How to Harness your horse alone

[KellyAlaska]

I was hoping someone could give some advice about how to harness your horse safely by yourself. I have only harnessed a horse a few times and always had assistance but that will not always be the case at home. I have watched a few videos but they usually have a header so I was hoping someone could give me some good advice and words of wisdom about harnessing a horse alone. I know this is not an ideal situation but our horse is very gentle and experienced so I don't think I will have a problem. I think it is better to develop good safe habits in the beginning than try to correct them later on down the road.

Thanks,

Kelly

 

[targetsmom]

I think you may mean hooking to the cart? One thing I do (and Larry Poulin actually mentioned this in his pre-clinic talk last weekend) is not remove the barn halter from my horse when I harness. I actually harness in one area (top of the hill) and then hook to the cart where it is level, ground driving to where I left the cart before I put the harness on. So she is wearing a halter under the harness and I tie her to the pasture fence with a lead rope I leave there just for that purpose, hooked to the halter of course. Then I just pull the cart over and hook her while she is tied - and I admit the first time or two I did have a helper if needed. Then I unhook the lead rope, pick up my whip, and get in the cart. She can pivot the cart pretty well (we do obstacle too) but you can always turn the horse before you mount so you don't have to do that.

I will be interested to hear how others do it.

 

[RhineStone]

Stand is the first thing you need to teach and reinforce before trying to put to by yourself. The horse needs to not move a muscle. Anything less than that is asking for trouble.

Myrna

 

[hobbyhorse23]

Good for you! You're right that it's safer to have a header but many of us have to hitch up alone and as you've guessed, there are things you can do to make it safer.

1) Teach your horse an ironclad "Whoa, Stand." He does not get to move until you tell him to whether you're holding him or not, in or out of the cart, and even where he can see you or not!

2) Cross-tying your horse in a broad aisleway where you can drive straight out would be ideal. Barring that, tie them to a hitching rail or something else that physically blocks them from moving forward. (I'm willing to be overruled on this one, I know everyone has their own opinion.) If you tie to a wall or hitching post, make sure the horse knows how to step over calmly and will stop and stand again before moving off. No anxious leaping forward!

3) When putting on the harness, never let your straps dangle on the ground. Secure the girth immediately as you can have quite a spook if the horse shakes the saddle off while you're doing up the crupper. Wrap straps (if you have them) should be secured through the tugs, tug dee's or rein terrets and your holdback straps on the breeching should be doubled back through their own keepers or buckled. Once the breastcollar is on, traces go immediately over the back and secured through either the backstrap or crupper area. Thread the reins through the terrets and secure the excess under the backstrap. Then undo the halter, put it around the neck and bridle the horse. Attach the reins now, not after the cart is attached. Never unbridle a hitched horse! Cart goes on last and off first.

(It is perfectly correct and a bit safer to leave a halter on as Mary mentioned, but I know my guys find that uncomfortable under a full driving bridle. If I want to tie temporarily while bridled I'll either use a gullet strap with tie ring or find a thin rope halter to leave on under the bridle. Buckle-nose halters are nice as well because you can release them without ever taking it off the horse.)

4) Follow safe hitching routines. Do up the traces first because if the horse should leap forward we don't want the shafts to crash down out of the tugs and end up around the horse's legs. Immediately move to the breeching, because without it if the horse leaps forward the cart is going to come along and then smack him in the heels when he tries to stop.

Once those two are attached, you can be a little more leisurely in adjusting things and doing up the wrap straps or overgirth buckles. Those will only come into play when someone sits in the cart or the horse makes a turn so those are the last parts to be secured after the much more critical traces and breeching.

5) If you are hitching out in the open without being tied up, keep the reins in your hands at all times so you can control a potential spook and correct misbehavior. The horse should not need to be held in order to stand, but you should be holding him none-the-less. He is not allowed to graze, mooch, rub his nose or otherwise do anything but stand there and peer around with interest. This is part of driving discipline and goes back to safety! He can step over a rein if he's grazing, hook his bit on the shaft while rubbing his nose...you get the idea.

5) Once the horse is hitched, push the cart forward and back a little to check adjustments and then double-check all your buckles. It's best to hitch on the flat or a little uphill as that simulates being in draft and makes adjustments easy.

6) Always gather your reins in your hand, have your whip and be in complete control of your animal before mounting the cart. The most dangerous moments without a header are between releasing the ties and getting in the cart. (See Rule 1!) Spend a lot of time teaching your horse that he does not get to move forward the minute the leadline is unsnapped or you get in the cart. I know people who get in and then literally sit and read a book for ten minutes!

7) When you are out, tell someone where you are going and when you expect to be back. Carry a cell phone on your body. It does no good if it gallops off with your runaway! Have a tag with that cell number attached to your horse's harness in case you get separated. Given where you live I'd carry bear or wasp spray, put a small bell on your harness to warn wildlife you're coming and if there's a hunting season near you I'd wear International Orange and put some on your horse. Vehicle reflectors are also a good idea.

I know #7 goes beyond what you asked, but safe harnessing and hitching is part of safe driving and I thought it had a place here.

I look forward to seeing what our other whips have to say!

Leia

 

[horsenarounnd]

I learned a trick to putting to from a friend who is a draft horse man, farrier, trainer, and logger. I've never found a better safer way to put a horse to a vehicle. This technique works with an assistant or without and all the horses we train are started this way from day one.

We always try (not always possible, but try, at least when you don't have a header) to have a secure place to tie your horse by his halter. This may be a post, a hitch rail, fence, or wall, but the important thing is that the horse cannot move forward. We harness, put the cart to, and make sure everything is secure and adjusted well, all with the horse tied securely. If you always do this the same way, your horse won't have any issues with it, remember, horses are creatures of habit and will quickly learn from repetition. If you do have an assistant, your assistant is the post the horse is tied to, and always do it the same way for consistency.

When you are ready, you can untie the horse from the hitch rail or whatever he is tied to. We use halters with a buckle on the top of the noseband and you can undo it and the throatlatch and the halter will simply drop free of the bridle. If you have a good fit you can leave the halter on under the bridle, but it usually doesn't fit well and interferes with the bit and lines so we remove the halter. You can then, with the lines in your hand for control, walk to the cart and get in. If your horse is used to this, he won't realize he isn't still tied, and since he can't go forward, he'll stand for you to get settled in the seat. Always, of course with the lines in your hand.

Once you are settled and comfortable in the cart, back the horse about 3 steps, turn, and walk off. As previously said, the horse MUST be trained to stand from the very beginning, not just for putting to but ALWAYS.

When you are finished with your drive, you reverse the process, driving to the tie spot, dismounting, and putting the halter on the horse before removing the cart.

A WORD OF CAUTION. ALWAYS, ALWAYS take the cart off the horse, not the other way around. You may have forgotten to undo a trace or holdback strap, and you will know right away that something is still attached. If you try to lead the horse away from the vehicle with the harness still attached by a strap somewhere, the horse may startle and bolt leaving you in a very bad situation.

Good luck and happy driving!

 

[CZP1]

As others have stated "stand" is the most important one. I hitch by myself most of the time and horse was taught that from day one, I always tell him stand he does gets a peppermint, may be cheating a little but it keeps his mind occupied. Leia described it to a "T" and what to follow, that is the way I was taught.

 

[RhineStone]

Good post, Horsenarounnd (Wayne? Linda?

) Welcome to the forum! You and Leia saved me a lot of typing!

Myrna

 

[Field-of-Dreams]

Stand is the most important word in driver's dictonary besides WHOA.

I took my gelding down to the Trinity Trails in Fort Worth. Never been there before and had no helper (probably not the best idea, but I trust Sunny implicitly) There was no way to get a horse and cart hitched together over the guard rail. So I harnessed him up and left him tied to the trailer while I manhanded my Meadowbrook over the cable. Then got all my stuff I needed and jumped Sunny over. That guy stood there in the middle of a field with no one holding him while I hitched him up. Got in, drove off and had a wonderful drive. Did the same thing on the return trip back to unharness him.

And this is a horse who really DOESN'T want to stand at horse shows for me to get in!

 

[hobbyhorse23]

If you always do this the same way, your horse won't have any issues with it, remember, horses are creatures of habit and will quickly learn from repetition. If you do have an assistant, your assistant is the post the horse is tied to, and always do it the same way for consistency.

Agreed! I drive in many different places and often by myself so rather than making one particular place their safe place as Clay Maier recommends and you do, I make the routine itself their "safe place." They know when they are harnessed and then put on a Whoa, Stand, exactly what is expected of them and exactly what is going to happen. They don't have to think and worry and get upset because they know their only responsibility is to stand there quietly and Mama will take care of everything else.

For driving from your home, yes, absolutely go ahead and make a safe place or station that the horse recognizes as Home Base. Just make sure you train them that the requirements are the same elsewhere.

(Although if I asked my horses, I bet they'd tell me that my horse trailer is their station. It's the one familiar thing in all those different environments and they probably get more comfort than I realize from always hitching up at it. Still, they'll hitch untied in an aisleway or outside a strange arena just as quietly.)

Leia

 

[shorthorsemom]

My trainer has taught me that "stand" is the most important of all. We worked hard on this. My boy's former owner had a different relationship with my boy and she allowed him to graze while being harnessed. It took awhile for me to get a decent stand where my trainer was satisfied he understood just how still we wanted him to stand. We use what we call a "target mat" on the ground between the gate posts of my training pen for our harness and hook up location at home. Kind of like a pause box in agility, just a decent quality rubber mat on the ground. I have cross ties on the posts and I stand him on the rubber mat and cross tie him for harnessing between the gate posts. He is facing toward the inside of the practice pen. I have all my harness hung and checked on plant hooks on the fence within reach. I use a halter with a buckle noseband .. I hook up in the order described in the earlier post. I insist on a perfect stand. After I step in I also insist on a stand for a minute or two longer. We move into the pen first and warm up both directions, then circle and leave the pen for some farm driving. When finished I drive him right back to the mat and halt between the posts and exit the cart and put on the halter around his neck first before I begin to remove the britching... traces, belly band, cart, then reins.. bridle, halter buckled over nose etc... my trainer says breast collar is always removed last. For now I have my trainer as my header, but we are practicing in case I ever drive alone and she stands near his head but I am doing all the work as if I am going out for a solo drive.. We also practice halts and stands during my lesson, no rubber mat, just manners. Going from memory here but I think I got everything straight.

.

 

[hobbyhorse23]

When finished I drive him right back to the mat and halt between the posts and exit the cart and put on the halter around his neck first before I begin to remove the britching... traces, belly band, cart, then reins.. bridle, halter buckled over nose etc... my trainer says breast collar is always removed last.
Going from memory here but I think I got everything straight.

I betcha you undo the bellyband first, then breeching, then traces. It should be the exact reverse order of how you hitch up for the same safety reasons.

I take off the breastcollar before the saddle and breeching because otherwise the traces and such are draped over my saddle and through my backstrap and it's awkward. When harnessing with a neck collar it is the first part on and last one off so she may simply be following that tradition. For me it is impractical.

Leia

 

[RhineStone]

You also need to put the breastcollar on first and off last if you have a false martingale. Otherwise, it really doesn't matter.

The one thing that really DOES matter is the bridle....not removed as long as the horse is put to.

My other pet peeve is that the girth is always done up before the crupper. I have a $400 (in 2003) Smucker's Better Fit driving saddle for my big horse (not the girth, not the tugs, but only the saddle), and I sure don't want that dumped on the ground under my horse while I am doing up the crupper. The girth will hold the saddle on my horse, while doing up the crupper first could mean the saddle slips off! The only time this doesn't apply is when you have a crupper with no buckles.

Myrna

 

[hobbyhorse23]

You also need to put the breastcollar on first and off last if you have a false martingale. Otherwise, it really doesn't matter.

Nope. I keep my false martingale attached to the girth and buckle it onto the breastcollar each time. Doing it the other way would drive me nuts!

Leia

 

[shorthorsemom]

I betcha you undo the bellyband first, then breeching, then traces. It should be the exact reverse order of how you hitch up for the same safety reasons.

I take off the breastcollar before the saddle and breeching because otherwise the traces and such are draped over my saddle and through my backstrap and it's awkward. When harnessing with a neck collar it is the first part on and last one off so she may simply be following that tradition. For me it is impractical.

Leia

Yup, I do, you are right...and sometimes I forget the belly buckle first and my trainer says... hey, you forgot the belly band, that comes first.... I try to remember alphabetical, start with b's, bellyband... britching...Traces...then the alphabet changes... cart off and move to the side and back so horse doesn't step on shafts, then saddle then collar... Bridle in there somewhere between cart off and saddle removed.

I think there is something about tradition or superstition about the neck collar goes on first and off last, she did explain that not everybody believes that... Speaking of tradition and superstition... what makes somebody hang a little cat shaped bell under the carriage? That came on my meadowbrook, just wondering, it's very cute and I didn't take it off. I throw salt over my shoulder too when I spill it...

You are right about the bridle Myrna, I got heck for taking it off first once... Won't do that again, I used to do that with riding horses. What's a false martingale? Adair..

 

[hobbyhorse23]

Speaking of tradition and superstition... what makes somebody hang a little cat shaped bell under the carriage?

Ah, now that comes back to another safety issue! *grin* That's most likely a Guardian Drive Bell. Everyone knows that road gremlins like to climb up into the undercarriage of your vehicle and cause mayhem. They are responsible for most of the mishaps we have on the road. Thankfully, they do have a weakness- they get trapped in the hollow of a hung bell and since their hearing is super sensitive, they are driven insane and fall off the carriage. That's where potholes come from!

Don't believe me? Road Gremlins As it says, the magic of the bell is doubled if it is given to you by a friend. I included one in my Secret Santa package this winter to a new driver in Ireland.

You are right about the bridle Myrna, I got heck for taking it off first once... Won't do that again, I used to do that with riding horses. What's a false martingale?

It was always a courtesy thing to take of your riding horse's bridle as soon as you dismount. These days I get rid of the cart first, then the bridle, then the rest of the gear. I'll also loosen the girth a notch once the cart's off to let them adjust a bit and breathe better before completely removing it.

A false martingale is that little strap that runs from the girth up between the forelegs and attaches to the bottom of some breastcollars to hold it down. A "real" martingale would be like a running martingale which goes through a keeper on the breastcollar and then attaches to the reins.

Leia

 

[Blackwater Farm]

My husband had the road deamon bells on his motorcycle! I need one for the cart! I have always had a bit of a different method of hitching my horse and it came from my grandfather. I am in NO WAY saying this is the safest or that this is the way you should do it but this was always something we taught our horses and it's how I always put my mini to as I am almost always without help. My general harnessing methods are pretty much the same as the rest of you. I always tie my gelding to a wall (or the trailer) and harness him for which he stands like stone =) and I make sure all straps are done up and not dragging the ground. When he is completely harnessed, except for the bridle I will take my cart out of the barn and put it in our yard. This is where I differ a bit. I will go back to my gelding and put his bridle on and attach my reins then ground drive him out to the cart and slowly back him into the shafts. I have an easy entry cart with metal shafts, I would not do this with wooden shafts. He backs very slowly and calmly into position and completely off my voice. If he gets over a little too far one way I can tap him lightly with the opposite rein on his butt and say "step" and he will take one step over. My grandfather had an amish buggy that the shafts would raise up on and he could back his horse to the buggy and then lower the shafts over him. I have never had any issues with it and it comes in handy when I dont have the room to bring the cart to my horse. We have always brought the horse to the equipment even when we used to farm with them. I wouldnt try this with all horses and my gelding did take to well to it at first either but after a bunch of practice with the back and step commands and using pvc poles instead of shafts he has come a long way!!! Please dont beat me up for this method its just the way I've always done things and so far it has worked well!!!

 

[shorthorsemom]

Ah, now that comes back to another safety issue! *grin* That's most likely a Guardian Drive Bell. Everyone knows that road gremlins like to climb up into the undercarriage of your vehicle and cause mayhem. They are responsible for most of the mishaps we have on the road. Thankfully, they do have a weakness- they get trapped in the hollow of a hung bell and since their hearing is super sensitive, they are driven insane and fall off the carriage. That's where potholes come from!

Don't believe me? Road Gremlins As it says, the magic of the bell is doubled if it is given to you by a friend. I included one in my Secret Santa package this winter to a new driver in Ireland.

It was always a courtesy thing to take of your riding horse's bridle as soon as you dismount. These days I get rid of the cart first, then the bridle, then the rest of the gear. I'll also loosen the girth a notch once the cart's off to let them adjust a bit and breathe better before completely removing it.

A false martingale is that little strap that runs from the girth up between the forelegs and attaches to the bottom of some breastcollars to hold it down. A "real" martingale would be like a running martingale which goes through a keeper on the breastcollar and then attaches to the reins.

Leia

Hey Leia, can you move your bell from one cart to another? Or do you have to get somebody to gift you a new bell to keep away the road gremlins... just wondering...

I don't have a false martingale.. I was wondering. learn something new every day, thanks for sending the road gremlin link. LOVED it. explains alot.

 

[hobbyhorse23]

As far as I know, the magic comes from the bell being gifted to you, the person. (I would consider them having left it on the cart to be a "gift.") Which of your carts you put it on should be up to you!

Leia

 

[RhineStone]

I think prayer works a lot better than a bell.....

 

[studiowvw]

I used to pray every time I rode my arab (don't think bells would have helped much there)

Regarding taking the horse(s) to the cart - that is the way I learned how to do it decades ago, and when on a wagon train ride a few years ago, the teamsters mostly drove their teams to the poles, stepped over and backed up as necessary - of course for the most part they were not hitching alone.

I've hitched Lacey twice now here alone, and although I am still fumbling around a bit, she has been really great to stand as Lori taught her.

After I get in the cart I sit there for a few minutes and talk to her before we get going (no dashing off around here!)