Take Charge

Here’s how to take charge and build a better, more responsive trail partner for safety and control.

- Julie Goodnight, With Heidi Melocco

It’s easy to relax on trail rides and allow your horse to make his own decisions. But every time you let him make a decision, you tell him he’s the leader in your herd of two.

When your trail horse takes the initiative, making decisions on direction or speed, he exhibits disobedient behavior. Your horse’s disobedience may start small—he may walk off right as you mount up, before you give him a go-forward cue or trot down a steep hill without a trot cue.

By overlooking these signs of disobedience, you teach your horse that he’s allowed to make decisions.

When your horse makes an extreme decision about where to go and how to get there—such as jumping over a ditch he could’ve slowly picked through—it’s a wake-up call. He’s not on the path you’ve chosen to travel. He’s not listening to you; he’s making his own decisions.

Here’s why your horse probably jumps over ditches and how to fix your ditch-jumper.

A Fear Response

Your horse might rush or jump a ditch when he’s afraid. His flight response kicks in when he doesn’t feel safe.