BIG horse...Being Pushy On Lead

Hey, all. I'm getting my horse soon. I'm pickin her up n Missouri and traveling to California. She's only 2 years old, but she's a Clydesdale... a lot of horse! Her current owner has been very honest with me. The filly is very pusshy when leading. She hasn't been worked with a whole lot. She isn't being agressive or entirely disrespectful.... basically when YOU stop, she things she can keep going. I have my own ideas on how to go about this, but I'm open to suggestions and hearing what techniques have worked for you. She's a big girl and I want to make out trip as smooth for all of us as possible.
Thanks!

My new guy did the SAME THING!! He's only 14 hands, though. I let him walk on a loose lead and periodically "test" him by stopping and saying "Whoa". If he chose to keep walking (His MO was to start circling around me), I would disengage his hindquarters and make him circle around me (Not fast, just pushing him a little faster than he was circling himself) a couple of times, then give him the chance to stop again off of the same "Whoa" cue. He stopped every time on his second chance. Now, a few weeks later, he walks calmly at my shoulder, stopping when I stop, often without a verbal cue or even my undivided attention, lol.

I wouldn't lead her. I'd put her in a smaller paddock and teach her to give to the pressure of my whip, then my hand, then my body energy and then eventually lead her w/o halter or lead.

One of the strongest cues you can put on her is 'back up'. It's the epitome of concession.

You would also do well to read Klaus Ferdinand Hempfling's book Dancing With Horses. Never again will you have a horse run you over, push into you, or have to pull on a horse to get it to move.

Thanks =) I definitely plan on working on her backups. That way, when she goes forward without me, I'll back her up several steps. That way she will see it's easier to walk with me instead of ahead of me. That, though, will take some training and time. My main concern is the trip.... I won't have time to work with her until we arrive in California. Before we get there, I will be boarding her at overnight stalls and hoping I can get more short-term advice for now. She will definitely need a lead durring the trip.

Thanks! That was one of my plans... getting her to move her hip when she doesn't "WOAH" =)

A rope halter might be a helpful thing to have along since horses are generally a little bit more sensitive with them and they can't just throw all their weight on the halter like they can with a nylon one...

Good luck! Your trip sounds like it'll be super fun! =)

Yea, I would definately say back her butt up. I'm a stickler for ground manners and every horse I have worked with stops as soon as I do and if their shoulder is past mine, they will back up to me automatically. If you stop and she doesn't, back her up hard and then make her stand next to you unmoving and count to ten. it works very well.

Thanks, guys(girls)! I have myself armed with a rope halter, plus a nylon halter w/ a curb chain lead rope. Hopefully that'll cover us.

I always say this but start back to the basics. Do some round pen exercises. It sounds to me like she thinks shes the leader of the pack. Gunther had the same problem, once I started to put him in the round pen to lunge he came out to be a totally different horse.

I will. Like I said, though, I won't have the option to do that durring the trip, which is what I'm worried about.