Training Tip of the Week: Mouthy horse tip: Make the horse correct himself.

 

A great way to get a mouthy horse to stop his unwanted behavior is to make him think he’s punishing himself. For example, a lot of young horses like weanlings or yearlings get mouthy. They’ll come up to you and start nibbling on the sleeve of your shirt or your jeans. If your horse walks up to you and starts playing with your sleeve, without even looking at him, flap your elbow out to the side so that he runs into it with his nose and feels uncomfortable. You have to time it just right so that at the same time he leans forward to play with your shirt, he runs into your elbow. The secret is not to look at him or act like you’re moving your arm on purpose. It’s like your elbow just developed a nervous twitch. If you look at the horse, it’s like you’re acknowledging that you’re the one making him feel uncomfortable. You want the horse to think that he’s doing it to himself. Every time he leans in to nibble on you, he runs into your elbow. Horses always learn faster when they teach themselves the lesson. It won’t be long before your horse is like “Man, I really need to keep my lips to myself because I seem to be running into his elbow.”

More News

Back to all news

See All
0622_01

4 years ago

Congratulations to Our Newest Method Ambassadors

We welcomed the newest Method Ambassadors to our team last week at a certification ceremony to mark their successful completion…

Read More

12 years ago

Training Tip: Are you teaching your horse to have fidgety feet when mounting?

  A horse that constantly moves around when you go to slip your foot in the stirrup is not only…

Read More
0622_Tip

4 years ago

Training Tip: The Importance of School ‘Em and Fool ‘Em Shows

Question: I have been working my horse Dash, an 8-year-old POA, on the Fundamentals level of the Method for a…

Read More
0131_01

2 years ago

Hunter Green Halter and Lead Rope Sets Going Fast

Judging by how quickly our limited-edition hunter green halter and lead rope sets are flying out of our warehouse, you’re…

Read More