Training Barrel Horses

Lesson 3: Training the Perfect Barrel Horse

Cueing and Reining

Teaching your horse cues and how to properly “listen” to your hands are some of the most important things in running barrels. All of the things we’re discussing in this course will work together to train the “perfect” barrel horse, and this subject is one of the most important.

First we’ll discuss turning and spinning, because this is something essential to a great barrel horse. A good place to begin is against a wall or a high fence. I recommend a "high" fence, because if the top of the fence is below the horse's nose naturally, he can lift up his nose as he's turning. The purpose of turning him against the fence is to teach him to keep his nose down, and that he's not supposed to walk as he's turning--that you want him to turn in a tight circle, or in this case half-circle, by crossing one front leg over the other and pivoting on his rear legs. Start by backing your horse up just a step or two--this results in him putting more of his weight on his back legs and in his hips, which will help him to pivot better.

Use your hands to turn your horse's nose into the fence, and use your opposite leg to cue him; for example, if you're turning your horse to the right into the fence, use your left leg on his side to cue him. Teach him to move away from pressure. At first your horse may balk a little, or try to back up instead of turn; it's easier for a horse to walk as he's turning because that's what most of them have gotten used to before a rider teaches them differently. However, after you teach him how to turn properly, it becomes just as easy for him.

If your horse tries to back up when you ask him to turn, simply try not to allow that--squeeze your legs and urge him back up to the position he was in before, and ask for the turn again. He should understand by this point what you're asking him to do, whether he decides to do it now or not. If he doesn't do it perfectly the first time, that's OK! Basically what you should be going for at first is your horse turning, and not backing up. You can work on the details as you go on, but for now, he's turned and that's what's important.

One thing to be sure of is not to stop working your horse on something until he's done it the way you want him to. If you stop and dismount and unsaddle, or whatever the case is, it's like telling him that that's where you want him to be, and that it's fine that he didn't do what you'd been asking him. Sometimes this can take a while, and that's why I stress again how important it is to be patient with your horse.

You'll be able to feel it when your horse turns correctly, and sometimes to see it. As I said, he's supposed to cross one leg over the other as he's turning, and pivot on his back legs. In this example, turning to the right, he'll put more of his weight on his rear end, and reach over his right front leg with is left as he's turning. On his back, it will feel more smooth than if he does it incorrectly, and you can always feel or see when he walks instead of pivots. Apply the same movements and cues for turning the other way, respectively applying the cues and directions. Remember to keep your horse's nose down and in, flexed at the poll, and your hands low. This is a very important tactic that a lot of people forget--keeping your hands low encourages the horse to keep his head low as well, instead of throwing it up in the air every time you apply pressure with your hands.

Gradually work up to turning in a complete circle, and finally in more than one circle. Go slowly; don't be in a hurry. Every horse and his attention span and learning capacity is different. If you have patience and go at a pace that's specific to the horse you're training, before you know it he'll be spinning like a professional reining horse.

Now let’s talk about reining. If your horse direct reins only, you’re all set for barrels. If you horse already neck reins, what I recommend is teaching him this direct reining just for barrels. When I first began barrel racing as a teenager, I tried just neck reining my horse at first; but I soon learned that, while it is a rarity for a horse to be able to make any kind of fast run while being neck reined, you can make a faster and better one using direct reining. But there is no reason your horse shouldn’t be able to know both styles of reining; if you really want to be sure your horse continues to neck rein well, just direct rein for barrels only and he should understand that style is only for barrels.

Start out by sitting with both hands on your reins while your horse is standing still. Using your right hand mainly, turn him to the right, then stop, then turn him (using the same technique) to the left. Get him used to listening to your hands, and make sure he’s always aware of what you’re doing with them. Similarly, make sure you are always aware of the same thing. It’s important for you to become aware of what you’re doing with your hands, legs, and your body in general, if you’re not already.

If your horse normally neck reins, this part of his training may be a little confusing for him at first. But he should begin to remember a lot of this direct reining from when he was a colt, before he learned to neck rein.

Another note on direct reining: Don’t let your horse get lazy about reining, about listening to your hands. It’s important to have a barrel horse that you don’t have to pull around the barrels.

One way to help prevent him from getting lazy or obstinate about listening to your hands is to work on cueing. Cues can come from anything you do, but we’re first going to mainly cover leg cues. Leg cues are some of the most important you can ever give your horse. Stop and think for a moment about barrel racing and the act of going around a barrel at breakneck speed. Is it possible for me, as the rider, to physically make him turn correctly around that barrel? What if this horse wants to go wide around the barrel, or to miss it altogether (you may have seen this before)?

Of course it’s not possible, and my point here is that nothing that you do with a horse can be done correctly (repeatedly, anyway) without cues and the horse-human relationship. The combination of both is what will give you the edge over a horse that is trained mediocre, just enough to get some wins at barrels for a while. We’re toning the barrel horse’s body, but also his mind. Because of the relationship you’ve developed with your horse, and the training you’ve put into him with your cues and practice, your horse will be successful and will enjoy his exercises for as long as you want to keep doing them.

Leg cues involve one basic principle to your horse: Move away from pressure. Whether the pressure is coming from your leg, your rein, or your backside, your horse will learn to respond accordingly.

Learning the proper cues for training your horse for a variety of situations is of the utmost importance--and one of the most important things to remember is that every single thing you do with your horse is a cue. Remember, though, don't take this to mean that if you make a mistake, you've messed up and your horse will remember it forever. It simply means that every action you take with your horse is a cue to him; and the earlier you learn to pay extra attention to what you're doing around your horses, the better--both for his sake and yours!

The basic concept behind cueing your horse is simply to teach him to move away from pressure. This is why when you're riding, as you turn your horse to the left, for example, you lay your right leg against his side--hence, away from pressure. The same concept applies to reining your horse, unless you're direct-reining. When he feels the left rein against his neck, for example, he turns to the right. Neck reining in this fashion is one of the most basic cues that we give our horses every day, and one that is taken for granted. A lot of people don't realize the cueing that is involved in this simple action.

Let's talk more about cueing your horse as you turn him--specifically with your legs. A good thing to remember is that if you wear spurs, try not to cue your horse too much with the spur itself. I've learned that if a horse is only aware of the pressure of your leg, and not the more definite feel of the spur, it's a basic training technique that is wonderful for them. The reason why is because if you're ever riding without your spurs, your horse will respond just as well as he did when you were wearing the spurs. This is so important--most people don't really want their horses to be dependent on their spurs as the main source of training.

Another important cue to remember is involved in stopping or slowing your horse. As you ask him to slow down, simply put your weight down in your seat, or your "pockets," as a lot of trainers put it. The horse will feel the shift in weight toward his hind end, and understand that every time you do this, you're asking him to slow down and/or stop. This is the basic idea of a cue--pretty simple!

Remember to exercise your cues with your horse no matter where you're riding or why. He'll get accustomed to them and respond that much quicker and better every time. Remember to have fun teaching your horse the cues.

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