Being saddled doesn’t have to be a burden for Zen.

Holly Clanahan

So, last week found me and “Zen” doing our homework – getting her to be completely comfortable with the saddle and with someone aboard her back.

My friend and AQHA Professional Horseman Brent Graef had helped me start her – saddling her for the first time and shepherding us through the first ride. When we got home and it was mostly me, myself and I working with her, I slowed things down a notch. Because I’m not a professional trainer, and because I’ll undoubtedly make mistakes along the way, I wanted to take things slowly. Plus, there’s no rush … it’s not like I’m on a timeline to get her going under saddle.

So, first off, I wanted to get her totally at ease with the saddle. Then, I’d work to do the same with mounting. Then walking with a rider, and so on. She had already experienced all these things, but now they had to become routine.

Brent had given me a refresher course on using the horsemanship flag. If Zen needed to move, he wanted her to go forward (not backward or sideways) and calm (no skittering!). If she could stand still while the flag fluttered around her, all the better. So that was among the things we took home with us. Acceptance of the flag made it easier to accept anything else going across her back – like the saddle, or a rider’s leg.

When we got home, she still flinched sometimes as the pad settled on her back, so we worked on that. And she’d wince a little as I hoisted the saddle up and down beside her. I wanted to work through that, because I sure didn’t want to get in a position where she shied away from the saddle as it landed on her back. Even though it was me, myself and I working with her, there were still just two hands available, and I didn’t want to have the saddle land in a pile on the ground, giving Zen something to really be afraid of.

So those were my evenings. My days were being spent, in part, working on a fun new project for AQHA. In partnership with La Cense Montana, we have already published parts 1 and 2 of “Fundamentals of Horsemanship,” which are book and DVD sets full of good exercises for you and your horse. I’m helping put together part 3. So, as part of that, I was perusing some La Cense exercises that will be part of the new book.

One titled “Sending the horse to the saddle” caught my eye. The premise is that if the horse won’t accept the saddle on the ground, he probably won’t like it on his back. OK, fair enough.

What you do is put the saddle and saddle pad on the ground in the arena. Then when you bring the horse in, ask her to get busy, circling, yielding her hindquarters, backing up, flexing – anything to keep her feet and mind moving. Then guide the horse toward the saddle. As you near it, relax your body and lower your energy level. The horse should take a cue from you and decide that this is a good place to be. You can allow the horse to sniff and investigate the saddle.

When I tried it with Zen, she was all about stopping and resting after a little work. So we hung out by the saddle for a while, with her getting some soothing strokes. Then, when I picked up the saddle, she got really interested in it. She wanted to touch it with her nose, and I had to grin as she explored every inch of it. She touched a stirrup, she nosed the girth (getting some of Junior’s white hair on her) and she brushed her muzzle over the seat and fenders. It took a good while, but that saddle got thoroughly investigated.

When she was done, I walked to each side of her and lifted the saddle in the air, as if I was going to set it on her back. Her head went up a little bit, but she didn’t flinch. I put the saddle down and asked her to lower her head, just by touching the halter knot. She relaxed, and the next time I hoisted the saddle by her side, she didn’t move. I set it into place on her back – and she was fine. No dust, not even a raised head.

Every day since, it has been a non-issue – just another part of life with these odd two-legged creatures.

Mission No. 1: Accomplished!

Happy riding!
Holly Clanahan
Editor, America’s Horse magazine

P.S. Stay tuned for the release date on “Fundamentals of Horsemanship: Step 3.” I’m sure you’ll find some things in there to help you with your horse, too. If you haven’t already checked out steps 1 and 2 of the Fundamentals, remember that AQHA members get a discount on them!

Don’t miss the fun, educational and heart-warming stories in the print version of America’s Horse! It goes to all members of the American Quarter Horse Association, and it’ll also keep you in the loop on Association news. We want you to belong!

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