How to Tack a Horse

To tack a horse, first lay down high-quality saddle pads that protect the wither bone on the horse, gently lay down the saddle onto the animal's back and tighten all of the girth straps to a comfortable position. Tack a horse in a Western saddle with advice from a riding instructor in this video on equestrian living.

We're going to tack up Western and get ready to enjoy the ride. I want to start out with a good quality, nicely padded Western saddle pad. It will come with some kind of leather patch to indicate that it is the front, so I have my leather patch positioned right up here. I want to make sure that it covers his withers adequately. We're always trying to protect the horse's wither bone. When I come to get my saddle, I like to be sure that I've taken it off where things are in order, fastened up, so nothing is going to drag or make it more of a nuisance to myself or my horse. So I carry it up to him slow and quiet, making sure he's comfortable. I do my best, although they're very heavy, to try and lift it on rather than throw it on. So I get myself positioned to bring it up, making certain that all the pieces are as far over to the side as possible, and then I'll go to the other side, and make sure everything is flat and arranged. So on this side I feel it's pretty good. I know my horse well, so I can quietly go behind him. I'm going to push him over a little so that I have more room to work. I'll take down what we call the off-girth--that means it's on his right side--it's considered his off-side. I'll make sure the pad is evenly distributed side to side. I make sure all my pieces--both my front and my back girth--are flat and ready to fasten, that the saddle is positioned far enough forward. I come back around him. I'm going to always do my front girth first. If your saddle has what we call a back cinch, or some people refer to it as a bucking strap, then you want to make sure that's done secondly, for the reason that if the horse ever shook hard or was frightened, and he started to run off before you had completed the front girth and the back was on, he would get very frightened when that saddle would turn over underneath him. So we continue to wrap the billet strap over and over until I run out of strapping, then I give it a nice even pull to bring it to a spot where it's tight enough to begin. I put the buckle in... pull back on the top strap... if I have enough left over and can come up to this keeper, I do, but I don't today so I can just put it in here and that is secure. Now I can reach under and make sure that my back cinch is also not twisted. This is not going to want to be as tight as a front cinch. I want it to have some room, because it's not intended to keep the saddle on so much as be decorative. Indoor ropers, people who use horses in a different fashion, may rely on this strap to be of a different function, but for my purposes, it's pretty much fashion. Then I'm going to be sure that I'm ready to bridle. I'm using my training snaffle today. I don't need to take off the curb strap, this one is loose enough. I undo his halter...and hold him here in position, and then I go ahead with my bridling technique, make sure that it fits him well, and we would be ready for our ride. Now we might continue to go on with some additional things, like protecting his legs with boots or leg wraps, if I were going to put him under any hard work, but this would get me off on a good trail ride.