Round Pen help

[horsey-gal]

I am going to work with my boy some in the round pen today. I am not sure how to do it. I have watched a trainer ( soon to be my trainer ) tons of times, but doing it myself I am nervous. Is it like having an invisible lunge line? I know where my body position has to be, is there anything else?
Also, if I don't get it right, will that mess him up when my trainer does it?

I won't be working him for long, just a few mins as he is only young.

Thanks!

[gbarmranch]

Check out Clinton Anderson's tapes on his website - he is one of the best - also Cris Cox... great tips and easy to follow..

[roberts617]

Yep, I was gonna say the same thing. I haven't watched any of Clinton Andersons yet but have watched Chris Cox. Really helpful!

[gbarmranch]

Originally Posted by roberts617

Yep, I was gonna say the same thing. I haven't watched any of Clinton Andersons yet but have watched Chris Cox. Really helpful!

Great minds watch the same shows..

[Range]

Yes, CA really illustrates the proper use and location of your body in the round pen.

[horsey-gal]

Well, I tried it and didn't go so well. He went great for 1-2 laps, then turned into me. It was my body position completely, so I stopped with that until I know more what I was doing.
He did join up with me, it was AWESOME! He followed me in circles, around, change directions and stopped when I stopped.
I am posting pics soon in the pics section.

[gbarmranch]

I never worry about joining up - when a horse learns to respect you they do that naturally..

To make it simple, think of a horse in two parts for round pen work - behind the girth line and to the hip is what propels the horse forward; while in front of the girth line is what will turn or stop him..

Simple respect round penning is not endless circles - although you may have to do a few before he starts to pay attention and listen.. - It is asking him to go in the direction you want, and to stop, face in, or turn when you ask him to - mix it up - two circles then turn - one circle and then turn - then a whoa.. which I ask for by stepping back one step and saying "whoa" - It releases the pressure off the horse and as soon as he stops, leave him for a few seconds, or if he will let you, walk up and scratch him..

I always give them a second or two to try a command; if they don't listen, then more circles and turns..

You will find your way in this - just practise, watch for that inner ear to be tuned to you - and lip licking with a dropped head - when he doesn't pay attention, make those feet move - when he does, he gets rewarded by being allowed to stand still..

Since he has no clue how to round pen either, he won't know if you make a mistake - you can learn together.. Jusst don't expect perfection from yourself or the horse in one or two sessions - that does happen, but for some, it can take several...

[horsey-gal]

He has been round penned before. Not for long periods of time, but enough to know what he is doing.
I was watching for the signs and he had his ear on me, watching my every move, licking etc. . . my problem is keeping my body where it needs to be to keep him moving. Each time I moved out of "position" he would stop and turn to face me. I was worried about confusing him, so I tried again, when he did what I asked, I stopped so we ended on a good note,
The man I bought him from is a trainer, an excellent one IMO, so I will ask him to "train" me to do it properly.

We worked on other things today, so it wasn't a total loss
I will certainly try to get some videos to help me further. Thanks guys!

[gbarmranch]

So he is trained - and he was reading you - you just have to figure out what you are doing

Sounds like a great idea - both the trainer and the video...

[horsey-gal]

So, I have found a few tips on the net. Will it screw him up too bad if I try?
Should I just wait? He is being moved in a few weeks, I won't have access to a round pen, just an indoor, outdoor arena. We will still work on different things, I will lunge him a bit for exercise, which I can do fine. I don't understand what I am doing wrong in the round pen!
I have even studied pics taken when he was in the round pen with the trainer, I *think* I have it figured out, but not sure.

What are some other exercises I can do with him for exercise? We go for walks and he is on 24/7 turnout in a huge pasture, but is there anything else?

[gbarmranch]

You won't screw him up - he already knows what to do. You can do walks, grooming, flexing, teach him to ground tie, all the time you spend with him making him mind you is valuable and good bonding..

[horsey-gal]

He is a bit far away from me now. I spend as much time with him as possible, but sometimes I go for a few days without seeing him
He is great at tying, leading, spraying, cleaning his feet, etc,. I try to expose him to as much as possible. Today we walked ( I led him ) around the pole and barrell pattern just for fun, I can't wait to sit on him for the first time
Once I am at the new place, they have poles in the ring we can walk over, I like that too.
Thanks for the advice, I appreciate every lil bit I can get

[gbarmranch]

You are a better horsie owner and trainer then you give yourself credit for - I sometimes think we "think" too much when we are with our animals - as long as they are respectful of us, it is as much fun to just enjoy their company as it is to ride.. and you sound like the two of you have the relationship..

[Slim Pikkens]

I tell a student to stand and stare at the horse in the pen and make note of what does or does not happen. Then try this and remember the response it elicited. This is the best way to learn with your horse, not from watching someone else. I tell a riding student to do the same. If you press your heel here, what happens. Good luck in going to sleep at night. I always find it so exciting that I get a high and sleep eludes me.

[SummerSea]

I was asked to take a young stallion by a friend of mine because they had no experience training horses and didn't know what to do with him, he had not been handled very much and was starting to be very aggressive toward other animals. I had very little experience with training and none at all with stallions, but I decided to take on the challenge. I couldn't have him gelded when they gave him to me because it was the middle of fly season and I knew I couldn't wait until Fall to begin working with him. Here is what I learned about training in the round pen. Horses are far more sensitive to our body language than we are. They notice the slightest change, not only a change in the position of your body, but also any change in where your eyes are focusing, the slightest movement of your head, the tiniest of shift in your shoulders... things we don't even notice... unless we condition ourselves to be as focused on our own body as we are on the horse (not easy, I know). What I realized is that if I shifted even my eyes to another area of his body, he thought I was asking him to do something, but didn't necessarily know what it was I was asking, so he would stop and turn into me and stand there staring at me!! This is what I eventually came to understand about what my body was telling him. My bellybutton had to be pointed at his tail and my eyes had to be on his rump (at all times) if I wanted him to continue to move forward. If I shifted my eyes to his ribs (with my bellybutton still pointed at his tail), he thought I wanted him to bend in. If I looked at his head or shoulder (my bellybutton still pointed at his tail... my body had not moved, just my eyes), he thought I wanted him to stop. The smallest change in any part of my anatomy sent him some sort of signal and I had to figure out what it was I was telling him. Here is what I learn from HIM!! 1. Bellybutton AND eyes on his rump - means go forward. 2. Eyes or/and bellybutton on ribs, bend head in. 3. Slightest step backward, he moves in off the rail. 4. Slightest step forward toward him, he moves out closer to the rail. 5. Look at or point body at his head, he stops. 6. If, while looking at and body pointing toward tail, I point lunge whip at his shoulder, he moves his shoulder out to the rail. 7. If I hold the whip up high (straight up), I am the "bigger horse" and he will eventually accept that and lower his head to show his acceptance of my telling him what to do and what direction and how fast or slow to move. It is a whole lot to learn and it takes time, success as well as mistakes (horses are very forgiving when we are being stupid), and when I no longer had access to a round pen, I lunged him. It was really difficult the first couple of times because he didn't know what I wanted. I had to start out with a short leady, him not being more than six feet away so that I could get him to understand his head needs to be bent to me, then I slowly increased the length until he was at the end of a forty foot line. It took time, in fact, it took a year, but now he will lunge for me, without any lungeline, and stay within that 40 ft. perimeter even though he isn't connected to me by any line or walls. Cool, huh??? Anyway, Riley has taught me a lot, about me, about him and about patience, understanding, and knowing the difference between being confused or scared, vs. just plain being naughty. He is rarely naughty (although he has tested the waters a couple of times and paid for it with some pretty intense, on the spot, training to reinforce who was expected to listen to who). I have never "whipped" him with anything, yanked on his lead, pulled at his mouth, etc. Anytime he needed "reminding" who was in charge, a little time spend following directions, either on the lunge line or even just on a lead line making him walk forward, back, move over one way, move over the other way, etc, has always been enought to remind him that I expect him to follow my direction. Anytime he has not wanted to do something, or "refused" a request, it has always been out of either confusion (not understanding what I wanted him to do) or just being plain afraid, such as loading in a trailer for the first time, or the first time he had to jump over a ditch with black water in it, etc. I found John Lyons to be my best friend when learning how to train and my own horse to be my best teacher!! Good luck, I know you can do it!!

[horsey-gal]

Summersea, that is exactly what I need to figure out. There was things you mentioned that looking back, I noticed was happening tonight.
I need to take the time to figure out what it is I am telling him to do and work that to my advantage.
He is a very willing horse and wants to please.
Since my access to a round pen is limited, I will soon have to focus my attention on the lunge line.
Thanks for the advice, I can't wait to get back out there tomorrow