Every year horse owners experience serious injuries or even tragic deaths while riding their cherished equine companions. One of the more significant causes of rider injury is a rider being tossed from a rearing horse… or worse, caught underneath a horse that reared so fiercely that it flipped over on top of the rider. While sometimes injury is extremely difficult to avoid due to the spontaneous and powerful nature of many rears, all too often the problem is actually made worse by inexperienced riders panicking and inadvertently increasing the chance of injury.

When an inexperienced rider is rudely jolted by a rearing horse he often panics and tightens his body. This is a natural reaction… when we perceive an impending and unavoidable blow, our body unconsciously stiffens and braces for the impact. When atop a rearing horse, a surprised rider will often recoil a bit and stiffen towards the hindquarters of the horse, which is a critical error because the rider drastically throws off what little balance he has, almost assuring that he will be tossed.

The second critical error inexperienced riders make is using the reins as a form of security. They feel their body being thrown backwards so they grip the reins for dear life and try to use them to “pull” themselves forward and back into the saddle. Again… this is a natural knee-jerk reaction, but it’s also a critical error.

When you yank the reins of a rearing horse you drastically increase the likelihood of the horse losing control entirely and flipping over or falling down… with a good chance of you being caught underneath. Keep in mind that when a horse rears, he is already off balance. When you yank the reins backwards sharply, you’ll only make it that much more difficult for the horse to resume his balance. In addition you’ll very likely harm his mouth and cause him immense pain, and the shock of the pain could very well make the horse “freak out” even more!

So we now know that the two natural reactions people often make while on a rearing horse will only serve to increase the chances of injury for both the horse and rider. If we are supposed to ignore natural bodily reflexes what should we do instead?

First, when you sense your horse’s front hooves leaving the ground make sure that you lean forwards, not backwards. This will increase both your balance as well as your horse’s, thereby lessening the chance of the horse actually falling over. You don’t want a horse that weighs around 1000 pounds landing on you.

Second, thrust your hands forward so that there is absolutely no direct rein pressure against the horse’s mouth. Do not pull back on the reins no matter how much your instincts shout to do so – I guarantee you’ll gain no security or balance from doing so. Let him have his mouth and only apply direct rein pressure after he has all four hooves back on the ground.

by Jeffrey Rolo
(reprintted with permission)

Finally, if you feel like you are losing control then it’s generally better to take the cautious way out and dismount rather than try and ride the rearing out. Consider wrapping your arms around the horse’s neck as you lean forward, then slide off his side as he rears. The moment you hit the ground you want to back up so that the horse doesn’t step on your feet when his front hooves land again. It’s best if you can keep hold of the reins as you perform this maneuver, but if you have to let them go entirely and get out of “Dodge” then do so. Your bodily safety is the most important consideration.

Hopefully you will never be surprised by a rearing horse, but it doesn’t hurt to practice quick dismounts in your spare time such that if you are ever faced with the situation you’ll better know how to handle it. In addition depending on your breed of horse you might consider jumping him a bit. While a jump has nowhere near the potency of a strong rear, it can teach your body how to respond when a horse’s front hooves leave the ground.

The above article originally appeared on AlphaHorse, a website dedicated to horses and the owners who love them. You will find many other informational articles dealing with horse training, horse care and more on their site.

Selecting the right horse trainer to emulate can be a daunting task for newcomers to the world of horse training. As with nearly any occupation or hobby, there are many authorities within the field willing to offer advice, some good, some not so good. Before spending an investment in time and money newcomers will often ask… which trainer should I follow? The answer may surprise you:

No one and everyone.

Let’s look at this seemingly oxymoron a bit closer. You should not attempt to duplicate the style of any one particular horse trainer, yet you should try to study as many different horse trainers as possible during your horse career. I realize a far more convenient answer would be to point out one supreme trainer in the horse world and suggest focusing on him or her, but the fact of the matter such a magic bullet just doesn’t exist for two reasons:

1.  There are many talented horse trainers, each with their different styles and advice. Judging one as being better than all others is simply not possible or reasonable.
2. Whereas one trainer may practice a style that is perfect for me, you may find the style to be somewhat incompatible to you – or vice versa!

An old adage states that “all roads lead to Rome” and a similar context can be applied towards horse training. Whereas there are false paths that will lead to an unproductive or miserable relationship with a horse, the fact of the matter is many paths lead to success. As long as the trainer believes in understanding a horse and his language rather than dominating a horse through violence or fear, chances are his path is one of those that will lead to success.

Training is not an exact science or emulation – it’s a natural flow that should bring out the highest level of comfort and confidence between you and your horse. Back about 50 years ago left-handed writing was deemed improper, so some schools would require left-handed students to write with their right hand, regardless of the fact that it’s not a natural instinct or comfort zone for left-handers. Could such students learn to go against their instincts? Absolutely. Left-handed people have always been forced to live in a right-handed world. Was it an ideal scenario for them? No – it disregarded their inherent skills and instincts and forced them to adopt someone else’s natural ways.

You should look upon horse training in the same context. Although you can follow one trainer’s style to the letter, you may later find that had you tweaked a few things here or there you would have been even more efficient or confident. A horse trainer should possess confidence in his own actions and ability before attempting to guide an untrained horse, for an integral part of the training process is lending that confidence to the horse to reassure the horse that the foreign stimuli and behaviors introduced to him are nothing to worry about. If you’re uncomfortable with your requests, you can bet your horse will probably pick up on your hesitation or awkwardness.

Any master of any trade becomes a master only because they realize that life is a constant learning experience – one should never rest on their laurels or be complacent with what they currently know. The same should hold true for all of us who enjoy and work with horses. Each time you read about or witness techniques from various natural horsemen you will often pick up an intriguing idea or two to try out yourself. Experiment! See how they work for you. At the same time you should not attempt to clone any specific horse trainer no matter how skilled he or she may be. Use the knowledge you are gathering and combine it with your natural instincts and flow. Create your own overall technique that blends the best of all worlds and you will be well on your way to success.

The above article originally appeared on AlphaHorse, a website dedicated to horses and the owners who love them. You will find many other informational articles dealing with horse training, horse care and more on their site.