Horseback Riding 101

Lesson 3: Leading, Mounting and Dismounting, and Basic Position

How to ask a horse to stand for mounting

When you have stopped the horse at your destination, probably the mounting block, you’ll need to set him up for that maneuver.

After he has stopped in the proper place, move around in front of him and gently slip the reins over his head. (If you are short and the horse is tall, there is another method to use, below.)

Now move back to his near side, and grasp the closest rein in your left hand. Put your right hand against his shoulder and tell him to “Stand.” If he swings his rear end around toward you, step toward his rear and push it away, with a fair amount of pressure, with your right hand, maintaining the reins in your left. If he swings his rear end away, you’ll have to move around in front of the horse to his off side, switching the hold on the reins to your right hand as you go, and pushing with your left hand against his rear end. When you push, target the large, flat area below the point of his hip, which you should be able to determine as a hard bump toward the top of the rear end. There is often a visible shallow hollow at this point. Push there and say, “Move over,” like you mean it.

NOTE ABOUT THE VOICE AND HORSES: Some horses know actual words. Others respond to your tone and timbre. When talking to horses regarding their work for you, the best voice to use is one in your deeper register (not artificially so, but the voice you would use if someone told you to lower your voice in a social situation), and a medium cadence. In short, give instructions and convey by your matter-of-fact tone that you expect results. If you are frightened, the horse will hear it and get frightened as well, making everything worse. So, if you’re frightened, don’t whistle a happy tune, but rather make yourself drop your voice and slow it down, which will calm both you and the horse. Screaming or raising the register of your voice around horses is a bad idea; they react negatively to any hint of fear or crabbiness in humans. Do not yell or scream around horses; that upsets them. If you become frightened around horses or on their backs—and that isn’t unheard of—remember to bring your voice and everything else down a notch, which will help you and the horse deal with whatever is going on. And most importantly, take a deep breath. Or five.

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