Training Tip: Horse Tosses Her Head When Backing Up

Question: Every time I ask my mare to back up, she throws her head everywhere. It makes me unable to get her to back up most of the time. How can I fix her throwing her head up and get her to back up nicely?

Answer: I’d go back to the Fundamentals Series and make sure your horse knows all the exercises. The very last riding exercise we teach our horses in the Fundamentals is Yield the Hindquarters and Back Up. This exercise is how we introduce backing up under saddle to our horses. It’s very effective because instead of just picking up on the reins and trying to get the horse to step backwards, you get his feet moving first by yielding his hindquarters. Then, once he’s yielding well, you redirect his energy backwards.

If your horse doesn’t know how to back up and you just pick up on the reins from a standstill to ask him to back up, most horses do what your horse is doing—they resist the pressure, lean against it and stick their feet in the ground. They’re not trying to be bad, they just don’t understand what you’re asking them to do. So set your horse up for success by breaking the lesson down to make it easier for him to understand what the right answer is.

When you’re teaching a horse to back up, it’s common for him to put his head in the air and brace his neck. I don’t make a big deal of it. In fact, in the beginning, I just ignore it because it’s something that will fix itself. Once your mare understands what you’re asking her to do and learns to move her feet with energy, her head will come down by itself. Remember, when the feet are moving with energy, the horse’s head naturally comes down. When the feet lack energy, the head comes up.

Instead of worrying about her head, focus on putting energy in her feet. You do that by first yielding her hindquarters and then redirecting her energy backwards. When you ask her to back up, just make light contact with the reins and use your legs to drive her backwards. You’ll tap her with one leg and then the other up by her elbows. If she’s not moving her feet, use more leg pressure, not rein pressure.

As soon as she takes a couple of steps backwards, release all the pressure. Remember, horses don’t learn perfectly. You can’t expect her to learn to back up with energy in her feet, with her head tucked in, and stay soft in your hands all at the same time. Find a starting point and build on it every day.

Looking for more training tips? Check out the No Worries Club. Have a training question? Send it to us at [email protected].