"Straight talk time: Before tackling today's topic, make absolutely sure that your horse has been thoroughly sacked out to your touch. If that little voice says there is any way your horse is going to react negatively (flinch, freeze up, pull away, try to kick, etc.) to your touch, especially when working around those back feet, then... you ain't ready. Conversely, if that little voice says "All systems go," then you should have an easy day of it.
You can teach the following very simply without a round pen – but the round pen offers two significant advantages: 1) You don't have to juggle a lead line in one hand, and 2) Should the horse need a little extra motivation to play along, you can send him around a few rotations.
Simply put, the better we can control the hind end of the horse, the easier it is to control the front half of the horse. So, we start with the back feet. Standing on the horse's left side, you'll ask the rear of the horse to move away. Ask him to take a step or two and when he stops, look at the back leg closest to you (the one we'd like to pick up). Does he have any weight on it? We want to keep asking him to move, then pausing, then asking him to move until, by chance, he stands with that nearest back leg cocked up. You’ve seen this stance a million times. They'll stand there with weight on three feet, the fourth resting, slightly turned up, toe to heel."
- Print out from home
- 5 Days, 5 chapters
- Learn at your own pace
"I could walk by my horse all day and he doesn't have to even recognize that I'm here – and it would be a waste of my time to ask him to do anything. But if I took a stick and started poking him, then all of a sudden it becomes a whole lot more important to the horse that "I'm here." When you ask a horse to do something, a lot of other things are going to draw his attention and it's important that you become more important, no matter what it takes. The horse has to fully recognize that you're there. That's important, otherwise, you can't get to the next step: You can't get him to respond in a certain way.
"You've all heard that you want to get your horse's attention first. That's nonsense. We don't care about the horse's attention; we really don't. I don't expect the horse to think about me before he does something. Have you ever been on a trail ride with your horse when the horse did everything you wanted him to do? What were you doing? You were looking around, talking to people, enjoying the ride. Did you care for even one moment what your horse was thinking? No, you didn't, because he was doing exactly what you were asking him to do. You didn't care what he was thinking because…"
Equestrians: Find A John Lyons Horse Trainer Near You
Mapclick for a map showing trainer locations in the U.S.
• see if a pro lives near you at a glance
• click on the "green dots" for more info about that trainer
• use your browser's "back button" to return to this page
10078 Wildfield Ln, Littleton, CO 80125 USA
Email: Kavin4sky15*aol.com (replace * with @)
John Lyons horseman Carolyn Kavinsky lives in Central Colorado (Douglas county) within 100 miles of the following cities: Castle Rock, Littleton, Lakewood, Denver, Pueblo, Centennial, Fort Collins.
121 Bent Creek Circle, Parachute, CO 81635 USA
Email: michele*lyonslegacy.com (replace * with @), Site: www.lyonslegacy.com
John Lyons horseman Michele Lenard lives in West Central Colorado (Garfield county) within 100 miles of the following cities: Parachute, Grand Junction, Carbondale, Glenwood Springs.
812 Wilfred Road, Berthoud, CO 80513 USA
Email: susanmunroe*earthlink.net (replace * with @)
John Lyons horseman Susan Munroe lives in North Central Colorado (Larimer county) within 100 miles of the following cities: Loveland, Longmont, Denver, Boulder, Fort Collins, Centennial, Aurora.
4726 W. Jackson Creek Road, Sedalia, CO 80135 USA
Email: gnewton*ccioh.com (replace * with @)
John Lyons horseman Cyndee Newton lives in Central Colorado (Douglas county) within 100 miles of the following cities: Castle Rock, Littleton, Lakewood, Denver, Pueblo, Centennial, Fort Collins.
5090 County Rd. 271, Westcliffe, CO 81252 USA
Email: landlovers*hughes.net (replace * with @)
John Lyons horseman Vince Ouellette lives in Central Colorado (Custer county) within 100 miles of the following cities: Westcliffe, Crestone, Pueblo, Beulah, Colorado Springs.
261 Terra Vista St, Brighton, CO 80601 USA
Email: skrobison*msn.com (replace * with @)
John Lyons horseman Shantelle Robison lives in Central Colorado (Adams county) within 100 miles of the following cities: Denver, Arvada, Thornton, Fort Collins, Colorado Springs, Aurora, Boulder.
P.O. Box 271049, Louisville, CO 80027 USA
Email: bevento*yahoo.com (replace * with @)
John Lyons horseman Diana Rothman lives in Central Colorado (Boulder county) within 100 miles of the following cities: Denver, Lafayette, Boulder, Longmont.
629 1825 Road, Delta, CO 81416 USA
Email: rope22*msn.com (replace * with @)
John Lyons horseman Laura Ryan lives in West Central Colorado (Delta county) within 100 miles of the following cities: Grand Junction, Delta, Montrose, Aspen.
854 W. Battlement Pkwy M106, Parachute, CO 81635 USA
Email: connysaint*hotmail.com (replace * with @), Site: www.perfectpartnerhorsemanship.com
John Lyons horseman Conny St. Laurent lives in West Central Colorado (Garfield county) within 100 miles of the following cities: Grand Junction, Rifle, Glenwood Springs.
2175 E Road, Delta, CO 81416 USA
Email: hdfarm*aol.com (replace * with @), Site: http://www.hdfarm.com
John Lyons horseman Diane St. Peter lives in West Central Colorado (Delta county) within 100 miles of the following cities: Delta, Orchard City, Montrose, Grand Junction.
15750 Siesta Grove, Colorado Springs, CO 80908 USA
Email: gwenstroud*msn.com (replace * with @)
John Lyons horseman Gwen Stroud lives in Central Colorado (El Paso county) within 100 miles of the following cities: Littleton, Manitou Springs, Peyton.
2300 Cnty Rd. 1 A, Montrose, CO 81401 USA
Email: crybabyranch*frontier.net (replace * with @)
John Lyons horseman John White lives in Western Colorado (Montrose county) within 100 miles of the following cities: Orchard City, Grand Junction, Telluride.
5 Topledge Rd., Redding, CT 06896 USA
Email: horseandme13*netscape.com (replace * with @)
John Lyons horseman Pat Kenefic lives in Southwestern Connecticut (Fairfield county) within 100 miles of the following cities: New Haven, Bridgeport, Waterbury, New York, Springfield, Albany.
5352 Wauchula Road, Myakka City, FL 34251 USA
Email: bethany*clearsurfusa.com (replace * with @)
John Lyons horseman Bethany Allen-Ford lives in West Central Florida (Manatee county) within 100 miles of the following cities: Port Charlotte, Sarasota, Zolfo Springs, Bradenton, Tampa, Fort Myers, Cape Coral, Lakeland, Winter Haven.
