Today I decided I would try to teach Kai to lie down when I asked him.
First, I asked him to put his head down as low as possible and then give him a treat while he was down. I did this six times to build a pattern and then I put my hands behind my back and turned a little away from him and watched him out of the corner of my eye. Kai then put his head down on his own and asked a question. I love moments when horse thinks things through and is actively participating. I praised Kai and gave him a cookie while his head was down. We repeated this process, only this time while walking. When Kai was consistently walking around with his head down I waited until he looked down with his eyes or started slowing down and focusing on the ground. I captured it with the word "yes!" and gave him a cookie. Kai then walked around for about 15 minutes with his head down before lying down. I praised him lots and gave him all the cookies. When he got up I put him back in the paddock.
First, I asked him to put his head down as low as possible and then give him a treat while he was down. I did this six times to build a pattern and then I put my hands behind my back and turned a little away from him and watched him out of the corner of my eye. Kai then put his head down on his own and asked a question. I love moments when horse thinks things through and is actively participating. I praised Kai and gave him a cookie while his head was down. We repeated this process, only this time while walking. When Kai was consistently walking around with his head down I waited until he looked down with his eyes or started slowing down and focusing on the ground. I captured it with the word "yes!" and gave him a cookie. Kai then walked around for about 15 minutes with his head down before lying down. I praised him lots and gave him all the cookies. When he got up I put him back in the paddock.
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