Ask The Trainer

What is your method for correcting the rearing horse? One who rears due to no medical issues, just behavioural. My colt even flipped himself over, and although he doesn't rear as much, he will rear. He comes down from a rear *when leading*, when u yank on his halter alone. Riding is another story, but I have gone back to basics and have decided not to ride him for a while anyway. I have worked with many horses, but never had one who rears. The methods people have told me do not seem to be working...

First off: Rearing up is a behaviour problem that in serious cases should be dealt with by a person experienced with problem horses!

Secondly: Let us look at some of the things that cause rearing up.

Rearing up can be a defensive reaction by a horse that is restrained. If the horse feels that he can not run he might think that rearing is his only option for survival.

Lack of respect and trust for their handler.

Evading pressure.
Once they have done it and got away with it they are more likely to try it again. For example if I ask a horse to lead and the lead rope comes tight he rears and pulls back because he does not want to lead. I stop pulling on him and reward his poor behaviour. Now he knows that all he has to do is rear a little and I will stop asking him to lead.

Pulling too hard on the reins could cause rearing. It can take very little rein pressure to make a horse rear up.

It could be confusion or the horse not understanding a specific cue, like backing up or breaking at the poll. Especially in a young green horse where responding correctly to specific cues has not become habit. Young horses are easily confused and if we are also pulling too hard and not releasing our pressure at the right time his options are limited. When a horse does rear under saddle, we stop pulling on the reins so we do not pull him over on us. The release of the rein pressure confirms in his mind that he did what we asked. We stopped pulling when his feet came off the ground.

Without having seen the horse personally, I can only guess what causes the horse to rear up. Because it is a colt, I will assume that the horse is easily confused and is resistant to pressure. Rather than offer a cure I will suggest some preventative steps you can take to get your colt out of the habit of rearing up. Horses that rear out of aggression should be dealt with differently. More drastic solutions should not be attempted by most people.

To prevent the horse from rearing up in the first place, the horse needs to give to pressure not pull against it. I will spend a lot of time teaching the horse to lead. Many horses are broke to drag, not to lead. When I lead a horse, there should be no tension in the lead rope. He should follow the feel of the rope not the pressure of being pulled. I want to offer a feel to follow simply by picking up the lead rope, not by pulling on it. I push the horse forward by tapping him on the ribs with the end of my lead rope or with a training flag. Tap on the ribs until you get forward motion, then you can step out with your horse. Pulling on the horse's head creates resistance. The harder we pull the harder they resist which could eventually lead to rearing. Leading a horse by pushing their body forward from the ribs rather than dragging them by the head should prevent a rearing problem in a horse that is resisting pressure.

You have made the right decision to go back to basics on the ground. It is important to build a solid foundation on the ground before trying to work out problems under saddle.

Under saddle, I am more cautious. I will make an effort to be lighter with my hands. The softer and slower my hands are the less confusing it is for the horse. I will work on impulsion; creating forward motion from the hind end will push his front end down keeping his front feet on the ground. I want to be able to drive him forward if I feel him lifting his feet.

Remember when you ask for the halt that the last resort is your hands and then only pick up the reins and squeeze.

I will work more slowly to get a backup or vertical flexion, making sure to be consistent in releasing the rein pressure when I get the desired response. I am not pulling the horse backwards from the mouth.

If the horse is not wanting to rear up on the ground, he is much less likely to try that route when I am on his back. My safety is more important than the horses and if I can not break the habit, the horse is a dangerous liability to have around.

Will Clinging 2004 (c)

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