I have a mare that breaks out of her halter by rearing up when she is tied. This 10 year old mare has exhibited this same behavior in a single tie , a cross tie and when she is ties to a trailer. She has even flipped over backwards. How can I stop the behavior?

This problem is very common. It is important that you have decided to deal with this problem because it is very dangerous for your horse. As you well know it can also get expensive if you have to buy a new halter or a poll strap every time you want to tie your horse up. The reason this problem is so common, I believe, is that often horses are not intentionally trained to be tied. Then they get tied to some immovable object and many times we get lucky and the horse doesn’t struggle too much and he teaches himself that it is easier not to struggle. Since, however horses are naturally claustrophobic, many of them will panic when there head is restrained and they pull back and hopefully break the halter and then they are free of the restraint. This is why I hate cross ties. They really make a horse feel trapped.

One thing that I do is, I suspend a single tie from the ceiling so that the only time the horse will feel pressure is when he puts his head down. This arrangement also makes it better to work around the horse. No more ducking under the cross ties to change sides.

Now we need to talk about how to teach the horse to give to pressure on the poll and not to pull back when tied. We need to show the horse that when he feels pressure on the poll he is NOT to struggle and he is to give to the pressure and move toward the pressure. There are several things that we can do in our daily handling of the horse that will help this problem. First, is every time we pick up on the lead rope and we put pressure on the poll, the instant that the horse moves forward release the pressure from the lead rope and always keep slack in the lead until you ask the horse to move forward again. Another exercise is to apply slight downward pressure on the lead and the moment that your horse drops his head towards the ground release all pressure on the lead.

These two exercises done consistently will help but they won’t fix confirmed puller. For this you need to go to a small fenced in area such as a round pen or small corral. Have your horse fitted with a full cheek snaffle bit. Twist the reins up and put them inside the throat latch or take them off all together. You can also us a rope halter or just a plain halter put starting out with the bit or rope halter will help your horse learn more quickly. Now you need a long lead such as a lariat or a lunge line. Attach the line to the halter or bit and drive your horse away from you out to the end of the line. Just let him run into the end of the line and he will turn to face you and when he does that he will relieve the pressure on the halter himself. Repeat this lesson in both directions until your horse turns before he runs into the pressure from the line on the halter and he turns toward you and steps forward toward you.

Now you want to switch to your regular halter and do this exercise until he is responsive with the regular halter. Now take him over to the rail and run the line around the post and back into the middle of the round pen. Take care NOT to tie the horse at this point. You want to only have the post replace you as the object that the horse will turn into and step towards when he feels the pressure from the rope. If your horse pulls back at this point he is not ready. Go back and work on the previous exercise until he is turning in towards you and steps in toward you when he feels the pressure from the rope. Now remember if your horse gets scared just let go of the rope and he will pull it out of the rail and you can start over again.

So with the line around the post drive your horse away from you as you did in the middle of the pen and let the horse feel the pressure on the line increase and again let him run into the pressure from the line. Because it is attached to the post he will learn to turn and face the post and step toward to post thus getting relief of the pressure on the poll by stepping toward the thing that he thinks he is attached to. Keep repeating this exercise until the part of the line between the horse and the post is only two or three feet. Remember to leave your horse alone for a few moments after each successful give to pressure. That will tell him that he did the right thing. Your horse will be ready to tie when he consistently moves in toward the fence every time that he feels the pressure from the rope and he moves in toward the post.

Well the only other thing that I want you to do is take your time. Your horse has learned to pull back and this may take some time.

Remember above all else be safe. If you are not comfortable with any of this don’t do it and get some help. If you do decide to do this relax, have fun and enjoy your horse