How can i teach my horse to bow?

Question

I have a 6year old TBX. I am trying to keep his mind active as he is young and exciitable and he is out of work at the moment. How can i teach my horse to bow like in the picture below? I need a detailed method please. It has to be with me on the floor.

Can i have answers of people that know how it is done and not just guessing please. Thanks.

XX

http://www.cre8pc.com/blog/images/horsebow.jpg

Answer 1

I am working on that trick with my mare right now.  She already knows how to shake, and pick up certain legs on command, so what I do is ask her to pick up one of her front legs, and I take a treat and let her follow my hand with the treat down in between her legs.  She bows, but not with the amount of stretch shown in the picture.  It is a long slow process, but very fun to teach!

Answer 2

we taught my sisters horse how to bow. the key is to teach it slow and in steps. the horse has to be in the right position to be able to bow correctly. first we taught him to stretch his front legs out in front of him. to do this we would give him a cue like tapping his leg then pick up the leg and place as far out in front as we could. eventually he learned to place his leg in the correct position (pretty much parking out like the gaited horses). Once he was "parked out", one of us would pick up the opposite leg.

once he gets this idea, start using the treats in between his legs to teach him to put his head down and through his legs. gradually increase how far he has to reach until he starts to sink down to the ground. remember that he'll have to be very stretched out in order to bow comfortably. make sure that you are in a very sandy area or highly bedded stall as the person holding the leg should hold it to the ground and you dont want you or your horse to get hurt. keep working until he becomes comfortable having his leg on the ground then start to let him do it by himself. it took us a while to get him to do the whole trick himself but just work slow and stay safe as sometimes they can lose their balance.

Hope this helped

Answer 3

My friend Ben has a paintbox horse called George, and he taught him to bow by holding a carrot low down on the ground, so that the horse would have to bow to get to it, not just bend its head. It took him a few weeks, and he praised him, and said "bow" after the horse got the carrot, and eventually the horse obeyed when Ben said "bow".

Hope this helps :)

Answer 4

EASY! i have tought my pony that and now she can do it while i am in the saddle! she's really smart! anyway, you pick up the hoof that you want to be on the ground then u reach with a treat between their two front legs (while u r holding his hoof) so that they can smell it, he should then reach with his head down towards ur hand to get it pull ur hand closer to his stomach and he shold go down on his knee to get it! its so kool! Then teach him to do it when u stand and tickle his tommy and then get in the saddle and do it with your foot! (you may have to show him the treat first!) but it is sooo cool it feels like he's about to liedown, hehe and guess what one time she did! lol

Answer 5

I taught my OTTB to bow earlier this year...the easiest way to go about training a horse to bow is to get their favorite treat and put it between their front legs. Don't try to make him go on his knee until he knows what he is being asked! I happen to have a few videos on youtube of my horse bowing-

Part 1- his second time trying to bow

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBT8qdPPw...

Part 2- almost there!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kONyUItEh...

Part 3- my horse will now go on one knee!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrBpxiWze...

I hope this helps!  

Answer 6

if you can teach him to put is head between his legs first, then that is where I started. get a treat and put your hand through his front legs, and make sure each time he puts his head as far as he can reach through his legs to get the treat, and make sure he doesnt try to cheat by stepping backwards. When he can do this well, (he doesnt have to be able to do it on command, but if he can do it when he feels you put your hand through his legs without you holding a treat, then that is good enough). Then, as he does this, then pick up one front leg, like you are going to pick up his hoof. Do this for quite a while, so he gets used to being on three legs and doind it. Then, when he is comfortable doing so, then start to lower this leg. Don't try to put it to the floor straight away, start off with it 30cm above the floor, then the next day practise with it 25cm from the floor, etc etc. he will soon get the idea x

Answer 7

what i do is i lift the foot that you want tucked up like your gonna clean his hoof. then you get a treat of some sort show it to him and then lead the head to his chest. hold the treat between his legs with your arm coming from the back. it will take a while for him to figure it out as he will be uncomfortable with you holding the foot and he will try to put it down. only when he had dropped back with the other leg straight give him the treat and place his foot down.  watch your feet and they do then to drop it on your foot. it takes patiences and its a slow process. when he gets it right throw i the command to encourage him to do it when you point to his chest. so he knows bow and he gets a treat

Answer 8

Get a book to do it correctly!!!!  You can teach your horse bad habits if not done right.

HPTS