Start by asking whether it hurts. A horse who refuses one foot, or leans his weight onto you, may be sore in a leg he would have to stand on, and the Merck Veterinary Manual names pain as the most common cause of lameness in horses. If he is sound, teach the foot in small steps: stand close beside his leg facing his tail, run your hand down to the fetlock, squeeze and say "up," and put the foot down yourself before he takes it back. Short, frequent sessions work better than one long argument.
If he leans all his weight on you and you cannot hold it, you are not weak and he is not being stubborn. There is a mechanical reason, and it comes near the end of this page.
Stop here if any of these are true
Some refusals are a veterinary question before they are a training question. Call your vet if:
- He used to give this foot and now will not. A sudden change is the pattern pain produces.
- He is lame, or reluctant to walk, or standing oddly.
- One foot is hotter than the others, or has a stronger digital pulse. Knowing how to feel the digital pulse on all four feet lets you tell the vet which one.
- He will not put a foot down at all. Sudden severe lameness can be an abscess or laminitis, and owners genuinely cannot tell them apart, which is the whole point of abscess or laminitis: why you assume the worse.
- There is swelling, a wound or heat anywhere in the leg.
The Merck Veterinary Manual's overview of lameness, by Stephen B. Adams, DVM, DACVS, states that "Pain is the most common cause of lameness in all horses" (Overview of Lameness in Horses, last reviewed August 2025, read 2026-09-11). When you ask for one foot, the other three take his weight. If one of those three hurts, refusing is the sensible choice from where he stands.
Where to stand: the safer position
Picking up feet puts your head and body close to the parts of a horse that kick. The position matters more than any technique.
Mississippi State University Extension says: "When picking up the horse's feet, keep your body close to the animal to prevent it from kicking you" (Working Safely Around Horses, publication P3004, Clay Cavinder, PhD, read 2026-09-11). Being close means a kick or a stamp pushes you rather than landing on you at full extension.
How serious the risk is shows up in the people who do it for a living. In a 2023 Swiss survey of farriers and hoof care practitioners in Dental Traumatology by Fuhrer, Eggmann, Reichardt and Filippi (Europe PMC record, read 2026-09-11), 60.6 percent of farriers reported head or face injuries and 11.1 percent reported dental injuries, mostly from kicks.
- Front foot: stand beside his shoulder, facing his tail, your hip close to his leg.
- Hind foot: stand beside his hip, facing his tail. Rest your nearer hand on his hip so you feel him shift before he moves, and slide your other hand down the back of the leg. Stay close. Never stand directly behind him.
- Stay on your feet. Do not kneel or sit to reach a foot. Bend from your knees and hips instead.
- Keep your head out of line with the leg you are holding.
- Tie or have him held by someone who knows to stand on the same side as you, so that if he moves, his hindquarters swing away from both of you.
Teaching a horse who won't pick up feet, one step at a time
The Horse Safety Manual from the American Youth Horse Council and the University of Kentucky's extension service describes the cue: "When you get to the fetlock say 'up,' and squeeze the joint. The horse should pick up his foot for you" (Horse Safety Manual, reproduced by American Insurance Specialists, read 2026-09-11).
Think of it as asking him to give you the foot, not taking it from him. Build it in this order, and only move on when the step before is calm:
- Touch. Can you run a hand from his shoulder or hip all the way down to the hoof on every leg without him moving away? If not, that is the first lesson. Stroke down, stop before he fidgets, and repeat.
- Shift his weight. Before you ask, lean lightly into his shoulder or hip so his weight moves onto the other three legs. A horse cannot lift a foot that is carrying his weight.
- Ask. At the fetlock, squeeze and say "up." The instant the foot comes off the ground, even slightly, let it go. That release is his reward and his information.
- Hold briefly, then put it down yourself. Always place it down gently before he snatches it back. If you let go only when he fights, he learns that fighting is how the foot comes back.
- Lengthen the hold. A little at a time, and only while he is still relaxed.
- Add the pick. Clean the foot, tap the sole with the handle, run the pick around the frog.
- Keep the same order every day. For example: left front, left hind, right front, right hind. Predictability helps a worried horse.
Do not hit him, shout at him or wrestle the leg. Roping a leg up is a technique for professionals, and we do not describe it here. A horse who is frightened of having his feet handled needs the fear taken out, not added to.
The horse who leans on you
This is the most common version of "won't pick up feet," and it is mostly mechanics.
When you hold a foot, he balances on three legs. If you hold it high, far out to the side or far away from his body, you have moved his balance point and he has to put weight somewhere, which is you.
- Hold the foot low and close under him, roughly beneath where it would naturally be.
- Keep his head straight. A horse with his head turned is standing crooked.
- Check the footing. Level, non-slip ground makes standing on three legs more comfortable.
- Put the foot down before the lean builds, then ask again. A short hold without a lean is progress; a long hold with a lean is practice at leaning.
- Consider his comfort. An older horse, or one with sore joints, may genuinely struggle to hold a hind leg up for long. That is a conversation for your vet and your farrier, not a training fault.
The horse who snatches the foot away or kicks
A horse who snatches a foot back is usually worried or uncomfortable. A horse who kicks out when you touch a hind leg is a different matter.
Stop and call your vet first if he kicks, strikes or cow-kicks when you approach a leg. After the vet, look for a professional whose credentials you can check: a veterinary behaviorist (a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Behaviorists), a Certified Applied Animal Behaviorist, or an experienced trainer whose methods you have seen yourself. This is not something to work through alone with your face beside his hock.
Why it matters every day
A horse who gives his feet can have them picked out daily, and daily picking is when you catch problems early. Our guide to what you are actually looking for when you pick out feet walks through the checks, including smell, which is often the first sign of thrush, and why it keeps coming back. And a horse who stands for you stands for the farrier, which is most of what your job is between farrier visits.
FAQ
Why does my horse lean on me when I pick up his feet?
Usually because he is off balance on three legs, often because the foot is being held too high or too far from his body. Hold it low and close under him, keep his head straight, and put the foot down before the lean builds. If he leans on one leg in particular, ask your vet whether the leg he is standing on is comfortable.
Why won't my horse pick up his back feet?
Hind feet are harder for many horses to balance for, and they are where worried horses kick. Rule out pain first, then build the steps slowly from a position beside his hip, close to him, with a hand on his hip so you feel him shift.
What if my horse suddenly stopped picking up his feet?
Call your vet. A horse who used to give his feet and now will not is showing the pattern pain produces, and Merck names pain as the most common cause of lameness.
Is it OK to tap his leg with the hoof pick to get him to lift it?
A light tap as part of the cue is common, but it should be a signal, not a punishment. If you find yourself tapping harder to get a response, go back a step to touch and weight shift.
The short version
Rule out pain, stand close and stay on your feet, ask rather than take, and put every foot down before he takes it back. Hold it low, and let short daily sessions do the work.