Horse Training
Pulling back when tied, breaking halters or lead rope clips, can become a very dangerous habit for your horse. And the use of breakaway halters just rewards the horse for pulling back. Here we show how the innovative LittleJoe clipless lead rope can assist you in breaking your horse of this habit.
Step 1
Attach a tire or other tough, flexible object firmly to a strong hitching post or tree. Here we have used a bicycle tire, but an old car, truck or tractor tire, or even an inner tube, can also be used.
Do NOT use anything elastic, like a bungee cord. It can cause injury.
Step 2
Hold the lead rope loop up over the halter loops as shown, with the the tail end of the rope at the back.
Step 3
Still holding the lead rope loop in place, pass the free end of the lead rope *forward* through the halter loops, as shown.
Step 4
When you have pulled the lead rope completely through the halter loops, it will look like this. Since there is no real knot connecting the halter to the lead rope, they can always be separated later.
Step 5
Tie the horse to the tire with a quick-release knot. The lead rope should be short enough that the horse cannot get it under a front leg or over his head. Then just let him stand tied for a while. It’s best not to leave him too long–an hour at most–and it’s important to keep an eye on him, so you can release him if he really gets into trouble. Or you can just make the tire your usual tie-up place for grooming and saddling. After they’ve tried to pull back unsuccessfully a few times, most horses will give it up as a waste of time and effort.
You’ll notice that the halter is tied with a slipknot. If the horse is going to be pulling hard on the halter, this makes it easier to untie afterwards. But it’s not necessary.
Good luck!
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