Horse harness explained

A horse harness is a device that connects a horse to a horse-drawn vehicle or another type of load to pull. There are two main designs of horse harness: (1) the breast collar or breaststrap, and (2) the full collar or collar-and-hames.

For pulling heavy loads, a full collar is required because it distributes pressure over a larger area of the horse. An ill-fitting full collar can cause chafing on the horse's skin and can interfere with its breathing, as can a breast collar that is positioned too high.

Putting harness on a horse is called harnessing or harnessing up. Attaching the harness to the vehicle or load is called putting to in the British Isles, or hitching in North America. The order of putting on harness components varies by discipline, but when a horse collar is used, it is usually put on first.

Harness components designed for other animals (such as the yoke used with oxen) are not suitable for horses and will not allow the horse to work efficiently.

History

Throughout the ancient world, the 'throat-and-girth' harness was used for harnessing horses that pulled carts; this greatly limited a horse's ability to exert itself as it was constantly choked at the neck. A painting on a lacquerware box from the State of Chu, dated to the 4th century BC, shows the first known use of a yoke placed across a horses's chest, with traces connecting to the chariot shaft. The hard yoke across the horse's chest was gradually replaced by a breast strap, which was often depicted in carved reliefs and stamped bricks of tombs from the Han Dynasty (202 BC – 220 AD). Eventually, the horse collar was invented in China, at least by the 5th century.

Parts

These are parts of a harness.^[1]

Collar : A collar to allow the horse to push against the harness with its shoulders and chest. The two main designs are the breast collar harness and the full collar harness.

A horse collar (or full collar). A padded loop fitting closely around the horse's neck and resting on its shoulders. Must be correctly sized for each individual horse. Used for heavier pulling than a breast collar.

A breast collar. A padded strap running across the front of the horse's chest in lieu of a full collar. Fits any horse and does not need individual sizes for each horse. Should be used with a swingletree at the carriage to avoid rubbing the horse's shoulders during movement.

Hames (if a full collar is used). Two metal or wooden strips which take the full force of the pull, padded by the collar.

Traces : The straps or chains which take the pull from the breast collar or hames to the vehicle or load.

Breeching : Breeching is a horizontal strap that goes around the horse's haunches allowing the horse to slow a vehicle or hold it back when going downhill. It is usually hooked to the breeching dee on the shafts by breeching straps. Used for a single horse, a pair, or in a larger team, only for the wheelers (the animal or pair closest to the vehicle). The leaders in a team do not have breeching, as they are in front of the shafts or pole and so cannot slow the vehicle. Breeching may be omitted for vehicles with efficient brakes or when pulling very light vehicles such as in fine harness.

Saddle : A harness saddle or pad is the piece of the harness that lies across the horse's back. It is not the same as a riding saddle. The saddle is a stuffed piece of leather that helps support the weight of the shafts on a two-wheeled vehicle (cart). A saddle pad may be placed underneath the saddle for extra padding. Saddles for heavy commercial carts may be quite substantial in size to help distribute the weight bearing down from the shafts. The saddle is held into place by the girth, a strap which goes under the belly of the horse. Together, the saddle and girth encircle the horse. Attached to the saddle are other parts of the harness: the rein terrets, the tugs on each side of the horse, the back strap and crupper to the rear, and bearing reins or overcheck to the front. Pads or back pads are for harnesses not built for holding heavy shafts—for example logging, plowing or a pair of horses pulling a 4-wheeled vehicle—and is a wide leather strap without stuffing.

Girth : The girth is a strap that goes under the horse's belly and is buckled firmly to the saddle. A surcingle is a term used within certain fine harness designs to describe the combination of a light girth and harness saddle.

Belly-band : A strap that goes over the girth, but more loosely under the belly of the horse. It prevents the shafts from rising up, especially on a two-wheeled vehicle where weight on the rear of the cart may tip the front up.

Back band : A strap going through the harness saddle, or attached to it, to join the belly band on both sides of the horse. It takes the weight of the shafts. In heavy cart harness it is replaced by a chain running in a groove in the harness saddle, hooked to the shafts either side.

Sliding back band. In a two-wheeled vehicle, the shafts are fixed to the vehicle to hold it level. On a side-slope, one shaft will be higher than the other, and in this case the back band is normally allowed to slide sideways through the harness saddle, so the horse can walk upright without strain on the harness.

Fixed back-band. In a four-wheeled vehicle, the shafts or pole must be allowed to hinge up and down, to allow the horse and vehicle to pass over hillocks and dips. Often the shafts are independently hinged, and on a side-slope these will each hinge to follow the horse, and a sliding back band is not needed. However, if a sliding back band was used with independent shafts it might allow one shaft to ride up higher than the other, and so for such shafts the back-band is normally fixed to the harness saddle. On other four-wheeled vehicles, the two shafts hinge together, and a sliding back band is needed as for two-wheeled vehicles.

False martingale : A strap passing between the front legs, from the bottom centre of the collar to the belly band, to hold the collar in position. Called "false", because unlike a true martingale it does not attach to the bridle or have any influence on the horse's action.

Crupper : A crupper is a soft padded loop which goes under the base of the tail and is attached to the back strap, which runs across the back and is attached to the top-rear of the saddle. The back strap and crupper together keep the saddle from slipping forward.

Back strap : A strap running from the crupper to the rear of the saddle or pad. The back strap and crupper together keep the saddle from slipping forward. The back strap also holds in position any loin straps or breeching straps.

Shaft tugs, or tugs : Loops attached to the back band to hold up the shafts of a vehicle in van or fine harness (not needed in cart harness, which attaches to hooks on the shafts). Two types:

For two-wheeled vehicles the tugs are stiff leather loops, fitting fairly loosely around the shafts (which are rigidly attached to the vehicle), to allow flexibility as the animal and the vehicle move against each other.

For four-wheeled vehicles with independently hinged shafts, the tugs (Tilbury tugs) are leather straps buckled tightly around the shafts so they move with the animal.

Terrets : Terrets are metal loops through which reins pass. Terrets are mounted on the saddle or collar to support the reins and keep them in position. Where one horse is hitched in front of another, the rear horse's harness may have extra terrets through which are run the lines to the horse ahead of them. There may be terrets attached near the rear horse's ears, called Roger rings, or double rings on the saddle to separate the lines for the rear horse from the lines to the forward horse or horses.

Reins or Lines : Long leather straps (occasionally ropes) running from the bit to the driver's hands, used to guide the horses. In teams of several animals these may be joined together so the driver need hold only one pair.

Bridle : When working in harness, most horses wear a specialised bridle that includes features not seen in bridles used for riding. These usually include blinders, also called blinkers or winkers, behind and to the side of the horse's eyes, to prevent it from being distracted by the cart and other activity behind it. Harness racing horses sometimes have a shadow roll on the noseband of the bridle for the same purpose.

Bit : Bits for harness (often a Liverpool bit, but the Wilson snaffle is also popular) may be similar to those used for riding, particularly in the mouthpiece, usually operating with a curb bit and adjustable leverage to help balance the effect of the reins on different horses in a team. The bridles of the rearward horses in a team (the wheelers in a four-horse team, and both wheelers and centre horses in a six-horse team) often have rings at each end of the browband, through which the lines of the forward horses pass.

Bearing rein : A bearing rein—with variations known as side check, check rein, overcheck, overhead check, and overdraw—is a strap system which attaches to the saddle, goes to the top of the horse's head and downward to attach to a bit. In American fine harness and harness racing it is referred to as an overcheck, and the strap passes between the horse's ears. In English light carriage harness, a bearing rein, or side check, usually travels through rings hanging from the bridle's crown, to the outside of the ears. In both styles, it is usually attached to a small bradoon bit. Some horses pulling lighter vehicles, particularly at horse shows and other public exhibitions, may have an overcheck to assist in holding a desired head position. Sometimes used for safety reasons to avoid the horse's head and neck going under the shaft and getting entangled, such as during a stumble, or to scratch an itch or eat grass.

Martingale : In some cases a specially designed running martingale may also be added. A looser overcheck may also be used in a working harness to prevent the horse grazing. The overcheck hooks to a pedestal on the harness saddle.

Horse brasses : Horse brasses are ornamental brass plaques mounted on leather straps, used for decoration, especially on working harness. Made in a wide range of designs.

Types

Show harness

Show harnesses for light cart driving have a breast collar instead of a horse collar and are made with strong but refined-looking leather throughout, usually black and highly polished. In draft horse showing and combined driving, horse collars are seen, but harness leather is still highly polished and well-finished.

Carriage or van harness

Lighter weight but strong harness similar to show harness, used for pulling passenger vehicles such as buggies or carts, or other lighter loads. The traces attach either to the shafts of the vehicle or to the vehicle itself, and the harness may have either a horse collar or a breast collar.

Racing harness

See main article: Harness racing. The racing harness, like the show harness, is a breast collar harness. Horses are hitched to a very lightweight two-wheeled cart, called a sulky. Most race harnesses incorporate a standing martingale and an overcheck. Horses may be raced in a "blind" bridle, which restricts the horse from seeing beside and behind him to various degrees by use of blinkers (horse tack), or may be raced with an "open" bridle, one that does not have blinkers. Specialized equipment, called "hobbles" or "hopples" are added to the harness of race horses who pace (and sometimes to the harness of those who trot) in order to help them maintain their gait.^[2]

Cart or wagon harness

Harness for pulling heavier vehicles always has a horse collar. The traces are often made of chain and attach to loops on the shafts of the vehicle. A chain attached to the shafts may be passed over the saddle to carry their weight.^[3] Reins are of rope or leather, depending on region of the world.

Plow harness

Similar to wagon harness but without breeching, used for dragged loads such as plows, harrows, canal boats or logs. This style is also used on the leaders in a team of animals pulling a vehicle. The traces attach to a whippletree behind the horse and this then pulls the load (or in larger teams may attach to further whippletrees).

There are two main plow harness types: the New England D-Ring and the Western harness. The New England D-Ring makes use of a metal D-shaped ring that allows for a ninety degree angle to be maintained at the junction of the front trace and the hames regardless of the height of the implement being pulled. The Western harness does not provide this flexibility but has other useful characteristics such as a strap that runs from the breeching to the collar which stops the pull from riding up and hitting the horses in the face when descending a steep incline.

Sources

Book: Needham, Joseph . Science and Civilisation in China . Science and Civilisation in China . Joseph Needham . IV. Physics and Physical Technology, Part 2 Mechanical Engineering . 1986.

Notes and References

Web site: Harness Parts Explained With Graphics . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20160304001449/http://www.discover-horse-carriage-driving.com/harness-parts.html . March 4, 2016 . discover-horse-carriage-driving.com.
Web site: Equipment . 2021-01-20 . November 2, 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20121102114341/https://standardbredcanada.ca/files/sc-trainer-guide-equipment.pdf . live . standardbredcanada.ca.
Book: Miller, William C. . Practical Animal Husbandry . Oliver and Boyd . 1959 . 313 . 974101926.