PULLING ON THE HALTER. 99 



mouth once made tender, and the horse made to back too 

 freely, you do a serious mischief it is not easy to remedy. 

 Taking a little extra time, and working carefully enables 

 you to determine with more accuracy just how much to do. 

 A colt that will act decidedly stubborn, if forced to yield 

 while warm, will be likely next day to have the mouth too 

 tender. The best way, in training the colt, is to work him 

 up a little. Stop, even though the colt will not back. Next 

 day the mouth will be sensitive, and will back easily and 

 just as freely as desired, without abuse or danger of spoil- 

 ing the mouth. 



PULLING ON THE HALTER. 



If a green colt is tied by the head to a post, and if the 

 halter is a rope, one that draws tightly across the nose, 

 when pulled upon, the colt will be almost sure to pull back 



Pulling on the halter. 



the moment pressure is felt upon the head. Should the 

 halter give way to the strain, the colt will try with great per- 

 sistence to pull when so hitched afterwards. Try to pull a 

 colt ahead before being broken to lead, and he will naturally 

 run back, refusing to lead. This should indicate that a colt 

 should not be hitched by the head with any kind of a halter, 

 and given a chance to learn to pull. There is great danger, 

 in the first place, of seriously injuring the colt by pulling, as 

 he is likely to do, upon his head. Secondly, if the halter 

 gives, the habit of halter-pulling is established. The colt 



