Training a mule

Talk about Horses and Mules.
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yeager
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Training a mule

Postby yeager » Tue Sep 15, 2015 8:56 am

Greetings, I have a yearling gelded quarter horse jack. He's good looking however I'm training him slowly. I have a halter on him but can't lead him? How do I get started on that? I can massage his ears, back face etc, thx for any advice in training him
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Re: Training a mule

Postby pegleg » Tue Sep 15, 2015 3:33 pm

Well motivate him lol. I'm going out on a limb here but Id say this is your first time? Here's my helpful hints. Stay away from the horsey forums online. Not everything is useless on there but sifting through it might not be the best use of your time right now. As far as getting him to move you can always put a loop around his rump if your in a hurry. Works well on horses and Some mules. But on others it causes a range of responses that don't include what you want. If he likes treats I'd say for you that might be the best option bribe him to move until he forgets he wasn't sold on the idea originally.
Your best bet is to get some help. Mules learn quick and you don't get much time to figure out what the right move is. A ruined mule usually stays that way. Each one has a pressure limit and will grudgingly or willingly go right along until he hits it. Then your probably about to loose.
Just get some hands on type help and train more like your training a dog then a horse.
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Re: Training a mule

Postby tman308 » Tue Sep 15, 2015 11:44 pm

If you train him to tie and stand for 30 minutes to an hour he will teach himself not to pull against the lead rope and you'll save yourself a bunch of time and frustration
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Re: Training a mule

Postby broncobilly » Wed Sep 16, 2015 6:53 pm

The short answer is: Put a lip string on him, get a pocket full of treats, and reward him when he obeys and correct him(carefully) when he willfully disobeys. The tricky part is learning to read his body language well enough to recognize willful disobedience versus confusion.

If you really want to train your own mule, I recommend that you take a horse training class from a GOOD instructor. IMO Minnesota Horse Training Academy (http://www.mnhorsetrainingacademy.com) is one of the best. If you don’t have time to take the class, you don’t have time to train a mule. If you take your mule to MNHTA for the class, at the end of three weeks you will have a well started riding mule and you will have the knowledge necessary to finish him into a first class hunting mule.

Good luck

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Re: Training a mule

Postby tman308 » Wed Sep 16, 2015 9:19 pm

I agree on the training but I would stick with a mule specific trainer like Brad Cameron or Ty Evans (tsmules.com) if you're going that route.
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Re: Training a mule

Postby Fitz » Wed Sep 16, 2015 9:53 pm

I used to work for a commercial pack station. I would get unbroken or green stock and train them for packing/riding.

What I like to do is to step to one side and gently pull them at about a 30 deg angle from straight ahead of them. What this does is it pulls them off balance and forces them to take a step towards you. Now I only ask them to take one step at a time with one leg.
I alternate from side to side with each step. I only apply enough tension to get them to take a step. They might fight it but just let them reset their feet and start over again. Watch for signs that they're understanding what you want. For example: licking their lips, watching you and leaning towards you as you're asking them to perform something.

Be sure to reward him for doing things right. Whether it's a hand full of grain, carrot piece, apple wedge or even just rubbing his neck, scratching his chest/shoulder or ears.

You want him to understand what you're asking and for him to complete it correctly before he's rewarded.


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Re: Training a mule

Postby Henefer-hound-hunter » Wed Sep 16, 2015 11:22 pm

Let him drag a lead rope around for about a week, then start leading him. Apply a little pressure and when he gives into the pressure and takes a step toward you pet him and give him a treat. If he won't give into the pressure at all and keeps pulling back tie him up and make him stand for a few hours and try it again. I have trained a lot of horses but just recently did two mules, and though they responded almost just like a horse to the training, the few things I noticed that were different is they learn much faster with treats and affection when they do something right, and when they have a day that they don't want to learn anything new, they won't no matter what you do. It's better to put them up and try again the next day:) I used the John lions way of training just like I do on horses and it worked out well. Hope this helps

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yeager
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Re: Training a mule

Postby yeager » Thu Sep 17, 2015 2:27 am

Thank you for the responses, I will put a long lead rope on him for him to drag and try to get a few steps out of him, if I cant I will tie him to a tree and let him pull until he figures it out.
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Re: Training a mule

Postby twilli » Sun Oct 18, 2015 3:05 am

You need to make him understand about forward motion to get him to follow you around . Get him to move his feet. Work him in a round pen with the lead rope on and get him to moving his feet. Mules are smart and learn quickly. Once you are able to move him around the pen and change directions its time for him to learn that if he is near you then he doesn't have to work. Soon enough he will be following you around. Treats are a good tool to use.
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Re: Training a mule

Postby Catch » Mon Nov 23, 2015 2:37 am

Mules are not horses so don't try to train a mule like a horse. Get a good rope halter with 15' of rope. The rope halter adds some traction that comes off when the mule releases. When teaching to lead never start if you have some where to go. Never start eny training on a mule if you are in a hurry. When a mule locks up you have to teach the mule to come off pressure. Simply put as much pressure on the rope and hold until the steps forward. Scratch it head or rub each time it releases. Mules are smart and will try you in every way but when they relize you are not stopping they will give up and just start leading. Treats are not the best thing to use on mules other then teaching to come to you. A lot of good ground work is the best. Don't get frustrated and storm off with the mule winning. Always stop your training with you winning and you will do just fine. Good luck!!
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Re: Training a mule

Postby treed » Fri Jan 29, 2016 12:51 am

Well, I had to get in on this...I had some draft horses that I was. using to breed my jack to..I never realized how powerful they were until my one draft would ski me across the yard when she didnt want to change pastures...I had enough so I tied the lead rope to my truck and pulled her ..She pulled so hard that she broke her halter...Soooo I hooked her up in a halter made out of a tow strap and hooked her back up to my truck..She pulled so hard that my 1/2 ton chevy sat still spinning ..I locked the hubs and drug her all over my property..She was so tired when I was done you could have lead her with a piece of thread..Never had a problem with her since..
Just recently her coming 2 yr old mule baby decided to not let me lead her . I hooked her up to my Geo Tracker and we went for a walk..She fought awhile, but I can take a piece of bailing twine and lead her wherever I want now...
Since then, all my balking mules get a tune up behind my Tracker..Listen to some tunes, kick back and cruise...With that being said all my mules and horse babies were handled since birth They know how to lead, they choose not to....
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Re: Training a mule

Postby Lee Wolford » Wed Nov 23, 2016 4:05 pm

I second the truck option! Its the only way to go, works great. Just make sure everything is stout so nothing breaks. Don't want them to break a rope or halter, or they will soon learn that when they pull back or stop that they get loose. Tow em lil they are broke.

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