Here is Jack tied up at the end of a lesson. The DOR often hitches him to the thinking post at the end of a lesson so he can cogitate on what they did, it is never for very long and she is always close by. If you ask me Jack could spend a lot of time cogitating and less time goofing around with the little filly, he is a bad influence on her with his always wanting to play. The DOR also hitches him up after a ride, that way he doesn't think that once the work is over he can rush right back to his buddies in the pasture. Now I think that both of these reasons for hitching a horse up and leaving it that way for a bit is just fine, but I do have an issue with some people who tie up their horses.I don't think you should tie a horse up with a rope that is so long they can wander around and get tangled up...that is just asking for trouble. Why would a horse need to be tied to a tree or a post all day? When I see this I get riled up...I think the owner should be tied up for a day with no food or water. The other thing that I see is a horse saddled up with the reins snugged up to the saddle fenders left out in the pasture. Now I have heard a few owners claim this is a training technique, but that is a load of cow poop if you ask me and it is dangerous too.
So if you are going to tie up your horse do it safely, for the right reasons, and for a reasonable amount of time...us horses would be ever so grateful for your respect in this matter.
Life is so good! Oh and Jack told me to remember to say: Enjoy your day and don't forget to hug your DOR
5 comments:
I have always found that tying a horse after or before a ride is helpful. There are times when horses are expected to stan tied all day. When we go to rodeos, our horses are tied to the trailer or fence all day long. We do not feed hay when they are tied because we ride pretty hard. We do offer water though. So when we are at home and training we tie our horses a lot. Even when I would go and ride at open shows, I tie my horse to the trailer all day. I think that a horse who stands quietly and well behaved is a lot nicer than ones that paw or pace. There are good reasons to tie a horse for a few hours. And I have known people to use trees to tie their horses, because the tree is tall and really your horse should be tied higher than its head. So a tree is tall and is a safe way to tie a horse. As long as it's not to a flimsy branch. And trees offer shade too. But on the other hand I do agree that tying a horse up in the hot sun for 6 plus hours to get them to behave is a bit much. Nothing works better than some wet saddle pads.
This is a good post Jack. A lot of different views on this subject. Hope you have a good weekend.
Andrea,
You are tying your horses for a good reason. I understand tying horses to a tree because it is higher than our heads, Jack learned to tie to a high-line. The horses that I have seen are tied to the trunk of a tree with a long line to limit the pasture they can get to or are tied up all night to keep them off the pasture. In both of these cases the horses had no access to water. The horse snugged to his saddle fenders couldn't get water either. No food while tied is one thing, but we need access to water, especially if we are working hard when not tied
Syndi I left you an award on my blog, hehehehehe
I agree with you that horses should never be tied to a tree all day or night or left out with the saddle on in the pasture. It's just dangerous to the horse.
NEVER TIE A HORSE WHEN YOU AREN'T CLOSE BY!!!! I have seen way too many problems when a horse is tied without someone to watch!!!
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