Common mistakes when Imprinting foals

Prey species like horses are programmed at birth to attach and bond with objects seen immediately after birth (the mother) and to later flee from anything unfamiliar. When first born, a foal does not fear humans, and can be programmed to tolerate and remember many things. This is called imprinting. After that short window, he becomes more like an adult horse in temperament - suspicious of changes in his environment, wary of new experiences, or unfamiliar creatures that might be predators. Thus the most advantageous time to make a lasting good impression on the foal is right after birth. If you control what he sees and experiences, you can have a long-term positive effect; this is called imprint training.

"The earlier that training begins in the life of a horse, the more effective it will be, providing it is done properly. If done improperly, more harm than good may be done because the learning at this stage is so fast and so lasting," says Miller.

If imprint training is done incorrectly, or too hurried (not continuing each step until the foal completely relaxes and accepts it), your purpose is defeated. If the foal is a timid individual, he may still be apprehensive about certain things if you quit too soon. If he is an independent, dominant individual and you halt the session before he is totally desensitized (before he completely submits to having a foot manipulated or his ears handled, for instance), you merely reinforce his strong-willed determination to resist humans. If you are working on an ear or flexing a leg, and halt before he tolerates and ignores the handling, he will have learned to jerk his head or leg away whenever you try to handle it later. Each step must be continued until the foal is totally passive about it, explains Miller.

"Most foals are naturally submissive and still end up as gentle and compliant horses even if improperly imprinted. But if a foal is highly dominant and willful, or very flighty, and the procedure is done improperly, the foal will learn undesirable behavior and become spoiled," he says.

The most common mistake is rushing the first training session. A foal becomes sensitized to stimuli (body handling, the sound of clippers, etc.) instead of desensitized, and therefore fears and resists these things instead of accepting them. "The second most common mistake is to omit or inadequately perform the subsequent lessons. I like to do these on alternate days for a week or two, if possible. During these sessions the emphasis is on control of movement, teaching the foal to move forward, back and sideways on command, to rotate on forehand and hindquarters, to lead willingly, stand patiently while tied, etc," says Miller.

"Horses establish their dominance hierarchy by controlling the movement of their peers - making a subordinate individual move, or inhibiting its movement." If you control the foal's movement, you impress on his mind that you are the dominant one in his life, and he must be submissive to you. "Omitting the subsequent lessons in control of movement will produce a foal that is tolerant of body handling, but disrespectful. He can become a potentially dangerous animal. Properly doing these sessons, however, will consistently produce a responsive, respectful, obedient horse," he says.

By instilling in the young foal that he must respect restraint standing quietly while contained by your arms) and must move when you ask him to move (encouraged by a little come-along rope), he learns that you are in control of his movements. When he grows up he will be obedient to your commands, respecting your dominance. Thus he will be well mannered and compliant rather than balking or charging ahead when led at halter or moving around and stepping on your toes when you want him to stand still. Control of his movement is the essense of training, and this can be accomplished in the first days of life if imprint training is properly done.