HARD TO SADDLE OR MOUNT
HORSE
QUESTION: I have had
this 9 year old horse for about a year. He was fine
when I first got him but then the last 6 months,
he kicks at me or swings his rump into me when I go to
saddle him up and does the same when I try to get on?
He is western, ranch trained and I am not very
experienced with horses. So I just don't saddle him or
ride anymore. How do I make him stop being bad?
ANSWER: If a person
purchases a horse and it comes with a bad habit, we know
it was the previous owner. If the horse develops the
habit quite some time afterwards, we know it is
something we, the new owners are doing wrong.
The usual reason for this is
something is causing the horse pain. All to often we
tend to just think the horse is being BAD when in fact
the horse is simply trying to prevent something hurting
it. If it is the saddle pinching the horse or not
fitting the horse properly they soon learn to attempt to
stop being saddled. If it is the rider pulling the
saddle crooked when they mount, again this irritates the
horses back so the horse quickly learns again to
associate the saddle and mounting with being hurt.
Sometimes it is the rider
not riding a balanced seat (such as bouncing
around and/or out of position on the horses back) thus
causing muscle pain during the ride but the horse blames
the saddle and/or knows once the person gets on, he is
going to be hurting.
Occasionally the horse may
not be in pain, just not want to be ridden. The horse
causes a fuss, and just like you have done, the rider
lets the horse WIN THE BATTLE and does not saddle or
mount or go for a ride on the horse. The rider
in that case has actually taught the horse that if it
misbehaves, it will not have to be ridden!!! A
hard habit to break and takes a "Professional Horse
Trainer" to retrain the horse.
The trainer must access not
only the horse but your saddle, bridle/bit, saddle
pad/blanket, cinches and YOU too to help solve the
problem. NOTE: The trainer can cure the horse but if
the owner does not take Horse Care/Riding Instructions,
the horse will quickly revert to it's old habits once
back home. The rider needs to learn and be trained as
well as the horse.
First is to find out
if the saddle/equipment is causing any pain in this
horse. Many saddles may fit one horse but not
the next one. Or the saddle pad or cinches are dirty
with mud and sweat which really hurts the horse too. Or
it is the wrong saddle pad (blanket) for that saddle or
that horse's back.
Second is to learn how to
saddle a horse and mount a horse while standing at the
horses shoulder, not beside it. A horse cannot kick or
swing into a person who is mounting correctly. This is
for a Western Saddle which many people use.
To mount a horse correctly,
your left hip should be beside the horses
left shoulder. The horses nose should be tipped towards
you so if it moves, the hind end will automatically
swing away from you, not into you. By having the nose
tipped towards you, the horse also cannot BOLT ahead,
instead will have to circle you. You grasp the stirrup,
place your foot in the stirrup, your left hand can rest
firmly on the horses neck directly in front of the
saddle, your right hand then will grasp the horn of the
saddle and you will swing yourself up. By pushing off
with your right leg and using your left hand more than
your right to help. If your mounting by
grabbing the front of the saddle in your left hand and
grabbing the back of the saddle with your right hand,
"Then You Are Pulling The Saddle Crooked" on the horses
poor back when you swing up.
The horses head should be
tied while saddling OR the horses nose should be tipped
towards you so again if the horse moves, its hind end
automatically swings away from you, not into you. Again
the safety zone is standing beside the horses shoulder
and swinging the saddle in one smooth, gentle motion up
onto its back. Not Plunking it hard up there on the
horses back. For people with lesser arm strength, make
sure the cinches and right stirrup are folded over top
the saddle seat so they do not bang or slam the horses
right side or right front leg. The right stirrup can
be hooked over the saddle horn for this.
