Horses That Won’t Stand Still

It’s always nice when a rider can ask their horse to stop, and it stands still on a slack rein until the rider asks it to move forward. On the other hand, no one likes when a horse is always walking off or dancing around after it’s been asked to stop. There are three exercises I use to fix this problem. Sometimes I pick out one, and other times I use all three to get the job done.

Flexing

Some horses are very busy minded, and they’re moving their feet because they feel they need to be doing something. This can be especially true with young horses. In this case, the exercise to start with is asking the horse to bend its head to one side until its nose is touching the toe of your boot. Then ask it to flex the other way and touch the toe of your other boot. Repeat this several times with the horse at a stand still. If the horse starts to move, keep flexing him back and forth, and that will usually make it stop again. Doing this gives the horse something to do and something to think about, but its feet are still. After some flexing, stop and pet the horse, wait a few moments, and then ride forward. The flexing helps the horse to stay still and learn that standing is a nice thing to do. Gradually, the horse figures out that it can stand and relax and doesn’t always have to be doing something. Once the horse understands this, the flexing won’t be necessary anymore.

Flexing the horse’s head back and forth gives the horse something to do while he keeps his feet still.  Put the Horse’s Energy to Use

In the second exercise, begin by asking the horse to move — a lot. Instead of trying to keep the horse in one place, put that energy to use. Trot or lope circles or do something else that uses up a lot of energy. Keep going until you feel the horse wanting to take a break. When you feel this, keep going just a bit longer and then ask the horse to stop. The reason for going a little longer is so that stopping is your idea and not because the horse decided to quit. The stop break needs to be very short. The timing can be tricky, but try to ask the horse to move again before it wants to. For instance, if you think the horse will want to move after a 20-second break, then ask it to move after 10 seconds.

If a horse has too much energy, I will put the horse to work until I feel him wanting to rest. I will then give the horse a very short rest break before putting him back to work. This teaches the horse to appreciate stopping and standing still. 

Put the horse back to work, and then give it a slightly longer break on the next stop. Keep repeating this, gradually making the breaks longer after each stop. The idea is that the horse gets short rest periods and learns to appreciate stopping. The breaks are shorter than what it wants them to be, so the horse will wish it could stand still for longer. As your horse figures this out, it will quit trying to move forward or shuffle around. It’s important that you don’t hold the horse still during the stop. Put some slack in the reins. If it moves before you ask, then ask it to stop again but only wait a few seconds before going back to work. After a few days of this lesson, your horse will likely want to stop when asked and stand still. When standing, make a point of rubbing and petting your horse. This causes the horse to relax and gives it something to think about other than moving. 

Backing Up

In the third exercise, start by riding around and then ask for the stop. If the horse stays still, that’s great. However, if it starts to move, pick up just enough with the reins that it can’t go forward, and then start rocking your legs lightly against the horse’s sides. Keep doing this until the horse takes one step backwards. When it steps back, release all pressure. The horse will likely move forward again, so immediately catch it with the reins and bump with the legs again until you get another step backwards. The horse might get slightly frustrated the first few times you use this technique, but it’ll soon stop trying to move forward. I have found that the more I try to hold horses still using the reins, the more most of them want to move. However, using this technique, my legs do most of the work of discouraging the horse from moving, and they learn the lesson better.

Every time the horse moves forward on his own, I catch him with the reins and then rock my legs against his sides until he backs up to where he should have been.

I hope these exercises can help you teach your horse to stand still. If you’re consistent with your training, this is an issue that can usually be fixed in a short period of time.

All the best to you and your horse.

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