The best time to to begin educating the foal about the halter is when he is about two weeks old. This is a very important transaction, as it is the first time the foal has been in any part of the harness, and he needs to understand from the very start that it will not harm him and that he must obey the gestures given by means of the halter.

Many horses are often spoiled by improper techniques of training to lead, and thus the first impressions they receive as to the use of the halter are bad, laying a foundation for becoming a confirmed halter puller, a vice which will lessen the future usefulness of the animal. This comes about because we don’t take into account the natural instinct of the horse to move backward when pressure is applied at the front and to move forward when the rear end is touched. Without thinking, the halter is placed on his head and we begin to pull on the strap.

True to his instincts the foal moves backward, and the harder we pull, the harder the foal pulls back. It is not necessary to drag the foal by the halter in order to get him to lead. To avoid all this we need but to remember is the animal’s natural instincts to move away from pressure. This same principal will also be used later on when they’re ridden with leg pressure and the bit and bridle.

Choose a strong, well fitting halter. For the foal a nylon halter is preferable to a leather one, as it is much lighter and softer. Never use a rope halter on a young foal. The head-stall, brow-band, throat-latch and nose-band should be taken up until they fit properly, or else the pressure will not be applied properly, in taking up the halter, excess straps are often long and left hanging about the head which will annoy the foal, should be fastened up in some way. It is often rather difficult to adjust the halter to a nervous foal’s head, but to be successful one must have patience. Do not be in a hurry, allow the foal to become accustom with everything as you go along.

With the halter properly adjusted try to persuade the foal along behind his mother or some accustomed route, such as to the water trough and back. Try using treats if necessary. If he still resists, do not stand in front and try to pull his head off, he’ll only roll his eyes, shake his head and move back, other means must be tried. We must now take advantage of the horse’s natural instincts and apply pressure at the rear end to encourage him to move forward.

Try using a long rope or long nylon strap, maybe 10 or 12 feet in length and attach it to the halter, loop the rope around his rump. Take the strap or rope connected to the halter in one hand, and the part looped around his rear in the other hand, stand in front and a little to one side of the foal. Pull gently on the halter strap and as he begins to shake his head give the rope a pull around his hind end and he should begin to move forward. In fact, he is likely to move forward so rapidly that he will run into you if you stand squarely in front of him. Do not be in a hurry, but give the animal time to get used to the lesson.

If he is excited, give him a treat or caress him until he quiets down before attempting to give the rope a second pull. When his confidence has been restored, try again, pulling on the rope again if need be. Soon he will follow wherever you lead or give a slight tug on the halter. All of this usually requires only fifteen or twenty minutes, whereas by just constantly pulling on the halter alone you have little or no assurance when the foal will decide to follow. Repeat the process everyday until he no longer resists and leads freely.

As soon as the foal totally comprehends the use of the halter and will follow wherever we lead, he should also be taught to back up. Do not attempt to teach him to back up the same day he is taught to lead. All that is required is pressure in front. Take the halter strap in one hand to guide the foal in a straight line, or in any desired direction, extend the fingers of the other hand between the points of the shoulders and press gently against the animal, and he will step back. Reward him for his action and repeat until he will move backward by applying the pressure at the halter alone. Never force the animal by jerking on the halter strap, simply apply pressure in the sensitive chest cavity with the ends of the fingers. Eventually the foal should be willing to back any distance or in any direction.

While under the halter teach the foal “whoa”, ”giddy up”, and “back”, since these three verbal terms will be utilized extensively throughout his life.

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It’s much easier to train the foal while he’s still young, because he isn’t too set in his ways or developed any real bad habits. If he is hearty and strong, the very first day of his life is not too soon to begin training. The earlier in life the training begins the easier the task, and the longer it is postponed the greater are the chances of struggles. While it is true that at this early age the horse’s memory capabilities aren’t as good, it must be remembered that the horse learns by association of ideas only, and beginning at so early an age has many advantages aside from training the memory.

Probably the most significant benefit by beginning the training of a horse at a real young age is that they become familiar with their master and human contact while the foal can be over powered much easier. A horse obeys commands because he feels obliged to do so, and not because he likes to accomplish a task. Hence, it’s an advantage to fix the idea in the foal’s mind that he is our mental and physical inferior and must obey. The earlier he comes to realize this idea the better horse he will make. Mature horses have come to know their strength and having their instinct of independence strongly developed and are more difficult to teach and get to obey.

It is of much importance the first time the foal is caught that he be held in such a manner as not to cause him fright. The usual way to catch a foal is around the neck, which usually frightens him resulting in being more difficult to approach the next time. To avoid this, the trainer should make a careful study of the factors governing the movements of the animal. For example, if we touch his hindquarters, he moves forward, if we touch his forequarters, he moves backward. Thus we see that pressure in front stimulates a backward movement, while pressure behind stimulates a forward movement. This is a very important observation and should always be kept in mind when training a horse.

In catching the foal for the first time, gently place one arm under the neck and the other under the hindquarters. If he attempts to go forward, apply pressure at the neck, or if he attempts to go backward, apply the pressure at the hindquarters. If you need the foal to step forward, relieve the pressure at the neck and apply it at the hindquarters, if you want him to step back, relieve the pressure at the hindquarters and apply it at the neck. If caught in this manner, he will soon become quiet, then he should be handled all over his body and legs. Extra care should be taken when handling the ears, the back of the forelegs, the flanks, and the front of the hind legs, as these parts are extremely sensitive.

Foals are naturally very timid. In order for a horse to reach their greatest usefulness, they must overcome timidness and establish confidence in man. This can be accomplished by kind, firm treatment. The occasional use of some relished treats can be very useful in overcoming timidness and establishing trust and confidence.

No sudden movements should be made in approaching the foal, as this will startle him and make him jump away. In this way, he will soon learn that he can elude capture. Don’t attempt to catch him unless you’re fairly sure of success, if he continually succeeds in getting away, he will start to get the idea embedded in his mind that to flee is the best response, flight is already a natural instinct in horses and we must not further encourage it.

After catching and handling the foal, it is important that we secure his complete confidence before he is freed. If for some reason the youngster should make his escape before his confidence is established, he will be harder to catch the next time. In view of this fact much care must be taken to dispel all fear. Loving kindness is an important factor in securing this confidence. The importance of securing the foal’s confidence at this early age is very substantial, as he is likely to retain the pleasant recollection throughout his life.

In training the youngster, it is of vital importance that the first lessons in such a way that they can be easily understood and accomplished. The foal of course must understand what is wanted before he can be expected to accomplish the task. When he fully understands what is expected of him, he will do it with surprising quick.

In handling the foal, the first few lessons should be kept to a minimum, no more than about 15 minutes exceed fifteen minutes in length, as this is sufficient time to impress an idea on his mind. Take one step at a time, and be sure the foal fully understands what is wanted of him and how to do it before moving onto the next step. If the work is continued too long and the foal becomes fatigued either mentally or physically, his power of learning is drastically reduced, and if the work is complicated, he may become confused. Make sure lessons are kept short and simple, especially in the beginning.

Teach the foal only the very basic commands, such as “whoa”, “giddy up”, and “back”. These three terms are the most important because they will be the ones mostly frequently used throughout his life. Also spend some introducing the foal to objects that are likely to cause him fright, show him that such objects will not hurt him, and that he can feel confident you will protect him from harm.

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Since the horse can acquire knowledge only by the association of ideas, it is essential to establish techniques so the horse knows when he has done right, and also when he has done wrong. Thus when the animal obeys, he should be rewarded, and when he refuses to obey, he should be punished.

Reward for obedience may be delivered in a number of ways, such as by the voice, by patting, by giving treats, by resting, and the like. The use of the voice as a means of rewarding animals for obedience works very well. The horse readily understands the meaning of a soft tone, and is likely to take a harsh tone for a rebuke. Patting and stroking the horse with the hand, particularly in the region of the mane and along the neck and shoulders, affords a very expressive means of rewarding him for obedience. Giving a treat such as grain pellets or a lump of sugar, often has the desired effect of associating the command or given signal with the desired action. Resting or ceasing the discipline is also a very efficient means of gaining the good will of the horse, and is especially useful in the management of the reins.

Punishing the horse for disobedience is much more difficult than rewarding the animal for obedience. There are many ways in which to rebuke a disobedient animal, the most common being the voice and the whip. The horse will take a harsh tone for a reprimand in much the same manner that he takes a soft tone as an endearment. The words used, however, should be few, distinct and significant. No matter what form of punishment is used, we must remember that the main purpose is to induce the horse mentally to associate it with the particular event or command that we are attempting to convey.

While a whip or crop is very useful in training and in the subsequent management of the horse, there’s probably not another training tool that’s as misused as the whip. This is due in part of the ease in which it can be brought to bear[spin] and to the fact that it is used for two very different purposes. First to induce the animal to go forward, and second as a warning that he should not behave in an undesirable manner. This is often confusing to a horse, and the matter is still further complicated when the horse is punished as a penalty for wrong doing. To avoid this confusion it’s very important to utilize the whip carefully and in [spin]clear concise ways.

The whip should always be applied at the rear end of the horse when used to encourage him to go forward. The use of the whip should always be preceded by a command, as such “giddy up”. NEVER strike the horse before giving the command. To be most efficient the whip should succeed the word so close that the horse cannot help feeling that when the command is given the whip is to follow at once. To avoid the whip the horse soon learns to start forward at the command alone, when he complies be sure to try and refrain from striking the horse with the whip, this is an extremely important part of the learning process. If the obeys the voice command but still continues to feel the whip he will become confused and potentially loose association with the verbal command.

When used as a warning or to correct a horse, the whip should always be applied along the side of the horse or preferably just at his lower front legs or feet. ONE single rather sharp smack is usually sufficient to bring a horse to his senses. Try to avoid striking the horse multiple times, your goal isn’t to beat the horse into submission but just to give a stern warning that you are the boss and you don’t approve of his act and should obey you.

Avoid whipping a horse to move past an object that is causing him fright. Since he can think of one thing at a time, and since he learns by association of ideas, he may associate pain with the object. In horse training, overuse of the whip can break the spirit of a highly courageous animal and increase the sulkiness of stubborn ones. One sharp smack, or at most a couple, immediately following the command “‘NO”, is sufficient punishment to send a message of bad behavior. It’s very important to mention, by using the term punishment, we are not talking about corporal punishment here, again we aren’t trying to beat a horse into submission, it’s more of a notification or threat just to let the horse know that we aren’t pleased with his behavior or action.

A horse should never be punished by striking him with a whip or crop and jerking on the reins at the same time. This is punishing the animal at both ends and does nothing but confuse him, and if he possesses a high spirit some desperate act is likely to follow. To avoid such confusion, apply punishment only at one end at a time. Also NEVER, and I mean NEVER, punish a horse by striking them in the face or head with a whip or any other object. This action likely accounts for spoiling more horses than any other single act.

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Far too often you will hear that breaking a horse is to instill fear into the horse until he’s too scared to misbehave and no longer resists the trainer’s commands. In actuality, fear is the principal motivation which actually causes the colt to resist training. It is natural for a horse to kick at unknown objects at it’s heels, to pull it’s head out of the halter as from a trap, and if of a bad disposition, to strike and bite if he does not thoroughly understand you or your intentions. Fear is governed by a horse’s natural senses of touch, sight and hearing, and it is through these senses we can obtain a mastery, and at the same time remove his fears of the halter, the bridle, the rope, the saddle or harness and wagon. These are the fixed laws which drive the actions of all horses, and the training of a colt is merely teaching him not to fear the working apparatus, and respect the trainer, and to obey commands as soon as he has grasped their meaning. Each one of these senses must be taught before the colt is trained. A colt’s education may be compared with that of a child to a great degree. A horse’s power of reasoning are limited to his past experiences. So we must reason with him by actions alone. Hence, the importance of starting every step with the colt properly as it’s by our very actions that he learns from.

Most horsemen that own well trained horses, are usually kind hearted people who never abuse their horses or deceives them by giving commands in such a manner that they cannot be understood. Often you can tell the disposition of a horse simply by looking at the person that owns him.

The first lessons to give a colt is simply to teach it to trust and have confidence in us and that our intentions are not to harm them. Turn the colt loose in an enclosure about twenty-five feet in diameter, and go into the enclosure with a buggy whip. Snap the whip a few times, the colt will naturally run to get away from you, when he finds itself penned up and can not get away, he will then look to you for protection. Then approach him quietly, if he turns his heels to kick you or run away from you, give him a crack with the whip around the hind legs, continue doing this until he will remain facing towards you, then place the whip under your arm and slowly step forward and caress him on the shoulder. If you want, handing him a little oats or a treat can assist in winning his trust and confidence. (However, I prefer to use nothing but caresses on the point of his shoulder.)

Patience is a virtue that must be maintained from the very onset of training a colt. Start out with the determination to keep cool yourself, whatever the colt may do. It is to be expected that in his ignorance of what you want of him, he will try your patience. Do not degrade yourself by unjust violence toward an inoffensive subject that is only trying to understand and willing to obey you. By following this procedure you will find that the wildest colt will eventually follow you like a puppy dog within 30 to 60 minutes which is the most important lesson given to the colt.

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It’s recommended that you check vital signs if you observe any changes in your horse’s behavior. Learning to accurately observe and judge your horse’s behavior and vital signs takes a bit of practice. Your horse relies on you to find and treat a problem or illness in it’s early stages!

If you notice ANY abnormalities that point to a potential problem, consult a veterinarian as soon as possible.

Temperature Readings:
Normal – 99.5 F to 101.5 F
Average – 100.5 F
Fever – Mild: 100.5 F to 102.5 F
Fever – Moderate: 102.5 F to 104.0 F
Fever – High: 104.0 F to 106.5 F
Fever – Very High: above 106.5 F

The most accurate way to take a horse’s temperature is rectally. Always secure a string to the end of the thermometer, so that it doesn’t get lost in the rectum. Lubricate the tip of the thermometer with petroleum jelly or Vaseline and insert it into the horse’s rectum, angled slightly towards the ground. Pharmacies sell all types of thermometers. Plastic digital thermometers work very well and are generally easier to use, and many of them beep when they are done, often within just a minute or so. If you’re using an old style mercury-type thermometer be sure to leave it in for at least 3 minutes to get an accurate reading.

A horse’s temperature can vary by 3 degrees depending on environmental factors. Horses tend to have higher temperatures in hot weather and during or after exercise, or stress. A high fever doesn’t always suggest that there is a crucial problem, but it is a good idea to start monitoring your horse’s temperature if you notice it over 102 F, and if it reaches a 104 F or more, you should contact a veterinarian.

Pulse:
Mature Horses: 30 – 40 pulses per minute
Foals up to 2 weeks: 100 pulses per minute
Foals 4 weeks: 70 pulses per minute
Foals 6 – 12 months: 45 – 60 pulses per minute
2 year olds: 40 – 50 pulses per minute

The horse’s pulse rate will increase if he is excited or nervous, in pain, during or after exercise, or has a disease. The higher the heart rate, the more severe the condition.

The horse’s pulse can be found near the front of the left jawbone. Under the jawbone, there is a major artery that sticks out slightly. With your forefinger (never use your thumb – because you may feel your own pulse), press against the artery firmly. Use a watch or stop watch to count the number of beats in a 15 second time frame. Multiply the number of beats you count by 4.

The most effective means of taking a horse’s pulse is by using a stethoscope, which is a very useful addition to any horse owner’s medical supply kit (handy for listening to gut sounds, too). Nestle the bell firmly into the horse’s left armpit, and count the number of beats per minute.

Respiration:
Normal Range: 8 – 16 breaths per minute
Normal Average: 12 breaths per minute

A horse’s respiratory rate increases with hot or humid weather, exercise, fever or pain. Rapid breathing at rest should receive veterinary attention, and keep in mind that the respiratory rate should NEVER exceed the pulse rate. A horse should also inhale and exhale equally.

Watch or feel your horse’s rib cage or belly for one minute. Be sure to count 1 inhale and 1 exhale as one breath (not as two). If you are having a problem seeing the rib cage move, try watching the horse’s nostrils or place your hand in front of the nostrils to feel the horse exhale.

An even better method is to place a stethoscope to the horse’s windpipe to listen to his breathing. This will also give you strange sounds if the horse’s windpipe is blocked by mucous or if he has allergies or heaves.

Capillary Refill Time (CRT):
The Capillary Refill Time is the time it takes for blood to return to the horse’s extremities or the pale tissues in the gums which is an indicator of blood circulation.

Lift your horse’s upper lip upward and firmly press your thumb against the gums for 2 or 3 seconds to create a white mark. This white spot should return to the normal pink color within 1 to 2 seconds after releasing the pressure.

If the CRT takes longer than 2 or 3 seconds, the horse may be in shock, or it could be an early sign of heart failure.

Dehydration:
Horses drink typically a minimum of 5 gallons of water per day. If your horse is dehydrated, you should try to encourage him to drink. If he refuses to drink water, try adding flavor to it, apple juice, call your veterinarian if he still refuses to drink.

Pinch the skin on your horse’s neck. If the skin flattens back into place immediately afer you release it, or within 1 second, the horse is okay. If it doesn’t, it means he is dehydrated.

The longer the skin stays pinched up before flattening out again, the greater the extent of dehydration.

Gut Sounds:
The gut sounds that come from your horse’s stomach and intestines can be very important information for your vet in determining what the problem is, especially colic. Gut sounds should always be present. The absence of gut sounds is more indicative of a problem than excessive gut sounds. Usually, an absence of gut sounds points to colic. If you don’t hear any sounds, contact your veterinarian right away.

Press your ear up against your horse’s barrel just behind his last rib. If you hear gurgling noises, he’s okay. Be sure to check gut sounds from both sides. If you do not detect any sounds, try using a stethoscope in the same area.

It’s a good practice to check and chart your horse’s vital signs when he’s healthy, as it makes for a good comparison and indicator when monitoring and charting an ill horse. You can get handy vitals chart in popular formats such as PDF, DOC and RTF for free from the Hitching Post which is an online community for Equestrian Singles and country people in general.

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