Get Short

We are never totally safe when we’re on horseback, but a simple maneuver learned by horse and rider can make a huge difference in staying safe and building confidence.

What are two of the most important words a rider can know (and implement)?
“Get Short!”

Can I tell you how many times that’s been hollered at me? How many times I say it to my kids? What the heck does that even mean?

Well, it’s life-changing. It can take a ride from being questionable and scary to being safer and more controlled. It works on riders of every level and speed and any horse with four legs and a head can learn it. Getting short means reaching down one’s rein and grabbing close to the bit. Once the hand is around that rein (either side works!), the hand with the rein is brought toward the rider’s hip/ribs, thus disengaging the horse’s hindquarters and taking away his power. It redirects his feet and gives the rider better control of the legs and body than just pulling both reins. This works wonders on something when it goes to buck, spook, rear up, kick out, run off or just sport green horse shenanigans. It can really shift things back to neutral and give the rider a chance to reset, reassess or dismount if needed.

It only works if the horse is taught this “button” beforehand. You must have the signal of pulling a rein on either side attached to yielding the corresponding hind leg. When we start colts, it’s the first thing we make sure that they know before we mount up. We work on it in the ground until they default to it. When they feel pressure from one side or the other on their snaffle, they know to yield their hips in the opposite direction. This is always done with patience and feel until it becomes like second nature.

Some people and horses go their whole lives without this, and they seem to get by just fine. A lot of older horses and ponies that have been ridden and shown don’t have this maneuver trained into them, and it always amazes me how people stay safe without it. The rider is pretty much powerless in a time of crisis, should the horse decide to engage power and ignore the rider pulling both reins to stop.

Horses need to learn this, as do riders. It’s a wonderful thing to teach children, as they will never win a wrestling match or have a clear mind when something starts to go poorly on a ride. It can build confidence in shaky riders and teach smart little ponies how to travel with more confidence and shut down naughty behavior before it gets out of hand. This maneuver offers a simple solution, some leverage, and something safe to build into their muscle memory should the rider get nervous or feel out of control at any speed.

Getting short empowers a rider if (and when) they get in a jam, and it gives the horse a lot of support and relief when they have a solid, clear command in a time of being tight or stressed that they can default to. Should the rider want to dismount, it offers a much safer way of doing so without getting kicked or mauled over by a bothered horse.

We can’t control every situation when riding, and that’s part of the fun. But wrecks are the opposite of a good time, and we can do simple things to stay safer in tight situations and still practice sensible horsemanship.

Knowing how to GET SHORT in any sort of jam is (in my opinion) essential for anyone to know who sits in the saddle.

And anybody who wants to STAY short can holler at me about ponies!

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