Using Long Lines to
re-train older horses
It Takes One to Know One
Wendy Tinker
I Sell Horse Properties!
By William L. “Bill” Chase, Jr.
F
or years I considered long line training to be something that was done to introduce young
horses to the bit, after initial ground work but before introducing saddle work; or as a
means of teaching older horses to pull carts and wagons. After meeting Enrique Carranza
and having him work with a number of our older horses both under saddle and in the long
lines, I discovered how useful long line work is in re-training older horses who may already
be in the saddle but who are experiencing a variety of common problems. My wife Becky and
I currently have a number of Peruvian Paso horses that she and I and our Junior Riders have
shown successfully over the years. Even though these horses are being shown, several of them
exhibit problems such as carrying their head too high, stiffness in the neck, shoulders and back
and failure to fully round their backs and reach well under themselves. All of these problems
are correctable by a skilled rider from the saddle but what surprised me was that they can also
be corrected by a skillful handler from the ground using long lines. Often times these