Tip/Quote of the Day # 1766The horse is not capable of true collection when his muscles are tense. No matter how hard you try to achieve collection, it will elude you unless you can first achieve loose and relaxed muscles. Question # 332: Ellen is having some difficulties when trotting fences. My gelding who wants to rush and jump long (or big) REFUSES to trot over ANYTHING. He gets completely discombobulated, has tantrums, throws his head up, won’t go forward etc. What can I do to make him trot? (Ellen)
Hi Ellen!
The first thing I would recommend is that you read this article to try to figure out what specificlaly is causing your horse to want to rush his fences. The article also gives specific exercises for the different possible causes of rushing.
While some of the exercises mentioned will help with all types of rushers, the best results will come when you have identified why your horse is rushing. As a horse that is rushing out of nerves or anxiety will often get worse with harsh corrections, while the horse that is showing a lack of respect for his rider's aids may need those strong corrections. If you are unsure as to why your horse is rushing, maybe you can send me a video, so I can help you figure it out?
Other things I would recommend are... (Click on Question Title above (in blue) to read full answer)Tip/Quote of the Day # 1765
In any lateral movement, keep your eyes pointed to the spot that you want your horse to go to.
"Beginners are not bad riders, they merely lack experience. The only truly bad riders are usually 'experienced' in the poorest sense of that word; those who blatantly and ignorantly bully their horses." ~ Egon von Neindorff
You’ve talked on a walkie-talkie, right? There’s radio silence until somebody pushes a button. Then, sometimes there’s static or a click that serves as a warning for you to get ready to listen … or sometimes the talking just starts, maybe even with the first or last part cut off, so you have to guess what the person on the other side just said. If you happen to key your mike at the same time the other person does, nobody gets to hear anybody. It’s not an efficient communication system. (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)
You must train your horse to understand that he should stay at whatever speed you put him in until told otherwise. Remember that every time you allow your horse to make a decision about his speed or energy level (or don't realize that he has done so), you are training him to make these decisions on his own.
"Stair stepping" your lateral work when schooling your horse has enormous benefits! It helps to teach your horse to stay more truly connected throughout all of your lateral movements. You will become more aware of and be better able to fix any straightness issues that you may encounter. And it will help you to maintain more hind leg activity and impulsion throughout any lateral movement or exercise. Read on to find out how to do it! (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full entry)
"If you put a muscle where it doesn’t want to be, it is broken down – not build up."
So don't go thinking that you are building the right muscles when you force a horse's head into a position. The horse has to be using those muscles correctly to actually develop properly.
Follow these guidelines to prevent recurring episodes of this potentially dangerous condition.
Colic is one of the most frightening medical problems faced by horse owners. Unfortunately, determining the underlying cause of chronic colic can be difficult, which means your horse’s colic will continue to recur. The following 12 tips for avoiding colic may help reduce the risk. (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)
"Working over a single pole on the ground, notice if the young horse prefers to chip in a short stride or stretch for a long stride. Then remember this is the default that they will return to when things go wrong." ~ Eric Smiley
If you follow your horse's mouth with a consistently elastic feel, he will learn to trust your hand so fully, that he will lose the desire to escape it.
Too often I see riders asking their horses to be forward and in front of their leg, and they don't get the response they are looking for... yet they move on to the next thing they had planned anyway. Whether the next thing you plan to do is a jump or a dressage movement, your best bet would be to put that on hold for a moment, and really insist that your horse responds 100% to your leg. You won't get much else done without that quality.
Video # 312 and Question # 331: This is Rachael!This is my just-turned-four year old OTTB who is just starting into work after having a 6 month letdown post racing. The last 2 times I rode him, he was thinking about rounding and holding a steady contact to my hands. I was wondering if there are any tips/exercises I should be doing to help him learn to keep it more consistent? I know a lot of it is muscling, so I haven't been pushing very hard. I just don't want the head bobbing to become a habit. I am thinking of taking him to a schooling dressage show for Intro level just to get some experience in a few weeks. Any help would be appreciated :) Thanks! (Rachael) (Click on Video or Question Title above (in blue) to read the answer)
Your weight or seat aid trumps your leg and hand aids at all times. So if you are unconsciously giving conflicting aids with your weight/seat and your legs or hands, your horse will usually not do exactly what you expect him to do.
"Concentrate on the transitions, forward and back, build the activity from behind. When you bring the horse slightly back, you still have to push her forward to the hand, you can keep riding as long as you can feel the hindlegs in your hand." ~ Susanne Miesner
"There are many different schools of training – the one thing that is most important is the welfare of the horse, the one thing we must concentrate on is producing healthy and strong horses." ~ Emile Faurie
How would you ride this fence?? At what speed would you approach it? What should you be thinking about in the final strides before takeoff? (Click on Discussion Title above (in blue) to read and join in on this educational discussion)
"When training a riding horse, the aim is to introduce natural gymnastic work. This is the way to ensure that his joints become more supple and his stamina and muscle tone improve. The horse’s way of going is totally dependent on his muscles and the contraction and relaxation of the different muscle groups are essential for strengthening them. Cavalletti work is very useful for this because it develops strength in particular muscles by asking the horse to move in a specific and controlled way." ~ Ingrid Klimke
It is quite easy to let a poor transition slide by when you are working on something other than the quality of your transitions at that moment. But that will lead to bad habits, and the loss of the gymnastic value of the transition. No matter what you are specifically working on, make every transition count!
"When you relax your arms and feel the reins softly you need to feel that your horse wants to step into the contact. If you do not then he is behind your leg and seat." ~ Yvonne Barteau
"The back is the bridge in the horse, and it can only be there if the hind leg is really working. The rider has to influence the hind legs to build that bridge, otherwise it is a horse in three pieces, back, front and you somewhere in the middle." ~ Francis Verbeek
From member Sharon Fitzgerald ~ "Stopping on the third perfect response (if we are at least 20 minutes in) and getting off is a very effective training technique for solidifying work. Horses have near perfect memory. What I end on is often what I start with the next session. That sets the stage for progressive training. At this point, my horse knows I will vault off if he tries and succeeds at doing what is asked."
Take your time when riding transitions. Many riders seem to rush through them just to get them done. Be conscious of preparing for each one, and feeling all of the details while you are making the transition - being ready to abort the transition if things start to go wrong.
A reader asks… How does someone get over a traumatic fall? Basically, I had a fall several years ago and got hurt. It shook my confidence, etc. It took years to come back from it, but there are times where I still struggle with it. I think it's because at that time, my coach had told someone else that I should stop eventing, because of that spill and I had to hear it from the grapevine, but never from my coach. I've had people doubt my abilities as I was recovering; yet I was still riding and trying to move on, and 'practice my guts.' That spill wasn't even the worst one that I've had, yet it is one that has stuck with me. Why?
There are several parts to your question which I would like to address. The first is the question of “Why this fall?” Many riders have numerous falls or other horse related injuries and, for seemingly no reason at all, one of those falls or injuries sticks with us more than the others. I would be disingenuous if I was to claim to know with any certainty the answer to the question “Why?” What I can do is highlight some of the factors that may help determine the impact of any one incident. (Click on Question Title above (in blue) to read full answer)
Tip/Quote of the Day # 1737"Connection is the mirror of the entire horse, it’s the mirror of his balance, and it is a mirror of the degree of collection the horse is able to offer at this point in time." ~ Susanne MiesnerTip/Quote of the Day # 1736
When trying to improve the activity and engagement of your horse’s hind legs in downward transitions, think of a trot in place and dancing your way to the walk or halt.
A horse can turn lazy or become unresponsive to the aids within a single ride. It's up to YOU as his rider to make sure he is responsive to light aids!
If your horse struggles to maintain a consistent rhythm, think of using your breathing to help him stay regular. This is one reason why counting is so useful, as when you count, you will breathe in that rhythm.
It is such a common problem for horses to fall in on the circle when lunging. Many horses do it mostly in one direction (usually when circling to the right), but others do it both ways. Why is this such a problem?? Because not only is your lunging not productive at that point, but it is very hard on the horse's body and joints to be traveling so incorrectly. And most importantly, if your horse does this on the lunge, he probably has a tendency to try to do this under saddle as well! Read on for a specific exercise to help teach your horse to stand up straight around his corners and turns. (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
"The back is the bridge, and the energy is going from the hind end and the hocks over the back through the neck and into the mouth, and then back again." ~ Ernst Hoyos
Turn on the forehand and leg yield can be used to teach the horse that the rider's leg can mean something other than, "Go forward." The horse must understand this concept in these very basic movements before you will find much success with any of the more complicated lateral movements.
Question # 330: Kayla has a question about how to avoid the chair seat problem.How to find the balance between a chair seat and my new tendency to lean too far forward. Whenever I sit up straight, I fall way back on my butt again. I am finally getting back to the gym and I’ve been doing a lot of stretching because I know my hips are tight, but I swear it’s impossible to sit up straight on my seat bones and not have my feet out in front of me. (Kayla)
Hi Kayla!
You are correct in that a rider's tight hip flexors often cause the problem of the hard to fix "chair seat." Read this article for some ideas on how to help stretch them while in the saddle. The "legs away" and the "walking exercise" are two that will help with this specific problem. (Click on Question Title above (in blue) to read full answer) Tip/Quote of the Day # 1729If you rely on your knee grip to keep you in the saddle when jumping, you will usually be one stumble, buck, or sideways spook away from becoming unseated. Sinking into your heels and keeping an even leg distribution on the horse will give you the most security over fences. Tip/Quote of the Day # 1728
"I like to think of the tension in a Thoroughbred’s body as it seeks to learn the meaning of our aids as an intense desire to please us." ~ Steuart Pittman
What is Muscle Memory? If you've ever worked on your posture or a set of aids for a movement on your horse, you've probably heard the words "muscle memory.” But what is this mysterious thing? Is it something real or just a part of dressage riders’ folklore? Can we do anything to make our learning more efficient, or should we be suspicious of "automatic" riding as less creative? (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)
"Most of the riders ride with their upper body very stiff – especially their shoulders. If the stomach is in balance and in the position it should be, the shoulders are allowed to relax, and should relax. You need to be loose in your shoulders. As long as the rider is breathing in the upper body he is going to be too tight, too cramped to get the horse to go forward from a relaxed seat. The rider learns to breathe in the lower stomach and everything will relax. The weight will come into the saddle and the horse moves away from the aid of the weight. But if a rider cramps in the upper body, he cramps everywhere and is effectively unable to ride his horse." ~ Ernst Hoyos
