James Equestrian is an equestrian coaching, breeding and training facility located in the Lockyer Valley QLD. Run by Rachel Berry & Hayden James
13/02/2025
The real problem with leverage devices is that they force a horse to stretch its muscles so far that they can tear, causing intense pain and long-term physical and emotional damage.
So why do so many people strap their horses into tight side reins, German martingales, bitting rigs, draw reins (like in the photo), or any other device that works like a pulley to magnify the rider’s strength?
First, there’s a lack of empathy. The rider doesn’t feel it. If someone put them into the same muscle-tearing stretches like the Spanish Inquisition’s rack they might finally understand what they’re doing to the horse.
Then, there’s the fact that it’s a shortcut. You can teach a horse to bend and stretch properly by taking it slow, allowing its muscles to lengthen over time. But that takes patience, and many riders don’t want to wait. It’s easier to force the result.
And of course, some big-name riders and trainers use these methods, so others copy them without question. Monkey see, monkey do.
But maybe the saddest part is that so many riders have never been taught how to develop a horse with quiet, classical methods,the kind based on pressure and release, building trust and responsiveness over time. The irony is that these techniques are more accessible than ever, with thousands of videos and resources available at the click of a button. Ignorance isn’t an excuse anymore
Yet here we are. Today, February 12, 2025 all over the world, horses are being cranked into these devices. And if you were to question the people doing it, they’d have a hundred excuses insisting, all the while, that they’re not being abusive.
We posted this in 2016 with no credit name. I’ve been informed very kindly this original post was written by famous Denny at great Tamarack Hill Farm. A brilliant man of wise words 👏🏼
