If you’ve been around horses, you must have seen horses that just didn’t take to getting tied? They set back and struggle against their rope. It doesn’t make for a pleasant picture, and it can essentially be deadly. I recollect a girl went inside on a brief errand, leaving her horse tied to the porch railing. When she returned, the railing had a gap in it and the missing piece was tumbling and twisting after her pony as he ran around attempting to shake it off. He was injured as it kept banging into his legs, and the vet bill that resulted was stiff. That was a point learned hard and costly. You don’t tie a pony to something that might give. Most horses don’t react well to that.

What’s the best strategy of grounding a pony? Over the years I have experimented with plenty of techniques that I heard of and read about here and there, although not one of them was really effective. I finally found that what natural horsemanship teaches you is the best solution: it is really easy on the pony and raises no difficulties at all. You teach your pony to give to the smallest of lead line pressure.

Get started by putting a rope halter on your horse. Don’t use the leather or the flat web type. Horses feel rope halters better and cannot ignore their pressure by leaning against them. With delicate and steady pressure on the rope, get the horse to incline its head toward you as you stand by his shoulder. With each movement of his head, however slight, give him a rub. Repeat the method again and again from one side, then switch over to the other side. You should achieve instinctive response to the cue, and also a fuller bending of the head. It is important to release the pressure as fast as your pony gives, even if it is just a bit.

Then go to chapter two: put some pressure on the rope to get your horse to come towards you as you stand in front of him. Don’t fight resistance; just maintain steady pressure till the horse gives. As quickly as he does so , release the pressure.

You can test your horse to determine if he has actually learned to give to pressure by watching him while he’s grazing. If he makes an attempt to jerk his head up when he steps on the lead, you know there is some way to go. If on the other hand he keeps his head down as he steps off the lead, you know he has learned well.

And now, of course, we come to the crux: how is all this connected to tying your pony? When a pony develops the practice of giving to pressure, he’s going to stay tied. When he responds by giving rather than jerking away, he won’t resist being tied. You should not fret if the method of teaching your pony to give to pressure takes time; you’re getting rid of his ingrained bias of setting back. It will be worth all of the time and labour you spend on it, because once your horse is absolutely trained you’ve got an animal who is responsive and safe. In addition, you will be ready to lead your horse without constantly yanking at the rope, and obviously, when it is time to ask for collection under the saddle, you have got a horse that gives to pressure instantly.

Horses are Heather Tomspassion and she enjoys sharing her extensive knowledge through her 100s of articles with other horse lovers http://horsehorses.net/