STEADY, AND STOP. 195 



him to slow down fi'om a trot to a walk at the sound of the word 

 ** steady," softly and calmly repeated, enforcing at first obedience 

 with the reins. After he has been made quite obedient at that, 

 teach him to slacken a walking pace to a very slow walk as he 

 hears the word repeated, gently enforcing obedience with the 

 rein. This will be far more difficult, and will only be taught to a 

 lively horse, with very persevering consistency, unfrustrated by 

 any thoughtless act calculated to excite the horse. For instance, 

 after you cease to repeat the word, and want the horse to quicken 

 his pace, take care that you do not spoil the slowing business 

 altogether by suddenly touching the horse up with a whip, but 

 give him plenty of harmless verbal notice of the change you 

 desire. It is chiefly a question of confidence, and is of course 

 far more easily taught to a trusting, easy going animal than to an 

 impatient eager one. 



441. — Stopping altogether to the word " whay," is very 

 easily and quickly taught to any young horse, and often more 

 quickly taught to a lively than to a sluggish animal. Only a 

 harshly treated horse that has not been allowed to stop whilst 

 the word or some combination of it has been shouted in his 

 ears (424), ever gives any trouble about stopping to order. 



442. — There is perhaps nothing in which horses differ so very 

 much as their willingness or unwillingness to go backwards. 

 Some horses take to it naturally, and can hardly be prevented 

 from doing so in season and out of season. Others are most 

 unwilling to take a single step backwards, and can neither be 

 forced nor frightened into any action in that direction. The 

 difficulty is generally increased by blinkers, and sometimes 

 rendered very great by forcing the colt backwards into some 

 danger, injury, or alarm to begin with. 



It is no good to threaten or to strike him from the front, or 

 to drag savagely at his bit. Take off his blinkers, and standing 

 behind him, keep a firm, strong, steady pull on both reins until 

 he gives back a step and then instantly slacken the rein, and let 

 him feel that he has relieved his mouth by giving a step back- 

 wards. Pet him a little, and then repeat the process. In this 

 way you will slowly get him reconciled to the unnatural move- 



