12 year old quarter horse mare

Question
Rick,
I am starting to train my mare who is with my half Arab and half quarter and I might have the feeling that before we got her she was abused she came out of a homestead and she walks up to me okay but when i start petting her she walks away and doesn't like to be touched at all. she will only let me pet her when she is tied or i have her by the halter. But she will not let me get near her feet and i just keep trying everyday and use alot of patience and i will take her on walks down the street and talk to her but I have been doing that for a little while and it seems like i am not getting anywhere with her. Any advice you could give me would be great Thanks
P.S your website is awesome and really helpful

Answer
Hey Nate, all horses want the same thing, to feel safe, secure and know their place in the herd.  Horses like to know what to expect, so this mare, if abused may not trust men (since most men are abusers).  Your job is to be fair and show her you are lead horse and she can feel safe with you, know what to expect from you, you will be fair and not let her treat you like a lower horse.  Your body language may be telling her to move away.  Your goal should be to walk away from her before she walks away from you.  So if she lets you walk up to her, give her a treat, a small piece of carrot works well, then walk away slow and non threatening.  Ignore her and maybe bend over and pull up some grass, she will see you as a grazer and part of the herd.  She may just watch you, she may follow you, she may walk away, give her some time, a minute or so, and go up to her again and give her another piece of carrot and walk away.  The next time, walk up to her and stop a step away and offer her a carrot, make her take one small step to you to get the carrot, then walk away.  If you do it right she will follow you and want to walk up to you to get a carrot.  You don't want her seeing you as a predator that only comes out to catch her or pet her.  If she sees you as a carrot provider, then she has motivation to come be with you.  A horse has to see what is in it for them.  Right now, she sees humans as bad, they hurt or abuse her, or they just come out to catch you so they can lead you and pull you around.  The more times you approach her and walk away, the more she will not walk away.  Every time you let her walk away, you teach her to get release by walking away, not good.  This is called drawing in a horse, you can do the same thing in a round pen, you put pressure, make them run and as soon as they look at you, you back away and stop pressure, so they learn to look at you to get release.  By walking away from her in pasture, she learns to get release, she just has to stand and let you touch her and you will leave.  Always try for and accept small steps, too many people go for too much too fast and blow it with horses.  They are not that smart, if you learn how they think and what they want.

As for feet, same thing, don't try pick up her feet, try to rub her leg.  Then stop.  then rub her leg and just touch a little lower and move back to where she is comfortable.  Then rub a little lower, soon you will be rubbing her feet with no reaction.  Release is the key to almost all horse training.  You have to learn to read the horse, so you can tell when she is getting nervous or about to move or react, then you stop before the reaction.  Not after or during the reaction.  This is important.  This is called feeling, touch and timing.  Once you get it you will be able to do things with most any horse that others will see as a great accomplishment.  People tell me all the time, horses like you, no one else can do this, this horse will not let anyone else do this.......  horse pucky, any horse will let anyone do what I do, if the person knows how to release and read the horse.  It is just easier to make some mystic reason for this than to admit that most people don't know a horse but can't admit it.

A horse learns when you stop something!  This is the secret of horse training.  When you stop, the horse thinks whatever he is doing is the right answer.  If a horse bucks and I get off and put the horse up, he thinks bucking is the right answer to get me to leave him alone.  If a horse kicks at me and I put him up, he learns to kick to get put up.  If you round pen a horse and he refuses to move out and tries to crowd you and you stop and put him up, you have taught him the right answer when you tell him to move is to come and crowd you.

I could pick your mares feet up in about two minutes.  I would take her for a walk, move her hips, back her up, give her release every time she did what I asked and then reach down and pick up her foot.  I would put it down within a second, but by the time she knew it was up, I would put it down before she did.  She would learn to stand still and let me pick it up because she knows I will put it down. If I picked it up and held it, she would get scared, try and put it down if I tried to hold it, I would teach her to fear me picking up her foot and I will not put it down.  By putting it down before she does she learns to trust me, not panic, not fight me and not fear me.

Hope this helps,

Rick