BRISTER’S BRIEF
Heel toe, heel toe, the importance of kick-ass leg work Picking up your horse’s hooves safely and easily is an absolute essential for all of us, writes CHARLIE BRISTER.
N
early every working horse I know has its hooves manicured more often than their owner’s toes get any attention.
So making foot work a happy and relaxed time with the farrier will improve your quality of horse-life immensely. Some horses will pick up their feet well, but misbehave when the farrier needs to hold them up for a longer period of time to trim the hooves. If the horse is being shod, the pressure of nails being hammered in can also cause issues for ‘hammer shy’ horses. Every rider should pick out their horse’s hooves each day - even for barefoot horses. This essential grooming habit is easy to overlook in a rush, but quite often riders actively avoid picking out hooves if the horse behaves badly each time. Vets also appreciate checking hooves that can be calmly picked up and held. Some horses need a needle to handle their feet, which is expensive and unwelcome and could have been avoided by having better training, consistent practice and positive experiences early. Starting your foal early on the road to good hoof manners can set up a great life habit, but there is plenty you can do to older horses to make leg work safer for you and more comfortable for the horse.
8
Pressure, release and treats First of all, choose which of the following two methods you are going to use to train your horse to pick up its feet and stand still, or you might want to use both: Negative reinforcement is the removal of pressure following the desired response. If you choose this method make sure not to remove the pressure from the horse’s leg or halter when it starts to misbehave because that rewards the undesirable behavior. Positive reinforcement is the addition of either food or a wither scratch following the desired response.
Equipment It’s usually best to use a rope halter for this training work. It is also handy to have a towel nearby and a hammer to practice tapping. Having an extra person can be very helpful. Make sure they always stand on the same side as you. Your helper might hold the horse, or your horse may be tied up, but if it’s a very young horse being in a small yard or box is helpful. There is no need to be a weightlifter but a little bit of strength is helpful for making this process easier. If you aren’t confident, then ask your coach or someone more
HORSEVIBES MAGAZINE - DECEMBER 2019
experienced to help establish good habits that are safer for all involved.
Getting started Ideally, start with some ground-work with your horse. Make sure you bring the horse forward and back from the halter pressure. Then ask the horse to yield the hind-quarters in both directions. Will they stand still or are they fidgeting? If you haven’t established these basics focus on them and it will make the next job a lot easier. We want the horse to say ‘yes’ as often as possible. To do this you have to reward correct behaviour. If the horse fidgets and you drop the leg, they can decide this is a good way to avoid holding the leg up. This is very frustrating and stems from not standing still in the first place.
Front legs Start by rubbing the horse on the shoulder and slowly running your hand down to the top of the front leg. The main thing is rewarding the horse when they are still and calm. Move your hand down in small increments rewarding the stillness by removing the hand. Keep repeating this process until you can run your hand down the whole leg without the
