14/02/2025
Draw Reins: The Shortcut to Ruining Your Young Horse’s Soul
Okay, imagine this, you take a young or green horse, pop a bit in its mouth, and hop on. What happens next? The horse will likely wobble around like a newborn giraffe, trying to figure out how to balance with a rider on its back. And here's the thing most horses aren’t exactly out there running marathons in the field to get fit. Nope, they stand. And stand. And eat. And stand some more.
So now, we’ve got this unfit, wobbly creature trying to handle 15-20% of its body weight perched on its back. And guess what? It’s probably not strong enough to do this properly. It’ll go down, lean on your hands, fiddle with the reins, or, worse, hollow out like it's trying to impersonate a camel anything to avoid the bit.
Here’s where the good trainer comes in. The good trainer knows that the horse isn’t being “naughty” or “resistant” it’s just weak and unfit. So, they work with light contact, walk the horse to build fitness, and patiently build strength and balance. Slowly, they introduce rein aids—turn left, turn right, slow down, stop and all the while, they’re using their legs and seat to help the horse along. It’s slow, but it’s effective.
Then there’s the “bad” trainer. You know the one the one who sees a horse struggle and immediately thinks, "This is resistance!" Ah yes, resistance. That magical word that gets thrown around like confetti whenever things don’t go as planned. In the bad trainer's mind, resistance = bad behavior, and bad behavior must be punished. And what better way to punish than with… draw reins! (I can practically hear the dramatic music in the background.)
Let’s talk about those draw reins. They’re like the equivalent of telling your horse, "You’re going to do this MY WAY, whether you like it or not." They use leverage to crank the horse’s head into a specific position, forcing the horse’s body into a frame—totally ignoring the fact that building strength and balance takes time. Instead of patiently encouraging the horse to use its back and engage its topline, the bad trainer just forces it into submission. Sure, you might get a temporarily “pretty” head position, but at what cost? Spoiler alert: that cost is often long-term damage.
If I put Lilly in draw reins because she was a little green and “resistant,” I could probably wreck her in two weeks flat. And trust me, I’ve got better things to do than ruin horses. I’m your average leisure rider up grown up Pony Club and equine college , but I’ve spent years learning the ropes both at home and abroad. I’ve had the chance to work with young horses and understand how to start them properly, building them up physically and mentally for the long haul. And I’m telling you draw reins are not the answer.
So, let’s make this simple: Don’t use draw reins. Learn how to ride and train properly. And if you’re thinking, “But I just love my draw reins,” please don’t argue with me in the comments. I get it. You don’t understand. Well, guess what? I do. And that’s exactly why I’m telling you this
Lilly, 4 years old, Holsteiner at Stall Hell 2013. 
Regarding the saddle comments: This photo was taken over 10 years ago, and I was much less experienced at the time. Additionally, the saddle in question is a jump saddle. Experience and knowledge matter, so there’s no point in commenting to move the saddle back based on a picture from so long ago. ;)
Equine Physiotherapist AHPR & IRVAP I 
