Taming a colt or horse.--Rarey's directions for strapping up and
laying down detailed.--Explanations by Editor.--To approach a
vicious horse with half door.--Cartwheel.--No. 1 strap
applied.--No. 2 strap applied.--Woodcuts of.--How to hop
about.--Knot up bridle.--Struggle described.--Lord B.'s improved
No. 2 strap.--Not much danger.--How to steer a horse.--Laid down,
how to gentle.--To mount, tied up.--Place and preparations for
training described.
In this chapter I change the arrangement of the original work, and unite
two sections which Mr. Rarey has divided, either because when he wrote
them he was not aware of the importance of what is really the cardinal
point, the mainstay, the foundation of his system, or because he wished
to conceal it from the uninitiated. The Rarey system substitutes for
severe longeing, for whipping and spurring, blinkers, physic, starving,
the twitch, tying the tail down, sewing the ears together, putting shot
in the ears, and all the cruelties hitherto resorted to for subduing
high-spirited and vicious animals (and very often the high-spirited
become, from injudicious treatment, the most vicious), a method of
laying a horse down, tying up his limbs, and gagging, if necessary, his
mouth, which makes him soon feel that man is his superior, and yet
neither excites his terror or his hatred.
These two sections are to be found at pp. 48 and 51 and at pp. 59 and
60, _orig. edit._, under the titles of "How to drive a Horse that is
very wild, and has any vicious Habits," and "How to make a Horse lie
down." It is essential to unite these sections, because, if you put a
well-bred horse in harness with his leg up, without first putting him
down, it is ten to one but that he throws himself down violently, breaks
the shafts of the vehicle, and his own knees.
The following are the sections verbatim, of which I shall afterwards
give a paraphrase, with illustrative woodcuts:--
"Take up one fore-foot and bend his knee till his hoof is bottom
upwards, and nearly touching his body; then slip a loop over his knee,
and up until it comes above the pastern-joint, to keep it up, being
careful to draw the loop together between the hoof and pastern-joint
with a second strap of some kind to prevent the loop from slipping down
and coming off. This will leave the horse standing on three legs; you
can now handle him as you wish, for it is utterly impossible for him to
kick in this position. There is something in this operation of taking up
one foot, that conquers a horse quicker and better than anything else
you can do to him. There is no process in the world equal to it to break
a kicking horse, for several reasons. First, there is a principle of
this kind in the nature of the horse; that by conquering one member, you
conquer, to a great extent, the whole horse.
"You have perhaps seen men operate upon this principle, by sewing a
horse's ears together to prevent him from kicking. I once saw a plan
given in a newspaper to make a bad horse stand to be shod, which was to
fasten down one ear. There were no reasons given why you should do so;
but I tried it several times, and thought that it had a good
effect--though I would not recommend its use, especially stitching his
ears together. The only benefit arising from this process is, that by
disarranging his ears we draw his attention to them, and he is not so
apt to resist the shoeing. By tying up one foot we operate on the same
principle to a much better effect. When you first fasten up a horse's
foot, he will sometimes get very mad, and strike with his knee, and try
every possible way to get it down; but he cannot do that, and will soon
give up.
"This will conquer him better than anything you could do, and without
any possible danger of hurting himself or you either, for you can tie up
his foot and sit down and look at him until he gives up. When you find
that he is conquered, go to him, let down his foot, rub his leg with
your hand, caress him, and let him rest a little; then put it up again.
Repeat this a few times, always putting up the same foot, and he will
soon learn to travel on three legs, so that you can drive him some
distance. As soon as he gets a little used to this way of travelling,
put on your harness, and hitch him to a sulky. If he is the worst
kicking horse that ever raised a foot, you need not be fearful of his
doing any damage while he has one foot up, for he cannot kick, neither
can he run fast enough to do any harm. And if he is the wildest horse
that ever had harness on, and has run away every time he has been
hitched, you can now hitch him in a sulky, and drive him as you please.
If he wants to run, you can let him have the lines, and the whip too,
with perfect safety, for he can go but a slow gait on three legs, and
will soon be tired, and willing to stop; only hold him enough to guide
him in the right direction, and he will soon be tired and willing to
stop at the word. Thus you will effectually cure him at once of any
further notion of running off. Kicking horses have always been the dread
of everybody; you always hear men say, when they speak about a bad
horse, 'I don't care what he does, so he don't kick.' This new method is
an effectual cure for this worst of all habits. There are plenty of ways
by which you can hitch a kicking horse, and force him to go, though he
kicks all the time; but this doesn't have any good effect towards
breaking him, for we know that horses kick because they are afraid of
what is behind them, and when they kick against it and it hurts them,
they will only kick the harder; and this will hurt them still more and
make them remember the scrape much longer, and make it still more
difficult to persuade them to have any confidence in anything dragging
behind them ever after.
"But by this new method you can harness them to a rattling sulky,
plough, waggon, or anything else in its worst shape. They may be
frightened at first, but cannot kick or do anything to hurt themselves,
and will soon find that you do not intend to hurt them, and then they
will not care anything more about it. You can then let down the leg and
drive along gently without any further trouble. By this new process a
bad kicking horse can be learned to go gentle in harness in a few hours'
time."[70-*]
"HOW TO MAKE A HORSE LIE DOWN.
"Everything that we want to teach the horse must be commenced in such a
way as to give him an idea of what you want him to do, and then be
repeated till he learns it perfectly. To make a horse lie down, bend
his left fore-leg and slip a loop over it, so that he cannot get it
down. Then put a surcingle around his body, and fasten one end of a long
strap around the other fore-leg, just above the hoof. Place the other
end under the before-described surcingle, so as to keep the strap in the
right direction; take a short hold of it with your right hand; stand on
the left side of the horse, grasp the bit in your left hand, pull
steadily on the strap with your right; bear against his shoulder till
you cause him to move. As soon as he lifts his weight, your pulling will
raise the other foot, and he will have to come on his knees. Keep the
strap tight in your hand, so that he cannot straighten his leg if he
rises up. Hold him in this position, and turn his head towards you; bear
against his side with your shoulder, not hard, but with a steady, equal
pressure, and in about ten minutes he will lie down. As soon as he lies
down, he will be completely conquered, and you can handle him as you
please. Take off the straps, and straighten out his legs; rub him
lightly about the face and neck with your hand the way the hair lies;
handle all his legs, and after he has lain ten or twenty minutes, let
him get up again. After resting him a short time, make him lie down as
before. Repeat the operation three or four times, which will be
sufficient for one lesson. Give him two lessons a day, and when you have
given him four lessons, he will lie down by taking hold of one foot. As
soon as he is well broken to lie down in this way, tap him on the
opposite leg with a stick when you take hold of his foot, and in a few
days he will lie down from the mere motion of the stick."
EDITORS DETAILED EXPLANATIONS.
Although, as I before observed, the tying up of the fore-leg is not a
new expedient, or even the putting a horse down single-handed, the two
operations, as taught and performed by Mr. Rarey, not only subdue and
render docile the most violent horses, but, most strange of all, inspire
them with a positive confidence and affection after two or three lessons
from the horse-tamer. "How this is or why this is," Mr. Langworthy, the
veterinary surgeon to Her Majesty's stables, observed, "I cannot say or
explain, but I am convinced, by repeated observation on many horses,
that it is a fact."
If, however, a man, however clever with horses, were to attempt to
perform the operations without other instruction than that contained in
the American pamphlet, he would infallibly break his horse's knees, and
probably get his toes trodden on, his eyes blacked, and his arm
dislocated--for all these accidents have happened within my own
knowledge to rash experimentalists; while under proper instructions, not
only have stout and gouty noblemen succeeded perfectly, but the
slight-built, professional horsewoman, Miss Gilbert, has conquered
thorough-bred colts and fighting Arabs, and a young and beautiful
peeress has taken off her bonnet before going to a morning _fete_, and
in ten minutes laid a full-sized horse prostrate and helpless as a sheep
in the hands of the shearer.
Having, then, in your mind Mr. Rarey's maxim that a horseman should know
neither fear nor anger, and having laid in a good stock of patience, you
must make your approach to the colt or stallion in the mode prescribed
in the preceding chapters. In dealing with a colt, except upon an
emergency, he should be first accustomed to be handled and taught to
lead; this, first-rate horse-tamers will accomplish with the wildest
colt in three hours, but it is better to give at least one day up to
these first important steps in education. It will also be as well to
have a colt cleaned and his hoof trimmed by the blacksmith. If this
cannot be done the operation will be found very dirty and disagreeable.
In approaching a spiteful stallion you had better make your first
advances with a half-door between you and him, as Mr. Rarey did in his
first interview with Cruiser: gradually make his acquaintance, and teach
him that you do not care for his open mouth; but a regular biter must be
gagged in the manner which will presently be described.
Of course there is no difficulty in handling the leg of a quiet horse or
colt, and by constantly working from the neck down to the fetlock you
may do what you please. But many horses and even colts have a most
dangerous trick of striking out with their fore-legs. There is no better
protection against this than a cart-wheel. The wheel may either be used
loose, or the animal may be led up to a cart loaded with hay, when the
horse-tamer can work under the cart through one of the wheels, while the
colt is nibbling the load.
Having, then, so far soothed a colt that he will permit you to take up
his legs without resistance, take the strap No. 1[73-*]--pass the tongue
through the loop under the buckle so as to form a noose, slip it over
the near fore-leg and draw it close up to the pastern-joint, then take
up the leg as if you were going to shoe him, and passing the strap over
the fore-arm, put it through the buckle, and buckle the lower limb as
close as you can to the arm without hurting the animal.
[Illustration: STRAP NO. 1.]
Take care that your buckle is of the very best quality, and the leather
sound. It is a good plan to stretch it before using it. The tongues of
buckles used for this purpose, if not of the very best quality, are very
likely to come out, when all your labour will have to be gone over
again. Sometimes you may find it better to lay the loop open on the
ground, and let the horse step into it. It is better the buckle should
be inside the leg if you mean the horse to fall toward you, because then
it is easier to unbuckle when he is on the ground.
In those instances in which you have had no opportunity of previously
taming and soothing a colt, it will frequently take you an hour of
quiet, patient, silent perseverance before he will allow you to buckle
up his leg--if he resists you have nothing for it but _patience_. You
must stroke him, you must fondle him, until he lets you enthral him. Mr.
Rarey always works alone, and disdains assistance, and so do some of his
best pupils, Lord B., the Marquis of S., and Captain S. In travelling in
foreign countries you may have occasion to tame a colt or wild horse
alone, but there is no reason why you should not have assistance if you
can get it, and in that case the process is of course much easier. But
it must never be forgotten that to tame a horse properly no unnecessary
force must be employed; it is better that he should put down his foot
six times that he may yield it willingly at last, and under no
circumstances must the trainer lose patience, or give way to temper.
The near fore-leg being securely strapped, and the horse, if so
inclined, secured from biting by a wooden bit, the next step is to make
him hop about on three legs. This is comparatively easy if the animal
has been taught to lead, but it is difficult with one which has not. The
trainer must take care to keep behind his horse's shoulder and walk in a
circle, or he will be likely to be struck by the horse's head or
strapped-up leg.
Mr. Rarey is so skilful that he seldom considers it necessary to make
his horses hop about; but there is no doubt that it saves much
after-trouble by fatiguing the animal; and that it is a useful
preparation before putting a colt or kicking horse into harness. Like
every other operation it must be done very gently, and accompanied by
soothing words--"Come along"--"Come along, old fellow," &c.
A horse can hop on three legs, if not severely pressed, for two or three
miles; and no plan is more successful for curing a kicker or jibber.
When the horse has hopped for as long as you think necessary to tire
him, buckle a common single strap roller or surcingle on his body
tolerably tight. A single strap surcingle is the best.
It is as well, if possible, to teach colts from a very early age to bear
a surcingle. At any rate it will require a little management the first
time.
You have now advanced your colt so far that he is not afraid of a man,
he likes being patted and caressed, he will lead when you take hold of
the bridle, and you have buckled up his leg so that he cannot hop faster
than you can run.
[Illustration: NO. 2 STRAP, FOR OFF FORE-LEG.]
Shorten the bridle (the bit should be a thick plain snaffle) so that the
reins, when laid loose on his withers, come nearly straight. This is
best done by twisting the reins twice round two fore-fingers and passing
the ends through in a loop, because this knot can be easily untied. Next
take strap No. 2, and, making a loop, put it round the off fore-leg.
With a very quiet horse this can easily be done; with a wild or vicious
horse you may have to make him step into it; at any rate, when once the
off fore-leg is caught in the noose it must be drawn tight round the
pastern-joint. Then put a stout glove or mitten on your right hand,
having taken care that your nails have been cut short, pass the strap
through the belly part of the surcingle, take a firm short hold of it
with your gloved right hand, standing close to the horse behind his
shoulders, and with your left hand take hold of the near rein; by
pulling the horse gently to the near side he will be almost sure to hop;
if he will not he must be led, but Mr. Rarey always makes him hop
alone. The moment he lifts up his off fore-foot you must draw up strap
No. 2 tightly and steadily. The motion will draw up the off leg into the
same position as the near leg, and the horse will go down on his knees.
Your object is to hold the strap so firmly that he will not be able to
stretch his foot out again. Those who are very confident in their skill
are content to hold the strap only with a twist round their hand, but
others take the opportunity of the horse's first surprise to give the
strap a double turn round the surcingle.
[Illustration: Horse with Straps Nos. 1 and 2.]
Another way of performing this operation is to use with difficult
violent horses the strap invented by Lord B----h, which consists first
of the loop for the off fore-leg shown in our cut. A surcingle strap, at
least seven feet long, with a buckle, is thrown across the horse's back;
the buckle end is passed through the ring; the tongue is passed through
the buckle, and the moment the horse moves the Tamer draws the strap
tight round the body of the horse, and in buckling it makes the leg so
safe that he has no need to use any force in holding it up.
[Illustration: LORD B.'S IMPROVED STRAP NO. 2.]
As soon as a horse recovers from his astonishment at being brought to
his knees, he begins to resist; that is, he rears up on his hind-legs,
and springs about in a manner that is truly alarming for the spectators
to behold, and which in the case of a well-bred horse in good condition
requires a certain degree of activity in the Trainer. (See page of Horse
Struggling.)
[Illustration: SURCINGLE FOR LORD B.'S STRAP NO. 2.]
You must remember that your business is not to set your strength against
the horse's strength, but merely to follow him about, holding the strap
just tight enough to prevent him from putting out his off fore-leg. As
long as you keep _close to him_ and _behind his shoulders_ you are in
very little danger. The bridle in the left hand must be used like
steering lines: by pulling to the right or left as occasion requires,
the horse, turning on his hind-legs, maybe guided just as a boat is
steered by the rudder lines; or pulling straight, the horse may be
fatigued by being forced to walk backwards. The strap passing through
the surcingle keeps, or ought to keep, the Trainer in his right
place--he is not to pull or in any way fatigue himself more than he can
help, but, standing upright, simply follow the horse about, guiding
him with the bridle away from the walls of the training school when
needful. It must be admitted that to do this well requires considerable
nerve, coolness, patience, and at times agility; for although a
grass-fed colt will soon give in, a corn-fed colt, and, above all, a
high-couraged hunter in condition, will make a very stout fight; and I
have known one instance in which a horse with both fore-legs fast has
jumped sideways.
[Illustration: The Horse struggling.]
The proof that the danger is more apparent than real lies in the fact
that no serious accidents have as yet happened; and that, as I before
observed, many noblemen, and some noble ladies, and some boys, have
succeeded perfectly. But it would be untrue to assert that there is no
danger. When held and guided properly, few horses resist more than ten
minutes; and it is believed that a quarter of an hour is the utmost time
that any horse has ever fought before sinking exhausted to the earth.
But the time seems extremely long to an inexperienced performer; and it
is a great comfort to get your assistant to be tune-keeper, if there is
no clock in a conspicuous situation, and tell you how you are getting
on. Usually at the end of eight minutes' violent struggles, the animal
sinks forward on his knees, sweating profusely, with heaving flanks and
shaking tail, as if at the end of a thirty minutes' burst with
fox-hounds over a stiff country.
Then is the time to get him into a comfortable position for lying down;
if he is still stout, he may be forced by the bit to walk backwards.
Then, too, by pushing gently at his shoulder, or by pulling steadily the
off-rein, you can get him to fall, in the one case on the near side, on
the other on the off side; but this assistance should be so slight that
the horse must not be able to resist it. The horse will often make a
final spring when you think he is quite beaten; but, at any rate, at
length he slides over, and lies down, panting and exhausted, on his
side. If he is full of corn and well bred, take advantage of the moment
to tie up the off fore-leg to the surcingle, as securely as the other,
in a slip loop knot.
Now let your horse recover his wind, and then encourage him to make a
second fight. It will often be more stubborn and more fierce than the
first. The object of this tying-up operation is, that he shall
thoroughly exhaust without hurting himself, and that he shall come to
the conclusion that it is you who, by your superior strength, have
conquered him, and that you are always able to conquer him.
Under the old rough-riding system, the most vicious horses were
occasionally conquered by daring men with firm seats and strong arms,
who rode and flogged them into subjection; but these conquests were
temporary, and usually _personal_; with every stranger, the animal would
begin his game again.
One advantage of this Rarey system is, that the horse is allowed to
exhaust himself under circumstances that render it impossible for him to
struggle long enough to do himself any harm. It has been suggested that
a blood-vessel would be likely to be broken, or apoplexy produced by the
exertion of leaping from the hind legs; but, up to the present time, no
accident of any kind has been reported.
When the horse lies down for the second or third time thoroughly beaten,
the time has arrived for teaching him a few more of the practical parts
of horse-training.
[Illustration: The Horse exhausted.]
When you have done all you desire to the horse tied up,--smoothed his
ears, if fidgety about the ears--the hind-legs, if a kicker--shown
him a saddle, and allowed him to smell it, and then placed it on his
back--mounted him yourself, and pulled him all over--take off all the
straps. In moving round him for the purpose of gentling him, walk slowly
always from the head round the tail, and again to the head: scrape the
sweat off him with a scraper; rub him down with a wisp; smooth the hair
of his legs, and draw the fore one straight out. If he has fought hard,
he will lie like a dead horse, and scarcely stir. You must now again go
over him as conscientiously as if you were a mesmeric doctor or
shampooer: every limb must be "_gentled_," to use Mr. Rarey's expressive
phrase; and with that operation you have completed your _first_ and
_most_ important lesson.
You may now mount on the back of an unbroken colt, and teach him that
you do not hurt him in that attitude: if he were standing upright he
might resist, and throw you from fright; but as he is exhausted and
powerless, he has time to find out that you mean him no harm. You can
lay a saddle or harness on him, if he has previously shown aversion to
them, or any part of them: his head and his tail and his legs are all
safe for your friendly caresses; don't spare them, and speak to him all
the time.
If he has hitherto resisted shoeing, now is the time for handling his
fore and hind legs; kindly, yet, if he attempts to resist, with a voice
of authority. If he is a violent, savage, confirmed kicker, like
Cruiser, or Mr. Gurney's gray colt, or the zebra, as soon as he is down
put a pair of hobbles on his hind-legs, like those used for mares during
covering. (Frontispiece of Zebra.) These must be held by an assistant on
whom you can depend; and passed through the rings of the surcingle. With
his fore-legs tied, you may usefully spend an hour, in handling his
legs, tapping the hoofs with your hand or hammer--all this to be done in
a firm, measured, soothing manner; only now and then, if he resist,
crying, as you paralyze him with the ropes, "_Wo ho!_" in a determined
manner. It is by this continual soothing and handling that you establish
confidence between the horse and yourself. After patting him as much as
you deem needful, say for ten minutes or a quarter of an hour, you may
encourage him to rise. Some horses will require a good deal of helping,
and their fore-legs drawing out before them.
It may be as well to remark, that the handling the limbs, of colts
particularly, requires caution. A cart colt, tormented by flies, will
kick forward nearly up to the fore-legs.
If a horse, unstrapped, attempts to rise, you may easily stop him by
taking hold of a fore-leg and doubling it back to the strapped position.
If by chance he should be too quick, don't resist; it is an essential
principle in the Rarey system, never to enter into a contest with a
horse unless you are certain to be victorious.
In all these operations, you must be calm, and not in a hurry.
Thus, under the Rarey system, all indications are so direct, that the
horse must understand them. You place him in a position, and under such
restraint, that he cannot resist anything that you chose to do to him;
and then you proceed to caress him when he assents, to reprove him when
he _thinks_ of resisting--resist, with all his legs tied, he
cannot--repeated lessons end by persuading the most vicious horse that
it is useless to try to resist, and that acquiescence will be followed
by the caresses that horses evidently like.
[Illustration: The Horse tamed.]
The last instance of Mr. Rarey's power was a beautiful gray mare, which
had been fourteen years in the band of one of the Life Guards regiments,
and consequently at least seventeen years old; during all that time she
would never submit quietly to have her hind-legs shod; the farriers had
to put a twitch on her nose and ears, and tie her tail down: even then
she resisted violently. In three days Mr. Rarey was able to shoe her
with her head loose. And this was not done by a trick, but by proving to
her that she could not resist even to the extent of an inch, and that no
harm was meant her; her lessons were repeated many times a day for three
days. Such continual impressive perseverance is an essential part of the
system.
When you have to deal with a horse as savage a kicker as Cruiser, or the
zebra, a horse that can kick from one leg as fiercely as others can from
two, in that case, to subdue and compel him to lie down, have a leather
surcingle with a ring sewed on the belly part, and when the hobbles are
buckled on the hind-legs, pass the ropes through the rings, and when the
horse rises again, by buckling up one fore-leg, and pulling steadily,
when needful, at the hind-legs, or tying the hobble-ropes to a collar,
you reduce him to perfect helplessness; he finds that he cannot rear,
for you pull his hind-legs--or kick, for you can pull at all three legs,
and after a few lessons he gives in in despair.
These were the methods by which Cruiser and the zebra were subdued. They
seem, and are, very simple; properly carried out they are effective for
subduing the most spirited colt, and curing the most vicious horse. But
still in difficult and exceptional cases it cannot be too often repeated
that a MAN is required, as well as a method. Without nerve nothing can
be attempted; without patience and perseverance mere nerve will be of
little use; all the quackery and nonsense that has been talked and
written under the inspiration of the Barnum who has had an interest in
the success of the silent, reserved, practical Rarey, must be dismissed.
Horse-training is not a conjuror's trick. The principles may certainly
be learned by once reading this book; a few persons specially organised,
accustomed to horses all their lives, may succeed in their first
attempts with even difficult horses. The success of Lord Burghersh,
after one lesson from Rarey, with a very difficult mare; of Lord Elvers,
Lord Vivian, the Hon. Frederick Villiers, and the Marquess of Stafford,
with colts, is well known in the sporting world. Mr. Thomas Rice, of
Motcombe Street, who has studied everything connected with the horse, on
the Continent as well as in England, and who is thoroughly acquainted
with the Spanish school, as well as the English cross-country style of
horsemanship, succeeded, as I have already mentioned, the very first
time he took the straps in hand in subduing Mr. Gurney's gray colt--the
most vicious animal, next to Cruiser, that Mr. Rarey tackled in England.
This brute tore off the flaps of the saddle with his teeth.
But it is sheer humbug to pretend that a person who knows no more of
horses than is to be learned by riding a perfectly-trained animal now
and then for an hour or two, can acquire the whole art of horse-taming,
or can even safely tackle a violent horse, without a previous
preparation and practice.
As you must not be nervous or angry, so you must not be in a hurry.
Many ladies have attended Mr. Rarey's lessons, and studied his art, but
very few have tried, and still fewer have succeeded. It is just one of
those things that all ladies fond of horses should know, as well as
those who are likely to visit India, or the Colonies, although it is not
exactly a feminine occupation; crinoline would be sadly in the way--
"Those little hands were never made
To hold a leather strap."
But it may be useful as an emergency, as it will enable any lady to
instruct a friend, or groom, or sailor, or peasant, how to do what she
is not able to do herself, and to argue effectively that straps will do
more than whips and spurs.
At the Practice Club of noblemen and gentlemen held at Miss Gilbert's
stables, it has been observed that every week some horse more determined
than the average has been too much for the wind, or the patience, of
most of the subscribers. One only has never been beaten, the Marquess of
S----, but then he was always in condition; a dab hand at every athletic
sport, extremely active, and gifted with a "calmness," as well as a
nerve, which few men of his position enjoy.
In a word, the average horse may be subdued by the average horseman, and
colts usually come within the average; but a fierce, determined, vicious
horse requires a man above the average in temper, courage, and activity;
activity and skill in _steering_ being of more importance than strength.
It is seldom necessary to lay a colt down more than twice.
Perhaps the best way is to begin practising the strap movements with a
donkey, or a quiet horse full of grass or water, and so go on from day
to day with as much perseverance as if you were practising skating or
walking on a tight rope; until you can approach, halter, lead, strap
up, and lay down a colt with as much calmness as a huntsman takes his
fences with his eye on his hounds, you are not perfect.
Remember you must not hurry, and you must _not chatter_. When you feel
impatient you had better leave off, and begin again another day. And the
same with your horse: you must not tire him with one lesson, but you
must give him at least one lesson every day, and two or three to a
nervous customer; we have a striking example of patience and
perseverance in Mr. Rarey's first evening with Cruiser. He had gone
through the labour of securing him, and bringing him up forty miles
behind a dog-cart, yet he did not lose a moment, but set to work the
same night to tame him limb by limb, and inch by inch, and from that day
until he produced him in public, he never missed a day without spending
twice a day from two to three hours with him, first rendering him
helpless by gag-bit, straps and hobbles, then caressing him, then
forcing him to lie down, then caressing him again, stroking every limb,
talking to him in soothing tones, and now and then, if he turned
vicious, taking up his helpless head, giving it a good shake, while
scolding him as you would a naughty boy. And then again taking off the
gag and rewarding submission with a lock of sweet hay and a drink of
water, most grateful after a tempest of passion, then making him rise,
and riding him--making him stop at a word.
I mention these facts, because an idea has gone abroad that any man with
Mr. Rarey's straps can manage any horse. It would be just as sensible to
assert that any boy could learn to steer a yacht by taking the tiller
for an hour under the care of an "old salt."
The most curious and important fact of all in connection with this
strapping up and laying down process, is, that the moment the horse
rises _he seems to have contracted a personal friendship for the
operator_, and with a very little encouragement will generally follow
him round the box or circus; this feeling may as well be encouraged by a
little bit of carrot or bread and sugar.
PLACE AND PREPARATIONS FOR TRAINING A COLT.
It is almost impossible to train or tame a horse quickly in an open
space. As his falls are violent, the floor must be very soft. The best
place is a space boarded off with partitions six or seven feet high, and
on the floor a deep layer of tan or sand or saw-dust, on which, a thick
layer of straw has been spread; but the floor must not be too soft; if
it is, the horse will sink on his knees without fighting, and without
the lesson of exhaustion, which is so important. To throw a horse for a
surgical operation, the floor cannot be too soft: the enclosure should
be about thirty feet from side to side, of a square or octagonal shape;
but not round if possible, because it is of great advantage to have a
corner into which a colt may turn when you are teaching him the first
haltering lesson. A barn may be converted into a training-school, if the
floor be made soft enough with straw. But in every case, it is extremely
dangerous to have pillars, posts, or any projections against which the
horse in rearing might strike; as when the legs are tied, a horse is apt
to miscalculate his distance. And if the space is too narrow, the
trainer, in dealing with a violent horse, may get crushed or kicked. It
is of great advantage that the training-school should be roofed, and if
possible, every living thing, that might distract the horse's attention
by sight or sound, should be removed. Other horses, cattle, pigs, and
even dogs or fowls moving about or making a noise, will spoil the
effect of a good lesson.
In an emergency, the first lesson may be given in an open straw-yard.
Lord Burghersh trained his first pupil on a small space in the middle of
a thick wood; Cruiser was laid down the first time in a bullock-yard.
But if you have many colts to train, it is well worth while to dig out a
pit two feet deep, fill it with tan and straw, and build round it a shed
of rough poles, filled in with gorse plastered with clay, on the same
plan as a bullock feeding-box. The floor should not be too deep or soft,
because if it is, the colt will sink at once without fighting, and a
good lesson in obedience is lost.
This may be done for from 30_s._ to 2_l._ on a farm. In a riding-school
it is very easy to have lofty temporary partitions. It is probable that
in future every riding-school will have a Rarey box for training hacks,
as well as to enable pupils to practise the art.
It is quite out of the question to attempt to do anything with a
difficult horse while other horses can be seen or heard, or while a
party of lookers-on are chattering and laughing.
As to the costume of the trainer, I recommend a close cap, a stout pair
of boots, short trousers or breeches of stout tweed or corduroy, a short
jacket with pockets outside, one to hold the straps and gloves, the
other a few pieces of carrot to reward the pupil. A pocket-handkerchief
should be handy to wipe your perspiring brow. A trainer should not be
without a knife and a piece of string, for emergencies. Spare straps,
bridles, a surcingle, a long whalebone whip, and a saddle, should be
hung up outside the training inclosure, where they can be handed, when
required, to the operator as quickly and with as little delay and fuss
as possible. A sort of dumb-waiter, with hooks instead of trays, could
be contrived for a man who worked alone.
If a lady determines to become a horse-trainer, she had better adopt a
Bloomer costume, without any stiff petticoats, as long robes would be
sure to bring her to grief. To hold the long strap No. 2, it is
necessary to wear a stout glove, which will be all the more useful if
the tips of the fingers are cut off at the first joint, so as to make it
a sort of mitten.
FOOTNOTES:
[70-*] I should not recommend this plan with a well-bred horse without
first laying him down, as he would be likely to throw himself
down.--EDITOR.
[73-*] All these straps may be obtained from Mr. Stokey, saddler, North
Street, Little Moorfields, who supplied Mr. Rarey, and has patterns of
the improvements by Lord B---- and Colonel R----.