My views on crops and spurs.

Hey! Another post! CrAzY! :) Anyways, a popular question that most riders get is, "What is your opinion on spurs and crops?" and here is my answer!


I've never used spurs, my horse Red doesn't need spurs and since he is my first horse, I've never had to use spurs, so I honestly can't really give a great opinion on them because of that and I've never really done studying on them because I haven't had a need to, but as for my view on crops, I can actually give you an answer. Red, as most of you guys know, is normally really stubborn and pretty lazy, which means when I first tack him up and mount and try to get him to go, he refuses most of the time. I'm only like, 5 foot two, maybe a tad taller, and I don't weigh much at all, and he is an over 15 H.H, 1,000 something pounded Quarter horse, and my boots have a pretty soft-ish heel so when I kick him it doesn't do a lot unless he's just in the mood to walk around and hit the trail, which is very rare, in this case, I grab my crop (I bought one from a local Co-Op for less than 10 dollars, not sure on the exact brand) which is a standard crop, little leather flap at the end and a little thing that goes around your wrist, it's bright yellow so if I ride in the night it's easy to see, and normally if he just feels me holding it he starts going with a protest. I normally just leave it in my gun holster or hook the little bracelet thingy on the handle around the horn of the saddle and he just feels it there, sometimes I'll have to give him a firm little swat and he'll go and that should be the end of the crop for the rest of the ride. Sometimes when we're in the middle of a ride he'll decide to stop walking and then I might need to pick the crop back up and kind of warn him, aka just hold the crop up where he can see it, and he'll go again, and sometimes I will, once again, have to give him a little swat. Obviously I'd have to be pretty strong to hurt him with a crop, so I don't really worry about that, though I don't hit him hard at all because it makes me feel guilty and terrible. I don't use the crop very much unless it's needed. But anyways, I have no problem with the crop as long as you know what you are doing with it and you aren't just using it to "show the horse who is boss." Yes, I am fully aware that the horse needs to know that you are the one that is, in the end, in charge, but I also believe the horse and rider should walk together. If the horse starts acting up dangerously, you need to show him or her that you will not stand for it's dangerous behavior. I am 100% against using spurs, crops or whips just for the "fun of it." Don't whip the horse for no reason other than you "felt like it" or wanting to remind him/her who is control, this will most likely make your bond with the animal tense and not as good as it could be.

So, there we go! :)