Pushy Horse??

My horse is really pushy and doesn't respect my space when I'm leading her. Do you have any suggestions on how to get her to respect my space and stop when I tell her too? She's a dream to ride, it's just the leading that needs work.

When I have to work with a horse who won't stop when I stop, I twirl the leadrope around, just in front of me, very fast so it makes a whistling noise, and is very clearly there and going to hurt should the horse run into it. If I stop and the horse doesn't, they run into the rope. As soon as they've run into the rope I either a: back up them up very fast or if the horse still needs work on backing up, too, b: move their shoulder away and circle them as quickly as possible. It quickly becomes easier to pay attention and stop when I do than to have to work because they didn't.

It's really the same old story; the horse is as pushy as you 'll let her be. So, if you don't expect and require her to stop when you say "stop", then you wont' get that. HOrses rise to the lowest level of our expectations. So, if you accept a slow, sloppy stop, then you will get that.

So, if you stop, (and be sure that you have given the hrose a bit of prewarning with your body by shifting your upper body backward, as if you are leaning backward a bit, jsut before you stop your feet) and the hrose keeps going, you have to reprimand that .

I start with jerking backward on the line, and if the hrose doesn't move backward, I use the twirling end of the lead rope, just as the other person said, our in front of the horse 's nose. So, I am backing up, jerking backward on the lead line, (just under the horse's jaw) and as aI back up, the twirling leadline gets so close to the horse's nose, that if they don't move, they end up getting bopped on their tender nose. That usually makes a pretty good impression .

After I do that enough, the realize that once they pass my shoulder, they will be brought back behind me again, so all I have to do from then on is raise my leading hand a bit, maybe give a little shake of the line to remind them to get back in "their" place.

But, if you dont' keep reinforcing this , the horse will forget it . So, if your expectation goes down, so does the horse's compliance.