Dear Alpha Mare,
I’m wondering if you could give me some hints as to what I’m doing wrong when trying to mount Tommy, our Longrun-adopted Thoroughbred from off the track. It doesn’t help that he’s 17 hands and I’m a short 5’6” and in desperate need of a mounting block! I’ve hung over his back, put my hand down on his off side where my leg would be and he’s been fine. The first couple of mounts were OK, but lately his fidgeting has escalated to the point that it takes almost five minutes to get on. I halt him square by the mounting block and give him ample opportunity to balance himself. Then I take a deep breath to reassure him and as I’m about to put my foot in the stirrup, he moves sideways, just enough that it would be a huge leap of faith for me to get on. I know its me... everything else I’ve done with Tommy using Chris’ techniques, from lunging to those first couple of rides, have worked wonderfully. By the way, when dismounting, he stands like a ‘square’ rock...
Singing the Mounting Block Blues

Dear Blue,
You are definitely not alone. Many have experienced this common problem, especially those of us with ex-racehorses who have had years of history of riders being legged up on them on the go. As Tommy may have never been asked to stand still when someone got on to ride him, his anticipation, without any malice whatsoever, is to simply walk on. That he doesn’t bolt off or show signs of excess stress about this process lets me know he is probably really wanting to do the right thing, but just isn’t quite sure what that is.
Unable to personally read and diagnose what is going on between you and Tommy, I am very glad you sent me photographs of Tommy with your Mom to provide a deeper understanding of the dynamics. I would have done you both a huge disservice without them, as they give a far more promising prognosis for quick and easy resolution than I would have expected based solely on the wording of your question.
These two photos show me you have done a wonderful job with Tommy thus far, reshaping his body which in turn allows his mind to dissolve any residual bad habits that could potentially stand in the way of a mutually-rewarding relationship. In none of them is he hard-eyed and stoic, braced, angry or unwilling. His ears are forward, his eyes are clear and engaged – he is very much in the game. His front end is beautifully squared up and he is thus quite willing to stand. Being the thin-skinned Thoroughbred that he is, however, tells you that his moving around you at the mounting block is a result of cause and effect. He is showing reactivity to a bit of un-user-friendly body language coming from your Mom.
In the first picture, as your Mom steps up on the mounting block she inadvertently throws her left hip towards Tommy’s head, which causes him to flex away. Such a reaction is very slight in the scheme of things, as he isn’t needing to walk off and away from her for this, in his mind, rude gesture. The big concern in this photo is the lack of block on Tommy’s front end, shown by your Mom being connected to him from only the one hand on the inside rein, with both reins slack.
The second photo shows Tommy taking a hit of endorphins and indulging in a good stretch. He is correctly bent around your Mom and still fully square and respectful. Where it falls apart is in her not taking up contact with the reins which would effectively block him from going forward. Without such a block, when Tommy feels the movement of Mom’s body towards him, he moves away from it. In his mind, she has pushed him sideways and he complies. Your Mom should try taking up the reins, flexing Tommy to level, then holding both reins in her left hand, slack out, so she has a firm block on both of his sides. She should then touch his inside girth button (just below the withers behind the shoulder on the barrel) to make sure he bends around her a bit, preventing his barrel bending into her (counter-bend) with his head up and out. Most horses sigh and visibly relax when shaped into this bent-around-you frame, showing they are quite content to allow a rider step up and onto their back.
That said, even when the rider is doing all the right things to ensure their horse is balanced and comfortable through the process of mounting, there are still times a horse will test you. Horses can be as passive-aggressive as their human owners, and of course, they do have a mind of their own. On any given day they may decide to challenge their rider in any number of ways to ensure that such a person does indeed deserve to be the leader of the dance.
1. If your horse steps sideways to prevent you from easily stepping up and into the saddle, quietly step down and with him in left bend, push his hip and turn him around his left forehand a few times. Make sure you are truly turning him around his forehand rather than allowing him to walk in a circle, something they will do happily all day long. When you feel him want to stop, ask him for one more, as you need to be the one to decide when you stop this exercise, not your horse.
2. If you know you are not causing your horse to walk off but your horse steps forward when you step up into the stirrup anyway, again quietly step off the mounting black and back him up from the chest. Make sure his head stays level and balanced between his shoulders. Back him up with your body folded off and pushing his chest only with your hand, not pulling him back with the bridle and reins. Once he has backed up 10 steps or so, walk him forward again to the mounting block, with contact, level-headed and square him up on the forehand. Touch his girth until he gives you a slight left bend around you, flex his head down to level, wait until he relaxes into this, then try mounting again. You may have to do this a couple of times, but not more than that. Be firm in your boundaries. Mean what you say. But do so in a way he can say yes, rather than escalate his determination to say no.
The key here is not to allow a horse’s testing of you to feel personal. To them it’s nothing more than a fun game. Never yell or get frustrated and angry. Think Zen, smile and take it in stride. Make the right thing easy and the wrong thing gymnastically difficult. Show them the consequence for saying no is simply to work a little harder than they need to. From there they will figure it out. Both backing up and turns on the forehand are far more physically demanding than simply standing still, so it won’t take long for them to decide standing is a much better option!