Halter Breaking

Question
We have six horses, 3 are in there 20s (well broke and ridable)the other 3 are young geldings. One we are selling, one is in training, and the other I am starting myself. He is 4 years old and wore a halter when he was a colt. He is very gentle,calm, and trusting, will be easy to break for riding. I'm not sure how tall he is in "hands" but his back is atleast 5 1/2 feet tall. I put a halter on him today (which was very easy) it didn't even phase him. (starting with a blanket tomorrow)  I went out to the pasture multiple times and hooked the lead rope on, but he will not move unless one of the other horses bump him or I practically sit on the ground pulling so hard. How can I get him to walk without a struggle? I don't want him to think I'm hurting him or anything, can you please help? Thanks! p.s. sorry it's so long I wanted to be thorough

Answer
Linda Tellington Jones has an excellent book on starting horses. Her methods are also called the TTouch. I think you should invest in one of her books.

Take a long dressage whip....YOU ARE NOT GOING TO WHIP HIM WITH IT!)

Stroke him with it all over his body, using long strokes so he is not afraid of it. It should almost be like a massage. Now face him looking at his haunches. Stoke the whip twice on his back....and then TAP him on the top of his haunches.   (stroke, stroke, tap , tap).
    Start out just as softly as you can. If he does not understand you may have to tap once a little bit more sharply. You do not want to hurt him or frighten him. Use your voice to say "walk on". DO NOT look him directly in the face. (This is a predator-prey thing).
    When he is walking, walk parallel to his shouder. When you want him to stop, take a giant step so that you face him at a 45 degree angle and say "  aaannnd whooaaaa." Repeat again and again. Always use the "walk on" signal. and the stroke , stroke, tap,  tap routine. This teaches him to go forward form your voice, body language, and the pressure on the rope.
    After a while you will just be able to lead him normally. Be sure to practice this every once in a while, however. It is a wonderful asset in leading horses onto trailers.

www.MitziSummers.com, Summersdressage@aol.com