It’s a fair question: why do we ask our dogs to heel on our left side? For that matter, why do we do so many things to the left? Why do we mount a horse from the left side? The reason is basically the same. We have our dog’s heel to our left because this is a right handed world.

In the old days, when men still wore swords, it was necessary to mount horses from the left side for safety purposes. With the swords hanging on the left side (for right handed riders), it was easier and safer to mount from the left. Consequently, all of the tack for horses …