54 NOVEMBER 2011 | HorseI l lustrated.com

WesternTRAINING

EQUINEETIQUETTETips for better ground manners from Richard Winters.

By Allison Griest / PHOTOS BY DOUG ELLIS

“Horsemanship is making the rightthing easy and the wrong thingdifficult,” says Richard Winters, 2009Road to the Horse Champion and anatural horsemanship trainer andclinician.

Initially, you might relate thisdefinition of horsemanship to thecommunication between you and yourhorse when you’re mounted. But haveyou ever applied this motto to yourrelationship on the ground?

It is Winters’ fundamental beliefthat a horse needs to have anunderstanding of what’s expected ofhim on the ground. Your horse can’tread your mind, but he will read yourbody language. We asked Winters toshare a few exercises and key safetytips for you to keep in mind whenrefining your horse’s ground manners.

The Bare NecessitiesWhen you work with your horse onground manners, equip him with ahalter and lead rope. You can use anytype, but Winters prefers to use ahand-tied halter and a 12-foot leadrope.

“The hand-tied halter and the 12-foot lead rope are conducive to subtlecommunication,” explains Winters.“Hand-tied halters sit softly on thehorse’s face, and you can longe himwith the 12-foot rope at a safe distanceaway from you.”

When working with a lead rope, it’sextremely important to be organized.Lead your horse holding the rope inyour right hand, with a few feet

between the halter and your hand.Your excess rope should be nicelyorganized in coils in your left hand soyou can feel how the rope is feedingfrom your hands. If your horse jerks onthe rope, this will prevent your handsfrom getting tangled up.

Get your Head in the GameMaybe you’ve led a horse thatcompletely disregards the safety ofyour feet next to his, or maybe yourright shoulder and elbow are coveredin dirt and horse hair by the time youreach the cross-ties because your horsetried to walk on you rather than next toyou. Perhaps you got a friend’s horseout of his stall as a favor, and in returnhe forcefully jerked on your arm in hisattempt to grab some grass.

No matter what the circumstancesare, when you’re walking with anyhorse, the last thing you want him todo is invade your personal space. “Yourhorse should walk beside you and justbehind you,” says Winters. “Heshouldn’t be able to step on you, and heshouldn’t walk ahead of you.”

The time to work on leading

manners is not when something scaryhappens, like a bicyclist rushing past orthe wind blowing garbage cans into theroad. “That’s when I want to train myhorse to respect my space.”

Take time to purposely teach yourhorse to respect your personal spaceand respond to your body language as amatter of course. Winters recommendsthat you take your horse into an arena,round pen or pasture to work with himon walking. “Always set yourself up forsuccess,” he says.

“If you’re comfortable with yourhorse’s groundwork skills and he’sworking well, you can do groundworkanywhere,” continues Winters. “Go inthe pasture and work over a log. Ifyou’re just getting started, choose anice place where you can move easilyand your horse will be on safe footingand in a safe environment.”

Walk the WalkA ground manners exercise Wintersoften uses in clinics requires workingalong a fence rail. Lead your horse inyour right hand by holding the end ofthe lead rope in your left hand. Give

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T he next timeyour bodycould use arest from thesaddle or the

footing outside is a littleless than desirable,halter your horse andprepare to work on foot.No matter how brokeyour horse is or howlong you two have beenpartners, groundworkcan only strengthenyour relationship.

Lead your horsewith a few feetbetween your righthand and the halter.

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your horse about 2 to 3 feet of slack inthe lead rope. Believe that he’s going tobe a good follower. Then, go for a walkalong the fence with your horse on therail, tracking left. Periodically stop andback your horse up, using the fence tokeep him straight.

“The idea of this exercise is that thehorse will be in tune with your bodylanguage and stop when you stop,” saysWinters. “Initially, you might have toshorten the lead rope or create energywith the lead rope in your left hand byswinging it, or raise your elbows or legsto create commotion.”

When you stop, explains Winters,stop like a soldier. “You want toexaggerate your body movement tocommunicate to your horse thatsomething’s going on,” says Winters.“Many horses tune out our bodylanguage. Instead, you want to bringspecific meaning to it. You have to‘speak’ clearly. If nothing happens,make it uncomfortable for him to be inyour space. It’s hitting him on thefront legs with the rope, getting yourelbows busy under his chin, whateverit takes. After a couple of times, itdoesn’t take much.

“Allow him to be comfortable whenhe yields backward,” continuesWinters. “Give him a place to go to findcomfort. Tell him, ‘If you go there, thenyou’ll step into a comfortable place.’ Hegets to stop when he yields back in away that keeps the buffer between youand him.”

This exercise allows you to do yourhomework in a controlled situation.That way, when something unexpectedhappens, your horse is more likely torespect your space when you ask him

to rather than run you over.

Happily TiedDon’t just dismiss undesirable groundmanners when it comes to tying yourhorse. Be aware of the downfalls ofnegative behaviors.

When your horse is tied, he shouldstand quietly. However, many timesthis is not the case. Horses can beanxious, throw their heads, swing theirhindquarters and paw at the ground.None of these habits are desirable, andif you’re not careful, they can even bedangerous. Horses that are overlyanxious might pull back, and if horsesregularly paw on a concrete surface,they can wear their toes down.Remember to help your horse besuccessful.

One thing Winters does to help sethis horses up for success is to workwith them on tying after a trainingsession. “Get your horse in a receptiveframe of mind,” he says. “Tie him upafter working him for a bit.”

When Winters works on a horse’stying manners, he uses his “assistanttrainer”—an oak tree. “My horses learnso much on the oak tree,” Winters says.“They learn basics there. They learn tohang out.”

Winters explains that if you tie yourhorse for a while and untie him andlead him back to his stall when he getsanxious and uptight, you’ve just taughthim to be anxious and uptight.

“I need my horses to pass themental threshold,” says Winters. “Thatmeans, when I tie a horse up, he willfuss and think, ‘I can’t stand herewithout my friends.’ He needs to workthrough that mentally and realize, ‘OK,

! Richard Winters is a respected performancehorse trainer who conducts naturalhorsemanship clinics around the country. Hehas earned world championship titles throughthe National Reined Cow Horse Associationand was the Reserve Champion in the LimitedOpen Derby in 2008. Winters received the2007 Monty Roberts Equitarian Award foroutstanding achievements in horse-humanrelationships. In 2009, he won the Road to theHorse colt starting competition.

MEET THE TRAINER

Leading your horse along the fence,periodically stop and ask him toback up using body language.

If your horse doesn’t back up withyou, create energy byexaggerating your bodymovement, lifting your knees andflapping your elbows as necessary.

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I’m just here. I can just stand here.’“I will tie them and leave them for

two hours,” adds Winters. “They’reusually just standing in their stallanyway. However, anything can beoverdone. Treat horses humanely. Donot tie them so tight and high that theycan’t move their neck. Don’t deprivethem of food or water, or leave themtied in an unsafe environment, such asin the sun on an exceptionally hot day.”

If your horse is more comfortablewith a buddy, tie another horse nearhim for part of the time. Thetemporary presence of another horsecan help him be a little morecomfortable with the tying process.

For chronic pawers, Winters advisestying the horse on rubber matting sohe can’t dig a hole in dirt or hurt hishoof on concrete.

Remember to safely tie your horse.Winters usually ties his horses at leastas high as their eye level. He remindsall of his riders not to tie their horsetoo tight. If a horse can’t move hishead, he’ll be uncomfortable, and the

situation can become dangerous. Thecomfort zone is about 2 to 2 1⁄2 feet ofrope between the horse and thehitching rail. Avoid tying a horse too

low or with too much rope, where hemight get his legs tangled up.

Also, make sure you tie a knot thatis secure but can be released quickly in

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Safely tie your horse by using a knot that is secure but will still release in anemergency, and leave 2 to 2 1⁄2 feet of slack in the rope for his comfort.

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an emergency. Your knot of choice willdepend on if you’re using a tree, ahitching post or a horizontal pole. Beaware that some knots will allow thehorse to slide the rope along a pipefence. Make sure you’ve tied the knotwell; some horses are very good atuntying themselves.

Cinchy HorsesAs an observer at a show or boardingbarn, you’ve probably noticed thevariety of equine reactions that takeplace when a saddle lands on a horse’sback. The ideal situation is a horse thatstands relaxed and happy as the saddleis placed on his back and the cinch istightened. However, this isn’t ascommon as it should be. Instead, manyhorses look at the rider and pin theirears, shake their heads, or even try tobite or nip when the cinch is tightened.In the most extreme circumstances,horses can pull back, fall down or evenflip over when they suddenly feel thepressure of the cinch.

“I encourage cinching to be a

Winters teaches hishorses to stand quietlywhen tied by specificallyworking with them onthat skill at the end of atraining session.

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7gradual two- to three-step process,”says Winters.

When you saddle your horse,Winters advises that you draw thecinch tight enough that the saddlewon’t roll over, but don’t draw it astight as you would for a ride. Next, leadyour horse a short distance, then stopand tighten the cinch a bit more. Youcan even send your horse out in a circlearound you to get him moving beforeyou tighten it up.

Winters adds a safety precaution forcranky or volatile horses that mightpull back, flip over, et cetera. “If a horseis really bothered about the cinch,untie him first. If he does somethingvolatile, it’s going to be a big wreck.”

If your horse is polite during thecinching process, make sure youalways keep it a positive experience forhim. If you have a horse that dreads thecinch, Winters says you can take theback of your hand and simply rub italong the cinch area. You might eventake the latigo and rub it between hislegs. Pick up the cinch and rub it on

him and then let it go.“Break the cycle,” says Winters.

“Just break it up and slow down andfreshen that horse’s attitude.”

If you have a horse that dreads the cinch, break the cycle by rubbing himalong the girth area with your hand or between his legs with the latigo.

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Mealtime MannersGround manners in a halter and leadrope shouldn’t end when the halter istaken off. “Horses have to respect myspace whether I have a feed bucket,flake of hay or nothing in my hand,”says Winters. “They can’t come intomy space.”

To encourage your horse’s politeand respectful ground manners in thestall, pasture, at the mounting blockand in the arena, be more businesslikeabout what you do.

“A horse can’t separate a cute rubfrom an unsafe or obnoxious rub,”advises Winters. “Set standards andpersonal boundaries.”

For example, if you go out to feedand the horses crowd your personalspace, have a lead rope, flag or longewhip with you that can act as anextension of your hand to tell them tomove away.

Horses should respect your space inevery environment. Be consistent withyour body language and be as clear aspossible when you explainexpectations to your horse.

A well-mannered horse is a pleasureto own, and makes things easier. Thenext time your vet or farrier comes tocare for your horse, wouldn’t you loveto get a compliment on your horse’sground manners? And your time spenton the ground with your horse willonly help your time in the saddle.

ALLISON GRIEST is a freelance writer in Texas.

Teach your horse to respect your spaceduring meal times by using a flag orlonge whip as an extension of yourhand to move him out of the way.

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