Preparing to Mount
Most people with their first mustang are amateurs. To get things ready to mount a wild horse is only a little different from domestic horses. Those who are new to horsemanship need a ‘owner’s guide’ to prepare a horse to be mounted.
Preparation includes being at ease leading and have attained a few verbal commands like halt or woah. Further into preparation the owner needs the horse to have patience standing. That’s standing still and waiting for the next request.
An important skill is to accept things (like their human) being above them. This is an important skill for owners to understand.
Something above their head will be frightening – because its BIGGER.
As we move above and below the horses 'eye level’ the magnification changes for them. This is often very unsettling. They will begin to adapt during gentling but to prepare to mount takes some additional work.
For the horse to understand, and be comfortable with a human getting into the saddle requires several skills the owners must teach them. For the owner to be comfortable getting into the saddle there are also skills that have to be attained.
“Both sides” of a horse’s brain are independent
Xenophon said, show the horse everything on both sides of the horse. There is a blind spot above every horses back where his vision is absent. Initially objects like a human’s leg that pass from one side, through that blind spot are difficult to understand. Humans must imagine something trying to jump onto their back like a Mountain Lion.
When mounting the horse on the left side your foot will disappear in that blind spot and reappear as something completely different in the horses right eye.
Horses think visually - humans have concepts and plans and aspirations. The horse only knows ‘NOW’. Right now, in this moment and nothing else.
They have good memories but it’s a visual story they recall. A place, a smell, a person or another horse and the situation they were in at that prior time.
Use the time while you are gentling your horse to get them familiar with being approached, handled and worked with from a position higher than their eye level.
1. As you are leading your Mustang around, ask him to whoa at first take a few steps away continue Saying whoa over and over. Move a few feet away at first later several feet away and reward him with praise and a treat. Your goal is to eventually be able to drop the lead line on the ground and walk around him and away from him.
2. Place your stepstool next to your Mustang as if you’re going to mount and just step on the first step the first day repeating the verbal command whoa. The next day stand on the second step. Repeat this on both sides.
3. Saddle your Mustang place the saddle on his back several times on both sides. If he continues to stand quietly, you are ready to girth him first take the cinch and make it tight. Walk him around for a minute or two and tighten some more. Walk around again and see if you can get it a little tighter.
4. Get your mounting stool place next to him put your foot in the stirrup and apply a little pressure. Repeat on both sides.
5. When standing on the mounting block Lean over the horses back an offer him a treat so he can get used to seeing your hand disappear over the top of their back and then reappear out of the other eye.
6. Put your foot in the stirrup do a half mount then dismount. Do this on both sides.
7. When your horse stands quietly for all of these steps, you are ready to mount and sit on top of him. I would do this a number of times before asking him to walk on.