Prepping for show season means thinking about how to achieve picture perfect presentation when you step into the ring. Here, GoHalter provides some expert advice for putting a halt to bad manners.
Halter horses often get a bad rap as far as manners go, and we’ve all seen at least one halter horse spinning around its handler in the show pen. When it comes to manners, though, bad behavior shouldn’t be the norm. We talked to Ted Turner, Jr., Buddy Laney, and Jason Smith, who are well-known for perfectly poised specimens, to get the scoop on bad behavior in halter horses.
1. Get out of their space. Turner and Smith were both quick to point out that halter horses sometimes act out because they get sick of being handled. Turner explains, “Biting and nipping are the most common problems.” Halter horses have handlers in front of them a lot, so it’s easy to see why they have a greater tendency to get mouthy. To fix this, Smith advises establishing safe spaces for both horse and handler. As he says, “the rule is you don’t invade my space, and I won’t invade yours.” It takes some common sense; some horses may not enjoy having a person in their stall, so try to limit the time people spend in and out of that stall every day. For example, don’t brush the horse in a stall or clean it while the horse is in it. Take the horse out of the stall so that you aren’t invading his space; you avoid creating problems by establishing and respecting boundaries that go both ways. While working on leading, setting up, and presenting your horse, you may use tools such as lip chains or cords and war bridles at home to establish consistent horse and handler boundaries. The use of tools should never be done with aggression. Laney elaborates, “A halter horse that shows well is one that respects you, but isn’t scared of you.” And as Smith says, “you have to out-think horses, not out-muscle them.” The point is that halter horses are working livestock, not pets to be smothered, so set consistent boundaries for all involved….
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