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As the horse starts to anticipate backing after each stop,
he will bring his hindquarters further up underneath
himself in the stop.
Teaching the Stop
By Bob Jeffreys
I start by walking my horse forward, and then I pick up the left rein, start
taking the slack out of this rein while actually turning my body to look at
the horse's left hip. I continue to add pressure on the rein until I see the
left hip move to the right. As soon as it moves I release all pressure on the
rein. It's important to release when the hip starts to move then I immediately
change my focus from the let hip to the left shoulder and start to take the
slack out of my left rein increasing pressure slowly until the left shoulder
stops. When I can achieve these first two steps, I proceed to step three,
which is to ask the horse's right shoulder to move back. So now I ask for the
following all with the left rein;
1. Move left hip to the right, release rein
2. Immediately ask left shoulder to stop moving forward, release rein
3. Ask right shoulder to move backward, release rein on any backward movement
from that shoulder
4. Pet horse
When we practice these movements enough, the horse will eventually put the
three movements together. When you pick up the left rein and ask the horse's
left hip to move to the right, the horse will automatically stop his left
shoulder and move the right shoulder back.
Now we have to teach the horse everything from the right side. Remember to go
through all the steps using the right rein. When this has been accomplished,
you can eliminate step number one (disengaging the hip). Go directly to asking
the left shoulder to stop and the right shoulder to move backward with the
left rein. Then ask the right shoulder to stop and the left shoulder to move
backward with the right rein. The next step would be to just stop the left
shoulder with the left rein and immediately stop the right shoulder with the
right rein and then with both reins ask both shoulder points to move back.
Eventually we can simply use both reins simultaneously to ask the shoulders to
stop and move backward. As the horse starts to anticipate backing after each
stop, he will bring his hindquarters further up underneath himself in the
stop, creating a lighter, more balanced stop.
Remember when you start teaching this lesson, at first the horse will have no
idea what you're asking him to do. That's why it's important to actually look
at the horse's hip when you first ask it to move. That way you will not only
feel the movement but you will also see it, which allows you to release your
rein pressure immediately. The release tells the horse he did what you asked.
Bob Jeffreys Horse Training
Learn how to communicate with your horse in a way that your horse will quickly
understand. This proven gentle method gives the horse that “want to” attitude
we all desire. Problems are solved, resistance is replaced by willingness, and
performance is enhanced. Bob and his clinic partner, Suzanne Sheppard, offer
individualized attention so that everyone gets real answers and real results
using Bob’s gentle proven methods. Since we have a variety of clinic formats
to choose from, we invite you to click on our website for detailed
information, testimonials, schedules and prices.
Contact: Bob Jeffreys
168 Tamms Road
Middletown, New York 10941
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