Zen Horse

Training Tip of the Week
By Clinton Anderson

Flexing your Horse:

G’day mate!
I think at some point all of us have had a horse that didn’t want to stand still when being mounted.
If you get on your horse and he immediately starts to walk off, it won’t be long before he will begin to walk off as soon as you put your foot in the stirrup.
When a horse is allowed to walk off as soon as you get on, he starts to anticipate moving ahead before you’re in the saddle and pretty soon he won’t stand still for you to mount.
This can be really frustrating, but something I do that makes a big difference when mounting and helps keep my horse respectful and standing like a statue is flexing.
I always flex my horse laterally for three to five minutes as soon as I get on.
This teaches the horse that when I get on he’s not going anywhere, and he quits anticipating moving ahead.
I don’t know about you, but I want my horse to be in a hurry to do nothing but stand still and be soft when I step on.
Horses are professional che! ats, and are really smart about figuring out what we humans are going to do.
By being consistent in flexing your horse, you’ll teach him patience and hopefully won’t have to chase him down the road anymore when mounting.

Happy Trails,

Danna