# Horse backing up when mounting?



## RedTree (Jan 20, 2010)

I think that is one approach, but me personally don't like it.
When the horse doesn't want to back up it can lead to rearing.
My horse used to do the same thing, I resorted to circles, lots of small tight circles he got the idea soon enough


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## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

I would think so, but I would give him a chance. So, when he backs up, bring him back into place once and if he backs up again, then do the backing


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## apachewhitesox (Dec 9, 2010)

^^ That is normally what I do I just thought it might sound like I wasn't consistent or something. If I thought he was going to rear up I would probably do circles instead.


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## christopher (Feb 11, 2011)

check tack, try it bareback if you can, etc.

depending on where he's at in his riding, this might work, as soon as he starts backing while your mounting, get on at the same speed you would but as soon as your up there ask him to go forward. his desire to go backward and the pattern he'll establish of "as soon as they're on we go forward" will balance eachother out.

don't do it beyond fixing the problem though, because that'll make the horse go forward when you try to mount him. but in such a case the opposite can be applied in that as soon as you get on you backup.

also try to keep mounting as smooth as possible, and do lots of standing beside your horse on the side you like to mount from.

hope this helps.


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## christopher (Feb 11, 2011)

apachewhitesox said:


> What I do is when he backs up I think well fine you want to back up you can back up.


sadly this will probably cause the problem to worsen, as it quickly and simply teaches the horse that "mounting = backup". it could also be why the problem has persisted. also, because he's already backing and you ask for more/continued backing, he might take this as though you want him to back faster, possibly leading trotting backwards (although unlikely)

this is why linda parelli's philosiphy of "you wanna do that? we're gonna do that! but we're only gonna stop when i say!" is great at amplifying problems.


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## apachewhitesox (Dec 9, 2010)

^^ He doesn't alwasy do it only sometimes. He has also done when I'm getting on bareback before too. I'll have a go at what your talking about.


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## christopher (Feb 11, 2011)

only do it when he does go backwards. and for the sake of good results, when he walks backwards on his own, only ask him WALK forwards, then release and do whatever you were going to do.

i personally, if my horse were to walk backwards on their own accord (when mounting or any other time), would ask politely that my horse trot or lope forwards as it follows the same principle, just gets faster results, but depending on the horses training can be EXTREMELY dangerous. but just walking forwards is a safe and practical way of solving the problem.


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## apachewhitesox (Dec 9, 2010)

Yeah I would only ask him to walk forward I don't think it would be a good idea to ask him to go any faster. But I think your might work with him.


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## christopher (Feb 11, 2011)

let me know how it goes. works wonders for me.

if it doesnt work, i, as a professional starter/developer part time problem solver, will happily eat my akubra.


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## apachewhitesox (Dec 9, 2010)

I was just thinking should I just get on and ride and if he backs up while I get on I do this or should I get off a couple of times throughout my ride.


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## christopher (Feb 11, 2011)

what i'd personally do is get on, if the horse backs up, uninterruptedly walk forwards for a short while, then get off. and repeat that process untill the horse doesn't backup when you get on.

just walking forwards will work though.

as long as whenever he backs up of his own accord, it's interrupted by a successful, yet as polite as possible, forward aid then the problem will be solved in a short time.


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## Cherie (Dec 16, 2010)

It is really simple. Teach your horse to stand still!

Most horse start backing when being mounted because a rider holds the reins too tight when mounting. There should be a slight 'droop' in the reins when you mount. They should be tiht enough that if you pick your hand up 2 or 3 inches off of his withers or neck, you should be able to take the slack out of them and stop the horse from going forward.

I have never figured out why one should back up or go forward to teach a horse to stand. [Kind of like trailer loading. Why should one not teach most excellent leading skills so that the horse will go anywhere it is asked to including in a trailer. ]

I approach standing for mounting this way:

I teach a horse that "Whoa!" means to stand still. If I have to work on this for 2 or 3 sessions, so be it. When I stop a horse and say "Whoa!", I want him to act like his feet are nailed to that spot on the ground. Then, and only then, does he know to stand perfectly until I ask him to move off. I may stand there for 5 minutes after mounting. I want him to know that when I say "Whoa!", it means that he stands right there until I tell him to go somewhere. With a colt or a horse I am re-schooling, I usually move one off in a tight circle -- more often to the right -- or back one up that is apt to have a hump in his back.

To get this good "Whoa!" on a horse, I use a 12-14 foot lead. I bring a horse to my working spot and say "Whoa!" and then step back, facing the horse. If he takes a step any direction (usually toward me) I jerk the rope hard one time, say "Whoa!" and put him back where he started. 

I want him to stand there no matter what I do. I teach him to stand still when I walk around him, brush his tail, saddle him, jump up and down next to him, whatever. I want him to stand perfectly still until I pull on the lead-rope and "smooch". If I want to lead him forward, I turn my back to him and smooch. 

I a handler is 100% consistent, a horse will quickly learn that "Whoa!" means whoa. I can have a horse that is in trouble tangled in brush or green-briers and one "Whoa!" tells him to stand still while I untangle him. I can dis-mount and re-mount in a very bad place on a trail and I am confident that my horse is going to stand perfectly still. I can mount with an arm-load of 'stuff' and he is going to stand.

You do not have to chase one around and move his feet to teach him to NOT move his feet. I think it is real counter-productive. There are so many times when you want a horse to just 'lock up' right where he is --- places where running around or backing up is not an option.

I now am too crippled up to train anything but trail horses now -- no more cutters, reiners, cowhorses, over-fence horses or anything else I trained before. But, you can bet they all stand perfectly still for mounting or anything else you want to do.


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## mls (Nov 28, 2006)

apachewhitesox said:


> He *only does it to me*, on the ground he respects me in every way other then this. He also only seems to really do it when I was on him then got off for whatever reason then I am trying to get on again.


Red Flag.

This tells me there is something about you or your style of riding he does not like or makes him uncomfortable.

Have an instructor watch you ride to see if they can pinpoint what it is. Could be you catch him in the mouth, confuse him with your cues, etc.


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## apachewhitesox (Dec 9, 2010)

not to sound like I'm not listening to your posts but I know I don't him in the mouth because I hold him so there is a loop in the reins and some times someone else his holding him so i'm only hlding the very end of the reins. I would love to have an instructor watch me but mine moved and my horses are at home so its a bit hard to find anyone who can help me at the moment. I also am basically the only person who rides him other people only ride him when they're at my house and want a go on the horses. Anyone will tell you he responds the best to my riding not to sound upitty about myself or anything.


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## christopher (Feb 11, 2011)

Cherie said:


> I have never figured out why one should back up or go forward to teach a horse to stand.


because it's the opposite movement. as i said, the horses desire for whatever reason to go backwards combined with the pattern you'll establish of the horse going forward will result in a balance, and standing still is the result. if done only when the horse backs of course.

cherie's method will also work.


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## christopher (Feb 11, 2011)

also, forgot to mention in my above post, going from a backup to a standstill is an upward transition, just like standstill to walk, walk to trot and trot to canter.

so (in theory) both my method and cherie's method are the same. i say in theory because the timing of our release differs, and the aid we use differs, but the psychologies & theories involved are the same.

i dislike the "whoa" part however, because usually "whoa" means slow down (downward transitions) but if your horse is backing and you teach "whoa" to mean standstill, then your teaching "whoa" to mean upward transitions.


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## Palomine (Oct 30, 2010)

Also make sure you aren't toeing him when you mount, and you aren't pulling on the reins too tightly, as well as dragging a foot across rump, and/or flopping down into saddle.

Any of those will cause this too.


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## christopher (Feb 11, 2011)

another way of going that's a bit easier is to begin mounting, stand in one stirrup, but don't throw your other leg over, just stand in the stirrup holding onto the saddle & reins, wait for the horse to stop backing in it's own time, then step down & out of the stirrup, walk a short distance away and leave the horse alone for a short while.


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## apachewhitesox (Dec 9, 2010)

Palomine said:


> Also make sure you aren't toeing him when you mount, and you aren't pulling on the reins too tightly, as well as dragging a foot across rump, and/or flopping down into saddle.
> 
> Any of those will cause this too.


 
The only thing out of them that I do possiblty do a bit is toe him in the side which I do try not to do. I'll see how I go with him this afternoon.


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## christopher (Feb 11, 2011)

let me know how it goes. as i said, my akubra will become dinner if there's not even a slight improvment from any of the methods mentioned here.


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## apachewhitesox (Dec 9, 2010)

well when I first went out there I he took a couple steps back when I went to put my foot in the stirrup and as he walked back I had my hand in the stirrup putting weight in it. Once he had taken about three steps he stopped and I took the pressure off and he didn't try it again. I'll have to see how he goess next time too


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## christopher (Feb 11, 2011)

if it's the weight he's backing to try too avoid that will work. but if it's just the mounting process then it might not be so effective.

if that doesn't work; as mentioned, get on partially or fully, wait for him to standstill, get off.


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## apachewhitesox (Dec 9, 2010)

It happens when I'm about to put my foot in the stirrup or when I have just put my foot in the stirrup.


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## ButtInTheDirt (Jan 16, 2011)

Well, you make him stand exactally where you want him to, if he backs up, make him go back to where he belongs. If he keeps doing this, just make him work. Move to something else, like circles or some such. Then bring him back to the same spot, whether it be a step or just a place in the dirt. After a while your horse should get the idea. If you nip this on the bum every time, then he should understand.


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