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Rein Position
By Martin Black - March 1, 2012

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Written by Martin Black

This article originally appeared in Eclectic Horseman

Issue No.64

Why can one rider have trouble getting a horse to respond

and another rider take the same horse and get along
great? We may be familiar with the influence of feel and
timing, but something that could be quicker for the rider
to learn is the effect of the rein or reins in different
positions.
We can observe different places we position one or both
reins and note the response we get from our horses. Also,
note the direction of pull along with the amount and time of
pressure applied in relation to the horse’s response. It makes
no difference whether we wanted the response they gave us.
The important thing to note is what action got what reaction.

Experimenting with the following rein positions can

potentially give you completely different results: try pulling
one rein to your hip, or pulling straight out from the horse’s
shoulder, in front of the saddle lifting the rein against the
wither, or with a short rein lifting and pushing against the
jaw. All this is done with one rein, different lengths, different
directions and different amounts of pressure, to get totally NEVER SPAM. ONLY
different responses. PROMOTIONS.

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Using one rein to get them to start or stop their feet will get !
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the horse to respond without pulling on our hands as much
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as they can when we pull on both reins. For example, if we
pull both reins evenly to stop and the horse doesn’t respond
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with the feet properly and starts pulling on our hands, we
can relax one rein and pull on the other rein enough to put a
bend in their neck. Then they won’t be pulling as hard as
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When backing, if they are heavy, we can take one rein to
move the hind feet first, then draw both reins to get the front
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feet to follow the hind feet back.
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Whether it is speed regulation, stop, back, change of Roping Set from
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can maximize the message you desire by positioning the
rein. Once the horse learns how to interpret our desire and
learns how to prepare to do what we are asking, our hands 2018 Martin
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don’t need to be in such drastic positions and we can become
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more uniform with our signals.

Fragments from
Once we understand the effects of one rein, then we can the writings of
realize the difference when we add the second rein. Again, Max Ritter von
experimenting with the position and pressure of each rein Weyrother
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and all the effects of it; head elevation, speed or change of
direction. It is important to identify how the horse places
their feet when changing direction. The front quarters can Riding with Life
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both front and hind can be reaching the same direction, or Caton
one can be neutral, pivoting while the other has all the $32.95 $28.95

motion. Also note whether they are in a forward motion or a

reverse motion. All of these variations can change because of All Products
the position of the rein.
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Instead of us trying to force confusing messages on our
horses, if we can step back and observe the cause and effect, My Account
we learn from that and understand that the horse isn’t trying Checkout
to frustrate us and make trouble for themselves. The horse is
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always looking for the path of least resistance. Although we
may not understand why they do what they do, we can
understand what we did to cause them to do it, and use that
to get what we want.

This article originally appeared in Eclectic Horseman

Issue No.64

The Horsemanʼs Gazette – Issues No.29-

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Martin Black
Martin Black is a 5th generation Idaho rancher and 4th
generation rodeo competitor. He has a lifetime of
experience in handling horses, cattle and roping. In his
youth there was a strong influence of the California-
Spanish style of horsemanship. He has earned money in
stock hose events, NRCHA events, rodeo events, and
more. His basic philosophy is to “build the horse’s
confidence in everything he does. Learn more:
www.martinblack.net

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