Hi Janelle,
Try to see in your minds eye a horse on longlines and you'll find the turns being made away from the handler.
Now try to see in your minds eye a horse on a single rope and you'll find the turns being made towards the handler.
This can be confusing to a horse, if you use both techniques at the same time.
Double line lunging prepares the horse for the first rider, learning to follow the reins.
This is the reason we should take care of having the horse turn away from you even in the first Join-up, so all parts build to a bigger system.
What you can do to turn a horse on a single line, is block it with your bodylanguage and make it turn to the outside, now having your longline on the outside. Next step would be to invite the horse to make a smaller circle, by going slightly behind the horse. As soon as the horse comes off the wall, step in front of his balancepoint again an put light pressure on your longline. This technique is sometimes used to find out how the horse reacts to the lines, without having too many lines to entangle yourself in.
Easier ofcourse is using double line lunging from the start, let the horse find his way with it and have the pleasure of cooperation from the beginning.
Hope this answers your question.
Miriam

Hi Janelle,
As a former Parelli student, I will not take any offence to your question.
Notice I used the term former. I have seen the results of the single lining and it really does havock on the horse.
My daughter is a die hard Parelli student and not open to any suggestions for a better way.
Her horses are great and gentle but not at their top best. They could be doing so much better.
I cannot wait for the new serious that will be on the UNI soon on the scientific proof of Monty's methods.
I'm going to show these studies to her and hopefully she will listen.
You all have a good day,
Ronda

Thanks guys for your input :-)
Miriam, i can totally see where you are coming from! answers my question well.
Ronda, i have so many friends who are die hard Parelli students who i'm sure think i am mad that i believe my horse can learn to communicate without endless circles etc. One friends' horse has a terrible click in his hip and has recently become lame with a back problem! She has just finished an arduous audition for a Parelli level...i wonder if the long lining has anything to do with it. Although if i ask her it would be a definate no! Also their ropes (i have one now getting covered in spiderwebs in my shed!) are very heavy and the snap is very heavy and bulky, do you think this may contribute to the ill alignment? I hope you can get your daughter to see some light!
You have a lovely day too :-)
Janelle

Hi Janelle
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This is a really good question. I am not a "fan" of Parelli, but I do like the concept of a couple of his 7 games. BUT my conflict with this comes from the fact that the horse is being lunged on a single line. I feel the same about some of the exercises that Stacy Westfall does too. Great learning for the horse and the handler, but done on a single line :-/
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However, in saying that I like these exercises, I am finding that the more I learn and apply the concepts being taught here, the less I feel I need to use these other ones. And I also feel safer when the horse is turning away from me rather than into me like what Miriam is talking about.
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I do think that the prolonged single line lunging and the weight of the ropes are having an effect on your friend's horse's back problem.
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And Ronda, its hard to get people to change their minds on things, but hopefully the proof will be in the pudding for your daughter so to speak :-) I know a lot of my friends are starting to "notice" the differences in my horses compared to what they used to be like before I started to "Monty Roberts" them.
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Kind regards,
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Gen

Hi all,

Yes the more we get monty's concepts out there and ask people to have a change in thinking the better. And the only way to do that is to practice it ourselves to show the truth in it! Onwards and upwards!! I have never attempted any double long lining but i am going to give it a go....maybe i might practice on the mini!!
Janelle :-)

And can i just say how pleased i am that i joined this uni and the forum! I don't know even one person where i live who practices monty's methods! Not many people have even heard of him! So to have you all to toss ideas over with is a wonderful relief!
Thanks!! :-)
Janelle

Hi everyone. I like this conversation. I have been a Monty Roberts student for a very long time now and my horse is situated where - if natural horsemanship is used - the Parelli way is the most popular. So I tried some of his games, also the circle game which is in terms of turns so different to Join-Up and long lining. Well, I turned around and went back to what I learned from Mr. Roberts ! To name every single point about the Whys would be to long in here. I just want to say that I think it is good and ok to try other ways, compare them with the own and preferred one and make a choice because we can always learn from other methods too because we step into new areas and keep our minds open. The biggest satisfaction is the first step of people who doubted Monty's Method and change their mind: they stop talking against it and wonder and watch. The second step is: would you tell me how to do it ? You have also a great day, wherever you are, VIoBerlin

Hi All,
When my daughter has seen how much STAR has changed and how I do what I do with her she is amazed at the changes, but she is pretty stubborn.
Star was a bomb ready to go off when I first rescued her, after all this time she is now a different horse, all because of Monyt's method.
At the beginning I tried all the methods I had studied and used, including the traditional, none of them had any afect on her, that was for almost a year. The ropes terrified her, the stick frightened her, etc...(Parelli, Clinton Anderson, Sean Patric and so on).
I also did a study on rope halters and how they affect the horse emotionly and physically, that opened my eyes.
Then I bought Montys book that was mentioned on a equine site I belong to and I haven't looked back.
She seemed to understand what I wanted and using his methods of desensitizing her worked, right away.
One day she will be a really great horse, she is already on that road.
I believe that other horse trainers are sincere but as my DAD use to say you can be sincerely wrong, too.
Have a sunny day,
Ronda