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Gee and haw

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Gee and haw are voice commands used to tell a draft animal to turn right or left, or to direct sled dogs pulling a sled or sleigh.^[1][2] Gee (pronounced "jee") means to turn to the off side (away from the driver). Haw means to turn to the near side (towards the driver).

In the United States, the driver of draft animals sits on their left, so animals will turn right to the gee command, and left to the haw command. In England the driver stands to the right of the animals, reversing the relative directions they indicate (i.e., an English trained team of horses will "haw" to the right, while an American trained team will "haw" to the left — in both cases towards their driver.) As James Lloyd Clark points out, "Generally, work horses are not subject to a lot of international travel so the fear of great confusion on the farm is minimal."^[3]

The American meanings are used for dog sledding in Alaska and Canada.

In popular culture[edit]

Now you turn to the left when I say gee,The song Pony Time, recorded in 1961 by Chubby Checker and a number one hit that year, includes the lyrics

You turn to the right when I say haw,
Now gee, ya ya little baby,
Now haw, ya oh baby, oh baby, pretty baby,
Do it baby, oh baby, oh baby,

Boogety, boogety, boogety, boogety shoo.

See also[edit]

• Working animal
• Pack animal
• Draft horse
  • Driving (horse)
  • Horse-drawn vehicle
• Carting

References[edit]

1. Jump up^ 'GEE' AND 'HAW'
2. Jump up^ Test driving a dog sled: hang on and enjoy
3. Jump up^ Pilgrim Jim's Treasure Field: To Haw and Gee

Categories: 

• Horse driving
• History of agriculture
• Dog sledding
• Human–animal interaction
• Dog training and behavior
• Horse training