when he saw it move, it scared him. would be just as scared of their manes and tails if today was the first time we put them on. But because they are born with them, they’re de- sensitized to them from the start. With consistent repetition and by only taking the off when the is calm and relaxed, he will become desensitized to the saddle as well.

Step 9) Leave the horse tied up with the saddle on. After a few days, when the horse is comfortable wearing the saddle, tie him up with it on. This will kill two birds with one Leave the horse turned out all day long with the saddle on, stone. It will teach your horse to get even more comfortable and depending on the horse and your situation, all night long with the saddle on and it will teach him to stand patiently too, or until he stops bucking, kicking out or running around while tied. Use the Aussie Tie Ring so that if he gets scared, he out of control. If you come back 12 hours later and he’s still will be able to move his feet and not hurt himself. acting goofy about it, put some hay and water out for him and You never want the horse to get into the habit of bucking come back 12 hours later. You don’t want to take the saddle with the saddle every time you tack him up. The first time off until the horse is calm and using the thinking side of his I saddle a colt or problem horse, he gets one and only one brain. A lot of times, when you first turn the horse loose, he’ll chance to buck it off. From that day on, he is never allowed run around, buck and kick out at the saddle, and then he’ll to buck with the saddle. Remember, horses are creatures of come to a standstill and relax. He’ll cock a hind foot, lower his habit. When you do something to a horse, you plant a seed in head, forget all about the saddle and start to drop off to sleep. his mind. If you do it again, it becomes a habit. If you do it a Then a fly will land on him and he’ll his skin to get it off third time, then it becomes an ingrained habit. If it’s a good and the saddle will move and he’ll take off like a crazy bronc behavior, it’s a good habit. If it is a bad behavior, it is bad again. Why? Because he forgot the saddle was on his back and habit. It’s just that simple.

The Added Advantage of Outback Rigging

When I’m dealing with a horse that is cinchy or has issues being saddled, I always use the Outback Rigging (a surcingle of any type works) to desensitize him to cinch pressure without having to worry about damaging a good saddle. When you turn the horse loose in the arena or round pen to get used to wear- ing something on his back and around his sides, he’ll more than likely lay down and roll with it. By using a surcingle before you put a saddle on his back, you can desensitize him to cinch pressure and having something on his back without damaging your saddle. Not only that, but a surcingle is a lot lighter and not as bulky as a saddle, making it easier for you to lift it up and down a hundred times if you need to desensitize him. If you’re planning on using a surcingle, you’ll follow the same steps I out- lined before with the saddle. You’ll introduce the surcingle to your horse after you’ve see-sawed the rope around his and flank areas. Just like you’ll do with the saddle pad and saddle, you’ll first desensitize the horse to the surcin- gle by letting him smell it and then sliding it on and off his back on both sides. Remember that the entire time you’re working with the horse his head should be tipped in your direction. When you’re confident that the horse is desensitized to the surcingle, go ahead and lay it on his back, and using approach and retreat, rub the area under his belly where the cinch will lay. When the horse remains standing still and relaxed as you rub him, you’re ready to pull and release the cinch up around his belly. Hold the pressure and then release it as soon as the horse stands still and relaxes. Repeat as many times as it takes until the horse re- mains standing still and relaxed as you tighten the pressure of the cinch. Then you can actually tighten the cinch just enough so that it holds the surcingle in place. You’ll tighten the cinch two more times—in between groundwork. Once you have the surcingle on the horse, I recommend practicing some groundwork exercises like Lungeing for Respect Stages I and II. Any time the horse gets out of control or starts to buck, yield his hindquarters and send him off in the opposite direction. The more times you make a horse stop and change directions, the more he’ll start paying attention to you and not thinking about the surcingle on his back. After you’ve practiced groundwork with the horse and he is calm and using the thinking side of his brain, turn him loose in a round pen or arena with the surcingle on so that he gets comfortable wearing it. When the horse is completely desensitized to the surcingle, you can intro- duce the saddle to him.

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