When training a green breakaway horse, there’s a fine line between setting them up for failure and doing all the thinking for them. How do you walk that line effectively? While working with 5-year-old Lil Punch, Shelby Meged shares three key principles she follows to help her horse learn the right lessons while building confidence.
Watch the full practice session on Roping.com.
1. When scoring, emphasize relaxation and sitting “dead still”
“When I score this calf, I want to sit dead still. I want to try not to move, and if my horse does move, I want him to correct himself on his own without me having to correct him. If he doesn’t correct on his own, then I’ll help him.
“So right there he moved a little bit but I sat dead still and he realized that I didn’t move yet. He didn’t correct himself back into the corner so I just helped him back with my right foot and set him straight.
“I always sit dead still after I score until my horse is perfect. I don’t ever want to give him the release until he does it right. We don’t want to reward them for doing the wrong thing.”
2. Find the balance between helping your horse and letting them make—and learn from—mistakes
“With our younger horses, we want to just show them enough to where they’re learning, but if we do too much for them and we just help them all the time, I don’t feel like they actually ever learn.
“On this run, I just want to make sure I help him all the way to the calf. During my last run, I felt like I helped him halfway through it but then tried to let him do it too much on his own for the rest of it. So this run, I’m just going to help him all the way through.”
3. Make sure your run and score cues are distinct and clear
“On a younger horse, I try to not make mistakes on myself that might reflect on my horse. So in the corner right there, I tried to stay relaxed, not move and let that calf have an honest chance. On these younger horses, I don’t want to get in the habit of pulling on ’em in the corner or pulling on ’em across the line. I want them to have all the confidence. It needs to be really black and white for them. They’re either dead still or they’re running to the calf.”
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