# Goat won't respond to pressure on the halter



## GoatFluff (Aug 4, 2013)

Hello! I am new to this forum, which I found in my search to an answer to a problem I have been having for about 2 weeks. My goat is about 3 months old now, I have been taking him around on a halter since 2 weeks old. Basically when I started with him on the halter there wasn't much 'training' to do since he followed me around everywhere with or without it on. Lately though every time I take him out he walks as slow as he possibly can and is putting constant pressure on the halter. I first tried the pressure and release method, pulling him until he would move and then release the pressure, but he just goes right back to going slow and tightens up the slack in the lead. I tried a new halter, switching him from a plain rope halter to a fancy one with a chain on the lead, hoping that the extra pressure the chain would offer would convince him that putting constant pressure on the lead wasn't worth it anymore. I even tried taking another goat with us and he still just walks as slow as the lead will allow. The only other things I can think of that I haven't tried is leading him by a collar instead, or feed him treats if he ever loosens up on the lead in hopes he will pick up the pace. He still acts normal and loving towards me and everyone else, he just is driving me nuts not walking normally. I have been having to walk him with gloves on since the lead is giving me blisters there is so much pressure on it when ever I take him out. Thank you for any feedback! I have trained so many different goats to lead but this little guy has just stumped me.


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## Nanno (Aug 30, 2009)

Your goat is still very young. It could be he's just going through a phase and will get over it in his own good time. To encourage him to get over it faster, I would definitely recommend treats. We had all kinds of problems getting our goat, Cuzco, not to drag on the lead for years until we found a particular horse treat that he actually liked and would eat. He hasn't stubbornly dragged on the lead ever since. Pulling him along in a jerk-jerk-jerk fashion also helped keep him from being able to plant his feet and lean back in a tug-o-war. I still wore gloves during the worst parts of the training process, though. 

I've heard other people here talk about tying your young goat's halter to the saddle or harness of a larger obedient goat. This sounds like a great idea to me. I actually did something similar to this once Cuzco got too big for me to drag. He wouldn't want to come in from pasture, so I'd get on a horse and dally his halter around the saddle horn. If I didn't have a saddle, I'd put his rope over my lap and hold it down behind my thigh on the opposite side. Then I'd just sit back and let the horse pull him along. This worked to get the job done, but the treats were what actually taught him that he could be rewarded for not pulling on the lead.


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## GoatFluff (Aug 4, 2013)

For the treats I had an idea moment today, and realized I could use his milk as the 'treat'. :idea: But yesterday I tried the collar, it was just a bunch of him gagging himself and the neighbors looking at me like I was a horrible person. Didn't even think of using a horse, or one of my older goats, that also might work, especially if the treats fail. Going to start using the milk to see if that will entice him to walk, though I'm afraid that his enthusiasm might run out when the milk does. I will try it and come back and report the results! Thanks for the ideas! I appreciate it!


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## Nanno (Aug 30, 2009)

Have you tried just walking him out without a rope? Will he follow you at a distance? If so, you might consider just doing that for a while until he is older and has developed a taste for treats. He will stop a lot to browse and explore, but he will race to catch up to you when you get too far away for comfort. He may not follow you away from home, especially if you have other goats there, but if you take him someplace strange he should keep you well within sight. I'm planning to start taking my baby goats for walks soon, but I'm not going to leash train them until they are older. I'll just take them to a hiking trail away from home and let them follow. I'll introduce the leash after I've gotten them addicted to cookies.


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## GoatFluff (Aug 4, 2013)

I haven't tried walking him without a rope yet, I live in an urban area so when I take him out I am terrified of him wandering out into traffic, so the only 'goat friendly' territory is our place, though I could take him to my friend who has a big piece of land for her pigmy goat's place and see how he does there. The bottle has worked alright when I took him out for some short walks through the yard, it's been a busy week for me so I haven't been able to take him on a big walk. Which, after our yard walks he seems like he still wants to keep going when I put him in with the rest, which I think is a good sign, that he wants to go. When I first started taking him out when he was pretty young I would just put the halter on and then just tie the rope around his neck like a 'necklace'. He would just be free to wander as he liked and nibble and explore around the yard, and he would follow the other goat I would have with me. Though there was one incident when she headbutted him and he ran ALL the way back to the goat pens and was 'lost' and crying because no other goats were in there at the time and they were all out grazing.


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## Nanno (Aug 30, 2009)

Oh yeah, if you're in an urban area, you definitely need to use a leash. It's just going to take some patient instruction, time, and treats. See if he'll take cookies. I discovered that my babies love vanilla wafers, and they're only two months old. Milk is a little messy and unwieldy. Cookies will fit in a pouch or a loose pocket. Then take him down to the local park or some other pleasant place that he'll enjoy where you can let him browse and play, so that he looks forward to leaving home with you. It will take time, but with a bit of consistency he should figure it out.


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## Bob Jones (Aug 21, 2009)

Take him out after dark. You'll probably have a hard time keeping him out from under your feet.


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