BREAKING COLTS. 261 



The draft horse requires much less preparatory handling than 

 the trotting or running bred horse. 



After making a careful study of the disposition of a colt 

 the next thing to do is to halter it. To do this properly the 

 person in charge must possess a great deal of patience. The 

 colt should be properly secured in a box stall or a small 

 shed, preferably one with a ground floor, so as to eliminate 

 all danger from slipping. Take a halter with a rope about 

 fifteen feet long attached to it. Pet the colt and treat him 

 kindly so as to win his confidence, and he will soon learn 

 that you are not going to hurt him, thus making it usually 

 very easy to put on the halter without any trouble. If the 

 colt is at all nervous and likely to pull on the halter it 

 is best to break him of this at the beginning. Take the 

 loose end of the rope and pass it through a hole in the 

 manger or around a post and back between the fore legs, 

 placing it around the girth and tying it there. The eolt is 

 now tied by both the head and the body. Step back from 

 him and let him fight it out, and it will usually not take him 

 very long to learn that he is conquered. When tied in this 

 way there is no danger of injury, as is oftentimes the case 

 when tied by the head only. As soon as he learns to stand 

 quietly and has given up pulling on the halter, pet him and 

 give him to understand that you are his friend. 



It is well to leave him tied for some time before trying 

 to teach him to lead. Teaching a colt to lead by the halter 

 is a very important part of his education. Here is where a 

 great many men fail. A horse that is well broken to lead is 

 more attractive, easier to handle, and will command a higher 

 price in the market than one that is not properly broken. 

 In training to lead always teach the colt to walk beside you 

 and never allow him to follow along behind, as is often the 

 case. This can be done very readily by taking a whip in 

 the left hand and touching him up a little from behind as you 

 walk along. A few lessons of this kind will teach him that 

 the proper place for him is beside you, and he will not want 

 to be any other place. 



After being well trained to walk beside you, encourage 

 him to trot. This can also be done with the gentle use of 

 the whip. It is well at the beginning to have the lead shank 

 in the mouth of the colt, so that he will not get away from 

 you should he become frightened. In leading, keep his head 



