Kentucky Armory Club

This is going to be a sketchy journal, as it will depend on when I have time to sit down and write. But I have this big oof of a horse that I've owned for 5 years and done pretty much diddly squat with. I even quit riding all together last year because of a bad fall off of him. Some horseback riding lessons and a lesson on him later I can comfortably say that I am back.

I also bought a horse trailer so now I can actually haul him places and have decided to start to get him conditioned for mounted shooting games.

For those of you that don't know much about horses they have a pretty huge RUN button to anything that makes them nervous. Trees can become horse eating monsters for no reason other than a questionable rustle. So conditioning the animals takes some time to get them used to the noise.

This weekend since it is going to be 50F I am taking him to our farm and going to start working with him to sensitize him to the sound of gunfire. I have to get horse ear plugs which I'm ordering today, but its going to be a slow road that should hopefully take me a few weeks to get him used to. Hopefully.

There is a clinic at the end of March for mounted shooting that I really want to go to, hence why I'm trying to find the correct guns.

So yeah. This is my half ass journal for making a horse love gunfire and at the end mounted shooting.

Rather large undertaking. I shoot around ours a lot. They can handle a 22 but don't like it. One round from an AR and they'll run 40 yards or so. Multiple rounds and they go berserk.

PM sent.

From the WyldPhone

baknblack wrote:Rather large undertaking. I shoot around ours a lot. They can handle a 22 but don't like it. One round from an AR and they'll run 40 yards or so. Multiple rounds and they go berserk.

That's why most of the people who do it use ear plugs or "fuzzies" lol. From what I can tell its just a slow process. The people for the clinic said that I can bring him never being around it before, but he is a nervous horse on principle until he gets used to something. So, my thoughts are to start him BEFORE the clinic. I'm going to guess hes been around it before, but that's just a guess since he came from Bardstown.

Good luck CL.

Associate the noise with food treats and he may get to like the noise.

ChickenLady wrote:

baknblack wrote:Rather large undertaking. I shoot around ours a lot. They can handle a 22 but don't like it. One round from an AR and they'll run 40 yards or so. Multiple rounds and they go berserk.

That's why most of the people who do it use ear plugs or "fuzzies" lol. From what I can tell its just a slow process. The people for the clinic said that I can bring him never being around it before, but he is a nervous horse on principle until he gets used to something. So, my thoughts are to start him BEFORE the clinic. I'm going to guess hes been around it before, but that's just a guess since he came from Bardstown.

I saw craig Cameron start with a cap pistol, then 22 short, then LR. Then the mounted shooting pistol. He said it takes a long time and some horses never Completely accept it.

baknblack wrote:

ChickenLady wrote:

baknblack wrote:Rather large undertaking. I shoot around ours a lot. They can handle a 22 but don't like it. One round from an AR and they'll run 40 yards or so. Multiple rounds and they go berserk.

That's why most of the people who do it use ear plugs or "fuzzies" lol. From what I can tell its just a slow process. The people for the clinic said that I can bring him never being around it before, but he is a nervous horse on principle until he gets used to something. So, my thoughts are to start him BEFORE the clinic. I'm going to guess hes been around it before, but that's just a guess since he came from Bardstown.

I saw craig Cameron start with a cap pistol, then 22 short, then LR. Then the mounted shooting pistol. He said it takes a long time and some horses never Completely accept it.

That's what I saw as well. I was told by the regional club to start with .22s or caps to start. If he doesn't accept it then he will be a professional trail horse, something he is really good at.

richief wrote:Associate the noise with food treats and he may get to like the noise.

While Memphis might like treats, when horse eating monsters appear he loses focus with treats.

ChickenLady wrote:

baknblack wrote:

ChickenLady wrote:

baknblack wrote:Rather large undertaking. I shoot around ours a lot. They can handle a 22 but don't like it. One round from an AR and they'll run 40 yards or so. Multiple rounds and they go berserk.

That's why most of the people who do it use ear plugs or "fuzzies" lol. From what I can tell its just a slow process. The people for the clinic said that I can bring him never being around it before, but he is a nervous horse on principle until he gets used to something. So, my thoughts are to start him BEFORE the clinic. I'm going to guess hes been around it before, but that's just a guess since he came from Bardstown.

I saw craig Cameron start with a cap pistol, then 22 short, then LR. Then the mounted shooting pistol. He said it takes a long time and some horses never Completely accept it.

That's what I saw as well. I was told by the regional club to start with .22s or caps to start. If he doesn't accept it then he will be a professional trail horse, something he is really good at.

We have a trail ride in Henry County every year in October. Ever been?

baknblack wrote:

ChickenLady wrote:

baknblack wrote:

ChickenLady wrote:

baknblack wrote:Rather large undertaking. I shoot around ours a lot. They can handle a 22 but don't like it. One round from an AR and they'll run 40 yards or so. Multiple rounds and they go berserk.

That's why most of the people who do it use ear plugs or "fuzzies" lol. From what I can tell its just a slow process. The people for the clinic said that I can bring him never being around it before, but he is a nervous horse on principle until he gets used to something. So, my thoughts are to start him BEFORE the clinic. I'm going to guess hes been around it before, but that's just a guess since he came from Bardstown.

I saw craig Cameron start with a cap pistol, then 22 short, then LR. Then the mounted shooting pistol. He said it takes a long time and some horses never Completely accept it.

That's what I saw as well. I was told by the regional club to start with .22s or caps to start. If he doesn't accept it then he will be a professional trail horse, something he is really good at.

We have a trail ride in Henry County every year in October. Ever been?

I have not but you have currently peaked my interest. His best work is done on trails.

ChickenLady wrote:

baknblack wrote:

ChickenLady wrote:

baknblack wrote:

ChickenLady wrote:

baknblack wrote:Rather large undertaking. I shoot around ours a lot. They can handle a 22 but don't like it. One round from an AR and they'll run 40 yards or so. Multiple rounds and they go berserk.

That's why most of the people who do it use ear plugs or "fuzzies" lol. From what I can tell its just a slow process. The people for the clinic said that I can bring him never being around it before, but he is a nervous horse on principle until he gets used to something. So, my thoughts are to start him BEFORE the clinic. I'm going to guess hes been around it before, but that's just a guess since he came from Bardstown.

I saw craig Cameron start with a cap pistol, then 22 short, then LR. Then the mounted shooting pistol. He said it takes a long time and some horses never Completely accept it.

That's what I saw as well. I was told by the regional club to start with .22s or caps to start. If he doesn't accept it then he will be a professional trail horse, something he is really good at.

We have a trail ride in Henry County every year in October. Ever been?

I have not but you have currently peaked my interest. His best work is done on trails.

Drennon Trail Ride. Usually the second Saturday and Sunday in October. Meet in the bottoms across the road from the drennon Christian Church. Drennon springs ky. The area has a rich history although nothing remains but the church.
This past year we had about 20 on Saturday and 5 on Sunday. Mainly due to poor weather. Usually about 70 on Saturday and 20 on Sunday.
Ride is about 6 hours and all on private property.

My BIL got a retired horse from the Lexington police several years for his mounted Calvary reenactments. He was already conditioned to loud crowds & gunfire so no problems when he used him in reenactments. Might be a thought if you can't get him conditioned to the noise.

Rach I used to do a bit of fox hunting, and have a hunting whip (the kind with the 3 yard long lash) that I put a silk popper on. It sounds like a gun shot. I had to condition my horse, a flighty former race horse, and it was no problem even for Miss Fidget. She got used to it quickly and did great with it whether I was cracking it over her head or under her or wherever I needed to reach out and touch a hound. LOL she loved working the hounds, and if she saw one straying she would take off after it whether I asked her to or not. Sometimes I was just along for the ride while she did the work. Every time I rode her I ended up laughing. Not a particularly clever jumper, but she always got to the other side of the fence, just don't look at how she got there. She lived to the ripe old age of 29, and I still miss her. But I digress.

On the other hand, one time I was on a borrowed horse, and wasn't thinking LOL. I cracked that whip and found out how much fun it was to be on the back of a horse leaping straight up and then hopping around on his hind legs. Moral of the story: conditioning IS necessary. Oh, and remember when you aren't on your own horse, of course.

If you would like to borrow that whip to start out slow and see how he reacts before you move to blanks or live ammo, I would be happy to loan it to you. I find it pops much louder than a lunge whip.

In any case, good luck with your training. It should be a fun and rewarding project.

LOL! In one of my lessons once I got back up on horses but not yet on Memphis, I was on a dead headed quarter horse. To make him go, since I was riding in split reins, I smacked him on the rump with the end of the reins. He moved out just fine but then I got the no no talk from the lesson lady. She was like you got luck he wasn't a hot horse. I had reverted back to my outrider days where sometimes the horses just were like NOPE and since I don't generally ride with spurs I used whatever was at hand.

Funny how you forget the no no's when you aren't on your own horse or horses that you are used to.

Tomm is lesson one with him. I'm taking him to the farm. Joe and a couple guys are going out to go shooting so I'm taking him with me. My plan is this:

For those that have never been there the farm is about 115 acres split into 5 very large pastures. One of them is completely fenced off so this the one I'm going to use. Thought process here is IF he gets away from me he only has 15 or so acres to run instead of one of the HUGE pastures. The boys will be in another pasture where they always shoot. I'm going to clip him on a lunge line so he has freedom to move when needed. Otherwise he can just eat grass and be a horse. I want him contained to the lunge line so I have control over his movements so he remembers that I am still there and still in charge. Then have the boys fire.

I don't expect the first few goes to go over with stunning positive results. That's OK. As long as I see a smidgeon of calm down from him I'll know he's starting to accept it. I'll move closer as he gets calmer to the noise. I want to stay a pasture apart as well because they will be shooting loud rounds. Try to keep some sound distance between us.

I don't expect this as well to be fixed in one day. I'll have to keep this up for WEEKS. The best trainers say it can take 6 months or more for the horses to accept the noise. I have a long road ahead of me.

ChickenLady wrote:LOL! In one of my lessons once I got back up on horses but not yet on Memphis, I was on a dead headed quarter horse. To make him go, since I was riding in split reins, I smacked him on the rump with the end of the reins. He moved out just fine but then I got the no no talk from the lesson lady. She was like you got luck he wasn't a hot horse. I had reverted back to my outrider days where sometimes the horses just were like NOPE and since I don't generally ride with spurs I used whatever was at hand.

Funny how you forget the no no's when you aren't on your own horse or horses that you are used to.

That's not a no-no in my book. I've worked with many different horses in many different places under many different people. Some people have stricter rules/beliefs than others. A smack on the rear with whatever is available is a perfectly acceptable action PROVIDED it is part of an escalation of force.

1) Suggest that the horse should move with subtle cues (shifting weight, posture, slight rein movement)
2) Ask the horse to move with your voice (kiss or click)
3) Tell the horse to move with heel pressure
4) Command the horse to move, with harder pressure or heel taps
5) FORCE the horse to move with kicks or smacks

With an unknown horse I always work all the way through this, top to bottom. If I know the horse and I'm familiar/comfortable with the situation, I can skip steps as needed. Raphael, my horse, simply pick up the reins like you're ready to go and he's going. Or, if your focus is elsewhere but you need him to move, click once or twice. But for the holy love of God, don't you kick my horse. You will be sorry, and it won't be because of me. Another horse I work with is sweet as can be but hasn't a drop of common sense and is as dead-sided as a brick wall. He REQUIRES a crop/long reins/section of rubber hose to get him moving.

Whootsinator wrote:

ChickenLady wrote:LOL! In one of my lessons once I got back up on horses but not yet on Memphis, I was on a dead headed quarter horse. To make him go, since I was riding in split reins, I smacked him on the rump with the end of the reins. He moved out just fine but then I got the no no talk from the lesson lady. She was like you got luck he wasn't a hot horse. I had reverted back to my outrider days where sometimes the horses just were like NOPE and since I don't generally ride with spurs I used whatever was at hand.

Funny how you forget the no no's when you aren't on your own horse or horses that you are used to.

That's not a no-no in my book. I've worked with many different horses in many different places under many different people. Some people have stricter rules/beliefs than others. A smack on the rear with whatever is available is a perfectly acceptable action PROVIDED it is part of an escalation of force.

1) Suggest that the horse should move with subtle cues (shifting weight, posture, slight rein movement)
2) Ask the horse to move with your voice (kiss or click)
3) Tell the horse to move with heel pressure
4) Command the horse to move, with harder pressure or heel taps
5) FORCE the horse to move with kicks or smacks

With an unknown horse I always work all the way through this, top to bottom. If I know the horse and I'm familiar/comfortable with the situation, I can skip steps as needed. Raphael, my horse, simply pick up the reins like you're ready to go and he's going. Or, if your focus is elsewhere but you need him to move, click once or twice. But for the holy love of God, don't you kick my horse. You will be sorry, and it won't be because of me. Another horse I work with is sweet as can be but hasn't a drop of common sense and is as dead-sided as a brick wall. He REQUIRES a crop/long reins/section of rubber hose to get him moving.

LOL Memphis must be like your Raphael... I met a person who used a crop on him once. The person didn't eat dirt but came quite close

ChickenLady wrote:

Whootsinator wrote:

ChickenLady wrote:LOL! In one of my lessons once I got back up on horses but not yet on Memphis, I was on a dead headed quarter horse. To make him go, since I was riding in split reins, I smacked him on the rump with the end of the reins. He moved out just fine but then I got the no no talk from the lesson lady. She was like you got luck he wasn't a hot horse. I had reverted back to my outrider days where sometimes the horses just were like NOPE and since I don't generally ride with spurs I used whatever was at hand.

Funny how you forget the no no's when you aren't on your own horse or horses that you are used to.

That's not a no-no in my book. I've worked with many different horses in many different places under many different people. Some people have stricter rules/beliefs than others. A smack on the rear with whatever is available is a perfectly acceptable action PROVIDED it is part of an escalation of force.

1) Suggest that the horse should move with subtle cues (shifting weight, posture, slight rein movement)
2) Ask the horse to move with your voice (kiss or click)
3) Tell the horse to move with heel pressure
4) Command the horse to move, with harder pressure or heel taps
5) FORCE the horse to move with kicks or smacks

With an unknown horse I always work all the way through this, top to bottom. If I know the horse and I'm familiar/comfortable with the situation, I can skip steps as needed. Raphael, my horse, simply pick up the reins like you're ready to go and he's going. Or, if your focus is elsewhere but you need him to move, click once or twice. But for the holy love of God, don't you kick my horse. You will be sorry, and it won't be because of me. Another horse I work with is sweet as can be but hasn't a drop of common sense and is as dead-sided as a brick wall. He REQUIRES a crop/long reins/section of rubber hose to get him moving.

LOL Memphis must be like your Raphael... I met a person who used a crop on him once. The person didn't eat dirt but came quite close

You should try kicking him. It might teach you something, if you're willing to fall. But if you're not willing to fall, don't get on him in the first place.

I tried to race him once, bareback, after working with him all summer. He doesn't do well in high stress situations. Amping him up, and getting him ready to race, then giving him a solid kick (not crazy, just a solid kick) apparently puts him into overdrive and he becomes hypersensitive to all commands. As soon as we started I could tell he was too hot, and tried to pull him back down a bit. NOPE. Locked his front legs, and STOPPED. He did exactly what I asked him to do, just a whole HELL of a lot faster than I was going for, hahaha. I kept traveling forward at the same speed as before he stopped, flipped in mid air, hit the ground with my shoulder tucked, lower half SLAMMED into the dirt, and I sprang right back up onto my feet. Oh yeah, and if you're sent literally flying off of a horse, don't forget to let go of the reins

In all honesty everything was fine. He did do exactly what I asked him to do in his mind, and it wasn't a great situation in the first place. From analyzing it after it happened I really did learn quite a bit. I won't say it will never happen again.

LOL the stupid ways we fall off I love it

The best fall off of Memphis was a at a full gallop down a trail he jumped a log I was getting ready to stop for and off the side I went. lol

Or the mean as snot quarter horse that I tried to force to do pole bending with. He was only 14.1H but that little jerk could buck. Off I went!

Back in my early days working on the race track, I had to be careful chirping to a horse.

Some who had come from other barns had been chirped at and simultaneously zapped with a battery during training. They very quickly learned to associate chirping with zapping and it made them run like hell to get away from the danger.

Chirp at one of those and hold on for dear life. If not prepared for the bolt, well you are now in all likelihood a pedestrian, exercising the walk of shame, horseless, back to the barn.

Fortunately I never fell off at the track. My hunter/jumper work helped me to stay on in most situations, but there were many who did LOL.

Humans can teach a horse in any number of ways. Still, my 'Escalation of Force' is the list I go through when dealing with complete unknowns. It is what I've found to be GENERALLY safest. There will certainly always be exceptions.

Like my friend, whose horse thinks pulling back means go faster. She didn't mention that one.

[quote="WhootsinatorI tried to race him once, bareback, after working with him all summer. He doesn't do well in high stress situations. Amping him up, and getting him ready to race, then giving him a solid kick (not crazy, just a solid kick) apparently puts him into overdrive and he becomes hypersensitive to all commands. As soon as we started I could tell he was too hot, and tried to pull him back down a bit. NOPE. Locked his front legs, and STOPPED. He did exactly what I asked him to do, just a whole HELL of a lot faster than I was going for, hahaha. I kept traveling forward at the same speed as before he stopped, flipped in mid air, hit the ground with my shoulder tucked, lower half SLAMMED into the dirt, and I sprang right back up onto my feet. Oh yeah, and if you're sent literally flying off of a horse, don't forget to let go of the reins

In all honesty everything was fine. He did do exactly what I asked him to do in his mind, and it wasn't a great situation in the first place. From analyzing it after it happened I really did learn quite a bit. I won't say it will never happen again.[/quote]

Whoots a friend of mine had a horse prop on the track while breezing, and then proceed to flip over the inside rail. She had to have facial reconstruction due to many broken bones. Consider yourself lucky!

Life is a risky venture. From walking into a field of horses to driving down the road. One of my friend's was dealing with her own pony that hadn't been so bad previously, but it spun around and kicked her square in the middle of her face. It completely smashed her face, shattering basically everything. She had to hold one of her eyes open, get out of the field, and drive herself to help. After a LOT of surgery she looks great, but is completely unrecognizable. She's currently in vet school, and still works with horses every day.

Last time I got bucked off was about 3 years ago. I didn't break anything but, it hurt. I decided I'm too old for that and we gave away a couple of stupid horses to some younger people. We still got 5 and are trying to get down to just the main 2 we ride.