"I was wondering what kind of tricks I could teach her?"

Hello,
I have a yearling filly that has gone through and finished her groundwork at amazing speed. So I was wondering what kind of tricks I could teach her? I don't want to do anything to strenuous, but a few simple things that are also cute would be nice. I just don't want her to get sour when I work with her since I don't have anything else to teach her for another year! Any advice, and how to train the tricks as well, would be great, thank you!

AAH Staff Answer:

April,

Go to this link and click on the articles at the bottom of the page and you will find the info.

www.allabouthorses.com/site/pros/trick_trainer/index.html

Thanks,

AAH Staff

"I 'd like to teach my boys to kneel down to make it easier for me to remount..."

Hello, I 'd like to teach my boys to kneel down to make it easier for me to remount, especially during command classes when some smart aleck judge asks for a remount on the opposite side, I'm 51 and it's getting to darn hard to do that without my stool! Thanks for any help!

Sue De Laurentis' Answer:

Hi J Marie
Many folks ask us about the Kneel or the Bow to mount or remount a horse. In your situation one thing I would look at is whether or not this is an acceptable practice in the discipline that you show in. Next, it is extremely important that an owner/handler would be willing to keep the horse's knees wrapped or padded for the Kneel. Horses are VERY protective of their knees and all it usually takes is one small pebble or bump on the knee and a horse will not be so willing to offer the move. We have taught some horses to Lay Down for mounting but only in very special circumstances. Considering that a horse must bear a rider's weight to perform it is a question of equestrian tact as to whether or not a handler would want to add to the strain of a horse rising from a Kneel with our weight.

All cautionary warnings aside, if you will refer to the articles section of All About Horses you will find our articles with detailed instructions on how to teach the Bow, Kneel and the Obeisance. The Obeisance is usually a preliminary move to the Bow and the Kneel as it conditions the muscles on both sides of the horse for the demand of the following moves. Athletic conditioning is very important to Trick/Agility Training of a horse.

Thanks much for your question,
Sue

Sue De Laurentis
Imagine A Horse at Red Horse Ranch

"I would like to teach my horse to lie down"

Could you please explain the process to me? Thank you so much

Sue De Laurentis' Answer:

Judy,
The Lay Down is one trick in a series of what we call "tricks of submission". Submission is defined in this case when a horse willingly lowers both his body and his eye to that of the handler. The series of tricks of submission is most successfully taught in this order: the Obeisance, The Kneel, The Bow and then the Lay Down. I will post our most recent articles on teaching the Obeisance and the Bow. There is much preparation and finesse required to teach the Lay Down. Teaching the Lay Down on cue is also very different from laying a horse down as is popularly done by many horse-training clinicians. Please check our web site for details on the DVD Trick Training Fundamentals II that will give detailed instructions and philosophy needed to teach the Lay Down.

Thanks much for your question,
Sue

Sue De Laurentis
Imagine A Horse at Red Horse Ranch

"How do you start to train a horse to whinny on command? Thanks"

Sue De Laurentis' Answer:

To whinny on command is something that may be taught to some horses, probably not all horses, or even most horses. Several of our horses whinny back to us when their names are called. They are very social horses and love interaction with humans. In order to teach this, the only logical way would be to find the horse in a situation in which it would call out to you. This may be at feeding time or if he calls back to you when you call his name. The horse could be rewarded for calling out with a food treat or with stroking as a reward. This will probably take considerable time and as mentioned earlier, not all horses could be taught to whinny on command.

Thanks much for your question,
Sue

Sue De Laurentis
Imagine A Horse at Red Horse Ranch