LESLIE POTTER
Ting your horse safely with a quick-release knot is one of the most important skills to master for working around horses. If the horse panics and pulls back, the knot can easily be undone with a yank to the end of the rope. A regular knot just becomes even tighter when a horse pulls back, and can’t be quickly or safely untied when a horse is spooked and panicking.
Only tie your horse to a tie ring anchored securely to a post or the wall in your stall, to a fence post (not rail), or to a hitching rail designed for that purpose. Tying to flimsy fence boards, stall bars or anything that is loose or movable (such as a picnic table, chair, stall door or any part of a car or truck) is a recipe for disaster if your horse gets spooked and pulls back, breaking whatever he’s tied to and running off with it still attached to his lead rope. This will panic him further and can cause injury that is easily avoided.