Preparing the horse for lunging and driving (1)

Part 1 of a series about preparing the horse for lunging and/or ground driving.

After posting the series on lunging and another on leading, I received a lot of emails and comment posts. Some people were confused and needed a "problem-solver" post.

With that in mind I started this new series that will hopefully fully explain how you can take your untrained, green horse, to a calm, confident partner on the lunge or on driving lines.

Part 1 goes into the three leading positions: before the horse, parallel to the horse, and behind the horse.

It also shows the prep work that must be done BEFORE lunging or ground driving:

* horse must be comfortable with the whip
(please see the whip series for more info)

* horse must be comfortable with the lungeline or rope being moved and placed over their body, hindquarters and legs.

* horse must be comfortable with you at all three leading positions and respond to a verbal and/or whip cue to move on. This must be done by the horse in a calm manner (ie. not spooky, fast or rushing).

Z is an AppaloosaXArab cross that is extremely non-spooky, confident and dominant. She was green when I started her lunging and driving but overall was an easy horse to start.

Horses with a higher "alert", spooky behavior, has a past history of abuse, or who doesn't have confidence in their handler will need more time and patience. Take it slow and break it down in baby steps for these horses.

Part 2 will examine the use of pressure on the line and turns.

Category:

Pets & Animals

Tags:

• horse
• ground
• driving
• lunging