Cherry:
I trained a mustang for a friend of mine.
The horse was lovingly trained and is comfortable and easy to ride. He knows to
stand when when told & being mounted. He
will stand until told to "walk", cluck-clucked, or touched with your
heels. My friend has a fear that the mustang picks up on. When she puts a foot
in the stirrup he takes an easy step sideways away form her so she removes her
foot; this continues until she finally gives up. I have tried to help her. For
me horses are easy to train; people impossible. She has taken lessons but having
the fear of mounting the lessons have not continued. Do you have any advice or
a book or a book that you know of that might help her. Thanks.
Butch Hi Butch, Mounting
is a key issue in rider safety and confidence and, like you say, it is a place
where a good horse can often unravel in the hands of a novice. There are so many
reasons a horse starts moving while being mounted: awkward shift of the saddle,
a pointed toed boot in his side, uneven reins, rider apprehension........and some
horses even turn it into a game, something like your describe. I've seen people
with short horses, doing a hop hop hop next to the horse with their foot in the
stirrup and the horse moving away just enough so the person can't quite get to
that position to lift herself up. Anyway, I digress. For
the benefit of other readers with similar problems, I want to make note of several
related articles on my website which you might want your friend to read.  As
far as book recommendations, anyone who has fear of a horse should read How
to Think Like a Horse to understand hor ses
and I cover mounting quite thoroughly
in Making
Not Breaking. You could hold the horse for your
friend as she mounts or position the horse alongside an arena rail to prevent
the sideways movement. You could even fashion a mounting block for her to use.
These are temporary measures, at best, but can be used until she gains confidence
with mounting. One of the hardest part for many horse
trainers is training the owners, but it is essential......and it is for the benefit
of the horse. Thank you for your letter and please
let me know how you do or if you have any other questions.
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