Western style

The western harness (or western britchen harness as I call it), the most common and uses a pair of quarter straps from the britchen that meet at the pole strap (pole strap comes forward between the front legs). The breast strap hangs from both hames and is attached to the pole strap at the breast strap snap. This hooks directly to your neck yoke.

A side backer is a similar harness with nothing between the legs or under the horse (other than a belly band), instead side straps come straight forward form the britchen on each side of the horse and hook into a short jokey yoke. One jockey yoke for each horse and they snap on to the neck yoke. the side backer will have a lazy strap on each side hanging from the hames to hold the side strap and yoke up. One problem folks may have is mistaking a side backer for a “D” ring harness. Since both harnesses use a small jockey yoke for each horse and side straps they do look some what alike, but are really very different in fit and function.

In a side backer harness the tugs are unbroken and the side straps slide past them with out being directly connected. In a D ring harness both the side straps and the tugs are all attached at the same point and all interact to carry the forces of pulling, stopping, and tongue action / weight.

Steve Bowers book has some good pictures. donn

Yes, Belly backer, would be the same as the western britchen. These are a very effective simple harness, and have one advantage in being the most common style. Donn

I have always heard “Western” as a term describing the type of breeching/britchen. Western AKA “box” vs Yankee AKA “hip”.

I would say that a D-ring harness *is* a type of side-backer harness. There’s side-backer harness and there’s belly-backer harness. If there’s a third kind, then I don’t know about it. A Western britchen harness can be a side-backer OR a belly-backer. I’m pretty sure that a Yankee britchen needs to be a belly-backer. I think a D-ring harness needs to have a Western britchen.

Now I have to go sifting through the photos and see if I can find a Yankee britchen D-ring. I can’t visualize how that could work!

Donn the type of britchen used by carl and others here in new england is known as a basket britchen developed to hold back heavy loads horse can almost sit down it when holding back on steep hilly going
Bill

Hi Bill, that is a nice britchen, a yankee britchen has no strap below the tail, but just rides above the tail like that part of the basket britchen. the yankee britchen is a very good, powerful backing and stoping britchen as well. If I was buying a new belly backer harness I would sure try to get the yankee brichen. I would love to have that basket britchen on a some new D ring. thanks Bill, Donn

Basket breeching looks like the best of both worlds. At the intersection of the hip strap and the over-the-croup strap, what’s going on there? Is there a safe or a keeper? Are they simply stitched together? What keeps the over-the-croup strap from sagging down further onto the dock?