How fast should 'join up' be?

S

stressy

New Member
Apr 22, 2009
1,492
0
0
sunderland
After lunging my horse tonight I thought id play around with her a bit off the lunge so thought id try what I could remember from watching monty roberts stuff ie join up. I sent her away by waving my arms about a bit and she trotted round, when she tried to stop I pushed her on, then she started lowering her head until her nose was virtually on the floor. I stopped walking around after her and she came to a halt so i went to approach her and she started walking off so I sent her away again in trot. I stopped walking after her again as she put her nose to the floor and she came to a halt and looked at me, I walked over and patted her as she stood still then as I was walking away she followed me everywhere I went, when I stopped she stopped, when i walked off she walked. Was this join up because if so it was bloomin quick, about 10mins at the most! I was only playing about too and didnt think it would work but she followed me round like a lamb! :D
 
There's no set time but 10 minutes is about fine.

I'm no expert but with join up you tend to let them come to you rather than going to them. So when she was lowering her head you would slow your walk and avert your eyes so you're not looking at her. Then you would drop your shoulder and turn away from her, not looking at her, and walk slowly away from her, she should then follow you in and come to your shoulder. If she doesn't come right up to you, just walk to her and give her a pat.

What you did is very similar though. Isn't it great when they follow you around? I do quite a bit of work with Izzy at liberty and he follows me around the whole time. Yesterday I was setting up poles and he walked next to me nudging the pole with his nose!:D
 
Don't forget you'd already been sending her round on the lunge for however long, it can have the same effect :D 10 minutes sounds fine, what you shouldn't do is persist until the horse 'gives in' through exhaustion, that's not what it's about :)
 
Your right Yann, the lunging will have helped the process lol but she wasnt knackered, I just used it as part of her cooling down but decided to try join up in the process at the same time.
 
plus she may have already partially joined up with you through your day to day partnership.
 
Last edited:
the lunging will have helped the process lol but she wasnt knackered,
Click to expand...

Oops, didn't mean to imply that's what you were doing! :) It's just that you do come across people who say 'I did join up for 2 hours and he finally gave in'.

plus she may have already partially joined up with you through your day to day parntership.
Click to expand...

Very true - you don't need to do a formal join up to get the same results :)
 
it also depends on the horses temperament, the more independent dominant ones take longer - but echo what has been said before about you may have partially joined up in your day to day relationship, there's probs a fair bit of trust there already
 
bitsnpieces said:
it also depends on the horses temperament, the more independent dominant ones take longer - but echo what has been said before about you may have partially joined up in your day to day relationship, there's probs a fair bit of trust there already
Click to expand...

My mares a bit funny, I thought she couldnt really be fussed with me but maybe she can be lol. Shes a bit aloof and doesnt like hugs, being fussed over too much but like humans they're all different :)
 
Sorry to hijack Stressy but was wondering how big the area was where you did this?

Everything I read about join up seems to imply that you NEED a 20mx20m space or round pen. I want to try it with Del starting in the spring but our schooling paddock is about 20mx35m, I was thinking this might be too big to keep the pressure on and was wondering if your space was similar?

(Unfortnately can't fence off a smaller area: y/o would not appreciate me dismantling her perfectly paced out showjumps and lugging them round to the other field)
 
TEmily said:
Sorry to hijack Stressy but was wondering how big the area was where you did this?

Everything I read about join up seems to imply that you NEED a 20mx20m space or round pen. I want to try it with Del starting in the spring but our schooling paddock is about 20mx35m, I was thinking this might be too big to keep the pressure on and was wondering if your space was similar?

(Unfortnately can't fence off a smaller area: y/o would not appreciate me dismantling her perfectly paced out showjumps and lugging them round to the other field)
Click to expand...

I have done join up with Riley in a 20x40 school successfully - they tend not to use the whole school during join up but circle you anyway - a bit like a lunge session without the lunge line. It does mean you have to run around a lot more because it is a larger area to keep the pressure on but will work just as well.

Remember to look for the little signs as soon as possible - easier on the cardio for you :D - dropping of the head (tends to be in one area of the school at first rather than a constant drop) licking and chewing, inside ear locked on you, nose bobbing on the floor - you may not get all these signs but just one or two so be really vigilant - different horses join up in different ways.

The best place to allow the 'join up' will be the area they drop their head at - avert your eyes and turn at a 45 degree angle to their head and wait for them to walk in - if they do a whole circuit around you still or completely ignore you put the pressure on again for a minute or so and the signal should happen quicker then try again. They may approach you from the front rather than from behind so just keep an awareness of where they are when you release the pressure - they also may not come really close to you but an arm length or so away - they are respecting your space - keep your eyes lowered, approach them and give them a head rub - you may have to keep hold of their head collar to stop them wandering off once you've joined up - this is quite common with horses that like to think a lot (think Arab types :D).

Hope that helps :)
 
Thanks Riley that's really helpful!

I'm still a bit scared of trying it - what if it just doesn't work and I end up just chasing him round and round and he ends up hating me??? Or am I being silly? :eek:
 
I don't seem to have to do 'join up' with my two, especially Sioned,
she doesn't leave me alone, follows me and stands by me all the time, it drives me NUTS:p
 
TEmily said:
Thanks Riley that's really helpful!

I'm still a bit scared of trying it - what if it just doesn't work and I end up just chasing him round and round and he ends up hating me??? Or am I being silly? :eek:
Click to expand...

The first time you do it will probably be the longest - it is really easy to miss your horse's signals - it took me 20 minutes or so the first time i did it with Riley but is max 5 mins or so when we do it from time to time now as i know his signs. :) Don't worry about trying it - he will forgive you if it takes longer than it should plus if he's quite dominant it will take a while as they don't give up easily.

Remember to change direction rather than just pressure him to run in one direction - make him do a few circuits in one direction then focus your energy (and the lead rope) in front of him rather than driving him from behind and change his direction for another few circuits before changing again. The more you control where he goes the more he will see you as leader and want to join up with you.

Let us know how you get on :) - Oh and don't speak to him at all until you have joined up - it should all be done in silence - you don't hear the herd leader making a noise - they do it all from body language :)
 
Thanks Riley! And great tip about the speaking, you're right.

TBH I think he'll be a perfect candidate, hes quite submissive in the herd and loves to be near you, he'll always turn his head towards me and try to get close in the stable (makes mucking out a pain!) so I imagine he'd 'join up' quite quickly. But he's responsive to body language and moves back from an agressive posture

I will report back when I finally attempt!
 
newrider.com
Top Bottom
Back