Are you too busy with your hands? Do you resort to grabbing the reins in an effort to force your horse on the bit? Here’s an exercise to help you develop a more sympathetic feel of your horse’s mouth. All you’ll need is some four-ply yarn.Do you need to work on having gentler hands? Photo: Skumer/Shutterstock
First, make a pair of reins from a strand of the yarn. Tie each end of the yarn securely to the rings of your horse’s bit. Next, tie your leather reins in a knot. They should be short enough so that the knot rests on your horse’s neck approximately where a martingale strap would sit. Now, hold the yarn “reins” in your hands and begin to ride. See how well you can communicate with your horse’s mouth using only the tension that the yarn will allow.
If you snatch and yank on the reins, you’ll break the yarn. That’s fine. Grab your knotted leather reins, settle down, and bring on some more yarn!
Of course, if your horse is a rambunctious puller, you’ll go through an entire skein of yarn in minutes. In that case, borrow a more suitable horse. This is an exercise for your benefit so that you can experience a kinder, gentler pair of hands.
Cindy Hale’s life with horses has been filled with variety. As a child she rode western and learned to barrel race. Then she worked as a groom for a show barn, and was taught to harness and drive Welsh ponies. But once she’d taken her first lessons aboard American Saddlebreds she was hooked on English riding. Hunters and hunt seat equitation came next, and she spent decades competing in those divisions on the West Coast. Always seeking to improve her horsemanship, she rode in clinics conducted by world-class riders like George Morris, Kathy Kusner and Anne Kursinski. During that time, her family began raising Thoroughbred and warmblood sport horses, and Cindy experienced the thrills and challenges of training and showing the homebred greenies. Now retired from active competition, she’s a popular judge at local and county-rated open and hunter/jumper shows. She rides recreationally both English and western. Her Paint gelding, Wally, lives at home with her and her non-horsey husband, Ron.
An interesting idea, but people should only do this with a calm, quiet horse
That's a really great idea. I'll have to get my daughter to try this.
good idea
These four common horse training mistakes are easier to catch and correct when you’re aware…
Get to know the essential parts of a western saddle with this comprehensive guide. Plus,…
Finding a bit that gives you the ability to communicate clearly with your horse and…
Saddle fit doesn’t have to be stressful. To make sure that a western saddle fits…
Horse owners who live in the United States, are 18 years of age and older, and currently own or manage…
Is your horse cold in the winter? The following excerpt from Keeping Horses Outdoors by Iveta Jebáčková-Lažanská helps answer that question…
Welcome to Horse Illustrated’s weekly installment of the Right Horse Adoptable Horse of the Week, offered in partnership with the…
These four common horse training mistakes are easier to catch and correct when you’re aware of them. As a clinician,…
If you appreciate sport horses of many different breeding backgrounds, types and colors, the American Warmblood will unite you with…
LENNOX, S.D. — Every great innovation begins with a moment of clarity, and for ZahnTech's founder, Avery Zahn, it came…