An assistant is often required to hold a horse whilst he is being given veterinary treatment or being clipped, so the helper must know what to do. Never allow a nervous assistant to handle a horse in these situations. In the interests of safety choose someone with an alert mind and an awareness of the potential dangers involved with horses who may be in pain. Some incidents can be avoided if the handler appreciates how a horse may react, but accidents cannot always be prevented.

If a horse's leg has to be held up, as a means of gentle restraint, the assistant should be on the same side as the leg he is holding. If he is holding the rope at the same time he should guard against the horse snatching his leg and getting it over the rope. The assistant will be relied upon to hold onto the horse for as long as is necessary and not to let go without warning otherwise he could endanger the safety of people who are around the horse.

It is important to know the horse's temperament and be familiar with his mannerisms, likes and dislikes and how he is likely to react to certain situations. For example, he may be difficult to clip around the head or may resent having his legs hosed. Some horses are sufficiently distracted by eating a small feed at the same time; others, however, do not respond to quiet, patient handling and have to be restrained more severely. Depending on the animal's temperament a headcollar and long rope may offer sufficient control; other horses need a bridle. In order to effect a treatment it may be helpful to back the horse into a corner. If he struggles and tries to evade his handler or snatches to free his leg from the assistant's grip, it will be up to that person to hold on and not give in to the horse. Often he will submit once he realizes his handlers are determined.

Awkward horses, that deliberately misbehave, will often need more severe restraints at the outset. If the horse is a known kicker a front leg can be tied up with a stirrup leather, folding it once round the hoof, back round the forearm and buckling it tight. A knee cap should be fitted as a safeguard should the horse try to go down.

Perhaps the most common method of subjugation is with the twitch. It is, however, vitally important that it is used correctly otherwise accidents and often irreparable damage (usually to the horse's behavior) can happen.

A twitch can be made of a piece of round wood similar to a broom handle, 2-5 ft (60-150 cm) long. A length of strong cord, about the thickness of a small finger, 1-2 ft (30-60 cm) long, is then passed through a small hole made near the end of the stick and tied to form a continuous loop. (Window cord is ideal but never use baling string.) The loop is first passed over the hand and the twitch applied by grasping the horse's top lip, sliding the loop over the hand so that the twitch can be twisted to tighten the loop around the horse's lip causing him a certain amount of discomfort. It is important that the tightening up and slackening off is done promptly because the horse may fight against it and once he breaks free from its grip he will always know how. The tension can be adjusted according to the horse's response.