it may seem obvious, it isn't to him. You have to be able to tell the horse where to move his head and feet. You can't just tell him when he did the wrong thing.
When I'm grooming a horse, I want his head at a relaxed level-not too high, as if he's on alert, and not too low, so that I have to bend down to brush his face. I like him to stand relatively square, so that he can stand relaxed for a while. I want him to move around easily when I request it, such as to shift his weight or to pick up a foot. And I want him to do all of that with a trusting, rather than a defensive or aggressive, manner. Everything I do has to build that trust.
Trust comes as a by-product. As the horse learns that I can control him, he also learns to trust me. While feeding him carrots gets him to trust me as a carrot-provider, it doesn't necessarily translate to letting me groom him. For that, I have to set up small requests that he can easily answer correctly and that I can reward him for.
