Is your horse ready for the barrel pattern?
I get asked this question a lot. We take horses in training for barrels here at the Stairs Ranch and prospective clients want to know if their horse is ready to start on the barrel pattern. So here is my reply:
1. Will your horse walk around the arena forward and relaxed? Not breaking into a trot and maintaining his forward motion. Not pulling on the bit and no tossing his head.
2. Can you stop your horse well from a walk, trot and a gallop. Will he stand after stopping and not start off again on his own. Again, no pulling or head tossing.
3. If you can start right off at the trot without taking more than two steps, your horse is on his way to being a barrel horse prospect.
4. Taking off in the right or left lead without taking more than two steps or charging into a fast trot, is good also. You want to be cueing your horse for the right or left lead, the horse does not get to pick.
5. Can you walk your horse in a small circle, tipping his head to the inside and then with your inside leg and inside rein, can you make the size of your circle larger?
6. Does he back straight and on cue until you release the reins? As with all of these, no head tossing or mouth opening.
7. Can you lope your horse in a circle and increase and decrease the speed?
8. Will he lope for you in a circle and then while loping can you make him make the circle larger and then smaller?
If your horse can do all of these things, he is ready for barrel training and we would be more than happy to have him here at the Stairs Ranch. If he is not accomplished at all eight of these points, we can also finish up the basics for you.