Hi. Have you done Join up? I suspect not. This would establish your respective positions. I had a similar problem with one of mine. Do Join up & if the colt won't go away when you square up your shoulders & look him in the eye, use a stick with plastic carrier bags attached. I had to resort to flicking a white feed bag! Once Join up is established the long lining will be much more successful. You do not have accreditations for the Uni - I found the videos helpful & instructive. Keep us posted on your progress but please sign up for the whole package & do not pick & mix - this causes confused horses & frustrated humans. Cheers, Jo

I would check your positioning also. If he is turning in to you it would suggest that you are too far in front of him and therefore blocking him - you need to position yourself at a 45 degree angle, with your hip roughly lined up with his hip if that makes sense! Use body your body language as well as lines at this early stage i.e. eyes on eyes. Only flick the outside line so that you are not confusing him. As Jo says, the videos are great :-) Good luck!

Thanks for the suggestions. I have signed up for the Uni and have watched some of the long lining videos which were helpful. I'll certainly try the paper bag suggestions and keep an eye on where I 'm positioned. My lad is a draft so I only want him to walk at the moment. While he's already 16h he's not sufficiently developed to trot etc on the circle without putting undue stress on this frame. This probably makes it easier for him as I can't use extra forward momentum to help keep him out (if that makes sense).

Hi again. Not paper bags, plastic carrier bags. Watch the Join up videos. The body language is key! You should also get a copy of From My Hands to Yours, Monty's how to tackle everything book. If you are in Britain you will save money by getting books & equipment from Intelligent Horsemanship as if you shop with Monty direct you have to pay import tax. However, I get the feeling that you have yet to fully appreciate the benefits of a dually head collar & the all encompassing nature of Monty's non violent methods. I cannot urge you enough to look more into this training method. I have been converted after almost half a century, during which time I naturally moved away from the bashing & thrashing that was considered acceptable back in the 1960's. If you really care about your colt then please, take the time to make sure you do the best by him! Cheers, Jo.

Hi jms,

Since you seem to have a natural Join-up with your youngster, this could be the moment to "wean" him a little from your side. He might think you're his substitute mother. What will help him in life is reading other being's bodylanguage.
First of all: School your horse to the Dually-halter, following the instructions from the lessons on this UNI about the halter! This way he'll know how to follow the pressure from the lines, instead of going "into pressure" against them.

So if you want to start longlining, I see two possibilities:

- Next, you're the person in the center of the pen, asking another person to walk the horse on the outer circle. Instruct this person about the cues you're going to give to the horse and let this person help the horse to understand what you're asking. Probably the most he/she needs to do is keeping the horse at the circumference of the pen. Slowly the instructions you give are going to take over, your helper is going to do less and less until there is no longer a need for him/her.

- Another person, that is not so well known to the horse, but is experienced with the method of longlining, will first teach the horse how to react to the cues. This person could even first do a Join-up with him and proceed from there, using the bodylanguage from the Join-up during the longlining. Slowly the bodylanguge is becoming less important, the instructions from the lines are going to take over. When the horse has understood, you can step in and do the longlining.
Still bodylanguage is going to be your best friend during the whole relationship with your horse, but for now you want your horse to learn how to follow the longlines, still using the right bodylanguage.

Miriam

HI. I am also having long lining issues. My 10 year old cob has been on the long lines about 3 times. He is ok in trot but as soon as I ask him to canter he goes ballistic and runs away and I can't hang on to him.

Thanks

Katherine

Hi Katherine. Are you using a dually head collar & 30 foot lines? Have you successfully done 'Join up'? I think you may be new to the Uni - no accreditations. Monty's methods work but you have to adopt the entire package & not just cherry pick the bits you like. I'm wary of mixing different training methods as it can cause the horse confusion - not good! As your cob has donee relatively little of this work you need to be more incremental. Working him backwards & forwards. Introduce a narrowing space - between you & the fences. Be gradual with this but progressive too. His reaction is one of not understanding you. Whenever a horse shows signs of panic, stop. Go back to a point where there was calm acceptance ( put him back in his comfort zone ) & work in stages to gently advance back & hopefully through the cause of the hiccup in training. We are here to help you so keep us updated & have fun - the best training is when it's play. Cheers, Jo.

Hi Jo.

Firstly thank you for your help.

No I was not using a dually head collar. I had a trainer with my old horse who previously that taught me to just put his normal riding tack on and long line him that way. So, yes, I was cherry picking.

I will buy the collar and start from the beginning.

Please can you explain what you mean by "Working him backwards & forwards. Introduce a narrowing space - between you & the fences."

Thanks Katherine

Hi Katherine. Horses do not naturally go backwards easily but if they own reverse they will use it against you - not wanting to load into the lorry for instance. Therefore, it is important to teach your horse to back up, willingly. Then reverse becomes part of your partnership with your horse & you can go backwards as easily as forwards or left or right. The Dually head collar is a magic bit of kit. It's also a bit less bridle but you need to use it the 'right' way, always leaving slack line between your hand & the horse, inviting him to make a mistake. Mistakes are good! They are your horses opportunities to learn. Traditional trainers demand the horse performs & backs that up with punishment. With Monty's methods the trainer makes options for the horse to choose, making it more attractive for them to make the right choices & then praising their success. You can appreciate that children would love learning like that. Guess what, horses are intelligent enough to love that way of learning too. Horses were designed by nature to live in wide open spaces where they could see great distances. In modern life horses are kept in confined spaces in comparison with the open plains & many, if not most, are claustrophobic. If you start by working your cob in a fenced area & gradually have him move through the space between you & the fence, making the space narrower gradually, you will boost his confidence with confined spaces. You can up the anti by adding a soft roof, a tarpaulin or blanket. That way, if you do get an unhappy reaction, your cob cannot hurt his head if he reared up. You'll have great fun following the Uni lessons. Make sure you take Monty's Challenge after each one so you get your accreditations. I have had horses & ponies most of my nearly 60 years. I currently have 5, ranging between 12 years & just turned yearling filly yesterday. I cut out a lot of the violence many years ago but when I found Monty I found I had loads more I needed to change - and I'm still on that mission. I don't feel guilty - even Monty is still learning. I just need to try harder. Be careful where you buy your Dually from as you want the genuine article. Keep posting on the Uni - we're here to help. Good luck, Jo.

Hi Katherine
:
Can I ask a question please? I presume you are working him in a circle (unless you are very very fit and are cantering with him!!) but are you in a round pen or in an open space working in a circle? Thanks

Hi Jo.

I was just long lining him in the field and working him in a circle.

I am now working him in a rectangular pen. I have fenced the bottom bit off so that we are working in a more intimate space.

I tried join up tonight. I introduced him to the pen first. It was lovely
Because he seems to understand what I was asking of him. He knew I meant for him to go away but he wasn't
Scared. He was "switched on". I did the required amount of laps and then dropped my gaze and he came in. He didn't lick or chew but I don't think I was sending him out hard enough. He was trotting, not cantering and I don't think I gave him the opportunity to really ask me if he could come in. Tomorrow I will send him away a bit harder and wait for him to ask me.

What do you think?

Loved hearing about your learning curve Jo. Thanks Katherine

Hi Katherine. Sounds to me as though you've got the right mindset to get the job done. Better to air on the caution side & gradually up the pressure than going in too hard right off. Read his signs carefully - he'll tell you when you are right & when not so right. Good luck & keep posting. Cheers, Jo.

hi Jo

I achieved join up tonight with my Connemara
, Eddie. It was wonderful; a wonderful connection! As soon as I turned him for the second time something clicked, he relaxed and I just knew he was going to ask me to come in. At first I thought I saw the signs, he was dropping and chewing but it was subtle and I wasn't
100 percent so I drove him back out again and then there it was. I let him come in and my step daughter was delighted to see him come right up behind me and follow me all over the pen. He really enjoyed being petted and was subdued and peaceful. Not his normal stubborn, surly self.

Brilliant!!!! never again will a stick go anywhere near his bottom. I'm hooked!!!

Thank you :-)

Now, heres a question...
What if you have already gotten your horse used to plastic?
Then how do you get them to move forward on the long lines when the horse doesn't respond to the off line/clucking.
(specifically for jogging and loping)
Thanks - Becca!
Sorry to intrude into the conversation it is just on the same topic.

Hi Becca. I had exactly this problem with Humphrey, entire cob. I used a plastic feed sack & used both hands to flick it so it made noise. That worked & now Humphrey is very happy to move. Hope this helps. Cheers, Jo.