# Horse jerks lead rope out of hand and runs off! :(



## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

My horse has done and still does this from time to time. At first it was when I was trying to bring him up fron the lower pasture, and he had been hanging around with mares in heat. We'd be part way up the hill and he'd stop, look of yonder and I though he just needed a moment, then he would quick as a lick get himself at a perpendicular angle to me and then rip the rope right out of my hand and gallop off wiiht the rope flying. I had this happen twice before I went for the stud chain. It hasn't happended since. 
I normally use a rope halter, which has a little better control of the head than a flat webbed halter becasue the knots apply pressure on sensitive spots. So, that would be the first thing I would suggest doing; get a rope halter and long lead.
Mac, my horse, also has ripped out of my hands during trailer loading. He changes from following me calmly into the trailer to ZiP! I'm out here!. I have no chance to catch it and change his mind with a bump or what.
But you have the right idea in that you need to catch him BEFORE he has made the decision to bolt and then you have to do something to keep him "with" you; like have him back up or bend toward you or just give him a bump.
You could alway use the stud chain.

Of course, having him more respectful of you in general is a more longterm solution which would mean working in a round pen or on a long line . I bet other folks will have better stuff to say on that


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## dressagebelle (May 13, 2009)

Teaching him to ground tie will not fix the problem of him ripping the lead out of your hand and bolting. You are right to be concerned about what will happen at shows, especially with all the extra stuff that will be going on. You are doing the right thing in keeping him right with you, and getting his attention back on you when he starts to look at other things. I would do a lot of ground work in hand, making him back up, do circles, walk and trot on the lead, just keep his feet moving, and get him so that he's paying constant attention to you because he doesn't know what and when you are going to ask him to do next. It will also help if you could pin point when he decides to take off. Is there a pattern to it, or is it completely random, and what is your body language at the time he starts to act up. At this point its about keeping his attention on you, and it will take some time of just being one step ahead of him, and keeping him from looking at other things before he'll stop testing you as much, and start realizing that he's not going to get away with bolting and going home anymore. Just be very consistent, and the first few shows you go to, I would keep him in a stud chain just to make sure that you have a bit of added control until you know how he's going to act. Good luck with him.


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## ImagineThat (Sep 18, 2010)

I have had 2 brought to me for this very reason. I had good luck with using a lunge line on both. I try not to use a chain because they are smart enough to know the difference of having one on or not. I like a lunge line because it's obviously harder for them to fully get away since you have plenty of rope. Oh, and I always use gloves so they can't burn me.
With the 2 I worked with, I lead them everywhere with a rope halter and lunge line, and invited them to try to bolt. Every time they did, I let them go a couple steps then pulled them back around (and not super sweet, either). 
It took many times of them trying and failing to get away before they quit trying. It really depends on how much the habit is ingrained. 
Some people may think thats not a nice way to do it, but when the horse has drug a person and hurt them, I don't think _that's_ very nice.
I'm all about NH and taking things slow and all that, but I will match the intensity in a heart beat when a horse has a bad behavior.


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## danastark (Jul 17, 2008)

When we first got my daughter's pony, he quickly discovered she wasn't very quick to notice when he would start to tug the lead rope out of her hands with tosses of his head until he got far enough away that he had the advantage and then would take off....... First we put a stud chain on him, then graduated to a rope halter and now he is in a regular halter. I had to teach her to pay attention and when he would toss his head, she would yank back, firmly and that would nip his behavior in the bud. He will occasionally try this when we are loading him in the trailer too, if he thinks you aren't paying attention...... he was a lesson pony for years before we got him so he must have learned it then and every once in a while this behavior pops up but it just takes a good yank or two to convince him to stick around. I would probably use a stud chain for your first couple shows, just to give you that edge. Goodluck, I'm sure it's a lot easier to convince a 13.3 pony to behave than an 17.2 horse! Luckily, my 18 hd. gelding is a pussy cat


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## starlinestables (Nov 24, 2008)

Lunge line. Once he figures out he can't get away he'll stop. If he tries several times despite the lunge line, run his butt into the ground every time he tries to do it. He'll figure out, that if he tries to run off then he has to work WAY harder.


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## PintoTess (Aug 18, 2010)

seems like he needs some ground manners  just be strong with him. And wear gloves, I have had a bad rope burn from not wearing them


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## PaintHorseMares (Apr 19, 2008)

How much lead do you give him? On a horse that doesn't (yet) lead well, you want to keep him on a short lead. When you control the head, you control the horse.


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## mom2pride (May 5, 2009)

I agree with a ground manners course...dressagebelle has given some great things to start with. 

That said try to make sure you stay in a position in which you are to the side of the horse...if he does get in line with you and to the front of you, there is no way you can stop him, regardless of how long of a lead you have. BUT if you can get to the side, you can pull him off balance, and back in line with you. 

I second using a rope halter...if you can find one, get one that has the extra knots on the noseband, for a little extra "bite" for the time being. I hate flat halters, for the reason that they are so easy for a horse to lean on. The only time I use them is for trailering, and halter classes at shows.


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## FHF (Jul 11, 2010)

Teach him to lead off of a loose lead. Teach him to stop walking when you stop walking, to back up when you back up without pressure on the halter. This teaches him to work off of your body position and body language. 

Use a 5' whip. You don't have to whip him just spats on the front legs or chest. Just use as much pressure as needed. You will be amazed at what a dream he will be to lead around because he will start looking to you for direction instead of just mindlessly walking waiting for someone to pull on his head in order for him to have to think.


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## Snookeys (Sep 23, 2010)

Yes, like FHF said, teach him to lead off a loose lead. My new horse has zero respect on the ground, and although he will not rip the lead and run, he will not walk with me and does that thing where he dips his nose and then sticks it out to get away... hard to explain... but anyway - What I did was use a 12' line and a carrot stick, then walk around the field with slack in the rope. If his nose passed my shoulder, instead of pulling on him to push him back, in waved the carrot stick (the end of the lead works just as well) in front of his face. If he kept walking, he would walk right into a smack on the nose. It wasn't me hitting him, it was him walking into it. Like if you run into a wall, you don't think "That wall just hit me!" It made him pay attention. Just like FHF said - he is looking to you for direction, so make yourself reliable. Tell him where to walk and how long to walk there. If you feel him starting to pull backward, turn and face him and send him off in a lunge circle (use the carrot stick/whip to get his hindquarters going forward). React as quickly as he does.


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## Meagan (Mar 30, 2010)

Thank you all for the great answers! 
He has never bolted with me (except like I said before, when I was stupid enough to lead him by the halter) because I usually have him on a moderately short lead, but once he's all mine and I can spend more than once a week with him, I'm going to definitely invest in a rope halter, lunge line, and gloves, because I'd like to trust him to be a perfect gentleman and walk next to me on a loose lead. He's a smart boy with a few more quirks I'd like to work out, but I love him, so ya'll will definitely be hearing more from me haha.


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