Teaching a horse to just stand still!

[BeachRiding]

When tied up Gitcha moves around. ALOT. He just paces. How can I teach him to stand calmly?

[julia gulia]

It takes time....it is really hard for a horse to stand still. Try to stay really calm and work slowly around him...breath slowly and loudly enough for him to hear how calm you are. I usually try to ignore the restless moving around...I just stay calm and go about my business. Think of all the people you know who are hyperactive...they make you hyper active too....but if you are calm and slow things down...they will usually follow suit. Just be patient...and try to set a good example for him:)

[julia gulia]

oooops...forgot to add that if he gets really restless and moves all over the place....give him a job to do( but don't get angry with him...stay really relaxed yourself.)...like back up, turn in a circle, walk forward four steps...then offer him a chance to stand still....eventually he will learn that standing still is good...he then gets to rest instead of work so hard:)

[Skib]

Julia gulia is right.

If your horse moves when you dont want, let him move but make sure the movement is under your direction.
Allow a long time for the lesson - treat it as a lesson and dont have other things on your mind. such as needing to get on with grooming or something else.

Is the problem general? Will he stand still if you hold the other end of the lead rope? Is the problem only when tied up?

If it is general I would sort it out on the lead rope first. Stop and ask for halt and if he moves, walk forward, and ask again.
Be consistent as to direction of the walking. Like if the horse is tied to a ring or fence for grooming in a small yard, I choose to lead away from the ring in a small circle, because there isnt the space to walk about like there is in the school, and there may be other horses around.

My choice is not to vary the walking patten. This is not a lesson in moving about, but in standing still. I dont ask back up or mix directions but stay consistent with just doing a circle and back to the ring or to the mounting block.

Next you have to break down the task into manageable steps for the horse. Decide how many seconds of stillness you would regard as success? i.e. not your goal but a first step in reaching the goal. Maybe five seconds is an achievement for this particular horse or ten? Make it easy for him.

If you tie up the horse and it stays still while you count your chosen five or ten seconds, and that is good, praise him,pat him or rub him and untie him and let him move around away from the ring and give him a break. Let him be still if he chooses, as it gives him a chance to think over what he is learning.

Then do the exercise again. Gradually build up the length of time you expect him to stand for you. Praising him and giving him a break from the task every time he progresses.

The last bit of advice I have is not to follow my suggestions too rigourously but to sense what you need in the case of your particular horse. I have thought a lot about the way in which I can take information like this from watching demos and use it to teach horses I ride or groom - and how well it works. And I have come to the conclusion that I probably dont do EXACTLY as any expert does. I've a bad memory. I surely fudge it and adapt it and make it my own?

But I do remember very clearly someone saying that it takes the average horse 7-9 minutes to learn something new and most owners or humans get fed up after 5 minutes. And it is indeed always at the moment when one thinks one has totally failed to teach the horse, that if one tries once more, it clicks and the horse gets the idea.

(In this post "ring" refers to the point where the horse is tied. It could be a bar)

Now the next question is whether the horse which has learned to stand still when you are beside it will also stand still if you walk away? And leave him on his own? You may need to teach the same all over again , to encourage him to wait calmy when he is on his own.
But psychologically this is hard, as a horse on its own is really in charge of its own movements. In the UK riding schools we dont train the horses to ground tie, and though I have read about it in books, you would need to ask someone in USA to advise you on this.

[Mathew]

Dang i must be the luckiest horse owner, Tanner just stands there when i go to groom, saddel, bridel, halter, or just hoof pick and he wont evin have a halter on or anything! I didnt know ppl had a problem with the horse moving around! he will just stand there in his pen when i go up to him :D he is the best:D :D well good luck with your hossie;)

The unmoving Tanner and, Mat

[mayoguinness]

Agree with others, Mayo used to be the same and I just carried on brushing him and let him get on with moving around and getting stressed whilst I stayed calm, after a while he followed my lead and now stands like a rock:)