Desensitizing a horse to the rope helps to prepare it to accept the girth and to remain calm in all situations.
Table of Contents
Why should you desensitize your horse to the rope? The answer is obvious for ranch workers and ropers, yet such exercise should not be forgotten by all the others. For those who like to ride outdoor, it can be quite helpful to have a horse ready to be tied to a rope and pull a log or something stuck in the middle of the trail. Basically, the more your horse is desensitized to such stimuli, the safer he is.
Moreover, there is one common thing to all horses, all riders, all disciplines: you have to tighten your saddle cinch or girth in order to ride your horse. When dealing with a green horse or starting a colt, desensitizing him to the rope is the first step to accept gently the girth. Eventually you will not end with problem horses moving away when you cinch them up, or trying to bite when you tighten the girth around their belly.
Security
If you start a colt, or try to fix a problem horse, make sure you position yourself by his flank and you hold the lead rope firmly in your left hand. Pulling slightly the rope will tip the horse’s head inside, and push the hindquarters away in case he would like to buck.
Process
The process is quite similar to desensitizing with the flag: throw gently the end of the rope (about one metre or 3 feet) over the back of your horse. That will probably make him walk around, sometimes trot around in order to get away from that new pressure. Keep throwing the rope all the time until the horse stops, stands still, and shows a sign of relaxation. Then stop and pet your horse as a reward, let him rest for a couple of minutes before you start again.
Repeat the process, leaving less time to rest between the pressure moments, but never forget to release as soon as you see a sign of relaxation, and do not be shy on rubbing and petting! Pretty soon, your horse will not even flinch when you start to throw the rope. That will be the moment to throw it entirely over his back, and pull it gently. I advise you to do the same over the neck, around the hind legs, around the forelegs, etc. This will teach your horse to remain calm in many situations: If the legs are wrapped in wire or tangled in a rope, simply when laying the reins over the neck, you name it.
Once this first step of desensitizing is over, you can start the second one: preparing to the girth. Throw the rope over the back of your horse, pick up the end, and wrap it loose around his belly. Keep holding the leading rope with your left hand, about 50 cm (a couple of feet) from the fiador knot so you still have a lever in hand. With your right hand, grab both ends of the rope, and seesaw it around the belly until your horse shows a sign of relaxation. Then, repeat the process, tightening your grip. This will teach your horse to stay put when you cinch it up.
REMINDER:
At every step of the process, do not forget to switch side. All you teach on one side has to be taught on the other side!
Q&A
What if my horse keeps moving around?
Most of the time, the problems come from the horseman or the horsewoman, not from the horse. First, make sure you recognize perfectly well the relaxation signs, and second be firm enough to really desensitize the horse. Follow the horse when he walks or trots around you, do not give up, and keep throwing the rope over his back until he stops and gets relaxed. At the beginning, it can actually take a few minutes. Sometimes, you could bump the head inside a little bit to break the horse’s motion, and “help” him to stop and calm down.
For those who start (break) colts: What if my horse bucks when I tighten the rope?
You may desensitize your horse to the flag a little more under the belly. Eventually, you may have to face that bucking situation anyway, so keep the lead rope in your left hand and pull the head inward to break the bucking position. That will make the horse walk or trot around: hold the rope, get ready to run a little bit, and make sure you release pressure as soon as the horse stops! Forget about relaxation at the beginning, remaining still will be the first prize. Stop the exercise for the day and start again the day after, asking a little bit more: A subtle relaxation sign. Pretty soon, your horse will be ready to be cinched up!