Halter Problems

[barrelracer3770]

 I have a 2  year old gelding that I bought as a weanling. When I bought him he had been mistreated and was hard to catch but after working with him for several months, he finally started coming to me and would let me halter him. He still has a habit of running backwards and spinning away from me the second he feels me unbuckle the halter to turn him out in my arena or put him up. I am fixing to start breaking him and I need to get him to stop the behavior before I strt trying to put a bridle on him. When he runs backward and gets away from me , I catch him and put the halter back on him and I make him stand there while I take it off and put it back on him several times before I walk away from him. I don't know if that is the right thing to do, or not. This is a very frustrating habit and I'm afraid that he will get away from me somewhere besides in the arena or his stall and someone will get injured.

[California Cowgirl 92]

i think what you have done is very good but another thing you can try is have a treat when you take of his lead rope in the pasture and then put halter back on and give another treat this way he finds haltering a good thing and not bad. you can also give him a treat after you take his halter off and give him a treat that way if he runs he misses out on his treat.

[lauraSchumann]

Hi...
The advice that I would give you is to keep your 2 yr old in a more confined place such as a stall or a round pen
when you are trying to school this kind of behavior.  With his halter still on, I would put a soft "catch" rope around his neck before leading him out to the place where he is "released"....when he starts to set back and take off, you should still be able to
hold him. If the area of release is small enough you should be able to stop him.  Keep him from wheeling and running from you and back him up a few steps, put the halter back on and tie him up for about 20 minutes.  Go back to him with the idea that his behavior was not rewarded by being let go of his own choosing, but of yours.  Let him know that his behavior will result in further tieout time.  I personally do not reward this type of behavior with a treat, because I look at it as a "bribe" with a horse until continual behavior changes on a
regular basis.  You must educate him to learn, and this is his way of nonsubmission to you as the leader.  Do the above routine
as many times as it takes until you get a desired level of improvement each time....it will get better as you work on this.

Hope this helps.
Thanks for your question.
Laura Schumann
Laura's Ladder To Success Barrel Clinics
"I BELIEVE" Tour 2009