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Friday, August 23, 2013

Tie me up, tie me down

When it comes to tie-downs, and the proponents of their use, it's a losing argument.

Why was the tie-down created?

Tie-downs were created to keep the horse from raising his head above a certain level. As in, to literally tie the head down. Some are bonnet style which go over the ears and around the crown of the horse's head. Others go over the nose. There is also a combination of both in the headstall style. Then there is the 'head-setter' tie-down that tightens. The point is, they are called tie-downs because they were created to tie the head down and prevent it from going up above a certain point.






They are not called a 'face-brace', a 'stop-helper', a 'shoulder-lifter'...

The failed 'bracing' argument...

3 out of 4 people who use tie-down's, especially barrel racers and ropers,  will tell you their horse 'needs' a tie-down to 'brace' on when running or stopping. This is absolutely NOT true. Horses running full speed at liberty (and even with a rider) will brace with their hind legs and 'drift' forward with their forelegs, while lifting their shoulders and neck. This is the natural way of things. Think of a reiner's sliding stop, that is basically how it is done, only less flashy. If your horse cannot carry himself and needs something to lean/counterbalance on then there is much more wrong than you thought. Either with his training or with his rider. Horses should naturally carry themselves, and balance on their own when maneuvering. They do not 'need' anything to help them do what nature already intended them to do.




What they affectionately call 'bracing' is due to heavy contact on the bit, as in to getting them to stop, and the horse wanting to avoid the bit and the rein pressure by throwing his head up. Much of the time this would mean hitting the rider in the face with the neck, or running away head jerked up and back, going through the bit to avoid it and the pressure it exerts.

And the argument that a horse with a tie-down cannot rear is also absolutely not true. A horse in a tie down can very much still rear, and quite a few have.

Let's face it. It's purely a crutch, a bandaid for bad training or lack of training.

The horse uses its neck, spine, and tail for balance. If you tie his head down with a tie-down you are basically asking a tight-rope walker to walk a tight-rope with no hands. That means the horse is using you and the reins for balance whenever he cannot stretch out his neck when needed. Ever wonder why so many horses trip, fall, and tip over while turning in barrel races? Most, if not practically all, are wearing tie-downs.






Tie-downs also pose more than one danger for horses. Think about this: You're cantering along and your horse trips in a small hole and goes down on the forehand. With his head tied down he cannot put his head up and out to regain his balance. What about if he should fall on a turn and get his leg caught in a tie-down used without a breast collar (which is seen far too often)? You'd have a nasty accident.

A naturally high-headed horse forced to wear a tie-down can actually be made to be in pain. Or he has a high neck/head set and that is what is natural to him, instead of teaching him to round up, come into the bridle and onto the vertical, tying his head down can cause, an upside down neck, stiffness, soreness, and even neck vertebrae issues. If the horse is not high-headed when he's in the paddock or at liberty but is when you put a saddle/bridle on him and climb on his back that usually means you have a pain, tack, fitting, etc issue. It's not the horse, it's the equipment/rider causing it. Slapping a tie-down on to stop this behavior on a naturally-lower headed horse that puts his head/neck up when being ridden will only cover up the pain/pressure/sensitivity he is trying to convey, or even cause him pain.

Barrel racers, tie-downs, and gag bits...

Whoever thought this up and made it the okay/normal thing to do needs to be shot, and if they survive, shot again. A gag bit is a pulley leverage bit. Gags with shanks are very severe, sliding gags with a gag mouthpiece also are the worst and most severe. It climbs up the mouth/face higher and higher with rein pressure. This asks the horse to raise his front end, put his hindquarter under, put his head up and his muzzle outward. A tie-down asks the horse to lower his front end under and bring his rear up, put his head down and holds his muzzle inward. These are two very conflicting, very opposing signals. Basically the horse's head has nowhere to go and if it attempts to move its head either way it is met by sharp resistance. A tiedown and a gag, lifter, elevator, draw/sliding gag, or any kind of bit used to 'raise' the head/neck/forequarter should NEVER be used together.

Using a tie-down on a speed horse can actually decrease his overall speed, as he cannot stretch out, flatten himself, and run from his center of propulsion. He cannot run properly with his head tied down being unable to use his neck properly for balance.

If you think you 'need' a tie-down, let me just say, you DON'T. You, as a rider/trainer need to go back to training and horse's anatomy 101.

-Raevyn

27 comments:

Jennifer RP said...

I can see one use for tie-downs - as a *temporary* training aid to deal with a horse that is throwing its head so high it is endangering the rider's face. If fitted correctly, they do not interfere with normal head and neck movement (although you should never jump in one).

Having actually known somebody who got their nose broken by a horse that threw its head up out of sheer over-excitement, they have their place...WHILE the horse is retrained to carry its head properly and not do that.

CurtsBooks said...

Well written. Thank you.

Tuffy Horse said...

People don't realize that there is a difference between bracing WITH a tiedown and bracing AGAINST a tiedown. The second one is bad. The first one is from using a tiedown for a very short time and letting the horse know where his frame should be when he stops or turns. These horse has be nice arch, rounded back and are properly moving in to the turn or stop. If the horse's face is jammed agains the tiedown you're doing it wrong.

Carson said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Maddy824 said...

I just have a question. If a horse had bad training before you got it and had a problem with flinging their head up, could it be used as a training aid if done correctly?

Unknown said...

I use a tie down to stop my horse from bucking as I retrained her from a bronco to a pleasure and show mount. It took me three years to be able to ride her without fear

Dark Horse Designs said...

@ Elizabeth Capps - it is MUCH easier for a horse to buck IF he can get his head down. Its physics. Tie downs are a short cut. Without seeing your horse myself I cannot give a better solution other than go back to the basics. Pretend he has never seen a human. Start him again. On top of retraining it is a great way to strengthen a bond between horse and rider.

Dark Horse Designs said...

@ Elizabeth Capps - it is MUCH easier for a horse to buck IF he can get his head down. Its physics. Tie downs are a short cut. Without seeing your horse myself I cannot give a better solution other than go back to the basics. Pretend he has never seen a human. Start him again. On top of retraining it is a great way to strengthen a bond between horse and rider.

Unknown said...

I totally agree with you! I like about your blog that you have some knowledge, your opinion is supported with examples and your point of view is defended. I hate patents which restrict horse’s freedom and are supposed to help the rider. Our hands, our legs and our seat are the best tools. I knew people who made up the lack in their riding skills with patents, one more sharp that the other. I hate treating horses in this way, as if they are spoiled, damaged and needed correction in order to make the rider’s life easier. Horses are free and independent animals. Let’s do our best to make their life easier, let’s not limit their moves with unnecessary patents.
Thank you for writing this post!!
Berry
chestnutsteed.blogspot.com

Unknown said...

I can see this as true. If you were to put any normal angulation on a 15 hand tall horse that weighs 1400lbs you'd be snapping ligaments, tendons, and bones left and right under the strain of holding up all that weight. Horse feeder

Unknown said...

You've clearly never had an Arab, or something more forehand oriented, hit the brakes quickly. I promise, not all horses engage their hindquarters in a stop naturally. Anyone that's been subjected to the forehand hop knows this.

Unknown said...

Actually a roping horse stops completely different from a reining horse. Any horse person should be able to see that. Roping horses stop with all four feet at the same time, they use tie downs at a balance point so they can get their butt under them instead of face planting. Reining horses are trained to stop with two feet (back) and pedal with their front to create a sliding stop. Can you send me your sources that you used to find this information? Also make sure they aren't biased! Lots of people will have you believing lies to push their own agenda.

Unknown said...

I use a Tie down on my barrel horse becasue she gets her head up to high and cant see the barrel to turn it but this is also the same horse who can go win 4h allround title winning horsemahship, ranch rideing, showmanship, barrels and poles so its not the lack of training so next time you think that maybe you should do smoe more research!

Dr. J said...

Well, excepting THAT YOU'RE INCORRECT ABOUT EVERYTHING in this diatribe it's pretty god!😁 1) I ALWAYS ride with a tie down - REGARDLESS of horse experience or training - and I exclusively train my own horses. a) (INCORRECT #1) OF COURSE A TIE DOWN PREVENTS REARING! That's WHY I ALWAYS use them REGARDLESS. People DIE EVERY YEAR from "good", well trained horses rearing and going over backwards. If the horse is UNABLE TO LIFT THEIR HEAD ABOVE THEIR BACKLINE IT IS IMPOSSIBLE FOR THEM TO REAR, or for that matter buck or blow up or gallop. They figure out very quickly that they can't - and it gives a mindset of rider control vs doing what they want when they want - and they're thinking about their limitations vs how to get the rider off their back or how to blow up. #2 RIDICULOUSLY INCORRECT! The reason barrel racers use "HEAD SETTERS" is because (wait for it "Raevyn"😳.... IT SETS THEIR HEAD ON THE CORNERS😱🀯🀯😊). EXACTLY what you describe is EXACTLY what a barrel racer IS PREVENTING! They don't want the horse to do what it does "naturally" - which would be run past the barrel and not take the corner as hard as possible. You erroneously show an excellent trained cutting horse stopping with no reins on command - What's that gotta do with turning a barrel...??? A head setter both teaches and makes the horse turn as hard as possible on the barrel AND KEEP THEIR HEAD TURNING TO THE INSIDE vs going straight. Once the horse is well trained and loves to race the head setter PROBABLY isn't needed - although at that point it isn't doing anything anyway.
So your arguments of what's "natural" - REARING and RUNNING AWAY IS EXACTLY WHAT A TIE DOWN AND HEAD SETTER ARE FOR - and you're obviously inexperienced as to NOT KNOW THAT THEY WORK EXACTLY AS INTENDED πŸ˜‰

Dr. J said...

There are "horse owners" who buy gentle, extensively trained horses and ride and become comfortable with these horses and then believe they're experienced horsemen. They've NEVER ridden or trained a rank pasture or started a mustang or a colt, NEVER trimmed or shoed their own horses, and NEVER broken bad habits in a spoiled horse. They assume because they've ridden for years on gentle, well tempered horses someone else trained that they're experts, when in fact these are the people who know VERY LITTLE about horses and are getting killed every year by horses "doing what comes natural".

Dr. J said...

???? Eh??

Dr. J said...

Yes - and "free indepedent" horses KILL PEOPLE LIKE YOU EVER YEAR 😊 Those of us who actually work with and train horses with bad manners and dispositions and have been spoiled by other owners like you (many labeled as "pets only" and "unrideable") understand that HORSES CAN KILL YOU AND KILL PEOPLE LIKE YOU EVERY YEAR. Self proclaimed "experts" who've NEVER dealt with a rank pastured horse or horses that have been spoiled or haven't been ridden in years. Even if you've failed and started a colt - it had human contact every day and came from pedigreed animals with perfect dispositions. I'd love for you and "Raevyn" to come to Montana and I'd put you on some rank horses that'd stomp your ass in 2 minutes in a round pen! YOU HAVE NO CLUE!! Just like the AQHA video I just saw of the self proclaimed expert on "safe loading practices" loading a $10,000 QH and DOING EXACTLY WHAT HE SAID IS DANGEROUS - and would've gotten CRUSHED by a rank horse! Idiots teaching idiots and patting each other on the back isn't smart and it ISN'T SAFE. If you want to footnote your ideas and remarks with "I have only ever worked with sweet dispositioned, pedigreed horses" - great! If you want to come to Montana and I'll video you getting your ass stomped in about 30 seconds attempting your BS with a mustang - we can arrange that πŸ˜‰

Dr. J said...

....FOALED and started a colt.... Which I HIGHLY doubt. I don't want to sound mean - but I've see it a million times - people believing their horsemen/women who've only ever been around excellent and well trained horses and have NO CLUE how to manage a difficult wild horse with an attitude. I'd LOVE to have a "horse whisperer" load a rank horse in under 30 minutes! They'd get their ass stomped - or would fail to load it - that simple. All I ask is you first consider the breadth of your horsemanship and true level of experience. Being around/ owning horses with perfect temperament having been trained extensively by others doesn't grant expertise and certainly doesn't validate INCORRECT assumptions

Dr. J said...

Nose broken is VERY LUCKY. This is how people get KILLED by their horse - and that's why I NEVER ride without a tie down. I've known cowboys who've literally lived their entire lives on horses who were killed by good horses they trusted, and they thought tie downs were for training or beginners. I truly always wonder if that was the last thought they had when the saddle horn hit their sternum an killed them. And "Raevyn" is 100% FOS and obviously has NEVER trained a rank horse

Dr. J said...

Well written - just 100% INCORRECT

Dr. J said...

This woman HAS NO CLUE. What I term a "horse owner". She's NEVER worked with, let alone trained a rank horse, and she's obviously NEVER done any barrel racing, roping or cutting. If she had she wouldn't be saying the dumba$$ things she does

Dr. J said...

..."Gags with shanks are very severe, sliding gags with a gag mouthpiece also are the worst and most severe. It climbs up the mouth/face higher and higher with rein pressure. This asks the horse to raise his front end, put his hindquarter under, put his head up and his muzzle outward. A tie-down asks the horse to lower his front end under and bring his rear up, put his head down and holds his muzzle inward."

EXACTLY!! The horse MUST PUT HIS HEAD DOWN AND TURN...😱😱🀯🀯 The signals aren't conflicting AND LEAVE THE HORSE WITH ONLY ONE POSITION FOR IT'S HEAD - TO TURN THE CORNER HARD! Once they learn this they never feel the bit or head setter! SOMEONE NEEDS SOME ANATOMY AND HORSE 101 LESSONS! Hell - YOU ARGUE THE VERY REASONS THE ITEMS YOU CLAIM AREN'T NEEDED ARE USED!!

Dr. J said...

....and reining to the INSIDE doesn't ask the horse to go 'high and outside' - it pulls the head in and should the horse want to fight that the head setter gives extra training/guidance to TURN INSIDE HARD

Jen the equestrian said...

Unfortunately for you a tie down will not stop a horse bucking. As a matter of fact a tie down would make it easier for them to buck with their heads down. In order to stop a horse bucking... you need to keep their head UP not down.

Jen the equestrian said...

A tie down won’t stop a horse bucking. If anything it makes it easier for them to buck with their heads tied down. πŸ˜‚πŸ˜‚πŸ˜‚

Jen the equestrian said...

A tie down won’t stop a horse bucking. If anything it makes it easier for them to buck with their heads tied down. πŸ˜‚πŸ˜‚πŸ˜‚

K Barker said...

Considering horses work on their own time, being something with a kid of its own and all, I won’t put a time limit of 30 minutes on but challenge accepted. And I agree 100% with the author, being the trainer of Arabians, OTTBS and various other breeds. Since supposedly “pedigreed” animals come with calm dispositions. Ever heard of Hancock bred, seeing as you’re in Montana I’d be surprised if not.
A. If you can’t gain the respect of a 1200lb animal without FORCE, you have no business with training. You’re right, these animals can KILL YOU. With or without a tie down, a horse is gonna do whatever the hell they want because they CAN.
B. Breaking out a horse shouldn’t be aggressive/traumatic. Proper groundwork leads to an easy ride. Yes, some horses are gonna bronc either way, however it’s how they were introduced to the saddle, pressure etc that will determine how they problem solve. Fight or flight... or think and breathe. I’ve worked with foals up to when it’s time to break, wild Arabians that hadn’t been touched for 12 years, sitting in the pasture all their life. Sale barn beauties, sold for their crazies. Not one of them ever made me question my life while I worked with them, because it was done right. It wasn’t rushed, and we allowed them to freely think and choose the right answer. If they chose wrong, it’s corrected and redirected to the right answer.

I’m sure your horses are great, and well trained. But I’m sure there isn’t much trust between the two. Sounds like a man and his truck, simply another piece of equipment.

Your incorrect assumptions don’t validate your point in any way lol. Simply sound like an old cowboy stuck in his ways