Putting a horse in cross-ties

[Marigold4]

Every posh yard/professional rider seems to use these for grooming/washing/tacking up. Are they a good idea? Having never actually done this to a horse, I have this sort of instinctive dislike of the practice and feel they might lead to a horse freaking out if scared. Am I being daft, or can cross-ties lead to accidents or behavioural issues?

 

[ihatework]

They are great!
Can horses panic/potential for accident - of course, they are dang horses!!
But no more IMO than regular tying up.

 

[Cortez]

Like any other practice, if cross tying is introduced properly it shouldn't cause any problems. Most horses are cross tied in American barns or in wash stalls and the like. Many horses aren't properly trained to tie even to a single ring (breakable ties are a curse), cross ties are not any more problematic IME.

 

[Pearlsacarolsinger]

I can see why professionals use cross-ties because they haven't got time for any messing about but I prefer to deal with my horses loose. They choose to stand and co-operate with me while I do whatever it is that I need to do.

 

[ycbm]

I can see why professionals use cross-ties because they haven't got time for any messing about but I prefer to deal with my horses loose. They choose to stand and co-operate with me while I do whatever it is that I need to do.

This. Cross ties are very good at preventing horses from telling you that they aren't happy with what you are doing.

ETA eg they prevent the horse from walking away, and even from very obviously swinging away, from the saddle if you go to put it on and from biting or threatening to bite if they dislike something or find it painful. They make it much easier for the handler to ignore what the horse is trying to say.
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[HashRouge]

Cross ties are great. I've never found they prevent horses from letting me know when they aren't happy - they don't completely immobilise them!

The only thing to be careful with is when doing something like washing faces, make sure you unclip the horse on one side so they can put their head up without the cross ties pulling them down (recipe for an upset horse, in my experience).

All that said, I don't actually cross tie my own horses because I don't have any!

 

[Elf On A Shelf]

The racehorses are cross tied for the farrier at one yard, the other yard they are done loose in their box (it's just the way we are set up). We no longer cross tie for pelvic injuries we build a wall of shavings bales and make the horses stable very narrow so they can't turn round or lie down. They can only shuffle forward and back. It's much better for them mentally.

 

[Rowreach]

I can see why professionals use cross-ties because they haven't got time for any messing about but I prefer to deal with my horses loose. They choose to stand and co-operate with me while I do whatever it is that I need to do.

This. Cross ties are very good at preventing horses from telling you that they aren't happy with what you are doing.
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Yeah there's several reasons why pro yards tend to favour them. None of the pro yards I worked on or ran ever felt the need though.

fwiw I think horses should be taught to tie up politely, yes, but that a breakaway should always be used - the idea that a horse should be taught to tie to an immovable object with an unbreakable attachment doesn't allow for the unexpected/uncontrollable/totally obscure thing that will inevitably happen because, well, horses, and the most mannerly of horses can still break its neck ...

 

[ihatework]

I can see why professionals use cross-ties because they haven't got time for any messing about but I prefer to deal with my horses loose. They choose to stand and co-operate with me while I do whatever it is that I need to do.

Interesting you think it’s because pros don’t want the horse messing about (obviously they don’t! But I’m not sure that’s the primary reason they use cross-ties. Horses can still object to stuff in them!)

My experience on a number of yards is practicality. There is a set area close to the tack room, with water, non slip surface, electric etc. storage for all grooming/faffing stuff. It means everything is in one place and no going back & forth. Plus you can have more than one horse in a relatively contained area, safely, with the right set up.

Furthmore, many people have a train of thought that the stable is the horses place and they are left alone to chill.

 

[Cortez]

This. Cross ties are very good at preventing horses from telling you that they aren't happy with what you are doing.

ETA eg they prevent the horse from walking away, and even from very obviously swinging away, from the saddle if you go to put it on and from biting or threatening to bite if they dislike something or find it painful. They make it much easier for the handler to ignore what the horse is trying to say.
.

Horses very easily tell you they don't like something when crosstied, they can move away from anything they don't like (saddle example), and believe me they can still bite. I didn't cross tie mine but worked in many barns where it was standard. It's much more common in the US.

 

[LadyGascoyne]

Miri learnt about cross ties today. I popped her in them for her physio session. I find them useful if I’m on my own and tubbing feet or changing poultices etc so I wanted her to get used to them during a relaxed activity and it was magnetic resonance therapy so very unchallenging. I just kept the lead rein on her and would have been ready unclip quickly if necessary.

She was absolutely fine, she tested the tension a few times and then just stood.

Accidents can happen in any situation. All the horses that I have lost due to catastrophic injuries were loose in the field at the time. I don’t think cross tying introduces a significant risk.

 

[Mrs. Jingle]

I don't cross tie purely because I don't have the set up for it. I have in the previous premises and really have little preference either way, but it has been useful in the past purely training a bolshy youngster that it is not permissable to throw yourself around when tied up.

Like any style of restraint nothing is foolproof for either handler or horse really is it?

 

[HashRouge]

Horses very easily tell you they don't like something when crosstied, they can move away from anything they don't like (saddle example), and believe me they can still bite. I didn't cross tie mine but worked in many barns where it was standard. It's much more common in the US.

This. I'm surprised so many people seem to think horses can't react when they're cross tied, as that certainly hasn't been my experience. We used cross ties a lot when I was a groom, but that was for convenience more than anything as the cross tie bays were where we had water/ electricity/ heat lamps and space for grooming kits etc.

 

[ycbm]

Horses very easily tell you they don't like something when crosstied, they can move away from anything they don't like (saddle example), and believe me they can still bite. I didn't cross tie mine but worked in many barns where it was standard. It's much more common in the US.

Nevertheless, cross tying makes it much easier for the handler not to listen, as was admirably demonstrated in a recent video on the forum showing a horse in pain diagnosed by Sue Dyson.

 

[Cortez]

Nevertheless, cross tying makes it much easier for the handler not to listen, as was admirably demonstrated in a recent video on the forum showing a horse in pain diagnosed by Sue Dyson.

Huh? Handlers not being able to discern what horses are doing is not limited to how they are tied up.

 

[ycbm]

Huh? Handlers not being able to discern what horses are doing is not limited to how they are tied up.

Of course not, but cross tying only exists to prevent the horse doing what you don't want it to. Otherwise, people would just use one rope.
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[lynz88]

Cross ties are completely normal in Canada/US. Never had an issue an miss them!!

 

[Cortez]

Of course not, but cross tying only exists to prevent the horse doing what you don't want it to. Otherwise, people would just use one rope.
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One rope also prevents the horse from doing what it wants.

 

[ycbm]

One rope also prevents the horse from doing what it wants.

Not to the same extent as two, otherwise a second one would be superfluous and a waste of time clipping it on.
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[lynz88]

ycbm...I normally agree with a lot of what you say but on this, I don't. Horses can still easily tell you what they think e.g. if something is wrong in cross ties. I've been the subject of a few nips from horses in crossties....It's no different really to tying up but in a barn, it's not practical to tie a horse up with a single rope. Hence the use of cross ties....at least in North America.

 

[Cortez]

Not to the same extent as two, otherwise a second one would be superfluous and a waste of time clipping it on.
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Yeah, I don't bother doing it except when travelling, but I certainly don't think it does any harm. It's just a different way of tying up.

 

[Marigold4]

Lots of interesting comments! I don't have anywhere for cross-ties so can't experiment. I have my horses at home and they are well-behaved tied on a single rope. I just wondered if being tied both sides might make a horse more likely to panic - but clearly not from these responses.

 

[ycbm]

It's a bit pointless experienced people who listen to their horses saying that they would still listen to what their horse is trying to tell them in cross ties. You aren't the problem!
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[Goldenstar]

They are the only solution if you want to stand a horse looking forward into a corridor or any other circulation area .
Many horses like this they can see everything going on and as horses are far more likely to kick defensively that bite aggressively it makes a great deal of sense in many lay outs of yards .

 

[Michen]

Haha, Bog is new to cross ties since moving to the USA. He has no issues telling me (and the whole barn) when he's displeased with something whilst in them.

 

[splashgirl45]

We had a tb brrodmare who came with terrible mud fever on her hinds, I was the lucky groom that had to change the bandages, clean ,put cream on and re bandage. It was very sore and one day she trapped me by the manger and was squashing me, it was very scared as she was deliberately leaning 8n to me, luckily I got my phone and called the owner who rescued me. From then on I used cross ties to keep her in the middle of the stable and I was safe. It’s the only time felt I was going to be badly injured and was expecting broken ribs but just had very bad bruising , that’s the only time I’ve ever used cross ties ..

 

[Lois Lame]

When horses are cross-tied in a barn (in the USA), for how long are they in this position? I mean, is this for hours? A day? A night? I really don't know.

I don't have a problem with cross-tying, but if horses live in stalls where they cross-tied for ages instead of in loose boxes (or of course turned out) then I cringe at that.

 

[Red-1]

I cross tie when travelling so... I can leave the ropes slacker!

With just one rope, I have to tie quite tightly to ensure they don't turn round/fight/whatever. With one each side, they can't turn because the furthest rope stops it, so each rope will work slacker. I have a longs stall box and that means they can put their head higher or lower, no worries about getting caught up.

I have also cross tied when in a restricted area to keep them facing the correct way.

I also had one horse who would fight when tied with one rope to the wall. He was claustrophobic and would paddle and rear, getting his foot over the rope. I had a ring each side of the doorway and he could then tie with his head outside. No claustrophobia, fairly loose ropes, no drama. If he pawed, it was a short thing, no punching the walls or climbing the ropes.

Mine will also generally be seen to untied, if that is what I want that day. The pawing horse, above, learned to relax using the cross ties and ended up being clipped loose in the yard, full clip, with a battery pack.

I think, with everything, there is a use for each technique. Someone who is bad with horses may make cross ties ugly, but then probably if they did not cross tie, they would lash them tightly to a wall and that too would be ugly.

 

[Cortez]

When horses are cross-tied in a barn (in the USA), for how long are they in this position? I mean, is this for hours? A day? A night? I really don't know.

I don't have a problem with cross-tying, but if horses live in stalls where they cross-tied for ages instead of in loose boxes (or of course turned out) then I cringe at that.

Usually horses are crosstied for grooming, tacking up, shoeing, that sort of thing. Just the same as tying them up a single point.

 

[Lois Lame]

Ah, good. Thank you Cortez.