Remember that a horse is a prey animal who would normally be attacked by predator animals such as the cougar from above. A cougar would leap down from a tree, landing onto the horses back and latching onto the neck of the horse keeping clear of the horse’s powerful legs.

Keeping this in mind and understanding the nature and natural instinct of a horse, for something to be on it’s back is a very scary situation for the horse.

By establishing leadership and trust with the horse and exposing them to the blanket, saddle pad and my body weight through the desensitization process taking the next step to accepting the saddle and first ride should not be an issue.

A common response of the horse when first saddled is to buck due to the confinement of the girth and the unfamiliar sensation that the saddle gives.

It is my goal however to avoid this bucking response by disengaging the hind end and killing the power to the engine. Once the horse is comfortable with the saddle and is not threatened by it I go through all of the steps from 1-4 to ensure a good foundation.

The first ride and the week that follows are done in a halter and lead rope where I begin to encourage forward movement, expand on direction and engine and backing up.

The purpose of using a halter and lead rope for the first week is to minimize confusion and over load.

The horse is experiencing many new feelings and encountering new situations that he/she does not understand, if I were to add a foreign metal piece (bit) into his mouth it would have the potential to cause more behavioral issues and minimize the horses potential for growth in the first week.