Page 84 - The Pocket Guide to Equine Knots

GLOSSARY

Artificial or manmade rope: Synthetic fiber rope such as nylon, Dacron, polyester, or
polypropylene.
Ashley Book of Knots: The accepted “Bible” of knots, containing nearly four thousand of

them.
Bear-proof panniers: Hard-sided panniers usually made of plastic or metal that have been

certified by the US Forest Service to protect food from animals, primarily bears.
Required now on many public lands.
Bend: A category of knots, such as the sheet bend, for joining two lines together.
Bight: A loop in a rope or line.

Billet: Strap on off side (right) of a western saddle that attaches to the cinch.
Bone: Size of bone structure in comparison to weight; at least seven-inch circumference of
front cannon bone is desirable for one thousand pounds of weight.

Breakaway system: Halters and lead ropes intended to release the horse should he pull
back; a wrong-headed development that can train a horse to strain against the lead
rope.
Breeching: More commonly pronounced “britching” or “britchin’,” the arrangement of straps

that go over the rump of the pack animal to hold the load back on downhill grades.
Bull snap: A rugged metal snap with a tongue that swivels outward rather than slides.
Cantle: The rear portion of the saddle rising behind the rider’s seat.

Cinch: Also cincha and girth; a wide strap of web or neoprene that goes tightly under the
horse’s rib cage to secure a saddle.
Crossbuck: Packsaddle also known as sawbuck.

Crupper: Sometimes pronounced “crouper,” a strap that encircles the base of a horse’s or
mule’s tail to help prevent slippage of the saddle and load forward.
Dally: One or more wraps around the saddle horn used when ponying another horse or

dragging something from the horn.
Decker packsaddle: A packsaddle originally designed to carry ore and mining equipment;
consists of two wood bars joined by iron D-rings covered with a “half-breed” pad filled
with horsehair or foam.

Diamond hitch: A type of packing hitch used to secure a top pack on a pack animal, so
named because in most of its configurations the hitch rope forms one or more diamond-
shaped patterns.