The Elusive Rope Halter
The halter should fit right under the jaw bones and the knots should sit right below the point of the cheekbones so it is safely away from the most sensitive part on the bridge of the nose. You don’t want a bunch of excess halter under the jaw because the halter will slide too much up top and you won’t have clear communication. Also, if you’re handling a difficult horse and you need some control for safety a halter that’s too big will quickly make things far more difficult. Lastly, look at the final photo for proper knotting. Pull up, wrap access around the back and pull through so the extra points away from the horses eyes. Secure the knot down around the loop of the halter so it cannot tighten too much on itself and become impossible to unfasten. Sometimes I’ll tuck the bite into throat latch if there is too much excess but best not to have that. I have been using rope halters in place of chains for more than a decade now. In my opinion, chains make horses more defensive and tense with pressure from the chain and usually causes them to raise, not lower, the head. This is not a blanket statement and some trainers are able to be soft with a chain. However, it takes a great deal of skill when aiming for the level of soft I am striving towards with my horses. The knots on rope halters are strategically placed at specific pressure points to help encourage a soft yield, plus, you have the pressure of the rope behind the ears for if/ when you really need to encourage a forward step or discouraging a side ways one. As with anything attached to you or the horse, it can be used too strongly so be very aware of the strength of your ask as well as the timing of your releases. I use rope halters from the very beginning with our foals and my brand of choice is Double Diamond for the right tension in the rope halter (I don’t like them too soft or too hard… like Goldilocks) and a very good general fit. I also love the Hybrid Halter for a nice and classy competition option. The fit is very important so I’ll do a video soon on how to correctly fit your rope halter. PM for any questions! The Horse Education Company has many wonderful options for hybrid halters and Double Diamond has all of their products on their website. Check out their website for purchase - Double Diamond
