All training programs eventually come to an end. Maybe the horse gets old and is not ridden any more, is sold, achieves all of the goals that the owner wants, or gets soured out and becomes impossible to train.

Unfortunately this last possibility occurs much too often. It can be seen at most horse shows, horses with pinned ears, switching tails, and a bad performance. They are mad and the training program has come to an end. Curiously many trainers do not recognize that the program is over. The riders continue to pound and spur but nothing really gets better. The horse does not learn anything more. The program is finished.

One common reason for training failure is that there are "Training Conflicts" that make it impossible for the horse to achieve the tasks that are asked of them. It is like coming to an street intersection and there is both a red light and a green light. Conflicting signals, a conflicting situation, you cannot be correct no matter what you do. And if you were punished for making mistakes you would pretty soon become frustrated and quit the program too.

There are two types of conflicts in horse training programs.

1. Conflict of Action
The riders’ goals involve a conflict of movement or action. This is were the rider asks for two incompatible motions. An example is in training reining horses to spin. First the horse is trained to move his ribs away from the riders leg. Then inside rein and outside leg are used to teach a slow spin. This works fine, there is no conflict when the movement is done slowly, at a walking pace. But a conflict arises when the program tries to move on to a faster spin. The rider gives the command for more speed with the outside leg and is hold the horse in the spin position with the reins. If it is a left spin, the riders’ right spur drives the horse, so the horse moves his right side, rib cage and shoulder away from the leg. This elevates the right side of the horse putting most of his weight on the left side, the left front leg is supporting him. He cannot spin faster because his left front leg is supporting him. The harder he is spurred on the right, the more weight gets transferred to the left foot and harder it is for him to turn. The only way to free his left front leg is to hop in the air, but when he does this the trainer pulls him down, trying to keep him flat. The horse cannot achieve the action because of the conflict. It is physically impossible to turn fast in this position.

Solution is for the trainer to use both legs to turn the horse. The front legs then bear a balanced weight load, and the horse can increase his speed easily by transferring his weight from one front foot and then to the other, rhythmic and balanced.

The conflict continues when the riders pulls with the inside rein to start the spin. The horse has learned to steer by following his nose. The rider pulls the left rein , this bends the body in an arc with his nose to the left and his ribs sticking out to the right. The rider kicks with his right leg to spin, against the ribs that he has just forced to the right when he pulled his nose left. Conflict. To resolve the conflict the rider should have first taught the horse to move away from the outside rein, so he could start the spin with a straight body. Turning the horse with two reins, so that the ribs were not forced out into the outside leg.

2. Conflict of Command
The other type of conflict is when the rider gives conflicting commands. To use the spin example, this happens when the rider starts the spin by using pressure from one leg to start the motion. The horse has learned to move forward when he I s kicked. But now the rider wants a spin so he restricts the forward motion with his hands, not letting him go forward. Kicked forward and pulled back, the beginning of a conflict, a no win situation for the horse.

Think of the other conflicts that arise in training for the western disciplines. The rollback and the spin for example. Without a clear distinction between these two maneuvers in your program one or the other will not work well. We often see the horse that starts the spin in the show by turning a little and then jumping forward, out of the spin. The horse was actually starting a rollback. There was a conflict in the riders commands. Spin or rollback, which one should the horse do? The rider thinks spin but the horse thinks rollback, not the horses fault. Horses cannot read minds. The trainers’ program did not teach the difference between the two maneuvers clearly enough.

Horses are taught from a young age to stop when the reins are pulled. Stop, not to move forward. But there comes a time when the trainer wants the horse to slide, not stop like a calf roping horse. To slide he must keep his shoulders free and active, the front feet have to move forward. That is not stopping. It is a conflict in action, stop but move forward at the same time. Programs that emphasize pulling the horse into the ground to stop him get into trouble. The program generally tries to use more speed and hard fencing to get a slide. It does not work, the horse will still be stiff in the shoulders and not slide well. The conflict must be resolved. Stop teaching the horse to stop. Teach him to keep his shoulders active instead. Lope, and instead of stopping, teach to immediately trot on command, keeping those shoulders up and active, so that it becomes a habit. The horse must be self confident. He must be comfortable with the command. Fence him straight and with cadence, so that he stops comfortably and not too hard. Self confident that if he keeps his shoulders up and active it will be easy for him. Stopping is not important, body position is.

Or consider the cutting horse. The conflict is between facing the cow and matching its movement versus staying back and parallel in an defensive position. Trainers that make it too important not to loose a cow while training get there horses too intent on facing the cow. The horse crowds the cow, and moves forward toward the cow. He "leaks" forward, out of position. The program needs to focus more on defensive position, staying back, staying parallel and not worrying when the horse looses a tough cow.

Training conflicts can start very early. The frustrated owner of a foal that will not learn to stand still is an example. They first halter break the baby by teaching him to come to them and to stay with the handler. Move when they do. But then the program changes when they start teaching whoa. Now the horse has to forget that he should stay with the person, now the program is to stand there, even when the person moves. This is a conflict. The trainer needs to teach slowly and gradually with as little conflict as possible. The first rule is to keep the persons feet still when he is teaching whoa. It is interesting to note how difficult it is for most people to keep their feet still when they are standing with a weanling. The person is always shuffling their feet. No wonder the horse does the same thing, he has been already taught to stay with the person.

There are also conflicts with the nature of the animal. Western Pleasure horses are taught to lope slow when the are legged forward. To not go forward when they are legged forward. Then they must stay in position even when other horses are passing them. It is in a horses’ nature to run with the herd. There is not much greater conflict than being taught to stay slow when the herd is going fast. This makes Pleasure one of the most difficult events to train for. Yet beginners often pick it as their first horse show event, that is another conflict.

If the your training program is not working pay attention to what your horse tells you. He will make it clear when there are conflicts of action or command. If his ears are back, he refuses to go forward, switches his tail, or runs off, he is telling you that he is in a "no win" situation and is frustrated. Resolve the conflicts in the training program, build a program without conflict and it will work. The horse will learn.

Keep in mind that a horse does not learn when pressure is applied. He learns when it is removed. If we set up the situation correctly he can associate a movement or a position with the removal of pressure. He will then try to duplicate the situation himself in order to get the pressure release. The reason we apply pressure is so that we can remove it. Removing pressure at the right time is the art.

Realize that pressure takes many forms. What might produce mental pressure on one horse may cause a panic, fight or flight, response in another. The rider must learn the difference.