How can I get a horse to put his head down?

Question

Often when I try to bridle a horse, he'll raise his head up really high, and I can't reach. What to do?

Answer 1

I agree with the pressure and release idea. instead of just applying pressure to the top of the head, you can start by just asking him to drop his head with the lead line. Just have a halter and a lead rope on him, and say drop and pull down on the lead, as soon as he gives even just a little, let up on the pressure. Do that until you have his head at a level that your comfortable with. When you have him doing this at your comand, then you can start applying pressure to the top of his head. By now you should be able to add a head stall and bridle..

Good Luck

Answer 2

THis behaviour could indicate a past experience where the bit has been used inapropriately. However this is not always the case but it could be a possibility. Other than that you horse could just be testing you out (as many will do). He's obviously gotten away with it more than once and so knows he can get away with it. But no problem fixing it. Usually. There is the worry about how extreme his avoidance is. Meaning wether he's not watching out for you when his head goes up. But by the sounds of it he's holding his head just so you can't reach it and that is very common.

The object which he's avoiding here is the bit. Although this may not always be the case perhaps he has a resistance to where the bridle sits just behind his ears. But we'll come back to that.

I woudl first try (without the bit) just getting him to drop his muzzle into your hand. You can use treats if you need to but just coax him to place his muzzle into the cup of your hand. You may also want to drop your hand lower and get him to follow it down as this will generally encourage him to as bit goes in drop his head further so you can slip bridle over his ears. Once this is gained bring the bit into the equation. To try to prevent any steps backward [figuratively] you may just want to try the bit alone. Not full bridle just take the bit off the bridle and work on getting him to accept this into his mouth. treats can still be used although having the bit in his mouth at the same time as getting a trea can sometimes cause a bit of awkwardness as he will try to drop the bit out to keep his goodies.

But once you get this down pat bring the whole bridel back into the equation. Hopefully he will be accepting and by now the treat shouldn;t be necessary however if there's still a problem you can still use a treat to entice him like molasses (as this is easiest in my experience}. IF after multiple session of this . And remember this can take some time, then again you may fix it within a few days depends on the horse and factors causing the problem.

If all else fails possibly he's sore up near his poll and the pressure where the bridle sits just behind his ears; though slight could be causing his resistance. I woudl recommend for this the use of a chiropractor as his poll might be 'out' [figuratively]. I know alot of people don;t belive in chiropractors but i have used them and well, it's your choice really. Horses do get by without them.

Hope that helps! And remember it's a waiting game especially if he's gonna think he's too smart for you! "i think they all have a bit of that thinking in them somewhere!"

Good Luck!

Answer 3

I was shown the "correct" way to bridle a horse is to put the bridle in your right hand, raise the bridle up over your horse's head, hold and insert bit. Well that just didn't work for me. Many horses will throw their head up, or swing their head away from you. Some even lower their head to the ground to avoid that dreadful thing. What I've learned is to hold the bridle in my left hand with my right arm under the horse's chin, and my right hand over his nose. In this way I can keep his head up from trying to 'root', and the hand on his nose counteracts the tossing and swinging.
When working with a young horse, one who has never been bridled before, or one who has become bridle shy, I first handle the head in the above manner without the use of the bridle. Frequently, I will gently hold the horse's head to the side of his body, asking, not forcing, him to keep it there, like giving him a hug. I begin to stroke his head and ask him to relax. This does a few things, first it gets the horse used to being touched and restrained just a little, it also puts the horse's head in a "calm down" position.
Next I begin by softly massaging inside the horse's mouth with my fingers, I watch for him to lick, and quickly remove my fingers. He learns that it is OK for something foreign to enter in. Once the horse accepts this feeling, I am ready to add the bridle. I hold the bridle in my left hand and position the bit at the separation of the lips, holding it with the fingers of my right hand. I ask the horse to lick again using my thumb to cue him, and when he is ready I insert the bit. Easy does it, so as to not bump his teeth. The trick to this is teaching the horse to "open wide".
Using this method has been very successful for me. My horses see me coming with the bridle, and they begin to yawn. They open wide and are very easy to bridle.
A word of caution: Removing the bridle is where most mistakes are made and why horses dislike bridles. When you remove the headstall from the ears, be sure to hold it up, and not drop the bit down onto the teeth. Keep the horse's nose downward, and when the horse opens wide and begins to lick, gently lower the bridle and let the horse "spit" the bit out...

Answer 4

first you need to do this when your not planing to ride. when your just leading him, practice putting your hand on his neck right behind his ears. gently push down, if he resist ceep adding to the preasure. when he drops his head, evan an inch, release! work on this till you can get your arm over his neck. if he freaks out, go back to step one. then try with the bridle. my horse used to have the same problem. but by using this technique i can bridle him easily, and i am 4'10"!!!

Answer 5

hold the back of his mane firmly and try and get your arm over his neck before you slip it on! if he's still akward offer him a mint or another treat he loves as you slip the bridle on!

Answer 6

Drop a carrot on the ground.

Answer 7

punch that ***** right in its eye