Other Tools & Games
Horse games are an easy way to expose your horse to different situations.
These are fun things that you can do that don’t cost a lot of money
but do make a big difference in the bravery of your horse.
Tarp: A plastic tarp is a valuable piece
of equipment. Lay it on the ground and ask your horse to walk over it.
It’s easiest to lead your horse over, but you should also try to
longe and drive your horse over the tarp. Reward the horse for appropriate
behavior. Let your horse smell it first. Then ask them to follow you over
the tarp. This may take some time. Eventually, you will want to build
the bravery in your horse by asking them to go over the tarp first (ground
driving). You should also be able to ask your horse to stand quietly on
the tarp.
Another exercise that you can do with the tarp is to put it on the horse’s back. Use the approach/retreat method of introducing the tarp. Don’t just throw it over the horse. After you have mastered this technique you can work towards covering the horse completely with the tarp. Remember to reward the horse for appropriate behavior. We started with the tarp folded into a small square and gradually opened it up and placed it on the horse each time. Eventually, we got to the point of having tarp completely enclose the horse.
Plastic Bag: A plastic grocery bag on a stick or riding crop is a wonderful tool. You have probably heard of "sacking out" a horse. There is more to it than waving a bag at your horse. You need a 5-6 foot long stick with a plastic bag tied or taped to the end. Desensitize the horse to the motion of the bag and to the touch of the bag and the stick on their body. This is a whole lesson topic in itself. You want to teach the horse to yield to the pressure of the bag when it is directed at them, but to remain calm when the pressure is not directed at them. Use the approach/retreat method of introducing the bag and remember to reward the horse for appropriate behavior. We always chuckle to ourselves when we see this bag and stick setup for sale in some of the horse catalogs for $39.95. Why not try making your own from a stick with an ordinary shopping bag tied on the end.
TarpWall: We all want a brave horse that will go through brush, or tolerate things flapping against their bodies. You could work on this when the occasion arises or you could prepare the horse for these types of situations in advance. We use an old tarp cut into 8" strips and string it up between the opening in our arena. We first ask the horse to follow us through on a lead line and work up to driving the horse through the tarp wall. Eventually, we will ride the horse through the tarp. You have to approach this understanding that this is a strange concept to the horse "you want me to do what?" But, by introducing this in steps to the horse you will have no problem. Ask the horse to stand near the tarp. Then rub some of the strips on the horses body. Then ask the horse to move into the tarp. Then ask the horse to follow you through. Use the approach/retreat method of introducing this to the horse and remember to reward for appropriate behavior.
Balloons: Get a balloon and fill it full of air. A helium filled balloon with a weight on the string works best. Show the horse the balloon, let him smell it. Reward the horse. Pick up the balloon and rub it on the horses body. This is a big deal to a horse. Let the balloon rise over the horse's body or head. Do this until the horse is desensitized to this stimulus. Use the approach/retreat method of introducing this to the horse and remember to reward for appropriate behavior.
Flag: Want to be in a parade? How do you
think those drill team riders introduced the flags to their horses. This
is easy if you understand what you are asking the horse to do. You may
have noticed the common theme with all of these tools -- no matter what
the stimulus, if you use the approach/retreat method of introduction to
the horse and remember to reward for appropriate behavior you will teach
your horse to respond in the manner that want. We didn't have a flag but
we did have a long stick that we tied some scrap material to simulate
a flag (we don't think the horse knows the difference). Do the same thing
as you did in the other exercises, introduce the flag to the horse --
let him sniff it. Then rub it on their body, And finally, wave it near
their body and above them.
Soccer: Get a large ball. The kind that you can get in a toy store works very well. We have a giant 3 foot rubber ball that we bought at Toys’r’Us that is excellent for this (we bought the ball for our son). Show the horse the ball, let them smell it. Reward the horse for appropriate behavior. Move the ball on the ground, let the horse see it. Reward the horse. Roll the ball backwards and have the horse move forwards into it. Reward the horse. Roll the ball into your horses knees from the front. Your horse may jump back, that’s OK. Keep doing this until your horse will stand still. Reward your horse for appropriate behavior. If you are under saddle, ask the horse to move into the ball and move it with his legs. Reward the horse. Keep at it until you can show the horse the ball and they will try to move into it on their own. We have a horse that likes the ball so much that we have to hide it from him.
Musical Chairs / Tag: This is a good way to expose a horse to a lot of action, fast movement, and close contact with other horses and people. This is a variation on the game that you played as a kid. Horses obviously can’t sit in a chair, but they can stand on a piece of cardboard. You need one fewer pieces of cardboard than you have horses (5 horses = 4 pieces of cardboard). Cut the cardboard into 1 to 2 foot square pieces, the size isn’t that important. Lay the cardboard out at least 20 feet from each other. Make someone "it" and everyone else has to get their horse to stand on a piece of cardboard. Agree on a time limit for being "it", three minutes is a good limit. The person who is it has to go touch anyone who’s horse is not touching the cardboard. If you are touched you are "it" and have to find someone to tag. After the time limit, remove a piece of cardboard, so that there are even fewer "safe" places to stand. You can’t push or knock someone off their horse but anything else is open game. Continue until all of the cardboard is removed.
Bridge: We do a lot of trail riding and come across all kinds of bridges and elevated walkways over wetlands in the Pacific Northwest. It's tough for a horse to go out over a bridge that makes all kinds of noise, doesn't have a rail, and may be high off the ground. You can prepare the horse for this situation with our "bridge simulator 9000". We made a bridge out of scrap plywood and 2x6's. We start by asking the horse to walk over it through the middle (the short way), this introduces it to them. At first they may not even step on the bridge, don't worry -- be patient. You will ask the horse to walk across the bridge lengthwise and stop. Don't let the horse rush or run off the bridge. It's also important to make sure that the horse does not step off the bridge into your space.
When the horse is good at going over the bridge, stopping, and backing up, we introduce the teeter-totter to them. We insert a 4"x4" block under the center of the bridge so that it moves like a teeter-totter when the horse steps on it. We work with the horse until they are able stand on the bridge and shift their weight forward of backward to make the bridge move in either direction.
Strange animals: When a horse sees a new and strange animal for the first time you can have some serious problems. A good thing to do is to borrow a strange animal [dog, goat, etc]. Introduce the horse to it in an open area. Let the horse smell it and reward the horse. Ask the horse to stand still while it is near. This is a very difficult thing to do, make sure you reward the horse.
Bicycles: Get a mountain bike and let the horse look at it. Reward the horse for standing quietly. Have someone ride the mountain bike around your horse, don’t get too close. Reward the horse for standing quietly. Keep doing this until your horse is calm with the bicycle.
Motorcyles: Get a motorcycle, preferably a dirt bike (they are nosier) and let the horse look at it while the engine is off. Reward the horse for standing quietly. Start the engine and and let the horse look at it. Reward the horse for standing quietly. Have someone ride the motorcyle around your horse, don’t get too close. Reward the horse for standing quietly. Keep doing this until your horse is calm with the motorcyle. You want to desensitize the horse to the sound and motion of the motorcycle.
Use your imagination. There are many ways to approach these situations and many different training scenarios that accomplish similar things.
