# Which hand do you hold your whip in?



## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

right. 99% of the time. left is awkward. I am right handed.


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## gigem88 (May 10, 2011)

Either or, doesn't really make a difference to me!


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## MyBoyPuck (Mar 27, 2009)

I hold in on the inside at all times, so both.


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## BreakableRider (Aug 14, 2013)

It depends on what i'm using for. I am switching hands constantly on my greenies as I ask for different things.


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## Regula (Jan 23, 2012)

I often ride (dressage) with two whips, one in each hand. If I amusing just one, always on the inside.


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## SketchyHorse (May 14, 2012)

Always ride with my whip in the inside hand as well. I need it far more often to cue the inside for something rather than outside.


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## jamesqf (Oct 5, 2009)

I think you need an option for those of us who don't use whips - at least on our horses


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## SorrelHorse (Apr 9, 2009)

On my finished horse I use the whip on my right hand. If I have to I will switch, but I prefer not to.


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## SEAmom (Jan 8, 2011)

I switch hands and sides of the horses, but not uniformly. I can have the whip on the inside or outside regardless of the hand it's in. It really depends on what I'm doing at the time. I've joked that I should get a second one so I can just have one in each hand at all times.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Speed Racer (Oct 21, 2009)

jamesqf said:


> I think you need an option for those of us who don't use whips - at least on our horses


Your bedtime antics don't count, james! :lol:

When I carry a whip, which is relatively uncommon nowadays since I don't show any longer, in the arena I switch back and forth so my whip is always to the inside. When I'm out hacking, I'll carry it in my right hand the majority of the time because that's my dominant side.


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## beau159 (Oct 4, 2010)

I very rarely carry a whip when I'm riding. If I do, I don't really have a preferred hand. It just depends on what I am doing. I'm pretty ambidextrous when it comes to reins and riding, although I am right-handed for just about everything else. 

Where's the poll option for ambidextrous?


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## Tarpan (May 6, 2012)

I don't carry a whip, I use my split reins to spank if necessary.


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## jamesqf (Oct 5, 2009)

Speed Racer said:


> Your bedtime antics don't count, james! :lol:


Besides, this is a PG forum 

I only do trail riding, and so never carry a whip. My friend, who has done quite a bit of showing in the past, does carry one, but keeps it tucked in her riding boot most of the time.


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## frlsgirl (Aug 6, 2013)

For Dressage always on the inside, but the horse I ride gets spooked by whip sometimes, so when I have a great trot going on the diagonal, I will hold off on switching hands. I think he can see it in his peripheral vision when I switch it and will shoot forward.


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## tempest (Jan 26, 2009)

Depends on what I'm doing. If I'm showing at the time I will switch whip hands according to the direction we're going. If I'm just riding I'll keep it in my right hand. More often than not I don't use one at all.


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## DuckDodgers (May 28, 2013)

I'm left handed and hold it in my left hand almost all of the time. I'll switch to my right if that side needs some correcting, but not too terribly often.


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## Palomine (Oct 30, 2010)

I always switched so whip was to rail.


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## Zexious (Aug 2, 2013)

It depends on the horse, what I'm doing, and what sort of outside aids the horse needs. So, I switch back and forth, with no dominant hand. The default is the inside.


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## thetempest89 (Aug 18, 2013)

Always on my inside, unless I'm having a problem in which my horse is moving away from the whip. I do what my coach tells me too!


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## Rachel1786 (Nov 14, 2010)

I don't use a whip with my own horses, my one is terrified of them(although I've successfully desensitized him to the lunge whip, and now he doesn't respect it ugh) and my mare doesn't need a whip. But I do need to use one in my lessons since the lesson horses know when you don't have one lol.

Sorry I didn't think of adding a "depends" option. I didn't add the option for not using one, since I just wanted to know how uncommon it was for someone to feel more comfortable with it in their non-dominate hand, seems pretty uncommon, from what I'm seeing it's either people switch, or use their dominate hand lol..guess I really am that odd


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## Corporal (Jul 29, 2010)

A crop isn't useful if you do not use/practice using it ambidexterously. It is an extension of your arm and you ride with two of those. =b


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## Stan (Aug 25, 2011)

All of my horses have responded badly to a whip. 
That is because I never use one, and dont see the need for it. Whip my horse and you will need to hang on for dear life because he will let you know how he feels about it. 
Then I also ride with a loose rein and often bitless. I surpose it is a relationship thing, he trust me and I trust him. I panicing horse will take the bit between its teeth and run and its skill that will bring him up not devices designed to inflict as much pressure as posible.

Bad behaviour is treated with a stern growl so, as i am right handed that hand is free for the hip flask or a camera.


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## Corporal (Jul 29, 2010)

I would seriously suggest that you desensitize your horse to a whip. You may ride with people in the future who DO carry a whip. If you horse continues to be frightened of whips, you'll have a shying, spooking horse on your hands. I have never fully trusted ANY of the ~35 horses I have owned in my life. If I need to retrieve buckets in the pasture and it's windy and my 3 are playing, I carry a whip to remind them NOT to run into/over me, and they respect it, but are not afraid of it. Whips are an extension of your arm and your authority. They are not evil, and even a horse that has been beaten can be retrained to calmy obey a whip.


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## Stan (Aug 25, 2011)

My horse is not botherd by a whip in hand just it being used on him. I often ride with 100 or more horses setting out on a trek and whips are rearly seen. Even at the ranch horse clubs I have attended whips are rearly seen.

If a horse has a moment of miss behaviour then it is time out allowing the moment to pass.

You can ride along side my horse with a whip he will not be bothered but if you use it on him, look out, not only from the horse but also from me. We don't need to inflict pain or fear onto the horse to get it to respond. 

One lady thought she knew it all, and as my horse Stella would not go forward came up behind but to one side and landed a wack on the rump. Stella backed into her and I also gave her a piece of my mind. This knowing person did not take the time to work out why the horse would not go forward she just reacted with a whip.

The reason the horse would not go forward was a dog was laying infront of the horse and the horse was working out what to do and I was giving the horse support by not showing any concern but just waiting for her to get her head around the problem.

Whips are not required. In the circle of riders I spend most of my time with we train our horses to respond without a whip.

If a longe is required they are never hit with it. It is used as an extention of my arm.

So getting my horse used to a whip incase someone else has one, perhaps the someone else might consider changing the way they treat the horse.

Cheers


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## bsms (Dec 31, 2010)

Stan said:


> ...I panicing horse will take the bit between its teeth and run and its skill that will bring him up not devices designed to inflict as much pressure as posible...


FWIW, one of the reasons to use a curb bit is to prevent the horse from being able to get the bit between its teeth. With a curb, the horse will soon figure out that grabbing the bit in its teeth (or stretching its head out so the snaffle rests against the molars) does nothing to relieve the pressure on the poll or jaw.

Not all horses need or respond well to a curb. However, with Mia, switching to a curb broke her of that in just a few rides.

Back to topic: My whip is a leather strap on the horn. It gets used when she doesn't respond properly to a squeeze of the calf, and usually first on MY leg. The noise is enough to get her moving faster. Using one hand on the reins means my right hand is normally free, so that is the hand that goes for the whip. I normally have it wrapped once around the horn, and unwrapping it is often enough to convince her. Actually hitting her with it might result in an unplanned trip to Mexico, which is only 60 miles away...:wink:


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## Corporal (Jul 29, 2010)

Well, Stan, I disagree. Bsms has shown that spending lots and lots of time with your horse AND using a standard method of impulsion--the "whip"--isn't abuse. My horses, who were ALSO my lesson horses, understood that when a student flicked a whip out the smack came afterwards, so they would stop tuning out the rider. Horses have better memories than an elephant, but are, perhaps, more forgiving.
Horses do NOT reason. Sometimes a horse will take really good care of you when you make the wrong decision, but mostly they do not. It is the same argument that people use to avoid training a horse to load in a trailer, or, in your case to reason that everyone doesn't need to _abuse_ a horse with a "bit."
I do not think I will change your opinion, so I won't try. But, _PLEASE,_ don't make the rest of us into animal abusers bc we choose to use methods of training that have worked for millenia.


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## jamesqf (Oct 5, 2009)

Stan said:


> My horse is not botherd by a whip in hand just it being used on him. I often ride with 100 or more horses setting out on a trek and whips are rearly seen. Even at the ranch horse clubs I have attended whips are rearly seen.


Ever see a working cowboy carrying a whip? (That is, a riding crop for use on the horse being ridden.) Or indeed, just about any riding activity where you'd need to use your hands for something else? So I think I'd argue that they're not really necessary.


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## Corporal (Jul 29, 2010)

Working cowboys wear spurs. Haven't you noticed?


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## bsms (Dec 31, 2010)

jamesqf said:


> Ever see a working cowboy carrying a whip? (That is, a riding crop for use on the horse being ridden.) Or indeed, just about any riding activity where you'd need to use your hands for something else? So I think I'd argue that they're not really necessary.


Ever see a cowboy riding with spurs? I have. And while he may sometimes use the spur for a discrete cue, he will also use the spur if the horse refuses to move off of his leg cue. If you want a horse to be dull to the leg, let him discover that he can ignore your squeeze. And if there is no possibility of anything beyond the squeeze, except perhaps endless kicking, then the horse can learn to ignore you completely.

When I took lessons a few years back, there was a horse I could kick with my heels until my legs ached, and he wouldn't go above a walk. But if I got on him with a crop in one hand, he would do anything off of light leg pressure. Hmmmm.... And that was why the instructor had me ride him for 30 minutes kicking without result. She wanted me to see how quickly he changed when she handed me a crop, and to understand that a crop or whip, used right, makes your horse MORE responsive to your leg, not less.

Since Mia is a pretty willing horse, I don't carry a whip in my hand. I don't wear spurs. But I do have an option available if she decides to be lazy. She doesn't decide to be lazy very often, and I do NOT want her to learn. And believe me - just as she learned to ignore a snaffle, she is capable of learning to ignore my leg. That is the joy and terror of a reasonably smart horse...


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## Stan (Aug 25, 2011)

BMS your response to what would happen if you actually hit your horse. Mexico, that explanes it all. You don't hit

Spurs I dont use them as such but the style I have is only a piece of metal wraped around the boot all it does is add a hard slightly raised surface to the heal. I must be lucky, perhaps my horse wants to go for a ride hence I don't have to manny issues but the I do know if I hit him with a crop or whip, I'd beat you to mexico and I'm thousands of miles away. That is providing the super glue on the seat of my jeans did not give way.:lol::lol::shock:


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## Stan (Aug 25, 2011)

Corporal said:


> Well, Stan, I disagree. Bsms has shown that spending lots and lots of time with your horse AND using a standard method of impulsion--the "whip"--isn't abuse. My horses, who were ALSO my lesson horses, understood that when a student flicked a whip out the smack came afterwards, so they would stop tuning out the rider. Horses have better memories than an elephant, but are, perhaps, more forgiving.
> Horses do NOT reason. Sometimes a horse will take really good care of you when you make the wrong decision, but mostly they do not. It is the same argument that people use to avoid training a horse to load in a trailer, or, in your case to reason that everyone doesn't need to _abuse_ a horse with a "bit."
> I do not think I will change your opinion, so I won't try. But, _PLEASE,_ don't make the rest of us into animal abusers bc we choose to use methods of training that have worked for millenia.


 
Horses do not reason and that is something most all would agree with but. My friend has a horse that, and this I have seen will pick its way through the frame work in the front of a trailer. It worked out where to place its legs to get through the maze of framing. That took some thinking the same horse will spend time undoing ropes then walk on up to its owner and stand beside her. I know the knots are not overly completated but it had to work out how to undo the knot and remember the sequence. So perhaps when we say they have no power of reasoning that is because we measure every thing in human terms. food for thought.

I also never said or indicated those that use whips are animal abusers I commented on my experiences and that I dont use one, and my reasoning for not.


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## Stan (Aug 25, 2011)

Horse and riders having fun after a long ride. Over a hundred horse set out on the ride. I could not go as it was my first day with my new horse and he was not fit enough. However some photos were taken. The last photo is of interest as the couple had two horses with similar markings. The surprising thing to me with the horses was the camp was a couple of hundred yeards from the river they were swiming in, and when the owners they left both horses walked behind no lead ropes. When they got close to the camp the horse walked forward and went straight to their float. They ignored all others, it was an education to watch them and some thing to strive for with the training and behaviour of my horse. Onle one crop in the first photo. The western riders on the whole did not use them.


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## its lbs not miles (Sep 1, 2011)

WOW :shock:, so many people use a whip. While I've never used one while riding (I'd have injured myself probably) I'm impressed that so many people apparently use them. I've never seen one used by Dressage riders anywhere (things in the Dressage world must have changed since the 60's). Of course my Dressage instructor had a "whip" (didn't look like one to me :lol that was over 3' long that she used from the ground. Didn't have any thong though. It was more like a real long switch *(at least that's what it always reminded me of), but she called it a whip. Didn't really "crack" it, but it "swished" real well :lol:. Now if I'd used her "Dressage whip" while riding I could have scratched my horses back feet with it. Come to think of it I've never actually seen (in person) anyone use a whip while riding. Although I have seen footage of Australian riders using those long handled whips. I could see using one of those and not smacking myself or my horse (that handle keeps the thong far enough out), but for the US style whips the handles are too short for me to feel comfortable using one while on a horse. I've used them to move cattle while on foot though (small areas are sometimes easier to work dismounted with a whip vs on a horse). Of course if we'd had those long handled Australian whips on hand over here back in the 70's I'd have been glad to have had one. I'll bet with that AND the horse I could have made believers out of even the most obstinate cows with a lot less work :lol:.

I have, however, used a riding crop. Still have one or two somewhere (used one last year). With new horses I still find a crop useful to give a tickle when they freeze up and need an easy "start" reminder, but I prefer to abandon them after a point (dislike carrying to many "extras" that I don't really need). Never had a "hand" preference. One works as well as the other. Later I'll just use the end of rein if needed.


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## BreakableRider (Aug 14, 2013)

I use a dressage whip now on every greenie I ride. It's an aid they are accustomed to, they know what it's all about since I use one in my groundwork ( not a dressage whip, but they are used to a whip), however they are not in the least intimidated by it. One the first ride I know I can wave it all around from the saddle, switch sides, and rub them all over. However a light tap has them moving off respectfully. 

Why not use a whip? a greenie isn't going to be perfect getting off your leg, even if you have them moving off where your leg would be in the saddle o the gorund it won't be perfect. I use a dressage whip to help them figure out what my leg means. I want them to disengage their hindquarters? I'll slide my leg back and lightly press, if they don't move i'll tap on their hindquarters with the whip. When they move, I release pressure. 

I also use it for teaching side passing and all kinds of other things. Once the horse understands and will move respectfully off my leg I phase the whip out.


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## jamesqf (Oct 5, 2009)

Stan said:


> Horses do not reason and that is something most all would agree with but.


Not me. I think horses can reason, but in horse terms, not human ones. Of course they don't do it all the time, but neither do humans. Indeed, I have run across all too many humans who display less reasoning ability than the average horse.

But the main reason I wouldn't want to try to use a crop is that I'm just not coordinated enough to manage one, and the reins, and do other stuff with my hands. That's really what I meant about cowboys not using them: they need their hands for other things.


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## Stan (Aug 25, 2011)

jamesqf said:


> Not me. I think horses can reason, but in horse terms, not human ones. Of course they don't do it all the time, but neither do humans. Indeed, I have run across all too many humans who display less reasoning ability than the average horse.
> 
> But the main reason I wouldn't want to try to use a crop is that I'm just not coordinated enough to manage one, and the reins, and do other stuff with my hands. That's really what I meant about cowboys not using them: they need their hands for other things.


 
James I do believe horse have an ability to reason.
Take a horse into a stony bottomed stream and give it its head. The horse will generally look down and place its hooves, not just stumble blindly forward. Is that not reasoning.


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## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

Stan said:


> My horse is not botherd by a whip in hand just it being used on him. I often ride with 100 or more horses setting out on a trek and whips are rearly seen. Even at the ranch horse clubs I have attended whips are rearly seen.
> 
> If a horse has a moment of miss behaviour then it is time out allowing the moment to pass.
> 
> ...


It is absolutely NOT acceptable for one rider to whip another riders horse,! Unacceptable, 

.


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## bsms (Dec 31, 2010)

"Whips are not required"...except for when they are. For example: There is a place near here where a trail enters a wash. The wash has several narrow spots and the bushes along the sides of the wash restrict the view. Mia doesn't like the wash. She isn't exactly afraid of it, but it makes her uncomfortable.

If we are in the rear, she'll enter the wash without complaint. If she is in the lead, she balks. Not because it is unsafe, and not because she is afraid. She has been thru that section hundreds of times. She just doesn't like it.

But it is hard to trail ride in southern Arizona without ever using a wash. So if she balks, I'll flick the leather strap on my own leg first. If that isn't enough, then I'll flick it on her shoulders. That is enough to get her moving again.

If she is genuinely afraid, no whipping will move her forward. But when she is reluctant, a flick on the shoulders beats me sitting on her back and flailing away with my heels on her sides.

I know she doesn't like that 200 yard stretch of wash. She never will. But that is the best route to state-owned land. And besides, I don't want HER to decide what trails we go on. She isn't smart enough to make good decisions on that. Once in the wash, she is OK. But she doesn't get to choose to refuse:


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## SJxDreams (Oct 10, 2013)

I was always taught to hold the whip with my inside hand. Although I haven't used a whip for a while as my boy doesn't need it.


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