How do you dismount a horse saddle?

When you finish your ride, it’s time to dismount the horse. To stay safe, you need to find a secure place to get off of your horse and dismount correctly. Dismounting is much easier than mounting because you don’t have to battle gravity but you still need to follow these guidelines carefully:

1. Bring your horse to a complete stop.

2. Take your right foot out of the stirrup, hold the reins in your left hand, and position your hands.

   In Western, grasp the saddle horn with your left hand. In English, grasp the horse’s mane at the base of the neck with your left hand and put your right hand on the pommel.

3. Swing your right leg over the horse’s hindquarters — being careful not to touch the horse as you do — and at the same time, move your right hand to the cantle.

   In Western, also move the left hand, while still holding the reins, to the pommel.

4. Turn so your stomach is against the side of the saddle and your legs are next to each other; remove your left foot from the stirrup.

5. Slowly slide down until your feet are touching the ground.

For safety, it’s best to have someone hold your horse while you learn to mount.

• Stand next to your horse’s left shoulder facing the tail. Hold both reins in your left hand at the top of his neck. Using your right hand, hold out the stirrup and insert the ball of your left foot. Put your right hand on the pommel or middle of the seat and turn so you are facing your horse’s side.
• Bounce on your right foot and push with your left to swing your right leg over the horse’s back.
• Be careful not to kick your horse as you swing your leg over.
• Sink gently into the saddle.
• Put your right foot in the other stirrup.

How to Dismount a Horse

• Put both reins in your left hand and take both feet out of the stirrups. Put your right hand on the pommel or on your horse’s neck.
• Lean forward and swing your right leg over your horse’s back, taking care not kick him.
• As your right leg swings over to the left side of the horse, turn and slide down with your side against the horse so that you land facing forward.

Troubleshooting

Some people have trouble learning to push off the ground when mounting and try to pull themselves up. Instead, think about stair steps and the motion you would use walking up stairs. Many new riders like to “plop” into the saddle. Pretend there is an egg under your seat, and you must sit down softly so you don’t crack the shell.

Tack Check

Always do a safety check on both sides of the horse before mounting. Put the reins over the horse’s head and inspect the following, from the right side to the left, before you get on:

1. SADDLE PAD: straight and smooth.
2. BRIDLE: buckles fastened correctly, nothing is twisted, and reins are not crossed.
3. GIRTH is buckled correctly and is tight enough.
4. STIRRUPS: Pulled down.

Brought to you in partnership with the United StateS Pony Clubs Find this lesson in the USPC Manual of Horsemanship Basics for Beginners D-Level (2nd edition), page 27-28. For more fun lessons like this, join Pony Club! www.ponyclub.org

This article originally appeared in the March/April 2019 issue of Young Rider magazine. Click here to subscribe!