There are a lot of ways to break a horse for riding. After they have good ground training and have been thoroughly de-sensitized, many don’t put up a fuss at all. It is always best to work hard on the ground so that bucking or other crazy behavior is never encountered.

We train some pony-sized horses. And this video is of one of them experiencing her first “rider” in the form of what we call “Fancy Britches”. Because we don’t want to put a child at risk backing a pony, we rely on Fancy to pave the way for a human rider.

Fancy is not heavy, but it’s pretty amazing how she feels like real legs. The calves move and bounce just like a rider’s legs.

You can make these very easily at home, and they are equally good for ponies and full size horses. Use the belt to make sure that they are fastened to the saddle and don’t fall off if your horse has a minute of panic. You don’t want to teach him how to get the rider OFF of his back. If you want to tie them to the stirrups, the boat bumpers have a ring at the bottom through which you can pass a string and tie them down.

Watch how Ariel, a 7-year-old Caspian Horse mare is de-sensitized to half a rider.

The video pretty much says it all.