Training Tip: Does Your Horse Have a Phobia of Gates?

Sometimes horses get frightened of going through gates because they’re tight, narrow spaces and make them feel claustrophobic. As prey animals, horses hate being in narrow spaces that make them feel trapped. This can be especially true if your horse has gotten “bit” by a gate – a gate hit him while he was being led through it. To build his confidence in passing through gates, practice sending him back and forth through them using the Sending Exercise from the Fundamentals Series. The Sending Exercise (sending the horse from one side of you to the other) will prove to him that you can control his feet going in and out of the gate and he has nothing to worry about. Start with the gate wide open and as the horse becomes more confident, make the gap smaller until you can send him through a 4-foot space. It may take quite a few repetitions before he relaxes and goes through the opening calmly. Ideally, you want him to quietly walk through the gap, and then yield his hindquarters with a “Yes, Sir!” type of attitude.