66 ORDINARY RIDING. 



MAKING A HORSE QUIET TO MOUNT. 



To make a horse quiet to mount, we must adopt a method 

 by which we can easily stop him from annoying the rider, or 

 preventing him from getting into the saddle. Let us examine 

 the means we should employ, and let us place ourselves in 

 such a position that we will be able to circumvent any defence 

 which his instinct or bad habits may prompt him to make. 



The vicious or restive horse rears, lashes out, strikes with 

 his near forefoot, or cow-kicks with his near hind. With such 

 an animal we should make use of the lunging rein and driving 

 whip, and make a feint of putting a foot in the stirrup while 

 standing close to the near shoulder. If he rears, we can hit 

 him thoroughly with the lash of the whip across his buttocks. 

 As he is held by the lunging rein, we can remain sufficiently 

 far away from him to avoid being struck. Every time he 

 rears we should begin again until he yields. If he reins 

 back, we should employ similar methods. If he kicks, raise 

 his head and loudly scold him. If he strikes out in front, cut 

 him with the driving whip on the offending leg. 



Besides horses which resist in this manner, there are others 

 which are simply timid, nervous, restless, ticklish, or irritable, 

 and which do not remain as quiet as they ought to do, 

 although they do not really "show fight." What will they 

 do? They will perform only four movements — namely, go 

 forward, run back, shy off to the right or to the left, against 

 which we should act as follows : 



I take the near rein of the snaffle in my left hand, and with 

 the same hand I catch hold of the mane at about the middle of 

 the neck in such a manner that there is a slight tension on the 

 rein which I hold. I pass my right hand, in which I have my 

 cutting whip, over the neck, seize with it the off snaffle rein, 

 which I draw up only slightly, and finally take hold of the 

 pommel of the saddle with the right hand (Fig. 15). 



