Start by getting the halter/12' lead all arranged neatly in your left arm/hand. Drape the lead rope over your arm and out of the way. (Note: Never wrap a leap rope around your arm! Just drape it over your arm). Grab the noseband of the halter as shown (the noseband is the section of the halter with two ropes together).

The pole strap of the halter is the part of the (black) halter hanging down.

 

 Next, grab the pole strap (the longer piece of the halter) and place that part in your left hand in front of the noseband so you will be in "ready position" as you approach your horse, ready to halter.

Approach the horse on the left side by his shoulder (Note: Most NH halters are designed to be tied from the "on" or left hand side).

Show the halter to the horse.

 With your right arm (empty right hand), reach over the horse's neck and over to the "off" or right side of the horse. You are now hugging your horse around the neck.

 

Take the pole strap from your left hand (that is underneath the horse's neck) and, place it into your right hand that is on the off side of the horse.

 

(Note: Do not stick the horse's nose in the halter first and flip the poll strap up over his head! If you do this, the upward motion going past the horse's eye can send the horse's head up high in the air. While some horses can learn to "tune out" this improper haltering motion, we don't want to send any conflicting messages, encouraging a high head, which is a tense horse! Plus...a horse can move off and away at any time taking that incorrect approach!)

With the pole strap now in your right hand, bring the poll strap over the horse's neck as you hold the noseband of the halter in your left hand.

Bring the poll strap around the
horse's neck to the left side.

Note: If the horse tries to leave at this point, you now have a rope completely around the horse's neck so that you can control him and can pull his head toward you, which sends his hind quarters away from you, so that the horse can only circle into you, (and he can't leave). 

When the horse is quiet and standing still, with the poll strap in your right hand and the noseband in your left hand, gently slip the halter noseband over the horse's muzzle.

Here's a "frozen" shot of the noseband in place on the horse's muzzle and the pole strap around the horse's neck. (Note: I'm holding the pole strap up here so that you can see the two pieces separately that are going to connect up next.)

The pole strap (in right hand) is now going to be slipped through the halter eye portion of the halter (in the left hand).

Stick the pole strap through the halter eye.

Draw the pole strap piece up snuggly; adjust the halter on the horse's face as needed.

Tying the Halter Knot

It's real important to tie this knot correctly so that it can be easily loosened (or tightened) whenever needed.

Bring the pole strap end down behind (toward the horse's face) and around the halter eye (not above the halter eye, nor below the halter eye!)

Next, bring the end of the poll strap back through the hole you have made there, this time going away from the face of the horse.

 

(Note: Never tie the poll strap up around itself above the halter eye because the knot could cinch tightly under pressure and be very difficult to remove.)

 

By tying around the halter eye itself, you can always slide the eye back up to loosen things if the horse pulls and the knot gets too tight or, conversely, makes it easy to tighten up whenever needed if the halter ever gets too loose as you work the horse.

 

The knot should be cinched & tied snuggly! The halter should not be "floppy" on the horse's face, but should sit there fitting snuggly.

Here's a drawing of exactly what the knot should look like after you've tied it.

Here's a photo of what the knot should look like after you've tied the natural horsemanship halter properly onto the horse.

If you need to tighten the halter more from here, simply grab the top loop there that goes directly through the eye and pull it out, then take in the slack by pulling the pole strap end, tightening everything.

This is what the natural horsemanship halter should look like on the horse after it is tied on! The end of the pole strap (the dangling end there) should always point away from the horse's face, not toward the horse's face if you have tied it on correctly.