Correcting a Horse that Paws While Tied Up

Correcting a Horse that Paws While Tied Up Summary

After years of working with horses, Clinton Anderson from Downunder Horsemanship has developed an effective method to train horses, regardless of their age, history, or any behavioral issues and past traumas. Join him on his weekly endeavors of tackling some of the most challenging situations with problem horses, and with problem owners. This week, we’ll get a glimpse of Clinton’s method on how to correct a horse that paws while tied up. Clinton works with Benz to show us that even some of the most problematic behaviors can be corrected with a little help from the owners.

Benz is a two-year-old horse of Clinton’s that is calm and relaxed for the most part. This is how horses should be, especially when they’re tied up. When horses are pawing, jumping, or causing a fit it’s a recipe for disaster—both for the horse and the owner. Clinton explains that there are a few reasons why horses might not be tying up well. One occurs when they’re over fed and under worked. They have a lot of excess energy and need to let it out. Another reason is that they’re simply out of practice. When they’re never tied up, they don’t know how to act when it happens. However, tying a horse up teaches them respect and patience, and helps the most recent training lessons really sink in.

If a horse licks the pole or chews it while tied up, that’s okay. It’s not a major behavioral problem and is more of an act of playing. The problem is that a lot of people never tie their horse up and when they do, they wonder why the horse throws a fit and causes problems. You need to give your horse a job and teach him patience if you want to solve problems.

Luckily, there are a few great tips that Clinton has to help correct a horse that paws while tied up. First he shows us that where you tie your horse up when initially teaching him to stand calmly makes a difference. Don’t put him somewhere that will give him the opportunity to get into trouble. You need to be strategic and tie your horse up in a place with minimal distractions and opportunity. If he starts causing a scene, correct his behavior by untying him and then moving his feet. One way to do this is through the Sending Exercise. Make your horse move back and forth in front of you for three to five minutes. This will get him to use the thinking side of his brain so that you can proceed to tie him up. If he starts acting up again, it means he’s switched back to using the reactive side of his brain. Take that negative energy and do something constructive with it; give him a job to do. The worst thing you can do when a horse is pawing the ground and pitching a fit is to untie him and put him away. You’re feeding the demon with this behavior.

Next, Clinton takes Benz over to what he calls his “patience pole,” a pole connected to a swivel that helps encourage patience and discourages bad behavior. The patience pole has a bearing on the top that rotates, so the horse can still move around while tied up if he’s nervous. The main problem with tying comes when a horse can’t move his feet, so the patience pole is a great tool to have in your pocket. Your horse will realize they’re walking around in circles and eventually they’ll give in and wait patiently. To get your own patience pole, head over to the Downunder Shop. After that, all you need to do is practice.

The Clinton Anderson method is a tried-and-true way of getting the most out of your partnership with your horse. That’s why we’ve created three ways to get the content you need, at the price you want. You can now access all of the training material at three different levels and download them straight to your device. Our No Worries Club membership offers low monthly prices with 50% discounts on all purchases plus 8 digital videos per year, 4 digital journals per year, and access to the No Worries Club website. For the ultimate experience, opt for a premium membership and you’ll get access to thousands of dollars of horse training delivered right to your fingertips. Plus, with our new Mobile Method, you’ll get maximum results in minimal time.

To learn more about the Clinton Anderson training method, become a member of the No Worries Club, or to get information on any of the products seen in the video, head over to Clinton’s website!