How to Get a Horse to Drop Its Head on the Lunge Line

Teaching a horse to give to the bit during ground training and lunging requires the gradual practice of having a horse lower its head using a surcingle or draw reins. A surcingle is a large circular strap that ties around the horse's girth. It is usually used to train driving horses, but can also be used to lower a horse's head and help it adjust to saddle straps around the girth. A training surcingle has many rings attached for gradual head lowering. Also, draw reins can be tied to a saddle during lunging to help horses gradually lower their heads.

Things You'll Need

  • Surcingle
  • Draw reins
  • Bridle
  • Saddle
  • Lunge strap
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Instructions

  1. Using a Surcingle

    • 1

      Attach the surcingle around the horse's girth, which is the area of back, ribs and stomach immediately behind the horse's front legs.

    • 2

      Draw the reins through the rings immediately beneath the horse's shoulders. Pull the reins gently through so that the horse is forced to gradually lower the head and keep it level with its shoulders. Provide enough slack so that the horse relaxes its mouth and stops fighting the bit. Once your horse relaxes, it should lower its head. The more you work with the surcingle, the more your horse will learn to bend. After a while, you will be able to lower the horse's head more drastically.

    • 3

      Tie the reins securely to the ring once the horse's head has lowered to your desired level.

    • 4

      Attach a lunge strap onto the rings on each side of the bit and snap a lunge line to the strap. Lunge your horse to the right for several minutes and to the left for several minutes to help your horse adjust to the surcingle and the reins. Practice this once or twice a week until your horse learns to relax and lower their head without the aids.

    Using Draw Reins

    • 5

      Saddle and bridle the horse normally. Use a training saddle, which has several rings on the front of the saddle and several rings on the back of the saddle.

    • 6

      Attach the draw reins to the bit. Dressage competitor, Lisa Zinger says that, "Draw reins are a continuous strap, 15 to 17 feet long, buckled in the center, with ends that loop around the girth on both sides of the horse. Position the loop ends halfway between his elbow and the bottom of the saddle flap." Draw reins can be made of cotton webbing, leather or nylon. Zinger recommends against nylon because it can become slippery when wet.

    • 7

      Wrap the draw reins around the side of your horse and tie them to the rings on the front of the saddle to secure them in place. Pull the reins taut enough to help your horse lower its head, but not too tight. Once your horse has learned to relax its mouth around the bit and lower its head, you can run the reins between the horse's front legs and tie them to the rings of the saddle. Running the reins through the front legs helps your horse move its head even lower.

    • 8

      Attach a lunge strap to the rings on each side of the bit. Snap a lunge line to the strap. Lunge your horse to the right for several minutes and to the left for several minutes to help your horse adjust to the draw reins. Practice this regularly.