You're welcome.
Don't get a mule. Buy a horse. You'll thank me someday.
Mules are not for beginners. Especially kids. An old horse like ol yeller that belongs to my youngest son, will teach you more than you could ever learn if you'll listen to him. And they will baby sit those kids all day long.
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This thread is one of the best things I have ever seen on the internet. So much of what you have both explained and shown is the same principle and often the same training method as I use on my ranch horses. You explain it with words and pictures so much better than I can do with just words when I'm asked. I will be telling a lot of people seeking advice to read this. I'm no expert on mules, I have not owned a mule, but I rode a good one for a few days one time so I can appreciate how nice a good one can be. I don't see anything here that doesn't work on horses too though. You spend the time in advance to set them up to succeed. Wet saddle blankets, patience, consistence, making the right thing easy and wrong thing hard, all this works on so many things. I grew up with horses, have an 11 year old blue heeler, and I'm using what I learned with them to make my 3 year old daughter the best person I can help her to be. Patience, consistency, and earned respect and trust work across the board.
I have had so many inexperienced people who want to own a horse ask me to help them find the right one over the years. They listen and then they price the 10-12 year old horse with experience that I tell them to find and end up with an inexpensive green 3 or 4 year old. The old saying that Green on Green = Black and Blue holds true far more often than not. Sometimes it's just the right horse, or just the right temperament of rider and it works but not often. Most end up either giving up on horses all together or spending the money for one that fits after the first blow up.
When I was 9 years old I was shipping yearlings with Dad and his friends and I had a good cowboy that everyone looked up to give me some advice I have never forgot. I can't tell you much I learned when I was 9, but this stuck with me and I owe a lot of what I know today about horses to taking this to heart early. I'll try not to drag it out, but for this story to be told I have to give a little background on this one:
I was riding a horse that was in his early 20's, a horse that my Dad had broke and my Grandpa had rode for many years after. By the time I got that horse there wasn't anything that happened on the ranch that he didn't know. This horse was good enough that when moving cows Grandpa could tie the reins up to where he couldn't eat and get off and warm up in the truck, he would herd the cattle like a border collie. He knew his rest and release came when the work was done and wanted to make that happen as quick as he could. Only downside of that is that on a longer trip he might push the cows to hard and wear them out if you let him, he would trot instead of walk them. I'm 39 now so this was 30 years ago before ATV's, dart guns, even gooseneck trailers and other technology had taken jobs away from horses so this horse had a lot of experience. When I didn't know what to do I stuck my hand forward and put slack in the reins, the horse took it from there and did what needed done. Made 9yr old me look good doing it too!
Anyway to the point of this I was riding with that cowboy everyone looked up to, just walking across the pasture saving our horses energy until we got to the yearlings we were going to ship that day. I told him that I didn't always know what to do, but when I didn't I just gave my horse his head and he went and did it. He was quiet for a bit and then his reply was "You know, it takes a lot of men half their life to learn what you just told me". I've learned over the years since just how right he was. The more I can get a horse to be confident and reward him for doing his job without my help, while still having him respect me as higher in the herd than he is and listening to me when I need to take control, the better they ultimately get. Being on the same page takes out so much reaction time and makes sorting cattle horseback on a good one my absolute favorite thing I do on the ranch.
Anyway, sorry to get off on a tangent. Thanks for the very informative post and I hope you continue sharing your knowledge.
