# Horse scared of whip



## Rowdy Girl (Aug 1, 2011)

Well...depends on your horse's back ground...do you know whom owned him before and what they used him for?.. age ?

When I initally introduce the whip for Training purpose's.. remember, that it is a tool and not to "hit" the horse with.. maybe he has been abused in some sort of way...

Starting over can be fustrating, but it can be done...I would start in the round pen ( this way he has a way of getting away and not feeling trapped )...if you can halter and lead line him,,try walking up and talking gently, praising...and see if he will smell it..from there, try to move it sloooowly toward's his neck..if he bolt's.. drop the whip and pat him..end on a good note. Keep trying the method until he realize's your not going to "hit" him..if you do get to rub it back and forth on his neck, reward him and end on a good note.. and keep going from there. Good Luck !


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## pintophile (May 18, 2011)

Drop the whip when he bolts? Would that not teach him that when he reacts negatively, the scary thing goes away?

My best bet would be to just keep exposing him. Don't make a big production out of it, and don't give him reason to worry about it. Hold him on a lead rope and touch/stroke him everywhere with the whip and if he freaks out, don't retreat until he stands quietly. As soon as he does settle, stop touching him with it.

Though yes, it would be helpful to know more. What does he do when he's exposed to it? 

I like a healthy respect for the whip, but bolting and taking off or kicking at it or anything, obviously I don't.


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## Rowdy Girl (Aug 1, 2011)

pintophile said:


> Drop the whip when he bolts? Would that not teach him that when he reacts negatively, the scary thing goes away?
> 
> I like a healthy respect for the whip, but bolting and taking off or kicking at it or anything, obviously I don't.


 
I only say this because there is back ground on the horse(s) and striking out is not something any horse person would want to encounter..I've been striked in the forehead by a rank horse, when introducting the whip..not fun. All my horse's are trained that when I pick up the whip..it mean's we are going to work and when I drop it, where done...

Knowing nothing about the above animal(s)... sway on the side of caution is all..


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## Allison Finch (Oct 21, 2009)

I have had to retrain a number of beaten horses who feared the whip. I spend a lot of time rubbing them with it. Then I will lightly touch them and praise them after the touch. 

It is very important to have control of your whip while riding. Many people who cannot keep them still, accidentally tap the horse when they don't mean to. The more upset the horse gets, the worse the whip handling often gets.....spirally out of control.

get the horse to accept the whip on the ground, then progress to under saddle. While in the saddle, continue to rub the horse with the whip in a pleasant manner.


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

I would just keep the whip very close to his feeder for a few days. If you have a round pen, put him in there and remove his halter. He will likely scoot away and that's ok. The position of your whip can be seen as threatening or non threatening. Pointed downward and away from him is non threatening. Just try walking parallel to his hip while he is on the rail, but well away from kicking distance, dragging the whip. You are now driving him forward. If he begins to hesitate bring the whip around holding the point about waist high, no higher. Bring it just so it's beside you, not ahead of you. The moment he responds put it behind you immediately. It will take time and maybe a lot of it until he trusts that the whip is just an extension of your arm and not a weapon.


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## Doe (Jun 21, 2011)

What horse are you referring to? Tell us about them.


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## DustyDiamond (Mar 18, 2010)

What breed is he? What was he used for before you got him? How does he react exactly when he sees it. I have a horse that was being trained to be a charro horse. They put their horses in chutes and whip their feet so they'll learn how to pick them up. Depending on how your horse reacts there could be a few ways to go about getting him used to the whip. The horse I own that was being trained to be a charro horse will charge you when you get the whip out which can be very dangerous. It might take a while but just slowly get him used to seeing it and rubbing it on his neck and eventually all over his body so he will realize you're not going to hurt him with it.


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## Cleffapuff (Sep 6, 2010)

Rowdy Girl said:


> Well...depends on your horse's back ground...do you know whom owned him before and what they used him for?.. age ?
> 
> When I initally introduce the whip for Training purpose's.. remember, that it is a tool and not to "hit" the horse with.. maybe he has been abused in some sort of way...
> 
> Starting over can be fustrating, but it can be done...I would start in the round pen ( this way he has a way of getting away and not feeling trapped )...if you can halter and lead line him,,try walking up and talking gently, praising...and see if he will smell it..from there, try to move it sloooowly toward's his neck..if he bolt's.. drop the whip and pat him..end on a good note. Keep trying the method until he realize's your not going to "hit" him..if you do get to rub it back and forth on his neck, reward him and end on a good note.. and keep going from there. Good Luck !


I would never hit them with it...
They haven't been abused... but I will try! Thank you!


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## Cleffapuff (Sep 6, 2010)

DustyDiamond said:


> What breed is he? What was he used for before you got him? How does he react exactly when he sees it. I have a horse that was being trained to be a charro horse. They put their horses in chutes and whip their feet so they'll learn how to pick them up. Depending on how your horse reacts there could be a few ways to go about getting him used to the whip. The horse I own that was being trained to be a charro horse will charge you when you get the whip out which can be very dangerous. It might take a while but just slowly get him used to seeing it and rubbing it on his neck and eventually all over his body so he will realize you're not going to hurt him with it.


They are both Quarter's and both mares. They were just... pets when we got them. When they see it, they RUN away.
So do I have a rope on them, me holding it obviously, and then try? Where should I stand, in front or beside them??


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## ChingazMyBoy (Apr 16, 2009)

You need to show these horses not to be afraid of your touch with the whip/the whip. If your nervous/in-experienceed about it the horse will go _wait.. this is scary, they are showing me a negative additude towards it._ What type of whip are you talking about, crop? Lunge whip? Dressage whip?

Standing beside the horse would be best, specially if the horse is known to run when "confronted" with the whip. Keep the horses rope short, but not so your jerking on them. Show them the whip, allow them to touch it, sniff it, ect. Use an approach and retreat method. When the horse is relaxed and not fussed - approach them with the whip. But when they become scared, go back a step. It may be a two steps forward, one step back type thing. But eventually the horse will understand that the whip will not actually hurt them.

Remember to always have the crop around for positive experiences - possibly take it with you when you feed, or groom. Just sit it there - allow the horse to see it. 

Hope I could help.


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## beau159 (Oct 4, 2010)

Allison Finch said:


> It is very important to have control of your whip while riding. Many people who cannot keep them still, accidentally tap the horse when they don't mean to. The more upset the horse gets, the worse the whip handling often gets.....spirally out of control.
> 
> Get the horse to accept the whip on the ground, then progress to under saddle. While in the saddle, continue to rub the horse with the whip in a pleasant manner.


Ditto.

Also, you should NEVER take the whip AWAY when the horse is not behaving properly. If you remove the whip when the horse bolts, runs, kicks, etc, you have just taught that horse the bad behavior was correct because you removed the pressure of the whip. 

But again, you need to have very precise control and placement of the whip where you are holding it. 

Let's look at a scenario.
We are in the round pen with the horse. We want the horse to stand still while the whip is slowly rubbed up and down each leg to desensitive them to the whip on their legs. 

So if the horse stands still while we rub the whip on the front left leg, great! Only do it for a second or two, then remove the whip away from the horse, and pat/praise the horse. 

However, if the horse moves away from the whip you need to precisely hold the whip the exact same distance from the horse when they first started to shy from it. Don't move it closer, but don't back it off either. Hold it there until the horse stops moving on their own, then immediately remove the whip (because stopping was a correct response and we want to reward the horse by removing the pressure of the whip).* Timing is everything. *

And once the horse stands still, but their face is still nervous and they are not relaxed, you may use that as a reward point. Release the pressure of the whip when they show signs of relaxation (if they were previously nervous). That shows that being relax and not worried about the whip isi a correct behavior. *It is very important not to push the horse too far too fast.* Or else you will have a freak-out panic on your hands. Always start small and slow and only increase the pressure of the whip as your horse is ready for.

This may take a day ... or it may take months. Every horse is different. You need to watch and listen to the horse to evaluate how to present the whip.


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