Hitching and Unhitching the Horse-horse buggy manual
Hitching and unhitching a horse can be mastered by children at quite a young age, but care should be taken to make sure everything is properly hooked. An unsnapped line,tug, or holdback can cause any horse to become frightened and may prompt a runaway. This could result in injuries or fatalities to occupants of the vehicle and to those in the path of the runaway horse.
A good order to remember and to follow when hitching up is 1-line, 2-trace, and 3-holdback. Do this on one side and then on the other side. That way, the lines, which control the horse, will always be the first thing fastened. Not only is it important to double check that everything is fastened when hitching up, it is just as important to make sure all the traces and holdbacks are unhooked when unhitching the horse. Therefore, to unhitch, simply count backward 3-holdback, 2-trace, and 1-line. This way the holdback will always be the first thing unhooked. Many horses will spook from a buggy coming after them in an unusual manner caused by a holdback still being attached to the harness.
ALWAYS tie your horse with the neckrope. Use respect when tying your horse in town or at public places. Always use a hitching rail if one is available. It is unadvisable to tie your horse to a sign or light post. Tie your horse if no one is available to hold him.
    Be reasonable with your horse. When on long trips never drive him too far or too fast.
Allow your horse time to rest after climbing a long hill or after traveling on hot days. A horse that is properly treated will serve you for a long time. We should also be careful about driving lame horses on public roads.