How do you train a horse to not be afriad of a tarp?

Question

I really need HELP!

Answer 1

I would suggest starting small. Get something like a plastic bad and put it in your working area (arena, round pen, etc). Work with your horse, walking him/her closer and closer to it until they will walk over it without hesitation.

I would then get a very small tarp and lay it on the ground with some rocks to hold it down, again, do the same thing. Walk your horse closer and closer to it until they will walk on it and over it without hesitation.

The idea is to make them realize that it isn't going to hurt them and that the noise isn't that scary. It may take a while so be patient.

Good luck!

Answer 2

I have done this exact thing with my horse. First make sure you start very small with the tarp. Fold it, or do whatever so it's small. Then put it in a space where he has plenty of room to jump back or whatever he decides to do, for now. You can change it later.
Before doing anything, rub it on your horse. Start out small and eventually get bigger. Once he is good on both sides with the tarp fully extended, then you can have him walk on it. Start out small once again though. Have him do it for awhile on one side then switch when he's comfortable. Then unfold it a little bit. If your horse ever shys away from the tarp start over with the last thing he was comfortable. Then gradually work until you can get the whole thing. Try not to rush it though and don't get stepped on. Make sure he has lots of room. Hope this helps. If you have any questions you can message me.

Answer 3

It actually may not be the tarp itself, but the noise it makes when it flaps in the wind. Horses have an extreme keen sense of hearing. Lots of things hurt their ears or spook them when they hear it. Make sure your tarp is tied down as tight as you can get it so it doesn't fly around in the wind. Then just give him/her some time. When they get used to certain noises and sights, they will not be spooked by it. Hang in there. Good Luck.

Answer 4

Be patient. Horses can sometimes be a little bit stupid when they get nervous about something- "common sense" goes out the window and panic mode sets in- of this I am sure you are well aware. A friend of mine has a horse who is "scared to death" of a jump in our arena every single time she gets on to ride and they have to go through the whole process of get over it before they can work. His fear is probably really laziness. Some horses are smart enough to know that they can fake being afraid to get out of work. I had a mare who was like that. Sometimes you just have to lay the law down and give them a good swat or kick. However, if it is genuine fear, that is the last thing you want to do because it will just make them more nuts and afraid- they will associate the thing they are afraid of with pain and it will just make your problem worse.

To help get him used to the tarp, start small, with some ground work. Don't worry about being on him just yet. Let him smell it and get comfortable with it, even when you move it around and it makes "scary" noises. When he is totally fine with it on the ground, go ahead and mount up (assuming the tarp is in your riding arena regularly). When going by the tarp, tell him with your aids that it is not scary. To do this, get him focused on working and using his hindquarters (inside leg to outside rein when the inside hind leg is pushing off from the ground) well before the scary object. Get him to bend to the inside (towards the middle of the arena usually) and ask him to look to the inside too and to not look at the object. And by ask, I don't mean jerk his head to the inside, but ask him to softly flex his neck at the poll and look away from the object and in the direction of travel by using your inside rein- NOT the outside (that doesn't mean throw away your outside rein, just don't pull on it- ask for bend with your inside leg at the girth and for flexion with your inside rein). I also find it helpful to not ask for an up transition in the scary area until the horse is totally fine with it, down transitions are fine though. If you ask the horse to go faster when he's already trying to get away, it's just going to confirm his fear that the tarp is scary. Also, if your horse is capable of staying balanced and working correctly on a 10 or 15 meter circle, sometimes staying on one of those and asking for a few steps of leg yield towards the object or rail can help too when the horse begins to relax a little.
Also remember, if your horse is a mare, they do tend to be a little more spooky than geldings so it may take a little bit longer, but not necessarily- depends on the horse.
Hope this helps. Good Luck!

Answer 5

you have to show it to him first..fold it up...bring it up to him in a confined space..if he's that freaked out..fold it up and show it to him where he can run away...after you show it folded up , touch him with it...make a very little noise..it's all getting him used to it..eventually you will unfold it..as he accepts it put it over him as a blanket and let him stand there with it..then put it on the ground unfolded ..lead him up to it..keep introducing it until he is clam and no longer afraid..then he will eventually be able to be lead over it..then with it secured by rocks or lumber..when he no longer fears it..ride him by it..keep working with him until you can ride him over it..it takes alot of introducing and a lot of time and commitment..do the introducing everyday..eventually he will have no fear of them..even if the wind blows it or you shake it at him..you can start with a Walmart or grocery store plastic bag..makes noise like a tarp..horses can be desensitized to things they fear..BUT it takes time and patients..you can't force it.

Answer 6

You take them up to it really slowly and introduced them to it and keep doing this to get them used to it.

Answer 7

To remove a fear you must desensitize

Answer 8

just say "uno dos ohio"