How to Tie a Parelli Hackamore

Pat Parelli is a horse trainer and author who has written many books on natural horsemanship. His methods use little gear when working with horses. A rope halter and hackamore are used for much of his training methods. The hackamore is an addition to the rope halter that adds reins and a lead rope to the halter, making it a multi-purpose device. The hackamore can be made at home using a length of rope.

Things You'll Need

  • Rope halter
  • 22-foot soft, 1/2-inch yachting rope
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Instructions

    • 1

      Set the rope halter on a hook or fence post upside down so the bottom knot is on the top and closest to your body.

    • 2

      Open up the bottom part of the halter near the large bottom knot so you have a strand of the chin piece and a strand of the nose piece in each hand.

    • 3

      Insert the large hackamore rope through the center of the halter with the end coming towards you.

    • 4

      Grasp the hackamore rope in your left hand and hold it together with the bottom knot. Reach over with your right hand, grab the bottom of the hackamore rope on the far end and bring it up and around the halter. It will cross over the rope in your left hand, pressing it closed. Wrap it around twice for an average sized horse.

    • 5

      Bring the long length of the rope up from the bottom of the halter, between the nose and chin strands that you previously separated. This will create a loop that will work as reins. Pull them through so they are about an arm's length long. The remaining length of rope will be dangling through the halter towards the ground.

    • 6

      Wrap the final length of rope in the same manner as the initial wraps so the rope sits just above the reins. Complete 1 1/2 wraps counterclockwise. Take the end of the rope and feed it through the last half-loop from the top to the bottom. This creates the lead rope.

    • 7

      Pull the lead rope and the reins to tighten the knot.