I want to make a plea to people to stop cross-tying horses. Cross-ties are anti good horsemanship.

Their purpose is to restrict the movement of a horse when tied up. They hinder the horse’s ability to swing around or turn its head. Every attempt by a horse to swing its neck is met with pressure. They act by flooding a horse with pressure until it gives up fidgeting in futility. Cross-ties are anti-training because they do not address the cause of the problem, only the symptom.

I know some people use cross-ties to prevent the horse from biting them when saddling or grooming or picking out feet. Some vets will use cross-ties when attempting to give an injection. Some therapists will insist on cross-ties when doing bodywork. I have been in barns where it is a rule that horses be cross-tied in the breezeway to prevent them from interacting with horses in adjacent stalls. I know of a farrier who insists horses be cross-tied before shoeing - no exceptions.

I understand that vets, therapists, and farriers should not be expected to put themselves in jeopardy with a horse that might lash out at them. However, a responsible owner should put in the time and effort to ensure the horse is okay with whatever intervention is bothering it beforehand. I don’t expect my farrier to have to deal with an unruly horse. Nevertheless, in my opinion, it’s not okay to hide the issue with cross-ties.

If I have a horse that has difficulty tolerating a procedure I much prefer to hold a horse on a lead rope than to tie it up. Through the feel of the lead rope I can interact with it every second and guide it to change its thought and help it relax and find calmness. Cross-ties hinder my ability to do that.

I equate cross-ties with people flexing their horse’s head to the inside before stepping into the saddle to discourage it from walking away. Flexing the neck too does nothing to address the reason why the horse wants to walk away when being mounted, it just makes it harder for the horse to move.

You can probably think of other practices where gadgets are used to mask deep-seated trouble in a horse.