"How can the rider expect the horse to have confidence in his hands when this piece of metal is constantly moving in his mouth?" ~ HLM Van Schaik (Dutch Olympic Medalist)
"Your horse’s desire to go forward must be greater than your need to remind him. But he must stay calm in his mind and loose in his body." ~ Christine Traurig
This can be a fairly common problem for horses that start out with a strong fear of whatever their particular "bugaboo" fence is - ditches, water, trakehners, etc. Most, but not all, horses will come around with time, experience, and training. Here are a few things you can try: (Click on Question Title above (in blue) to read full answer) Tip/Quote of the Day # 1516"Think during your course walk. Ask yourself: 'What is difficult for my horse?'" ~ McLain WardTip/Quote of the Day # 1515
No one is in charge of your riding except for YOU.
Tip/Quote of the Day # 1514"Cavalletti work is so helpful to developing the horse over the back, and we can change the distance between the obstacles to encourage some shortening or lengthening of strides." ~ Ingrid KlimkeTip/Quote of the Day # 1513"It’s important to watch lots of top riders and watch lots of videos. Pick the riders you want to emulate and really analyse what they do. Always have that vision in your mind." ~ Bettina HoyTip/Quote of the Day # 1512
From Facebook fan Gabby Ballin ~ "Some rides are going to be perfect. Some rides are going to have you wondering why you don't quit riding. When that happens, take a deep breath and go back to something you know you and your horse can do easily."
Tip/Quote of the Day # 1511Make sure your inside leg is quietly on the horse before you begin a turn. Even though your outside aids actually turn your horse, your inside leg is the post that he needs to bend around. Many riders are caught out with their inside leg completely off, and only put it on when they find their horse is falling in through the turn. By that time, it is much harder to correct.Guest Blog post # 96: "Mr Ponderful" by Bill Woods
My regular students usually have come to understand the flow of our training process. That's not always the case when someone presents themselves at a clinic. Most times they are thinking "This is costing me a bundle. I better get a lot out of it!" From the clinician’s viewpoint, some problems are easy to unravel– more understandable aids or a better exercise to employ. Sometimes it's as simple as the rider misperceiving what their work actually looks like... (Click on Blog Title above to read full entry)
Tip/Quote of the Day # 1510On being ridden with conflicting aids - "Some horses can cope while others develop serious behaviour problems. As riders and trainers, we don’t always notice because horses don’t yelp and scream, they just show conflict behaviour. As humans, we often interpret that as ‘naughty’ behaviour. Perhaps one day it will be part of every horseman’s tool box to identify conflict behaviour in all its forms and see the horse as an entirely blameless participant in the training process." ~ Dr Andrew McLeanTip/Quote of the Day # 1509"One of the goals of dressage is to recreate the natural beauty of the horse’s gaits under the rider, so that the horse moves as beautifully under the weight of the rider as he does at liberty. In order to achieve this, the swinging of the horse’s back has to pass through the seat of the rider undiminished. The back has to be able to rise and fall with the same ease, regardless of the rider’s presence. If the rider merely sits passively, his weight alone can sometimes be enough to diminish the freedom of movement of the horse’s back. In these moments, the rider has to enhance the upswing of the horse’s back with an active contraction of his abdominal muscles, which helps the rider’s pelvis to swing more forward-upward, without tilting forward, however." ~ Thomas RitterTip/Quote of the Day # 1508
From Facebook fan Annette Gaynes ~ "The love affair with two point continues, and galloping in two point in the desert has us starting changes as I learned by accident how naturally she does them. So let the horse loosen up and go, even if you're a dressage rider, and good things may happen."
Always remember that horses are herd animals and read the emotional status of their herdmates to know when there is danger lurking ahead. Every time you ride or handle a horse, you become a part of your horse’s herd. When you tense up, he expects trouble. When you keep your cool, he takes confidence from you.
"Lightness, whose characteristic lies in the elastic and springy flexibility of all joints and muscles, can only be acquired after all resistances have completely disappeared, that is, with the disappearance of all inopportune contractions." ~ Alexis François L’Hotte
"On the whole, there are only few mouths that cannot be taught a good rein contact by giving the horse the appropriate degree of balance." ~ Borries v.Oeynhausen
It can often be helpful to have some NEW exercises to try to improve the issues that you spend every day working on. Many times something brand new and a little out of the norm can really push you past the slump you are in! Here is a trot pole exercise, best suited for horses and riders that are working at second level Dressage or above, that will increase your horse's suppleness, engagement, and rideability. It will also help to make him stronger, which will make everything that you ask easier for him! (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
This is a very common problem! Many horses get excited about jumping, and tend not to hear their rider's aids as easily as they do on the flat. With horses like this, riders need to make a conscious effort to show their horses how to apply their flatwork to their jumping... (Click on Question Title above (in blue) to read full answer) Tip/Quote of the Day # 1501
From Facebook fan Alysa Tarrant ~ "The best punishment for your horse is not to engage, so that he has no good reason to fight back."
"To the degree that the horse perfects his flexibility, his obedience increases and opposition decreases. As soon as the horse is completely flexible and through, his unconditional obedience is secured as well." ~ Ernst Friedrich Seidler
Tip/Quote of the Day # 1498"Let the horses jump, don’t interfere with their mouths, then you will see the difference in their expression, their ears are pricked, they are focused and going." ~ Clayton FredericksTip/Quote of the Day # 1497
An exercise to check if you are sitting straight and putting your weight equally down into both stirrups is to stand straight up for a few strides, and notice which stirrup you have to consciously put more weight into to keep yourself balanced.
Does this sound like you? A woman came to my clinic with a fancy but difficult horse whom she had recently acquired. The horse was a schoolmaster and knew lots of tricks, but he had been ridden the last few years only in a double bridle. His poll was very high, his topline very short with the underneck muscles bulging. He wanted to run against the hand and be very heavy in the reins... (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)
"Regular stretching is so very important. Without it, the horse will not develop a correct, well muscled top line, especially the muscling behind the saddle." ~ Carl Hester
"Horses have taught us that progress in learning takes place in an environment of contentment. Fear and tension block success. Boundaries must exist, be clear, and be consistent. Within those boundaries our horses are encouraged to express themselves." ~ Steuart Pittman
"Just because your horse goes around with his nose in, doesn't mean he is on the bit. And just because you can make him go sideways doesn't make him Second Level." ~ Bill Woods
Try to make it a habit to always pet with your inside hand when rewarding your horse under saddle. There are several reasons for this. First of all, you want to be in in the habit of keeping your outside rein connection consistent. And it is also a good way to create a habit of softening the inside rein - which is something a rider should do often.
Tip/Quote of the Day # 1491True harmony between horse and rider can only be achieved when BOTH horse and rider are balanced and in self carriage. A rider cannot give clear and precise aids when they are not independently balanced. And a horse cannot answer a riders aids very well when not in balance and self carriage. Tip/Quote of the Day # 1490
Tightly clamped thighs make you lose your nice deep seat, and drive the horse's back down into a hollow position.
Recently beyond the "how" I discussed why you should ride accurate arena figures. If you’re having a problem of execution, preplanning and visualization can help. Try to compose a... (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)
From Facebook fan Jenny Ferro ~ "When schooling babies over XC make sure you make it fun, enjoyable, encouraging, and let them figure out how to get themselves out of a bind. Sit up, look up, and kick on!"
Many riders tend to think of the lateral movements as something that you need to be good at to show the judge as you perform them in the Dressage ring. But riders should actually be thinking about using the various lateral exercises as tools, used judiciously to make improvements in the way the horse is moving and carrying himself.
Much like treating an illness with exactly the right medicine to resolve that specific illness... A rider needs to know exactly what specific lateral movement their horse NEEDS at any particular moment - to improve alignment, straightness, throughness, engagement, and evenness in the reins. Here are 10 examples of problems that you might encounter with your horse, and the specific lateral exercises that you can use to help fix them! (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
"I love hot horses. I hate kicking. I’m a lazy rider. I love to just sit and steer." ~ Charlotte Dujardin
Tip/Quote of the Day # 1486The concept of collection is often best introduced to the horse in the canter, as that is often the gait that the horse finds it easiest to learn how to "sit" more behind. Tip/Quote of the Day # 1485
The old masters learned early on that riding accurate arena patterns is the key for improving a horse's balance and straightness. Always keep this in mind in your training.
If you want your horse to build the right topline muscling, you need to ensure that they are truly connected and moving correctly through their bodies while you do things like hillwork and cavaletti. If you do these things with a horse that is hollow backed and not using his body correctly, you will only build the muscles that push the horse along, not those that help him carry himself properly with ease.
"A good rider lives on the small number of good steps and he builds on them. He forgets about the bad things. Inexperienced riders think mostly about the bad things." ~ Kyra Kyrklund
The purpose of transitions is not just to get from one gait to the next. But to do so in a way that further gymnasticizes the horse, and improves his carriage.
“If the leg is required at every stride to maintain the impulsion then it is necessary to return to the basic priorities again in order to teach the horse to remain active and forward thinking without constant use of the leg.” ~ Chris Bartle
