Opinions on using a tie down.

[horsesrock93]

Keep going over the water. My older greenish horse benefits from repition. A lot of repition. Have been "working" on some minor problems for well over a year now. That and a helmet.

I do that if she walks through it i praise a lot if not i stop and make her do it than a lot of praise

 

[fredsaid2]

I have had others ride her.. she is 15 and dose whatever i ask her to do just water.

Then you haven't had the 'right' person ride her. Find a good experienced person who has a background in training. Otherwise your responses make it seem you really only want validation to tie her head down. We want you to be safe and not be hurt. The reason behind my recommendation to get outside help. Take care! I'm sure it will work out fine.

 

[IntegritysDream]

You can also use a neck streacher, which is like side reigns, but you can set it to way loose or tight, its more forgiving too so the horse dosent feel traped, my horse carries his head high, and even though some of it is his attitude, when we put him in side reigns to ride, he tries to run back wards and pop and spin and do the hokie pokie horse version ahah, but hes okay with the neck streacher. But ive only used that once, mostly i do hand signals to him, hold steady contact with outside reign and keep slightly jiggling the inside reign by opening and closing my pinking and ring finger (the 2 the reigns are through), or touching it, while giving him inside leg like i want him to turn, but the outside reign wont allow it, till he gives in, then i let off the inside reign, but still keep contact on outside, then when he puts it back up, i do it all over.

 

[horsesrock93]

You can also use a neck streacher, which is like side reigns, but you can set it to way loose or tight, its more forgiving too so the horse dosent feel traped, my horse carries his head high, and even though some of it is his attitude, when we put him in side reigns to ride, he tries to run back wards and pop and spin and do the hokie pokie horse version ahah, but hes okay with the neck streacher. But ive only used that once, mostly i do hand signals to him, hold steady contact with outside reign and keep slightly jiggling the inside reign by opening and closing my pinking and ring finger (the 2 the reigns are through), or touching it, while giving him inside leg like i want him to turn, but the outside reign wont allow it, till he gives in, then i let off the inside reign, but still keep contact on outside, then when he puts it back up, i do it all over.

I just got done riding her and i still think i need a tie down because in the ring i had her hear low at a walk ,trot and a canter but than it was time to take her out and she wouldn't even lower her head at a walk... I was going because i know what she can do she just wont do it...

 

[TotalControl]

What cha doin home Z

She is was not home she was on a computer at school ...I'm really glad how they let the kids on computers at school I think it would be better to be learning something not chatting on forums...get to your classes....

 

[appendixqh]

I just got done riding her and i still think i need a tie down because in the ring i had her hear low at a walk ,trot and a canter but than it was time to take her out and she wouldn't even lower her head at a walk... I was going because i know what she can do she just wont do it...

Here...is this what you want to hear....

Tiedown, what a great idea! Go for it! She wont behave and pops her head up...just tie it back down.

Not my advice or opinion, but I get the feeling that you want support for the easiest course of action, and even though the majority of people here are trying to tell you the danger of what you are proposing, you don't want to hear it.

I was going because i know what she can do she just wont do it...

This sounds like attitude. All I can reiterate is what someone already posted... work on lateral flexion inside and outside the arena. If your horse will submit to the simplest action of bringing its nose almost to your toes on both the left and right side, you will find that somewhere in the middle is a horse with its head lowered and breaking at the poll. You can't run if you don't know how to walk...meaning to do it right, it is time to go back to basics. JMO

 

[TotalControl]

Here...is this what you want to hear....

Tiedown, what a great idea! Go for it! She wont behave and pops her head up...just tie it back down.

Ok back up .. She does not want to hear What A great Idea.... She is asking for advise and not criticism she was just trying to tell everyone what she did last night and how her horse reacted .If she didn't say what happened when she rode her how can she get the advice. She has had experienced riders on her but they have not taking her out on trails .. the day she even started to think about a tie down is when we and some friends were at the lake and she just asked her to go down into a little stream and when she got in the water her horse reared up so much that one of our friends freaked out ... Ya that probably scared her she is only 13 , also I think she is worried about the fact she might get a broken nose ..so she has people saying yes, no, and even people we ride with are saying yes .. she really does not want to put a tie down on her she does not know how to use one and she is worried about it so back off all she is doing is asking people their opinions not their criticism .. She is trying to figure out what the right thing is to do for both of them.

 

[fredsaid2]

I think you have to read Appendixqh's response in light of her past experiences w/ horses in the same situation. She posted earlier of having a horse rear and fall over on her w/ very serious injuries. No one wants to see your daughter have that experience. The wording may have seemed abrupt but she only wants her to be safe and come to no harm. Best of luck w/ the horse!

 

[mingiz]

I think you have to read Appendixqh's response in light of her past experiences w/ horses in the same situation. She posted earlier of having a horse rear and fall over on her w/ very serious injuries. No one wants to see your daughter have that experience. The wording may have seemed abrupt but she only wants her to be safe and come to no harm. Best of luck w/ the horse!

Several people have given her advice but her come back was
Quote
I just got done riding her and i still think i need a tie down because in the ring i had her hear low at a walk ,trot and a canter but than it was time to take her out and she wouldn't even lower her head at a walk... I was going because i know what she can do she just wont do it...

Well if she does ok in the ring but acts up outside of the ring sounds to me like your horse is just flat out refusing and your not experienced enough to handle the situation..........No one commenting here is out to get you hurt. I have had the same situation. But luckily I had good buddies to help me through it. I got through it and the horse I had was the best trail horse that I ever had.... without a tie down.....

 

[TotalControl]

I think you have to read Appendixqh's response in light of her past experiences w/ horses in the same situation. She posted earlier of having a horse rear and fall over on her w/ very serious injuries. No one wants to see your daughter have that experience. The wording may have seemed abrupt but she only wants her to be safe and come to no harm. Best of luck w/ the horse!

Well can you explain to me what is the difference ?? can't a horse rear up and come over WITH OUT a tie down also ???

I am not saying I want her to use one but if it will help her a little bit when she is out trail riding then she will use one..

 

[TotalControl]

Well can you explain to me what is the difference ?? can't a horse rear up and come over WITH OUT a tie down also ???

I am not saying I want her to use one but if it will help her a little bit when she is out trail riding then she will use one..

Yes and I will asked the opinions of people that know my daughters riding abilities, her horse and her. We went through this when she switched to a hack . She would pull through the bit after while . Have any of you ever had a bit work once but not the next time ??
A friend of mines horse has always had a bit and one night he just had his mouth wide open like the bit was backwards or something she put a hack on him and he was so much better..

 

[fredsaid2]

Well can you explain to me what is the difference ?? can't a horse rear up and come over WITH OUT a tie down also ???

I am not saying I want her to use one but if it will help her a little bit when she is out trail riding then she will use one..

Absolutely! The tie-down is not going to keep the horse from doing anything if it wants to badly enough. He could break it w/ enough force or end up going over backwards and sideways. It's just a training aid not a fail safe. If you end up going with one get someone like Paso to make sure you have it adjusted correctly.

 

[appendixqh]

I think you have to read Appendixqh's response in light of her past experiences w/ horses in the same situation. She posted earlier of having a horse rear and fall over on her w/ very serious injuries. No one wants to see your daughter have that experience. The wording may have seemed abrupt but she only wants her to be safe and come to no harm. Best of luck w/ the horse!

Thank you FS2.

I reread this thread to make sure my comments aren't out of line. DevineJ (twice), Covecat, Mingiz, FS, and Integrity all posted that it was most likely not the safest solution, and some even offered alternate solutions. Paso jokingly said go for it, but I am fairly sure she would change her position now that we know your daughter is 13 and doesn't know how to use this device correctly.

Was my response harsh? Maybe...but not knowing the author was 13, it was getting frustrated to see somone ask for advice, and then go against what 6 out of 7 responders recommend.

Let me explain:
I too was an invincible teen who felt that rearing was NBD (no big deal), in fact it was somewhat fun. I never addressed the issue correctly, nor did a trainer get called in by my parents to help me. First major incident was when I was riding bareback, the mare reared and bolted, I did a faceplant that left me with a permanent scar and a concussion. Nobody faulted the rearing, said it was because I was bareback. One day on a trail, the horse reared up and over, she landed on me breaking my pelvis. Until then, my parents weren't concerned about the rearing. Fast forward 6 years...I had another horse that kept jamming its nose in the air...solution: tie down. I put the tiedown on, longed her and everything was fine. I mounted, she tossed her head straight into the tiedown, got pizzed, ran straighbackward, lost her footing and was flipping over ...luckily there was a car right behind me...I was pinned between her and the driver window. The window broke, the horse slid to the right, and I rolled onto the hood of the car. Over 1k in car damage...but I was fine except for some glass in my azzz.

Now I am a parent, and I can assure you that I will not allow my child to ride a horse with this vice, as it is possibly the MOST dangerous riding vice there is...and it sounds like your daughters friend that was freaked out by this horses behavior was justified. There is a wealth of knowlege and experience on these posts, and I dont want anyone to have to experience what I went through...and I certainly don't want a 13 year old to get hurt.

 

[BZHorseMomE]

Well can you explain to me what is the difference ?? can't a horse rear up and come over WITH OUT a tie down also ???

I am not saying I want her to use one but if it will help her a little bit when she is out trail riding then she will use one..

Honestly horses needed to be able to use their head & neck for balance. Especially on the trails. Using a tie down isn't going to keep the horse from rearing & I wouldn't suggest using something like that until you lunge the horse in one with someone knowledgeable that can help you work through any problems that may come up. Many a horse has panicked using side reins & other type of tie down devices. It is safer to have it happen when they are on the lunge vs being on the horses back.

It sounds like the horse needs to learn to move forward off your daughters leg at the same time he excepts the bit. Also she should carry a crop to be used behind her leg to keep the horses forward motion going. Not only on the trail, but in the ring. I wouldn't even back this horse unless it is completely necessary until it learns to move off her leg. This horse seems to have learned this habit somewhere in the training process and is regressing when he is unsure or just being stubborn. Start over small water obstacles and don't over face the horse. Don't push to hard to fast & enjoy the little successes as they come.

Please consult a knowledgable person before using any of the tie down type devices. A tie down may seem like a quick fix, but it is more like an accident waiting (or will) happen. Not knowing how to use it and the effects to the horse could severally injure your daughters horse.

 

[appendixqh]

Well can you explain to me what is the difference ?? can't a horse rear up and come over WITH OUT a tie down also ???

I am not saying I want her to use one but if it will help her a little bit when she is out trail riding then she will use one..

A horse can rear with or without a tie down. Once a horse starts to balk or rear, the rider must get forward motion any way they can to bring the front end back down. When a horses is rearing, they are being defiant and trying to avoid what ever pressure the rider is placing on them that they don't like. If the horses head is not completely released while rearing, the horse may continue to fight the pressure (ie the pressure from a noseband) to the point they loose balance and flip over. A tie down is a firm fixed piece of equiptment that can not be modified while riding. A horse prone to rear may try to defy the tie down to escape its pressure, and create a more dangerous situation. The true purpose of a tiedown is to support the horse, not to correct a behavioural issue like rearing. I hope this helps to explain it a little better.

 

[ElliesMom]

One question that I havent seen asked, but sometimes I erad WAY too fast.

How long have you actually been working on this 'issue'?

 

[covekat]

Just one thing I want to mention... the OP or her mother (now I"m really confused) said something about this mare rearing up in the water... the last thing you want to use on a horse going in water is a tie down... as they can drown.

 

[Sadielady]

See??? I am not involved....

 

[BZHorseMomE]

See??? I am not involved....

Oh, you know you want to play too!!

 

[horsesrock93]

One question that I haven't seen asked, but sometimes I read WAY too fast.

How long have you actually been working on this 'issue'?

Almost since I've had her. I probably Since i started riding English. Around Christmas last year..I only try to work with her in the ring. She will drop her head and i have taken her out of the ring and made her just stand there and drop her head and she wont...