Natural "breaking" without a roundpen

[Anonymous]

I have always used as natural an approach for working horses as I could and I have never used a round pen, but I have always worked with horses that have had some training. For unbroke horses I really like the ideas put out there by Lynn Miller, and Doc hammil using the round pen but I dont have a round pen and I dont have any ground flat enough to put one up. It seems that there has to be some techniques out there similar to the round pen foundation work for us who dont have a round pen. I would like to hear some ideas from folks on here that have experience with “natural” techniques without roundpenning.

thanks
jared woodcock

[Donn Hewes]

Hi Jared, here is how I look at it. First, I don’t have a round pen. I would take one if some one was giving them away, but I have never felt I needed one bad enough to build one. I will tell you what I think they “do” and tell you how I go about working with out one. Almost all our training of a horse depends on their ability to “pay attention” and our ability to ” keep their attention”. With a horse that has never been trained at all, or perhaps a horse that has had some bad training, a round pen serves as an object you can push against, (read push horse away from you), until it learns that it wants to pay attention to you. This step is critical and should not be skipped. In some well handled horses it is no big deal, it all depends on their nature and temperament. In some horses, even very good horses with little or no previous handling, it can take skill, timing, and something solid to push against (like a round pen) to convince a horse that you are a leader to be trusted and followed. Don’t forget patience.

I start a horse that isn’t paying attention to me with a rope halter. As the horse doesn’t have quite the freedom of a round pen, I try to work slowly and concentrate on getting and keeping their attention. There are a wide array of skills that folks use with a rope halter to teach a ton of stuff. I keep it very limited (to my skills and interests). In most cases I can then turn this horse loose in a small paddock with normal fencing. for further training. This is important, I know I can’t push a horse against that fence. If I can make the animal move around me, with an eye on me, then the round pen has become unnecessary. I will continue to train the loose unrestrained horse. Pick up all it’s feet, trimming the feet, grooming. harnessing, Bridles, etc. I just keep adding pieces as I gauge the animals acceptance and preparation for each next step.

I haven’t mentioned standing, but in all this work, teaching an animal to stand is central. It is something that we are working toward in a round pen. With a rope halter I will throw the rope over the back (so I can reach it) as I work around the animal. Obviously with the loose, unrestrained horse it is all about teaching them to stand as I work around them. All of this is done by getting and holding their attention.

Finally, when really desperate I have used some nasty cow pens as round pens. Don’t worry about the corners, you can put enough pressure on a horse so he is not thinking about the corner. You want him to end up standing in the middle (with you free to move around him). Then get out of there!

[Marshall]

I have only broke two horses in my life so I am no expert but mine did turnout well. What I used was a set of lines about 30 feet long and circles them in both directions a lot. I did not put the inside line thru the hame ring and the outside one went thru the ring and around behind thier butt. If they wanted to take off it didn’t take much to pull the inside line and stop them. It didn’t take long and they would go when told and stop when told.

[Ridge]

I have trained a lot of horses and never used a round pen. I just hook with a trained horse and go.Sometimes it gets a little exciting but not bad. I do buy weanlings and use a straight stall for them. They are handled every day with backing and gee and haw as I let them out in a pasture. They are in a straight stall for half a day and pasture half a day.By the time they are to be trained in harness it is pretty easy with most. I do have one now that is a challenge but he will come around. Already has some. I also use tiebacks until I know how they will be. I also want a decent load but not a big load for them. Enough so they know they are pulling but there teamate can pull on his or her own.We have been know to have them moving rd bales on a skid on the 2nd day of work training. I really have no use for a rd pen but to each his or her own.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the input, Donn you werent kidding when you said at the nofa conference that you would reply on this forum. It seems like starting a new horse without a roundpen is just like the restarting of horses I have done. Patient, firm, and baby steps. I am still looking for the right horse now that I left the farm I was managing with suffolks. It looks like for my budget I will probably be getting a green horse.

thanks again
-jared

[drafthorsey]

I have a round pen so I use it, and for many purposes. I use it because I feel comfortable in it and I hope that helps me make the horse feel the same. It’s a round pen to me and that’s about all. As an enclosure we’ll use a long lunge line or work free of a line, just depends on what stage the horse is at. We have had over the years any number of 2 and 3 year olds which basically come in from the pasture green as the grass they’re running on. What I’m looking for is an introduction, as I like to tell them, “to becoming a big horse now’. If they are going to auction that year, or someone wants to buy them I’ve got to get them on a trailer and lord willing have a safe expirience for the horse, me, new owner and such. Now we’re going to have to go elsewhere to practice with the trailer and we’ll tromp all over that thing and sniff until we’re bored with it. But we start here in the round pen.

The round pen for me is not anything more than a space where we work together. First off, mine isn’t round it’s oval. I don’t look at it like a round pen and I don’t want the horse to either. I do a lot of harnessing in there, we tie for standing practice, we’ll even do some limited hay feeding in there, and of course it can serve as a quarantine area if need be. In the pen I want them to pay attention to me. I don’t have anywhere to go and until we get a relationship neither do they. If we get jumpy while I’m throwing harness on them the first time or two they can run off and turn around and see what that thing was and I can pay attention to both the horse and harness and bring it over to start the process again. Maybe I don’t know any better but I want a young horse to be able to make a mistake (spook) and with it teach me about what he/she does when, and maybe why. Above all I want to wind up with the horse nuzzling with me in the center of whatever that place is called. I want him to know we’re working in this pen, thing, place whatever you want to call it …. and here’s the deal with our relationship, I can help get us out of about any tough spot we find ourselves in. But we’re working here and you’ve got to give me your attention.

If I’m selling you a horse the round pen gives me a place where I can watch you too. Strange as it may seem, maybe after we all get together if this isn’t the right horse, maybe I can find a horse that’s a better fit for you, or maybe I don’t want to sell you one of my horses at all. So I guess the long story short here is “WE” all feel comfortable in the round pen as a meeting place.

[blue80]

Lots of times if you go into a paddock with several animals, maybe one animal will “decide” to move away from your advance. If they don’t turn and face you and give you respect, I’ll pick the single animal out, and walk at their shoulder. When they trot, I kiss; when they gallup, I kiss loudly; when they slow, I speak “eeesay;” when they stop I say “whoa” This single animal will usually run circles around the other animals, who I just ignore, and tend to ignore me. The goal is to keep the horse moving. Maybe it’ll take an hour or more, sometimes 2 minutes, but when they turn and face you, give them a minute to relax, then move forward with no pressure and try to put a hand on their shoulder. Use a little grass or something in your hand to “buy” their respect if you have to. The goal is to be able to catch your animal without a feed bucket, and have them turn and face you when you are around them. I have been known to be seen “chasing” horses around well after dark if needed; can’t begin to wonder what the local cowboys have to say to each other… Just keep in mind, don’t start something you don’t have time to finish. The reason for this is, once they know they can get away, they will….
If say 5 horses all want to gallup away from you, put them in a dry lot, get them hungry, then bring in some hay. 4 horses will stand and eat while you “work” the 5th…..That 5th horse will learn it has to stand and face you to get a mouthful of feed…..

Be sure to categorize your horse before you start. If they are fearful, you should draw them in with love brushing etc. before pushing or pressuring them. If they are disrespectful and dominant, push and pressure them, then reward them with love. Its the Clinton Anderson training method; drive then draw vs. draw then drive thing….

[Anonymous]

Thats good advice blue, I had to do something similar to that with one of the underworked sassy mares I had under my care last year. The first time the ferrier came she decided she didnt want to be caught so we jogged around the field for a while until she decided to join in. We had some positive contact before this so she was just testing me. It seemed to work and I had to do it a few times throughout our relationship when she would test me a bit.

-jaed

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