Stand By Me! Why Ground Manners Are Important

Ground manners are probably the most important thing your horse can learn. Everything you will do (or want to do), requires impeccable ground manners and evolves from your horse behaving like a lady or gentleman when being handled on the ground. No horse will become a good citizen under saddle without first learning to possess the ability to be easily caught, stand while being haltered, lead nice and quietly with his or her neck adjacent to your shoulder, stand quietly to be groomed and tacked, then stand quietly while being mounted.

But, how to we get there from here? I always explain, ‘Whoa’ is the most important command a horse can ever learn, hands down. This will be the basis for all other interaction we initiate with our horses. When I say ‘Whoa’, I expect all four feet will cease moving, no matter what, immediately, until I tell the horse to move on. That is where ground manners begins. It’s something I’ve written about before: Back in 2009, I wrote this one [https://laying-the-foundation.blogspot.com/2009/08/horsemens-guide-to-ground-manners-tying.html], and in 2010, I wrote this [https://laying-the-foundation.blogspot.com/2010/01/halterbreaking-and-weaning.html]. Both are relatively comprehensive in discussing the mechanics of this topic.

Whenever we discuss ground manners, we must start at the beginning. In this case, let’s go with the age old “hard to catch” horse. Now, don’t get me wrong, I have had more than my fair share of horses brought to me for training who didn’t want to be caught, and there are a plethora of reasons behind why this occurs. It could be the horse was never desensitized to humans, maybe the horse had a traumatic experience and fears humans, or it could be the horse simply likes to play games – and those types of horses are abundant! J My horses always begin to look forward to being caught, after we've quickly and calmly tackled this issue. We just always want to remember, patience is paramount.

So, how do we catch those hard to catch buggars? I prefer to start with the ignoring method, which works on the very curious nature of most horses. Going into the horse's pen or stall, you essentially ignore the horse until he or she becomes curious and starts approaching you. Some other methods which have value are -- if you want to catch the horse at feeding time, keeping the horse away from where he or she is used to being fed until the horse submits to being caught; making the horse work when they evade being caught (not recommended, for obvious reasons, when you have a horse that's fear motivated); using another horse as cover to show that hard to catch beast it's safe (yes, I am being facetious...don't shoot me) or using the catch-pen method. I'm not a fan of using treats for this purpose, or using a bucket of grain, though in the past I have done both.

Any of the above methods will work, but keep in mind as I mentioned above, patience is key and waiting for the horse to relax, become receptive and submit is the only way to teach him or her everything is okay. You also want to continue stressing a firm (albeit quiet) 'Whoa' command whenever the horse stops and stands still during this type of training, followed immediately by a great deal of praise. Once the horse has stood still, you'll approach. If the horse tries to evade, you must make a split second decision whether to back away, work the horse by blocking or utilize another tactic. Timing is essential. And so much depends on the horse's state of mind.

After you've caught the horse and established trust, been able to halter the horse and begin instilling the 'Whoa' command, comes another of the most difficult parts of dealing with hard to catch horses and most significant aspects of good ground manners -- unhaltering. One of my biggest pet peeves is the horse that will pull away as you are taking off the halter. Not only is this dangerous to the person who has to handle the horse, it can also be dangerous to the horse if, for instance, they run off before the halter is completely unbuckled or untied. This, again, is where 'Whoa' command training becomes essential. I insist the horse stand completely still during the entire time I am unbuckling or untying the halter. If that horse pulls away, he or she is immediately re-caught and we repeat the entire process until the horse acquiesces. This is an example of the importance of 'Whoa', which I cannot stress enough.

I always want to be the first to disengage, or walk away, after taking off the halter. This is another vital part of foundational ground manners training. Once a horse has gotten away with leaving first, they tend to push that envelope until you have a horse who resorts to that pulling away I brought up above. Too many people have been trampled or dragged by a horse with poor ground manners. All of this is the gateway to creating a willing and responsive partner under saddle. These exercises and this type of training is even more important with a horse you're intending to train for driving (pulling a cart or buggy).

We'll revisit this topic again at another time, where I'll continue to discuss the mechanics of how to train your horses so they are well mannered and easy to handle on the ground. If you take just one thing away from this article, it should be that a horse with impeccable ground manners is a safe horse and one that will have a useful life as a partner.

~SFTS