Back Problems and Dismounting

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Roheryn

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Feb 21, 2005
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Do any of you have any suggestions for how to dismount when the rider has back problems? My trainer has us dismounting by dropping both stirrups, then sort of sliding down to the ground/pushing off the horse's neck. It's said to be a safer way than the way I learned as a child (keeping left stirrup, swinging right leg over horse's back, releasing left stirrup and dropping to the ground), but all this dropping/sliding/pushing REALLY hurts my sore back and also my aging knees!
Is there anything for dismounting that is similar to a mounting block? Maybe a "dismounting block"?
If a mounting block saves the horse's back as well as the rider's, would a dismounting block do the same?
 
I have chronic back problems and also prolapsed a disc last year. I sometimes have to dismount by swinging my right leg over the pommel and slithering down Dolly's shoulder. I can't see it is any more dangerous than any other method, just unorthodox! When my back has been really acute it would go into spasm and I would literally be locked on top of the saddle. Then I would have to dismount by lying along Nott's neck and then kind of roll off to one side. Not to be recommended I guess, but needs must (and Nott is 100% trustworthy).

It was always swinging the right leg back to clear the cantle that did for my back every time with the conventional dismount.

Oh and I have tried dismounting on to a block - trickier than you would think :)
 
Roheryn,

Starting again recently after 30 years or so the drop was further than I remembered! If there is a choice maybe you could try asking for the smallest horse which will carry your weight, i.e. with the shortest distance to the ground.
 
If your horse is really steady, you could experiment with the leg-over-the-pommel method. I don't have back problems, just aging joints in general, and that way seems less jarring. Though usually I dismount the regular way (sort of), though I have to lean way over the horse's neck to swing my leg over the back.

One place I went trail riding last summer had a sort of parking spot with platforms on both sides they wanted us to use for dismounting. Easier on horse and rider, but tricky to build.

Good luck!

Grace
 
I have a lower back problem with a couple of what is commonly known as slipped discs and sometimes sciatica. When I have a flare up (every couple of months), its not dismounting I have a problem with but mounting! Even from steps, I find it hard to lift my left leg to get my foot into the stirrup and when I've finally managed that, getting the right leg over can be difficult (my mare is 16.3hh).

I'm off to try chiropracty this afternoon. Anyone tried it?
 
Roheryn

does the "slither" method involve you leaning forward at all ? and are we talking western or english ?

Stella - yes, have been chiropracted. After a fall - and it did help.
 
I think the reason the leg over the pommel method is thought dangerous is because you end up with your back to the horse and it's easy to get knocked over or to fall ..

Leaving the foot in the left stirrup is much the same - you can get your foot caught: it happened to me once, I don't remember why, I don't usually dismount that way, but I ended up flat on my back with one foot in a stirrup. Luckily the horse decided to be untypically sensible and stood still, so there was no damage, except to my dignity, but it could have been nasty.


But of course, you have to do what you can manage.. Getting off onto a mounting block can be tricky - the horse can move and you can hit the edge of the block. I think keeping one foot in the stirrup is probably better, as long as you're sure your stirrups are wide enough, and that you manage to kick the foot out before you slide down to the ground.

Linda
 
"keeping left stirrup, swinging right leg over horse's back, releasing left stirrup and dropping to the ground), "

Yes, I too have an ageing back and lower back problems. Dismounting was (and still is) my greatest problem in riding.
I have to dismount as described by you (above). I keep my left foot in stirrup. I bend forward over the horse's neck and swing my right leg over.(dont try to do this with your body upright, that is harder, my teacher says)
If the weather is cold and you are very stiff or your right leg wont clear the cantle, the solution is to shorten the left stirrup a hole or two.
Once your leg is over, you can place your right hand in the centre of the saddle and raise yourself, freeing your left foot from the stirrup and jumping (or sliding) to the ground. In my case the height of the horse makes no difference.
One has to remember to flex one's feet and ankles and knees when landing especially if it is cold. It helps to stand in one's stirrups a couple of times before dismounting to loosen up after a long ride.

This method is still an alternative in the Pony Club Handbook. It is UK practice to have someone hold the horse when one dismounts this way in case the horse moves while one has one foot still in a stirrup.
But the Germans regard this as the normal and preferred manner of dismount, since if the horse moves one can swing one's right leg back over again.
As for Western, I have just come back from the States where I discovered that I had no difficulty at all dismounting this way and no one found it odd.
 
but the "normal" way to teach it in the Uk is both feet free of the stirrup. I think its down to saddle twisting and slipping as well as the horse walking off.

Whereas western does tend to be one foot and step down - the theory in this case appears to be that if the cow you just caught goes off again, you can get back on quickly ! ;) (or if the horse walks off - you just get back on again). With no fences, western style is keen to maintain a contact with your horse ! (hmm - other than ground tying... wonder why that is... getting offtopic and rambling, sorry !)

I actually find it hard to step down, even western. So tend to get half-way off then kick the remaining stirrup off and jump the rest of the way.
 
dont try to do this with your body upright, that is harder, my teacher says
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p.s. yes, this is why I asked.

Stand upright, and try and move one leg (straight) backwards - how far will it go ?

Now lean forward - how far will it go ?

By leaning forward you tip the hip joint and give yourself more swing to move the leg over. This works getting on or off.
 
I found that if I used the 'keep left foot in stirrup/Western dismount' method it jarred my poor old joints, BUT I also have arthritis in my hips, knees, ankles, wrists and fingers as well as back! Really it sounds worse than it is.

When I dismount with the right leg over and slither method I am standing side on to my horse and not with my back to her.

I saw a McTimoney Chiropractor for my back and neck, he also did sacro-cranial work too, I found it very helpful and it gave me a painfree 6 months after 10 treatments.

With my prolapsed/slipped discs it took me about 8 sessions of manipulation and TENS machine sessions which were blissful - I had these done privately by a physio as the NHS wait was a minimum of 12 weeks! :(

I think you just have to find a safe and comfortable solution that suits you, I actually don't care that what I do is unconventional. I know both my horses very well and both are rock steady and will tolerate me doing odd things, one is 13 hh and the other is 14.1 hh.
 
I ride English. The horse is 15hh.

The "slithering" I mentioned is supposed to involve my leaning forward onto/lying on the horse's neck, but so far I haven't been able to bring myself to trust the horse well enough to do this--his neck looks so small and flimsy compared to his body (which of course has those four sturdy legs underneath it!). He tends to put his head down sometimes when we don't want him to; I don't trust him not to do it when I want to get off.

Wish I could find something about 12.2 - 14hh--a nice steady cob; only we don't seem to have cobs over here (US).

I've been told that swinging one's right leg over the horse's neck can be risky because the horse might be frightened seeing the rider's leg coming up and might throw his head up just as the rider's leg was crossing over the neck.

I feel like I'm about ready for the dismounting platforms like I've seen at therapeutic horsemanship centers.

You have all posted some good advice--it's been good to read it! Thanks!
 
At some stage in the parelli programme I believe you use the horse's neck to get on when you have no saddle !

Seriosuly tho - you don't need to put all your weight on the horse's neck to get the benefit of the "leaning forward" to get the hip and leg movement.

Also - dumb thing to say I know - but don't forgt to bend your knees on teh way down !

I damaged a knee some time ago, so for a while was cautious about getting off. I still tend to favour that knee slightly. But if you don't LEAP off, then even 15h (my mare is 15.1) can be managed.

BTW I found Alexander technique helped me a lot with body awareness and confidence, my own straightness, and correct "use". I thoroughly recommend it. Its not a "riding" thing but can help amazingly with riding ( a nice side benefit). I went because I felt very crooked after my knee op. But as an unexpected benefit it also helped with my migraine ! (which was obviously made a lot worse and more frequent by tension I was (up til then) unaware of).
 
Just a few further thoughts.
To prevent saddle slip. In the UK the person holding my horse stands on the right of the horse often holds the right stirrup to prevent the saddle moving. But in the US the wrangler stands on the left of the horse and pushes against the horn as the client dismounts. I am uncertain what will happen when I get my own horse and am on my own.
Thank you cvb for explaining why being upright is a mistake! Interesting about Western not separating. Leslie Desmond teaching children to mount Western style, teaches them also as a safety measure to separate: to stop before swinging the right leg over, place their hands on the saddle, free their left foot from the stirrup just as we do when dismounting, and jump down again.
Re Slithering. Bareback, this is my way. But one can control the slither by leaning forward with one's head and shoulders to the right of the horse's neck, balancing oneself across its neck and shoulders. This may be what your teacher suggests - but a saddle gets in the way and with me the sad truth is no therapy however good can reverse deterioration caused by age.
My teacher told me that the neck of the horse (at the end near the shoulders) is immensely strong. I cant recall the reason, (cvb might know) but it's fine to lean on it or hold onto the mane.
Just as with the Parelli, cvb, Michael Peace always mounts without using the stirrup, by placing his hands on the shoulder and neck and jumping up to lie with his weight across the horse before swinging his right leg over. He warns that one must do this well forward or one will end up sitting too far back. I havent tried this but if I had to mount bareback without a handy fence, I would.
 
My teacher told me that the neck of the horse (at the end near the shoulders) is immensely strong. I cant recall the reason, (cvb might know) but it's fine to lean on it or hold onto the mane.
Click to expand...

now there's a challenge. Actually Galadriel might have something to say on this was well...

I would suspect it is to do with the large muscle bulk and how it attaches around there.

We alwys seem to "imagine" that the horse's spine runs near the top of the neck, whereas it is actually more central and the rest is muscle :D

There are large muscle groups that run along the back, attach at (near?) the wither, and then along the neck. So if you like you can imagine the horse like one of those cranes with the support wire running along the top. This structure is what is behind all the work we do to get out horses to work through their backs...

I think the strength of the neck near the base/wither may also relate to the simple physics/mechanics principle of being near to the lever point. (like when you push a door to open - it takes more work if you push near the hinge)

The "risk" in that area is that it is where the spinal processes are the longest. So that part of the neck will take up/down very well - but twisting/lateral stress less well...

(Hmm - having seen Fi lift up an arena harrow when she got her headcollar caught on it, make that VERY strong !! :eek: I hasten to add the harrow is now well away AND she has a breakaway headcollar :( )
 
With my bad back, and titch height (I'm under 5.2"), dismounting off horses 16hh. is no fun. I tend to remove my feet off the stirups, lean forward, swing my right leg and then proceed to slither as slowly as I can. No matter, I must at all costs avoid the impact of jumping down.

I've done Chiropractice in the past, it helped, but these days I prefer acupuncture for backache management.

Ambatt, have you tried wearing a BioFlow bracelet? It works a treat for the kind of problems you are mentioning. I wear one, and my reumatism complaints are under control!!!
 
Fascinating thread. Not something I have major problems with with a 15hh horse, and a vastly improving back since taking on a trainer.

Just a thought though Roherin, if you want to minimise the chances of getting the foot stuck by using the foot over and jump down technique, how about using safety stirrups like the bent iron ones I use, so that your foot couldn't get caught even if the worst happens.

Like you Stella2, with me its mounting that's the problem, as i do have dodgy operated on knees, so even with a 15hh horse, mounting from the ground is impossible. Sennie will stand at fence, log, gate, mounting block though, so hopefully I shouldn't have to. There usually seems to be something around to use.

Regarding the strength of the horse at the base of neck/withers. That is where the collar sits when they are driving isn't it? So logically it must be pretty strong. I may have got the wrong end of the stick here, as I have never driven ;)
 
Stella2 said:
I'm off to try chiropracty this afternoon. Anyone tried it?
Click to expand...

I got bucked off my horse a few months ago, and chose a chiropractor instead of a physician. After two months with little progress with the pain (I had cracked a couple of bones in my lower back), I went to a physician who sent me to a physical therapist. The bones had healed, but the muscles were in poor shape. After the last month of physical therapy and home exercises, I will be back on a horse next week :D , with caution. I think there is a place for chiropracty, but also a place for physical therapy. They differ both in their level of education and their methodology- at least here in the USA.

Dismounting with a bad back for me (I actually have gotten on a horse a few times- don't tell on me) is also the slither method- feet out of stirrups, lean forward, right leg slowly back and over, and slow descent to the ground, both legs hanging loose( key part of this) until I touch ground. I have had someone hold the horse each time for safety. I grab the other side of the saddle for stability. I also find dismounting on the off side is easier for me. I agree that mounting is the hardest. I have to mount from a rock or something fairly high to mount comfortably.
 
I also have back problems and I find a modified version of side saddle dismount is useful when dismounting from astride. It's best if you have a helper. Helper stands by horse's left shoulder, not too close. You swing right leg forwards over to left side of horse so you are sitting with your shoulders parralel to the horses spine. Hold pommel and reins with right hand, helper takes your left hand and you slip down supported by helper, turning as you go so you end up standing side by side with your horse. This sounds more complicated than it is and you really can spring down if your helper has his/her job sussed out. Wise to jettison whip first as you can get tangled up - another use for your helper!

Dismounting when alone and very stiff after riding involves both feet out of the stirrups, lean forward, drag left leg over, grab top of offside stirrup leather and lower self slowly down supportd by the leather. Very undignified!
 
sidesaddlelady--
that is how I have been dismounting recently--grabbing the offside stirrup leather. It helps me to feel more secure, giving me something to hang onto as I start to let myself down the horse's near side.
Thanks!
 
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