How to Tack Up a Horse

Working with horses is one of the most beautiful activities that you could ever experience in your life as you end up learning a lot of interesting knowledge that can be used in the future. However, as you might already know, horses are not easy to handle, at least when you are a beginner who is just starting to learn the basics. One of the worst things for beginners is learning how to tack up as there are many that could make this a troublesome experience, especially when you are all on your own.

Learning this is not impossible, as individuals who had to do it on their own have successfully mastered the required techniques and methods in order to reach success in this “complicated” task that is also extremely important for achieving good results while riding. That is why the next article will focus on explaining HOW TO TACK UP A HORSE without failing in the attempt even when you are a beginner.

HOW TO TACK UP A HORSE

Before starting with the explanation on the most technical stuff, it is important what tack a horse means. This is nothing more than equipping your horse with all the required tools and horse-riding equipment that will be needed for the rest of the day or in other activities. Tack is an old term that is basically described as the equipment of placing everything on your horse. The main objective will be correctly placing the bridle, saddle pads and stirrups, and other items that you might require.

Thanks to the nature of the process and the behavior of certain horses, this becomes a troublesome experience for beginners who do not have a lot of control over the animal. You need to be extremely careful with this as you could cause an injury to the rider if the equipment is not properly installed or placed, so always aim for doing it to improve comfort and ensure the safety of all members involved. With nothing else to say, it is time to learn how to do everything as efficiently as ever.

PREPARE EVERYTHING BEFOREHAND

Before doing anything, it is important to mentally prepare yourself for what is coming next, and also, it is valuable that you have everything ready and prepared to be equipped on the horse. You can not expect good results if you are one of those who tend to tack something and then leave in a rush to look for a missing piece of equipment, this is something that disrupts your concentration and can alter the horse.

SECURE YOUR HORSE

Once everything is at hand, make sure that you can ensure the horse’s safety. Remember that they tend to make sudden moves that could cause injuries in their bodies. To do so, place a halter on your horse and attach cross ties to it. Also, you could just tie it to a post, but this is something that needs to be carefully done to avoid causing any problems.

It would be wise to use slip knots to help you free the animal in case it gets caught on the rope, working faster is something important in these kinds of situations to reduce the possibilities of discomforting the animal.

GROOMING IS IMPORTANT

Some people decide to skip the pre-grooming process that is recommended before and after riding. This is something that must be done as you should never put equipment on a dirt horse as this could cause injuries on the skin in the future, brush and pick out the hooves.

PREPARING THE SADDLE

Proceed to place the saddle pad on the horse, and always keep in mind that the pad should be just in front of the whither which is where the shoulder meets the neck. After this, try to slide the pad back into place until the hair rests properly. Then place the saddle as gently as possible on top of the saddle pad to guarantee that nothing goes wrong during this process.

DEALING WITH THE GIRTH

In case you do not know it, the girth is a strap that will manage to hold the saddle securely in place, making it an important piece of equipment. Attach the girth to the billets and start with the right and slowly go to the other side. Fasten the equipment when it is properly attached to both sides and note that it should be behind the horse’s front legs. It is recommended to leave a small gap between the elbow and the equipment to enhance mobility.

IT IS TIME FOR THE BIT, BRIDLE, AND REINS

Now is the time when things could get out of control if you do not work fast and efficiently. To proceed, you have to untie the horse and place the reins over its head to keep control of the situation whenever you require it. When it comes to the Bit, try to put in the mouth and gently push it until it stays in place, be extremely careful and gentle as this can scare more than one animal in many different ways.

Finally, the crown piece, and while this might sound complicated, it is nothing out of this world. Carefully place the bridle over the head and then put the crown piece over the ears, you should be able to fit 2 to 3 fingers under the noseband, something different from this measure will prove to be the cause of many issues in the future.

FINALLY, IT IS TIME FOR THE STIRRUPS

Before mounting the horse, it is important that you let it walk a little bit to check that everything seems to be in place and nothing falls off. Check the girth and after that, drop the stirrups into the proper position. Finally, after this process, you will be ready to perform as many activities as you desire, try to practice on a regular basis to increase your skills in tack up, it will prove to be something worthy of your time.