Pivot on the Haunches?

Hello! :)

My small history in showmanship - I did NASMA (North American Saddle Mule Association) shows all year last year. In that we did Western, English, Showmanship, and Halter at A levels. So that's where I got my experience. BUT I was allowed a trained mule to show, as long as I helped my trainer train others. This situation is no longer happening, but anyway...

Cowboy, on the other hand, has never had any Showmanship experience. Just English. Well, I thought it would be fun to teach him! And it has been. He's picked everything up so quickly, and does a wonderful job of it! The only thing I'm having problems with is pivoting.

He knows what I'm asking - turn. BUT, he can't quite get that he needs to keep his back feet still. I've tried backing him up first, then turning him. Didn't quite work. Any other suggestions? Thank you everyone in advance! :)

You want to do the opposite - moving the horse forward into the pivot.
Lead the horse in a small circle, pushing him away from you, making the circle smaller and smaller until he has to rock onto his hocks and pivot over the front foot. One step at a time.

A lot of people will tell you that backing the horse into a pivot is not a good thing, because the pivot is a forward motion.

I would recommend teaching him to sidepass with you on the ground to teach him about moving away from you.

Work on walking boxes. At the corner, ask for the pivot, and walk out.

You may be crowding him, which would encourage a green horse to walk or back a circle rather than stick a foot.

Thank you both very much!! :) I was taught to back the mules into it, but they had already had a bit of a start. I will change things up and fix them. Thanks again!!
Ah, and I've already got Cowboy sidepassing on the ground and mounted. I will try out the box tomorrow, thank you!