At clinics, I am sometimes asked what length should I hold the lead rope during groundwork. Many people notice how adjustable the length of rope is in my hands. I am constantly shortening and lengthening the rope. I think of it as a constant search for the best contact. The lead rope is like a pair of reins guiding a horse to search for a softer feel and greater clarity. The lead rope is a conduit for the back-and-forth conversation between me and a horse.
Sometimes I hold the lead rope very short - under the chin, at the point it attaches to the halter. Other times my hold gives the horse the full length of the rope to search for an idea.
A while ago at a clinic, somebody expressed deep concern that I sometimes took help the lead rope very close to the halter. They said that by not giving the horse more rope I was physically imposing my will on the horse by force. It was an interesting observation. But it was also a misunderstanding. Without thinking about it, they equated a shorter length of lead rope as being restrictive and a longer rope as offering freedom.
This assertion can be true but is not automatically true.
The idea of holding the lead rope short is to allow great precision and clarity to the feel of the rope. It is the hold on the rope that determines the feel, energy, force, clarity, or whatever you are trying to convey to the horse to reshape its thoughts.
When I apply a feel to a lead rope that is 2m long, I can get the same effect using only a tiny fraction of that feel with a lead rope that is only 6cm long. I can do less and get more on a shorter rope. On a longer lead rope, I might have to energetically wiggle the rope for a backup. But for a very short hold of the rope, I might create the same backup (or better) with just a slight tension in my little finger.
The point I am trying to make is that a lot of feel and clarity may be lost as the energy travels down the lead rope from my hand to the halter. Therefore, the shorter the lead rope, the less energy that is lost. This enables me to offer a greater range of feel, more precision, and enhanced clarity using a shorter rope than a longer one.
However, there are conditions to when to use a longer or shorter length of lead rope during groundwork.
I mainly use a very short length of lead rope in the early stages of training or teaching something new because of the clarity and precision that it allows. Timing and exactness of feel can be much greater for a horse trying to figure out the question we are asking when the rope is short. I find the degree of clarity it offers helps most horses find comfort. In photo (A) below, you can see me working with Adre using a close contact feel while I teach him to circle me. Most of my feel comes from flexion of my wrist and fingers on the rope as I guide Adre to softness and a precise circle.
It is only after a horse can follow the feel on a short rope that I then allow the lead rope to be longer. The change I get using the shorter length of rope allows me to build the softness and accuracy as the rope incrementally gets longer. Photo (B) shows Adre trying his best to follow the feel as I allow the rope to get much longer. This would eventually lead to working with Adre on circles while at liberty (but we didn’t get that far at the clinic).
I also want to add that if your level of skill is not yet finely tuned enough to be soft and precise by just a touch of your fingers on a rope or flexion of your wrist, then you should work with a much longer rope where there is much more leeway for mistakes and inaccuracies. This technique is not for beginners.
As I mentioned earlier, when working with a horse on the ground I am constantly changing the length of lead rope I am holding. This is because I am constantly adjusting for changes in a horse’s thoughts and emotions so that I can offer the quietest and clearest feel possible. It is to help my horse while it searches for the comfort it seeks. This requires me to be super vigilant and constantly aware of the conversation between me and the horse.
In summary, using a very short length of rope allows me to be super clear and precise as I guide a horse to more comfort and more precision. It’s a stepping stone to achieving the same togetherness while not being so critical. It’s a stepping stone to achieving focus, clarity, and softness while riding or at liberty.
Working with Adre at a clinic I did last July in Germany. Thank you Simone Carlson.