Halter Training the Draft or Warmblood Foal

     There are non-specific goals you should keep in mind also.  These include preserving the curious and friendly attitude with which all foals are born while at the same time establishing your dominance in a fair way.  If you create for the foal a pleasant association with humans, it will give the foal incentive to want to learn what you want him to do.  In this way you set the stage for a good working partnership.

     Lessons which are clear and effectively planned and which contain appropriate reward tend to encourage a good attitude in horses.  Random, rushed, or ill-planned interactions usually result in confusion, fear, and the basis for a negative attitude towards work.  Especially when working with a foal, try to alternate formal lessons (like learning this {yech!} leading stuff!) with pleasurable activities with humans (like the fun of getting a good grooming!).  This will encourage a horse to look forward to his handling.

     Since many farm foals have an infusion of cold-blood from draft horses, it is important to consider the nature and characteristics of these animals in developing a training program.  Draft horses are often described as gentle, good-natured, intelligent, courageous, noble, and sensible but are sometimes cursed with such descriptions as thick-skinned, insensitive, lazy, and too strong in the bridle.

     I think in most ways, the typical cross-bred or pure-bred farm horse is really no different than any other horse; there are lazy and energetic individuals in any breed.  One thing I have observed is that cold-blooded horses tend to require more "scientific" cueing due to their larger mass (thicker skin, more dense bone, etc.).  You don't have to press harder, you just have to be accurate as to where you press and you must certainly reward such a horse with a release from pressure when he is doing what you want.  Otherwise you run the risk of making him insensitive to cues: "hard-mouthed" or "cold-sided".

     Another difference I've observed between hot and cold blooded horses is that while a cue might be felt by both at the same time, it takes the cold blooded horse longer to get his mass "in gear" and react to the cue.  I often joke that with a large horse there is a much longer distance for the message to travel from the site of the cue to the horse's brain and back to the limbs or body where the action takes place.  There is probably something to my "distance" theory and there most definitely is a correlation between the "slower" blood chemistry and metabolism of cold blooded horses and their slower reaction time.  All of this is to convince you to be patient.  Especially if you have worked with warm or hot blooded horses, you will have to adjust your expectations and timing to fit a cold blooded horse.

WHOLE BODY RESTRAINT AND BODY HANDLING

    When a foal is 1 to 2 days old, you should show it that there is nothing to fear from body restraint.   Stand on the near side and put your left hand in front of his chest.  The foal should feel lots of reassuring body-to-body contact but you should not exert pressure as long as the foal stands still.  Keep the foal from backing up by putting your right arm behind his rump.  When he is standing still, use one of your hands to gently touch the foal all over.  This takes time and patience but there's no better way to spend your time.

Remember the keys:
     Lots of light, body-to-body contact
     Restriction only when needed and always followed by a release when the foal quits struggling
     Patient repetition

HEAD HANDLING

    You'd better get the foal used to having its head handled while you can still reach it!  This comes in handy for haltering, bridling, deworming, clipping, veterinary examinations and dental care.  If you handle a foal's head from day one, you will probably never have trouble, but if you miss that step, you will have to formally teach the horse to put his head down.  With a foal, you can teach the lesson by using just your hands: right hand on the poll, left hand on the bridge of the horse's nose.   A combination of soothing massage and pressure/release usually causes most horses to drop their heads.  If you are working with a larger foal, you might need to halter the foal and use pressure on the noseband at the same time you press the poll.

     Steady pressure will cause the foal to raise his head and push against the pressure.  Pressure and release tends to cause the horse to drop his head.  Holding the first lesson in a box stall will prevent the horse from backing up in an attempt to avoid the point of the lesson.  Exert the least amount of pressure necessary to produce the desired reaction.  Don't try to make the horse drop his head all the way to your knees in the first session.  Reward with release and praise every time the horse lowers his head even a fraction of an inch.

HALTERING

    I like to put a halter on a foal when it is a few days old and let it wear the halter while I am giving it body restraint and body handling lessons.  In order for a halter to be of use it must fit the foal properly.  The noseband should fit the nose about an inch below the prominent cheek bones and the crownpiece must stay up at the poll.  If the crownpiece slips down the middle of the foal's neck, it is not going to exert pressure where you want it.

Proper Haltering Procedure
     Use proper haltering procedures to develop good habits in your horse and to avoid accidents.  Approaching the horse from the near (left) side, hold the unbuckled halter and rope in your left hand.  With your right hand, scratch the horse on the withers and move your right hand across the top of the neck to the right side.  Use your left hand to give the end of the lead rope to your right hand and make a loop around the horse's throatlatch and hold the loop with your right hand.  If the horse tries to pull away at this stage, you can pull the horse's head toward you while pressing your right elbow into the horse's neck.  Next, hand the halter strap with the holes in it under the horse's neck to your right hand which is holding the lead rope loop.  With your left hand, position the noseband of the halter on the horse's face and then bring your hands together to buckle the halter.

Proper halter fit.
     Turning a horse loose follows the same procedure in a somewhat reverse order.  The loop is applied around the horse's neck, the halter is removed and then the loop is released.  You should hold the horse momentarily with the loop and then gently push the horse away from you with the elbow of your right arm.

LEADING

    Training a foal to lead can be approached in several ways.  You should always start by leading the foal alongside or just slightly behind the dam.  This gives the foal confidence and a reason to go forward.  A butt rope is often helpful in encouraging the foal to move forward.  Later when you lead the foal alone, you might need to carry a 4-5 foot whip in your left hand so if he "gets stuck" (balks) you can give him a little pop on the hindquarters.  Never pull the halter to try to get a foal to move forward.  This will only teach him to set against halter pressure.

     For folks who need to avoid the wear-and-tear often involved in halter training a large or feisty foal, you might consider letting another animal do the training for you.  I've seen pairs of colts tied together with 18 to 24 inch lead ropes between their halters.  This "buddy system" is designed to let the foals train each other.  It can show them that they must yield to halter pressure.  To be effective the colts must be pretty evenly matched or one will learn to be a puller and the other a follower.  (That's why some ranchers prefer to attach their haltered foals to a mature donkey who will definitely be the one in charge.)  It varies as to how long to leave the colts attached to each other.  I purchased a previously untouched weanling filly that had been "hooked up" to another filly for 5 days.  I found her halter training to proceed very easily with minimal trauma to the foal and my shoulders and feet!  Since she was over 400#, it would have been tough to wrangle her using ordinary means.  However, I've also seen foals that had been "hooked up" too long (3-4 weeks), and became injured or very dull.  So, it might be a useful method for a few days in certain situations.

     Another way you can teach a larger foal to lead is using "ponying".  The foal's lead rope is dallied around the saddle horn of a solid, steady, reliable pony horse.  As you ride along, sometimes your pony horse will be towing the youngster along and other times the foal will try to zoom ahead.  Eventually he'll find that spot where he receives no pressure on his halter.  It will be a place somewhere near your right knee and your pony horse's right shoulder.

     All the time you are leading a cold or warm blooded horse, you need to keep sensitivity enhancement in mind.  If the foal leans into pressure and you react with counter pressure, you will compound the problem.  With the less sensitive horse, especially, your goal should be correct responses to light, intermittent cues.  Design the training sessions to that end.

     For example, when you press the chest of an inexperienced horse as a request for a back, it is likely that the horse will not move at all or will instead move forward and push into your hand.  The temptation might be for you to apply more pressure to the halter and to push into the horse's chest with the heel of your hand.  I've even seen some people lean their whole body weight against a foal to try to get him to move back.  Generally, heavy steady pressure such as this will cause the horse to push something like a horse does when he leans into a collar.  So, if you want to position a horse and need him to step backwards a few steps, you will need to use light, tapping cues, preferably on the bony prominences.  In the case of backing, tap the sternum with your fingers.  If you want him to move his forehand away from you, press the point of his shoulder.  If you need him to swing his hindquarters away, press at the ribcage or the point of the hip.

TYING

    All horses should stand quietly while tied without pawing, swerving, chewing, or whinnying.  How do you get there?  Usually when a foal is several weeks or months old, it can be tied for the first time in a place close to its dam.  Of course the dam must be exemplary about her tying manners or the foal will learn the wrong lesson.  First choose a level, safe place.  A solid wall with a securely mounted tie ring is best.  If you are forced to tie a foal to a fence or a hitch rail, tie to the posts only unless the horizontal members of the fence are welded or bolted in place.  Never tie to the horizontal boards of a nailed fence.  Boards and rails can become dislodged or break if a frightened animal pulls back and the boards, splinters or nails can cause injury.  All horses should be tied at the height of their withers or higher.  This decreases the leverage they can obtain with their front legs and makes serious pulling difficult.  Use a quick release or manger knot to tie a horse to a post.

     Foals should not be tied to a solid object the first few times.  Rather, an inner tube should be incorporated into the tie ring so that the lead rope can be attached to it.  The elastic effect of the inner tube is much less stressful to a foal's skeleton and muscles than would be a solid post.  If a foal pulls back and sets, you'll need to get it to move forward or it might develop a bad habit.  Usually a loud clap will make the foal pop forward.  Once the pressure is relieved on the foal's poll, it will likely stand there quietly.

     Once a foal has learned to accept the restriction of tying, it should be tied regularly to a hitching rail.  Start with a few minutes at a time, four or five times a week.  With the dam nearby, a level place to stand and the help of fly spray, the foal should have no worries.  Stay nearby so if the foal starts fussing or pawing you can tell him "NO".  That way there won't be the chance for him to develop a bad habit.  Increase the time every week or so until the yearling horse will stand for an hour or two at a time.  This makes for a patient horse.

     Now you have a foal that can be haltered, led, and tied.  Practice all of these things on a regular basis and you will have a solid foundation on which to build future lessons.