You're doing AWESOME pshart!... Just keep on going!. Remember one thing.... it's good to "plan" the lesson ahead, as the teacher it's your job... but always be willing to change the plans... IE: your goal for tomorrow will be all 4 feet... but when you get out there if you notice she's not doing good with the halter.... put off the feet and focus on the halter... Each day review all the prior lessons before you move ahead. Address ANY back issues before moving on to new lessons. You don't have to go thru everything you did the day before but do something to check the lesson part... IE if yesterdays lesson was leading all over the farm... before you start todays you can do a few simple direction changes from the halter in the barn... just asking her to put her head to the left or right IS a direction change even without actually moving... in otherwords you've tested her willingness and got the right answer, now you can move forward (i hope that makes sense) Continue to build on your halter work so that she will focus on you and not surroundings and will give to your pressure in all kinds of situations.. tarps on the ground etc. I'm not saying you did this... but it's one thing to follow a horse around on a rope from food to food and another to be able to lead a horse anywhere you ask. hard to say this in short... but Halter and Leading is a precurser for all kinds of more advanced training and teaching your horse to always give to that pressure cannot be stressed enough. It's amazing how many issues later down the road stem back to not truly knowing how to lead properly. You are doing great and I love that you're letting us know how it's going. Keep up the good work and you are going to have a fine horse and partner!

Okay! Halter broke. Lead around all morning as we took a tour of the new place, munched on grass, walked back and forth over the roads, munched some more, curried all over, munched some more, lead rope rubbed everywhere, walked around my SUV, and munched some more! Picked up the front feet, too. Tomorrow, all feet up, giving her head with downward pressure from halter. What else at this point? She is very special to me. From how she acted at the other barn,I didn't think she was willing to make a connection. I am overjoyed.

OKay! The filly is at the new barn... finally! Yesterday was a bust; it took a professional horse hauler and myself HOURS to get the filly and her mom on the trailer, but not because of the filly, MOM decided at the very last minutet, one second before I had her completely tied, to bust out of the trailer. She didn't run off, but she was so stubborn we gave up and loaded my other two horses on (who just walked on like they were on a Disney ride or something). We returned today and made a squeez chute out of bull panels and in the trailer Mom and Daughter went. Wheew! The filly had a halter on all day and I even led her off the trailer, into a stall for some hav, and then lead to a field for the night. She NEVER turned her butt to me and allowed herself to be led. Tomorrow starts the hard part of truly being halter broken. There's a round pen at this place so I think the girl is going to get some better schooling here...a more weight, she's pretty thin.

Ps, you go, girl!! Sounds like you may just have a keeper! Hard work & willingness to learn go a LONG way! (I'm talkin bout you as well as your filly) LOL Susie

I take it all back. She just might work out. I worked with her today and she is very polite. She always backed away from me slowly and never once turned her butt to me. I was in the round pen with her for about 30 minutes and she let me touch her back, sides, butt, forelegs but not her face. Makes me wonder...

Dasher, I am just trying to get her cooperative enough to get her out of there. She is very underweight. I can already see that she is not the palamino for me which is a shame. She just wasn't given a chance from the getgo but I will figure out something that she can do with the skills she has. I let the training to the professionals... and the people who can "bounce."

Buy a broke horse and leave the ones that arnt to people who know how to do it , keeps you and the horse from getting hurt

Take what you want from this... I've gentled more than a dozen mustangs for the BLM and Mustang Heritage Foundation and this works for me. I'm going on your comment that she's unhandled and no one can get near her even though you've posted that you were petting her. You need a round pen. Get her in there by herself so you are the only one she can look to. You will become her herd leader, but have to earn her respect first. This is where the round pen comes in very handy! You're in the middle with a rope or a lunge whip. Move her feet. At first let her move in whatever direction she wants to go in. If she wants to stop, make her move until you want her to stop. Back away (release of pressure), say Whoa and relax your body language. When she responds give her a few seconds to rest and ask her to move again, adding in changes of direction. Step in front of her "drive line" to accomplish this - ahead of her shoulder, and ask her to go in the opposite direction. If she turns away from you, pop that whip to let her know that showing her butt is disrespectful and unacceptable! Move her back and forth, changing directions often, asking for Whoas often and next thing you know, when you ask for that Whoa, she going to turn into you and "face up". You reward this by relaeasing the pressure. Back up. If she comes towards you, let her, and if you're now at the point that you can rub her face or shoulder, do so and reward her by ending the session. Repeat this round pen work until you can rub your lunge whip, rope etc all over her, have her following you around and then introduce the halter. once she's following you around you'll know she's deemed you worthy of being her leader and protector. Then the real fun begins! You can build so much on this new trust you'll have with your filly.

I wouldn't rush things. If the comfort of having her dam, and the rest of the herd, nearby helped. It's something you need to work for a while. I'd do just as you did, until she stands there for you....then I'd try putting on a halter, with lead rope attached. then, just stand there a while, and let her get used to it. Then take it off, without pulling on it. Do that a few times, then tug on it, in the same direction as mama is going. Do that a few times, then start pulling her away at an angle, and then back to mom. Eventually, you'll get to the point where she'll let you lead her outside the paddock, and into that round pen. She'll be more trusting, and respond to the round pen work. Another technique I use for building trust, is reading. When I have a foal I'm starting out, I put mom and foal in the round pen, and sit in a lawn chair, next to the round pen side, and read a book. A foal's natural inquisitivness will make her come check you out. Build on that.

Worked with my filly Heidi today for only 10 minutes. She is in a band of eight mares and they were all chomping on grass. I went up to Bobby Jo, her mother, and started petting her. Then I switched to Heidi for a couple strokes and then back to mom. I kept doing that but Heidi pretty much ignored me and kept eating. When mom moved away, I kept stroking Heidi's back and hind quarters. She slowly moved off and followed her mom. Then I went to get grain and hay before the rain came. I will try again tomorrow and see if I can make a makeshift round pen so not to have a four-legged peanut gallery to distract her. :)