BETTY'S TRAIL RIDES Not Just Another Trail Ride

"Rusty Says"

Tips about horses, horsemanship
and riding from Rusty "The Old Cowboy"

I've already mentioned a little about tying up a horse and how not to ever use the reins for this, but use a lead rope. There are a lot of different kinds of lead ropes but whatever kind you use, make sure you tie the horse high enough and short enough so that the lead can't tangle in his legs. I've seen this happen and sometimes it ain't real sightly.

As to kinds of lead ropes, I generally like to use a haystring. That may sound funny, but horses commonly set back for one reason or another and if a horse is really scared, he can panic when he finds out he can't go anywhere to get away from what's bothering him. I've seen horses fight and pull and fall on the ground and hurt themselves. Other horses tied up near them panic too and I've seen real wrecks with damaged tack, equipment, hitching posts, horses and even people. On the other hand, a haystring just breaks and horse will almost always, finding himself free, simply stop. If they do take off, they won't usually go but a few steps. Most people think they will just be off like a bullet somewhere over the moon, but they generally don't like to get too far from the corral and if you have other horses, they don't want to get too far from them. After all, they are herd animals.

Sometimes you have to use a stout rope to tie a horse because some horses get wise to the haystring thing and just keep setting back. When I do use a lead rope, I prefer to use one with a quick release that you can just go up and pull with one simple motion and it will come undone. Most commercial lead ropes are not this kind and if the horse sets back, you are fiddling around with the release while the horse is pitching around and you're trying not to get let him get hurt and not to get hurt yourself.

Tip of the month for May, 2007

I get a lot of people coming in here wanting to sell their horses. A lot of them say they have lemons that just want to buck and act up. Another owner like this showed up the other day and I went over to look at the horse and saw again what I see a lot. Leads to this month's tip.

When I got over to this guy's place, I saw a horse in a corral so small the horse didn't have much room to turn around. I saw, too, that his place wasn't really big and he couldn't have a corral any larger than the one he had. I asked what he was feeding him and he showed me the hay--straight alfalfa and hot. He also gave him a big bucket of grain every day and a lot of vitamins and supplements.

Right off, I saw what the problem was--and is with a lot of people with unmanageable horses. Horses are big, nervous, powerful critters with a lot of energy that needs worked off. Keeping them in a small corral with just occassional riding (this guy couldn't ride every day or even every weekend) only builds the energy. Feeding them hot hay and lots of grain and supplements is just like a human athlete's diet. If an athlete is not working, he dosen't need the same diet as he does when he is working. A horse is the same. By the time the owner got around to riding, the horse was feeling way too good and all he wanted to do is run, buck, and act silly. He was plumb crazy.

The best thing you can do with a horse is pace him to how you are using him. If you can't keep him in a large corral or pasture, don't ride often and the animal dosen't get a lot of exercise, you don't need to feed him grain at all and you can tone down the supplements and feed hay that is mixed grass/alfalfa or even just grass. And remember, too, that too much makes a person--and a horse--too fat. Horses can get heart problems and all the other stuff we humans get from being overweight and not exercising.

The final thought here is that horses were wild critters in the first place. There are still a lot of wild horses in places. In nature they have plenty of room to run around, eat nothing but grass and wild foliage. They don't get grain, supplements and other goodies. They are healthy to the point that they need to be thinned out now and then. Nevada, for example, has a real mustang problem from time to time. So don't just hug your horse today--feed him right and make him exercise, dammit!

Tip of the month for April, 2007

When we asked Rusty for a tip this month, he said, "Balance is important. Keep a leg on both sides and your mind in the middle and you'll stay on."

Then we told him we had to have more than that, and he said, "Get up off that couch and let me lie down or I'm going to bed. I don't like to put things on the internet. But as long as you are doing it, tell them:

Never run a horse to the barn. I see people do it all the time. The horse wants to go home in the first place, and you will get it in the habit of running home and you won't be able to stop it. Every time you'll have a fight with it. If you have to run toward the barn, stop the horse about a half mile out and make it walk the rest of the way in.

Another thing I see people do a lot is tying a horse up by the reins. This is fine if what you want to do is tear up its mouth. If it sets back, you can get it hurt bad. Always use a lead rope and make sure to slip the bridle off the horse when you tie up and put it over the saddle horn. If you don't, the reins can slip over its head and it can get caught in them if the reins are the loop kind. The horse can really get hurt that way. If the reins are split, the horse can step on them and break them.

Now get up off that couch and let me lie down there to watch the news or I'll replace you with a younger woman and you and your brother get out of here. You're making too much noise!"

Tip of the month for March, 2007

The most valuable tips I can give about riding are those on safety. Horses are living creatures and have minds and personalities and emotions of their own, just as people do. They can get scared, they can be hurt, they can feel contrary or just plain mad. They are bigger than humans and many times as strong. They are extremely aware and alert to certain things. The minute you hit their backs, they know what kind of a rider you are and what they can get away with. They are a lot like kids and may test you. They may try to stop on the trail and eat, wander around, decide not to leave the corral and give you a bad time in general. And then, again, they may be sweet as pie.

Because your horse knows what kind of a rider you are, you need to know also. This is the major mistake most people make after they get comfortable riding horses. It is easy, after riding beginner horses, to think that you know a lot about riding. I have had people tell me they are excellent riders and when I ask how much they have ridden, they tell me, "About six or eight times." That ain't gonna cut it. To be a good rider you have to observe horses--a lot of them--for a good length of time so that you understand all the ways they can react and recognize from their actions what they are about to do. It's like with people--just when you think you have seen it all, something new comes up. In a nutshell, the major safety tip I can give you is, don't over estimate your riding abilities. Many people have and have lived to regret it and some didn't.

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