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Case Study: Tucker
As we
continue to work on the various building block exercises that create
a solid foundation for our horses, we need to make sure we construct
them in order. Just like you would with any structure, you build in
logical steps to ensure the foundation is strong. Over the last ten
months we have done a series of exercises that have helped to give
us control over the various parts of our horse. In our previous
exercises, we have gained control over the jaw, pole, neck, ribcage
and hindquarters. The last thing we need to work on is gaining
control of the shoulder. We need to be able to control and to soften
the shoulder. This allows us to ask our horse to turn on its
haunches, to do spins, and in conjunction with hip control, to open
gates, perform leg yields, pick-up the correct leads and to do
flying lead changes.
When
we first started working on giving to the bit, we established the
horse going forward in a nice circle, bending and softening from the
neck down through the shoulder. To work on shoulder control, we are
now going to expand on that exercise. We want the horse going
forward consistently with a nice bend through the body. It is very
important that at this point, if you are encountering any resistance
– you do not attempt this exercise. The go forward and bend must be
relaxed and consistent. If you are encountering resistance, spend
some time isolating the problem and then go back to the exercises
designed to address that particular issue. Again, we are trying to
build a strong foundation – not a house of cards. It’s critical that
we do not move on to the next step until we have those solid blocks
in place at each level.
Assuming your horse is not displaying resistance, please practice
the following riding exercises with a snaffle bit. First establish a
12-15 foot circle with a nice go forward and a soft bend. Next add
some inside leg, while opening your right leg and right rein as a
door for the horse. You should then ask the horse to use that door
with the inside leg and rein, to take one or two steps over. At this
point be looking for the nose to come toward the point of the
shoulder. You may need to bump with your inside leg (not the spur),
to get the reaction you are wanting – which is the one or two steps.
Keep bumping until you get that step or two. You will probably
experience resistance in the jaw as this is a new maneuver. Simply
maintain your rein aids until the jaw gives and then release
momentarily before continuing in the direction of the circle you
started with.
For
example, for bending in a fifteen foot circle to the left, we ask
the horse to move its shoulder to the right and then finish going
left on the circle. There is an important reason to always
resume the circle immediately after the release: If we always pick
up on the rein and ask the shoulder to move over, the horse will
learn to bleed out the shoulder. By finishing off the exercise with
the directional control of going to the left (or the right for right
directional circles) rather than ending with the release, we help
ensure the horse does not learn to bleed out the shoulder.
As
you progress with this exercise, you will likely find that the
shoulder starts leading further than the hips. At that point start
thinking of the shoulders and hips as a set of speakers. We always
want appropriate balance in our speakers and it’s up to you to
adjust the dial. Because we have already taught the horse to turn on
the forehand, we can use this to help the hip catch up with the
shoulder -- and then only release when the shoulder and hip are
working together. This is great suppling exercise. It can be done on
the trail and is especially effective coming back downhill, as you
then also have gravity working for you. You can do a leg yield to
the right, change reins and do a leg yield to the left. Next thing
you know you look like a drunken sailor coming down hill. At least
you’ll look like a drunken sailor with a very supple horse!
The
next exercise to work on will be Counter Arc Bends. Again you start
out with a nice soft circle. You will then open your right rein as
if you are going to ask the shoulder to move over, but you will
continue to ask the horse to move to the right. In effect you will
be creating a new circle, with the shoulder leading to the right but
with the horse’s nose and head bent slightly to the outside (left).
You will want to build on this until you can do a complete circle
with the horse maintaining this posture. Not only does this soften
the shoulder and increase your control, but it also nicely
establishes a supporting rein. This means that if you are riding a
regular circle and the horse starts to bulge out at the shoulder,
the right rein can support the shoulder from going out.
These
exercises for shoulder control are especially important if you have
a horse that drops its shoulders – which can be very dangerous. A
great example of this is a horse I worked with a few years back. One
of my clients named Linda brought in a quarter horse named Tucker.
Tucker was a sorrel gelding a bit over 16 hands. Nice horse, good
mind. No real issues except for one. Tucker was the most radical
shoulder dropper I have ever worked with. It was to the point that
when you were cantering down the long rail to make a turn, he
dropped his shoulder so bad that you felt like you were going to
come off him. And if you did not have a good seat at the time – you
likely would be hitting the ground.
So
with Tucker we did these shoulder control exercises extensively.
First a left circle at the walk, making sure he was soft, consistent
and yielding before then doing the circles to the right. Once he was
solid in both directions, we did the same thing but at the trot, and
then finally the canter. Next we did this same exercise but in a
square pattern, enforcing the shoulder control at sharp ninety
degree turns. Again, working in one direction at the walk until
every turn was consistent, and then doing the exercise in the
opposite direction. Finally we then took the exercise to the next
level by working in a hexagon pattern. A tip for novice riders:
always look in the direction that you want to turn before you
actually ask for the turn. To swivel your head and shoulders, even
subtly, to prepare for a turn becomes a pre-cue for your horse. They
feel all those shifts in your body position, and when done
consistently, your horse will learn to respond to these pre-cues.
I
will tell you that we were able to fix about 90% of Tucker’s problem
within the first thirty minutes. By going back to basics when we
needed to re-establish shoulder control with Tucker, we solidified
all his other cues as well. Once that was accomplished, we then had
a nicely balanced horse that was also upright. When you have those
things, you can begin working on transitions.
While
we will discuss transitions (as well as change of direction
exercises) next month, let me tell you a bit about why I think they
are such a fantastic training tool. Whether a walk-to-trot
transition, halt-to-trot transition, walk-to-canter transition, or
any of the downward transitions – you cannot do too many transition
exercises! Our goal is to teach the horse to transition off our
seat, with the rein being the last thing. Transitions also establish
half halts, which greatly help horses with collection and teaching
them to engage. Best perhaps, is the mental exercise horses get with
transition exercises, they really learn to listen to your seat and
leg aids. And if you have a horse that is too forward – performing
halt-to-trot and then trot-to-halt transitions really helps engage
their minds and focus on you while getting them to slow down.
Please remember you can email me at
cwtraining@comcast.net if you have any questions. We also have a
complimentary newsletter available that we are doing every 6-8
weeks. You can sign-up for that on our website at http://www.cwtraining.com.
Until
next month,
Charles Wilhelm |
