# Organizing tack for lesson programs?



## starlinestables (Nov 24, 2008)

I'm just curious how other barns organize their tack and grooming supplies for their lesson programs. How do students know what saddle, saddle pad, riser, bridle to use for their lesson?


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## AlexS (Aug 9, 2010)

When I was teaching, the tack was numbered and depending on the experience level of the student, they either tacked up or learned how to with supervision. The numbering was because the tack was predetermined to the lesson.


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## horseluver2435 (May 27, 2009)

Our lesson tack is on saddle racks attached to the walls with the horses name above it. We tell them if the horse needs a riser or not. Since we just use plain saddle pads they can choose one on their own. The bridles are labeled similary, hanging on bridle racks with the horses names above them. Hope that helps. Our lessons rarely have more four students.


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## catsandhorses (Aug 6, 2011)

Best method: clear labling and designated storage.

As a student of probably 8 different barns over the past 25 years, I can tell you that the best method in my experience is when there was one of each piece of equipment per horse, all clearly labled with the horse's name, and each having a storage place that was also clearly labled with the horse's name. 

The most frustrating thing was not being able to find a saddle or girth that fit, or having to try 3 different girths (because the size lable always wore off or the saddle was different so I needed a different size girth) because mutliple horses/students shared the same exact tack.

And then I would have to hunt down the instructor and often would have to disrupt him/her during the lesson to ask about the tack.

While it is possible for two or more horses to share one piece of tack, inevitably both horses will end up being used at the same time at some point. It is frustrating to arrive on time for a lesson, only to end up running late because the owner/manager's lack of organization.


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## MHFoundation Quarters (Feb 23, 2011)

I only give private lessons and do a once a month "open ride" for all of my students to practice working traffic, but most of my students who participate in those trailer in their own horse. Each horse I use for lessons has a saddle rack in the tack room and a locker with bridle, boots (if applicable), halter/lead, their own brushes & hoof pick. The lockers I picked up at an auction, it was a middle school that was being consolidated and closed, they are perfect height for hanging bridles, they have the shelf at the top and best of all were a steal!


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## Jake and Dai (Aug 15, 2008)

Where I started taking lessons they have saddle and bridle racks per horse and are clearly labeled. The saddle pads are laid over the saddles so it's pretty clear.

For grooming supplies, they're just in a bucket on the floor and I grab the brushes I like best.

Interestingly enough, my trainer helps me tack up. Not because I don't know how or am too slow, but just because she wants to. I try to do it myself but usually as I'm finishing picking out the hooves, she's there with the saddle! LOL


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## Alwaysbehind (Jul 10, 2009)

Individual equipment for each horse kept on well labelled racks. Tack should also have a tag so when left out it is obvious whose tack it is.

I like individual grooming supplies too. In baskets or bags hanging on the horse's stall.


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## ponyboy (Jul 24, 2008)

I agree with Alwaysbehind, although I think sharing grooming tools is OK. At the large barn I went to the horse's stall number was also used for its tack. In the tack room there was a whiteboard with an alphabetical list of names to look up your horse's number. Besides numbered racks each saddle/bridle had a metal keychain-type tag on it.


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## Strange (Jan 11, 2009)

All our bridles are labeled by name of the horse. 
Saddle racks aren't labeled but each horses' tack has a specific stand that the student learns and if they have trouble there's always someone there to help.


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## VelvetsAB (Aug 11, 2010)

Saddles are on one wall with duct tape (yes really) used as labels above/beside it. Bridles are on the opposite wall, again with a duct tape label above it. 

Girths are left over top of the saddle, and saddle pad. Students are not to change saddle pads (some kids would use a new one for their multiple lessons each week). 

Horses that need a gel pad have it under the saddle to help keep the shape. 

Grooming boxes are under the saddles, and are divided back up each week, so all the boxes have relatively the same brushes in it. -1 shed blade, 1 rubber curry, 1 face brush, 1 soft, 1 med and 1 hard brush, and a hoofpick. Extras get thrown in randomly. 

Boots are in a cupboard. If horse NEEDS boots, its noted on the bridle name label.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## justashowmom (Aug 14, 2011)

Lesson horses have individual baskets for brushes and boots or wraps. Bridles and girths hung under name label.


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## chevaliernr (May 24, 2009)

At my barn at home, each horse has their own bridle, labeled on both the wall and the bridle itself with a small round tag or piece of tape wrapped around the headband. 

Saddles weren't specific to the horses, nor were pads and girths. All horses were given a square pad. Horses with high withers used a wither pad, others used a white saddle pad (the kind in the shape of the saddle). The girths are organized by size. 

No specific grooming supplies either. Brushes, hoofpicks, flyspray, etc. are distributed in tack boxes in the cross-ties. 

At my barn at school, each horse has a number corresponding to clearly labeled bridles, saddles, grooming boxes, and boots. If a horse needs a gel pad or any other "extraneous" equipment, it is clearly labeled with their number and kept with their other tack. Their little quirks when being tacked up/ridden are also written on a piece of paper labeled with their respective numbers.


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## Alwaysbehind (Jul 10, 2009)

I like the horse's having their own grooming tools because then there is less risk of passing around things like fungus or such.


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## Maggie May (Oct 15, 2010)

I volunteer at a theraputic riding program that operates almost entirely with volunteers. In the aisle, next to the tack room are 5 whiteboards. Each a different day there are lessons. There is a column for the rider's name, sidewalkers, leaders name, horse's name, style of riding(bareback or english) and saddle number. In the tack room all the saddles are labeled with a number. Besides the list in the aisle, there is another list inside the tack room with the horse's names and the saddles that fit them in order from best to not as good. Also, the girth that they use. We don't use bridles with theraputic riding(we usually use rope halters), only occasionally for the really good riders and exercise, but each horse has its own hook with its name and bridle. For girths there are the different sizes labeled like 40-42, 44-46, etc. with a hook for girths that go there. As for grooming the horses are always turned out so in one of the grooming stalls there is a spot with the horses name, halter, picture, and grooming bucket with name. Again, because this is almost entirely volunteers and some of the riders help to groom and untack, it is extremely organized for the least amount of confusion. 

Hope that helps


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## Corporal (Jul 29, 2010)

I like the idea of one horse, one saddle, one bridle, if you can afford it. You also should organize your replacement pieces bc you never know when you'll need them quickly.
When I gave my lessons (1985-1994) I would use the same saddle on different horses. I was constantly bleaching English pads and string girths, so I wasn't worried about spreading any skin problems, and I always aired my Western pads, and cleaned my bits after use. My mission, if you wish, was that I would give my students every skill to have their own horse in the future, therefore tacking up was part of each lesson. I was very fussy about adjustments--students would sometimes have to start over if it wasn't right. I taught English Pleasure, Western Pleasure, Hunt Seat, Basic Dressage and Military, and had to have enough of each saddle/bridle combination to fit a class of up to 5. (All horses belonged to me.) I would have my English/Hunter students check their leathers for length. If they were stretching unevenly, they would switch them while mounted. Every student was expected to check pads to make sure that they had not been dropped on the ground/floor and picked up anything that would irritate the horse's back. All equipment was expected to be put away back where my students had retrieved it. (Can't tell you how often I have seen a saddle at some places put down in a perfect place for a horse to trash it.) These practices helped me with my work load.
Recently I saw a ginormous tack room at a nearly Arab show/lesson stable, complete with a bit warmer. The owner had her saddles/padding down to a science--VERY organized, and worth the time to set up.
I am currently organizing my now private, tack room. I still own a lot of lesson equipment, but, sadly, I only kept one English saddle from my lesson program (although I did purchase 3 more a couple of years ago.) I like to store my saddles with the English saddle pad on top, clean, and the clean girth on top of that, so they're ready to go. I store my Western saddles without a pad, but all of my Western pads are stored in the room next door, on a shelf. I hang ALL of my pleasure bridles in the tack room on the opposite wall, and our Military equipment is stored in the barn's old garage. (We have a seperate 4-car garage and don't need to put a car in there now.) I also own 7 foldable saddle racks, which DH, DD's and my new high-school help, who both came to me lesson-trained (yahoo!!) use to place saddles immediately before/after we ride.


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## juniormylove (Aug 28, 2008)

My barn is fairly organized, I think. Each bridle hook is labeled with the horse's name, stall number, girth size, and whether they need a riser pad/boots (if they have boots, then they're described on the label and can be found in the boot bin).

School saddles all have name plated on the cantle with a number which corresponds to a list that can be found on the wall next to the saddle racks. Saddle pads are separated into square and shaped and kept on shelves. The girths are arranged by size (so we have smaller than 42", 44-46, 48-50, and 52 and bigger) and each girth is also labeled with sharpie so you know the size. 

Most riders bring their own grooming supplies but if not, then there are bins of school grooming stuff that are organized at the end of each day so that each bin has all the necessary grooming tools.

On our board in the grooming area there are instructions for how to groom/tack a horse (among other things) but beginner riders generally don't tack up without the supervision of my trainer or a working student (half of my job is getting the beginner kids in the arena and on their horses). Even if they do tack up on their own, everything is checked before they mount in the arena (aka, bridle adjustments and girth tightness/saddle placement). 

Tack that needs to be cleaned gets placed on a hook in the middle of the tack room for people to do before/after they ride. I clean tack almost every time I'm out there...it's generally the working kids that clean the tack because we know how to (but anyone can do it if they ask to be taught how to)

It works pretty well, I think. The kids are all taught where to put their stuff when they're done and we all try to sweep out our grooming stall each time we use it so at the end of the day, there's not as much of a mess to clean up.


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## Corporal (Jul 29, 2010)

juniormylove said:


> ...it's generally the working kids that clean the tack ..e


-pretty much my view of heaven.


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## justashowmom (Aug 14, 2011)

The saddles for the lesson horses all fit - they are not labeled as it depends on the size of the rider (mostly teens and tweens). They know which pads to use for their particular horse. Which is how I ended up buying my own saddle - as an adult, my posterior was, shall we say, overlarge for the smaller seated lesson saddles.


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