Use of The Whip

Asking people to use a whip on their horse stirs up many sorts of responses – many of which are not positive. Unpleasant images abound with flailing lashes, wrenched tails, flying sweat and dangerous horses rearing and striking against their abuser. But proper use of the whip as an aid can make your training much more effective and the horse a much happier creature.

I like to think of my whip as an extension of my arm. As you read through all of my articles you will find many common threads. One of these is that you should never move out of your own position to accommodate an evading horse. This is in order to maintain your leadership role. If you are not to move your body to address a horse that is, for example, challenging where he belongs while being led how do you correct him? Reaching behind you to tap him back into position becomes far easier if you have the whip as an extension since you cannot possible reach and contact the horse without changing your body position. This sends a clear signal that you will not give up your space and that you are able to correct him without doing so.

There is a difference between a crop and a whip. A crop, or bat, is used to punish a horse for not going forward. A whip is a tool to assist you in all aspects of your horse’s education. A whip should be relatively stiff, with a soft lash and somewhere between 36”- 42” long depending upon the size of your horse.

However before you approach your horse with a whip as an aid you must first ensure that he is not afraid of it. If the horse has been owned and trained by others you cannot be sure of how he has been treated. With your horse in one hand and the whip in another slowly raise the whip to about waist high and clearly away from your horse. If there is no reaction very slowly approach the barrel of the horse with the whip – still no reaction keep moving it closer until you can touch him. If still no reaction once the whip is in contact rub him with it all over his body. Please make sure you are standing to the side, with the lead rope or longe line held in your hand but not wrapped around any part of your body. If your horse accepts all of this he is ready and able to accept the whip as an aid. This does not mean he will not react if you use it sharply (as a bite if needed) but that is its intended purpose.

If at any time your horse reacts fearfully you must stop at that point. If she seems worried as you raise the whip – keep it raised but do not bring it any closer. Once she accepts it held off the ground and in your hand bring it closer bit by bit until you can touch her, rub her and she has accepted the whip without worries.

If your horse reacts violently to the whip – rears, strikes out at you, runs wildly around you trying her best to get away – this would be the time to seek professional help.

Once you have ascertained that your horse can accept the whip as an aid it is time to put it to use. It must be used as light as possible but as harsh as needed. All that this means is that the horse needs to react in some fashion when the whip is applied.

As you work with the whip it serves a better purpose to get some response from your horse rather than no response at all. Even if the response is over zealous. If you apply the whip and he ignores it the next application needs to elicit a definite response. If you tap, tap, tap and the horse ignores this tapping you are teaching him that you do not mean what you say – not a good leader. This leaves room for more questions. If you tap, tap, tap and then finally use the whip to some effect most horses will quickly learn to wait until you step it up to that level. Also by that time the lesson has been lost – too much time has passed since the wrong answer was given. If your horse is the type to ignore your aids it would be a better idea to use the whip with great intent in order to wake him up and get him listening. Once you have his undivided attention you can then step the severity down so you can use less aid as an end result. This is the approach you should take with the application of all aids – the whip, your leg as well as your attitude.

As with all aids the timing of such is paramount to success. Never use the whip in anger and never for discipline other than a good crack (and only one) if your horse bites or kicks you. The whip is a natural aid because it mimics correction from the horse’s viewpoint and if used correctly will grant you a more secure role as leader.