Eccles Family Farm

"You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink..."

Training Tidbit by:  Michelle Eccles

This old saying goes back a long time. 

I am very happy to tell you, that you can lead a horse to water, and have him drink on cue!  Some may ask why you would want to teach your horse to drink on cue?  Can you think of a few reasons?  Well, for those of you who travel with your horse, or show, its nice to know you can have your horse drink when you ask.  Another time its benificial to have "a drink on cue" is during those real cold snaps in the winter when you need to be sure your horse is getting enough water.

You can Break this training session into small training sessions, for your horse to understand what you want.  The nice thing is, make this training session about 5 minutes at a time.  Shorter sessions are sometimes better for learning.  Before you start, remember these 3 rules:

1. You must not get hurt
2. Your horse must not get hurt
3. And you want him to be calmer at the end of the session, than he was at the beginning

Ok, all you will need for this is a halter, a lead rope, and well, a bucket of water!

First you want to teach your horse the "head down cue."  Gently apply pressure on the leadrope, directly down.  At first his first reaction may be to pull his head up.  You are looking for the slightest down motion with his head.  It is important to immediatly release the pressure, even for the slightest movement down.  If he pulls his head up, or stays in the same spot, add a little more pressure, to motivate him, but stay focused on the slightest downward motion. We need him to learn there is a release when he lowers his head.  A good focus point for you may be the tip of his ear.  Stay focused and consistant, and after a few good releases, he will start to drop his head as soon as he feels pressure.  It will get lighter and lighter, and you'll be able to lower his head, at whichever level you'd like.

Once this is solid, you can ask him to drop his nose to the water.  Most likely, at first, he won't be interested in the water.  If he brings his head up, ask it to drop back down the water again.  Repeat this over and over.  Eventually, he will take a drink.  Reward him, and practice this, and soon he will take a drink everytime you bring him to water, and/or lower his head to water.

Don't be afraid to break this up into a few sessions.  He does not have to drink the first training session.

Can you think of some other reasons why it may be good to teach your horse the head down cue?

Some other examples would be, but not limited to:

• Bridling
• Haltering
• Calm down on cue
• Deworming
• Trailer loading
• Grooming

Keep it safe, keep it fun!

Come back again, for some more training tidbits!!